Helping One Another
Mar 28, 2008 07:54AM
- 0 comments
Well, another weekend is upon us. I feel as if I am making good progress. My wife and are going to Tennessee for the weekend with some friends and then we have to get ready for a two week trans atlantic cruise! Wow, just two months ago, I did not think that I would be able to do it, but I am actually VERY excited about it. I feel as if I am finally getting my life back. Now, I understand, that I will have set backs and that there are bad days mixed in with the good; that is the definition of life.
It was also kind of interesting yesterday when we were at the grocery store. As most of you know I have health anxiety associated with BP and the heart. Well, in January this automatic cuff was reading my bp at very high levels. Since I had been nervous and freaking out for months, I avoided thme, but I actually went and used it when I was with my wife. It was normal. I say this because, once again, I need to learn to trust the doctors; they were not concerned and told me as my anxiety went down, my numbers would go down also. Futhermore, if you take multiple readings a day, it could be really high at one time and low the other because of the flucuations from eating, stress, exercise, etc. So if I have a high reading again, I just need to learn to remember that this pattern does not stay with me over a period of months if I calm down.
Ok, enough about symptoms. I wish everyone a truly blessed and happy weekend. Do not give up! You WILL get better. This experience has taught me many things (once again) and I have focused my attention in more productive ways. My wife and I have been in contact with some of our college alumni and I think we are going to go on a trip to South Africa to help out with HIV patients for a couple of weeks this summer.
When we go through these problems with panic and anxiety we often feel alone and question why this is happening. I believe when we take a step back and look at people around us, EVERYONE is facing some challange in one form or the other. I have friends/family fighting Cancer, my best friend has marital problems, etc. Life throws many challanges at us and we must learn to take our suffering and turn it into something good. By the way, that is what everyone is doing in this forum. Because of what YOU have/are experiancing, you have been able to touch and help many lives, so make sure everyone here gives themselves a pat on the back!
It was also kind of interesting yesterday when we were at the grocery store. As most of you know I have health anxiety associated with BP and the heart. Well, in January this automatic cuff was reading my bp at very high levels. Since I had been nervous and freaking out for months, I avoided thme, but I actually went and used it when I was with my wife. It was normal. I say this because, once again, I need to learn to trust the doctors; they were not concerned and told me as my anxiety went down, my numbers would go down also. Futhermore, if you take multiple readings a day, it could be really high at one time and low the other because of the flucuations from eating, stress, exercise, etc. So if I have a high reading again, I just need to learn to remember that this pattern does not stay with me over a period of months if I calm down.
Ok, enough about symptoms. I wish everyone a truly blessed and happy weekend. Do not give up! You WILL get better. This experience has taught me many things (once again) and I have focused my attention in more productive ways. My wife and I have been in contact with some of our college alumni and I think we are going to go on a trip to South Africa to help out with HIV patients for a couple of weeks this summer.
When we go through these problems with panic and anxiety we often feel alone and question why this is happening. I believe when we take a step back and look at people around us, EVERYONE is facing some challange in one form or the other. I have friends/family fighting Cancer, my best friend has marital problems, etc. Life throws many challanges at us and we must learn to take our suffering and turn it into something good. By the way, that is what everyone is doing in this forum. Because of what YOU have/are experiancing, you have been able to touch and help many lives, so make sure everyone here gives themselves a pat on the back!