I'm not quite "over-the-hill," yet I am facing my mortality as though I were over 60. At the insistence and encouragement of one of my faithful blog readers, I have decided to talk about my recent health issues. On the eve of Thursday, October 8th I began experiencing an excruciating headache, ringing in my ears, and blurred vision. Later that night I fell in front of my family...because both my legs simply quit working. You would think that would be enough to send me running for the nearest ER, but despite my husband's insistence that I see a doctor (after he gets back from the soccer game and can drive me, lol), I declined ( I didn't want to pay the $100 ER deductible our health insurance requires...how sad is that). That night I suffered severe vertigo...I nearly cried from the pain and nausea caused from the "merry-go-round" effect when I'd lay down. My head and body had such a strange and adverse sensation that I swear I could literally feel myself "dying." By the next morning my face was tingling from numbness and the vertigo was worse...I knew something was dangerously wrong. Again I didn't rush to the ER, but called for an appointment to see my neurologist immediately. After an extensive exam, which also showed I had lost sensation in my feet and hands, I was sent to Heritage Medical Center for an MRI and subsequently admitted to CCU; where I was strapped to a cardio monitor; hooked to an IV drip containing a blood thinner and later injected twice daily in the abdomen; and had so much blood drawn I was beginning to feel like a snack-pack from the movie "Twilight." The diagnoses: the blood vessels in my neck were spasming, causing them to narrow and constrict blood flow to the brain (thus, cutting off oxygen to the brain). I was enduring pre-stroke, and was just hours...even minutes...from suffering a potentially life-threatening [massive] stroke. I've been home just under two weeks, during which time I've had to undergo many life-altering changes. The most important--stress reduction and diet. Stress reduction because I juggle way too much on way too little sleep. Diet because I was just told I am diabetic, and I have a tendency to skip meals and eat a lot of fast food with my kids...and I could use a 15-20 pound drop. It's only been a short time, and I know I have a long road ahead, but I have changed my eating habits dramatically--and I've lost 6 pounds in doing so. I now eat 3-4 small meals consisting of one lean meat (usually baked/grilled fish or chicken), and 2-3 small portions of vegetables. I allow myself a sensible snack in the morning and one at night (unless I choose to eat the 4 meals instead). This has helped bring my blood sugar down to within high-end normal range (most days). It's a start. Cutting out the stress has been a little tougher. Business has been slow thanks to the poor economy, so money is tight. This means working even harder to bring sales up, thus cutting into sleep time. I juggle charity/volunteer work, home schooling, and daily household "chores," which is even more difficult given my many heath woes. Anyone who parents children can relate, I'm sure. I'm still working on fixing this area of my life. I've chosen to look at this whole ordeal as a "wake-up call" from God. It's time to get in shape and cut out the excess "waste" in my life before it's too late. Sometimes it feels like I'm being punished for something from a past life--I've been afflicted with FMS, CFS, Myasthenia Gravis, degenerative disk disease, type II diabetes, and stroke...keep in mind I'm under 40 and only slightly overweight. But my rational side knows that it's just the luck of the [health] draw. My advice to anyone reading this is simple--poor health can come on fast and with no warning. There are many "Silent Killers," and no one is invincible. Eat right, get plenty of exercise AND rest. It's important to see your doctor regularly, and for goodness sake, don't wait as long as I did when symptoms start. Minutes can make the difference between life and death. For more information on stroke prevention, you may visit http://www.stroke.org/ Follow-up: t-g commenter "gottago" just brought up a good question/statement regarding exercise amounts. Because my doctor told me to take it easy for two weeks, today is actually be my first day of exercise since the last TIA stroke. My aunt, who also lives with diabetes (as do my mother, uncle...and both grandmothers who have now passed away from stroke/heart attack) gave me a low-impact exercise video called "Keep Moving!...Keep Healthy with Diabetes". It's a work-out video designed by Joslin Diabetes Center specifically for people with diabetes or pre-diabetes and features low-impact exercises designed for people who have physical limitations or are new to exercise programs. I tried it today for the 1-mile course (it has varying levels per mile, and you can increase as you get accustomed to the daily strain). It's a great video and I will use it when I'm not dealing with an FMS "flare-up." But because of my difficulties with Fybromyalgia Syndrome (FMS), I prefer water aerobics...they are a great work-out/exercise with less strain/impact on your muscles and joints than traditional aerobics. This is my preferred method of exercise if I can get to a pool or even in our "over-sized" [whirlpool jets] bath. I try to get in at least 30 minutes of exercise each day--that's not including chasing after my toddler or running errands--but actual "work-out" exercise. Here is a great chart to use as a guideline if you are counting calories like I now do: Calories Burned Per 30 Minutes* Bicycling 272 Cross-country skiing 255 Gardening 170 Golfing (walking with clubs) 187 Hiking 204 Ice skating/roller skating 204 Kayaking/canoeing 170 Racquetball 238 Snowshoeing 272 Swimming 272 Tennis 238 Volleyball (casual) 102 *Burn rates are for a person who weighs 150 pounds. Lighter people will burn fewer calories; heavier people will burn more. From 759 Secrets for Beating Diabetes