Day 304 Hoping To Help and Living On The Outskirts of Tragedy

Day 304

Hoping To Help and Living On The Outskirts of Tragedy

Very rarely, but sometimes I don't know where to begin. I got home not too long ago and found an e-mail from Tammy, a fellow weight loss blogger, who is doing wonderful I must say! She had discovered my Day 135 “Thank You Letter To Morbid Obesity.” That post touched her and compelled her to include it in a post she titled “Sean's Letter.” You can find her post here:
http://foodaddict-fromfattofab.blogspot.com/2009/07/seans-letter.html Reading her post brought me to tears, right back where I was when I originally posted the letter. But it wasn't the letter that touched me the most this time, it was her reaction, her genuine, sincere words about it's effect on her. I have to tell you, it is a wonderful blessing to be able to share my story and journey out of morbid obesity and to be able to connect with people on such a profound level. I'm further blessed by numerous blog friends that have inspired me along the way. It's truly an honor to be in your company. Thank you.

I visited the gentleman with the heart condition today. I shared my story with him, I explained where I was emotionally and physically before and on Day 1. I explained to him what I've done and how I've done it...with the food and exercise fundamentals---and a bigger focus on the biggest element: the mental part. I talked about my “Calorie Bank and Trust,” I spoke of the “Steel Curtain Zone.” I talked about the power of a decision. I gave him a weight loss seminar in his living room. And I suggested he consult his doctor about all of this first and foremost. But I don't know if he was listening, really listening. I hope and pray he was, but I got the feeling he wasn't. I've done all I can do. I hope he gets the help he really needs.

I picked up a prescription today that Irene was given by her doctor for a sinus infection. I got home, gave her the bag and told her to take it before she left for work. She almost did, but stopped just in time to notice the label was for a medicine in the penicillin family of drugs. I'll never forget the day we discovered Irene's deadly allergy to penicillin. It was more than a decade ago, nearly 14 years actually, I was on my way to work, ready to leave our little apartment. We didn't even have a home phone and we only had one car at the time. Irene had just taken her medicine and I was running late. As I bolted for the door, Irene begged me to stay. Something was wrong. I told her I had to leave and that she should lay down and rest. As she struggled to breath, the look of fear in her eyes immediately gave me chills and I snapped to attention. I'll never forget that look of I'm dying, don't leave, help me. I rushed her to the hospital and she collapsed on the floor clutching her medicine bottles as she walked inside. They saved her life in that emergency room that day. Today, the circumstances were different, but the result could have been deadly. She was given the wrong prescription, not by the pharmacy, but by the doctors office. Very scary. Let this serve as a reminder, always check those bottles, always.

I felt something strange in my right leg this evening. When I discovered what felt like a long hardened vein, I got scared. Deep vein thrombosis is a deadly condition, and I immediately started thinking the worst. This rock solid vein stretched from the middle of my lower right leg all the way up to my upper, inner thigh. I didn't tell anyone what was up, and I quickly made my way to the urgent care clinic. The doctor on duty examined me and quickly decided to send me directly to the emergency room across the street for an ultra sound. At this point I was getting extremely worried. I was scared. This can't be happening, I thought. I prayed and I prayed. I had friends that prayed. I just kept thinking of what a horrible irony it would be if this turned bad. I finally get my life turned in the right direction away from an early death from obesity and then bam, deep vein thrombosis kills me. The waiting for the test results was brutal. I figured that I could tell if the results were bad based on how the ER staff came back in the room. If they were hurried and carrying a syringe of super strength blood thinners, then it wasn't a good test. But I was peaceful in knowing that I would be taken care of regardless. When the door opened, the doctor walked in at a normal pace and told me everything was fine. The clot was in a superficial vein, not a deep vein situation. The prayers were answered. Thank you. I left with fairly simple instructions and zero prescriptions. Try to rest the leg, apply heat to the affected area, take aspirin as a mild blood thinner, and ibuprofen as an anti-inflammatory. I would be just fine.

I didn't think much about food today, but I did manage to consume 1470 calories, with 500 coming late, right before writing tonight's blog. I enjoyed a lean hamburger patty with mustard and a turkey sandwich with low calorie whole wheat. Kind of a strange dinner, but it worked. I do not feel one tiny bit guilty for not working out tonight. I was a tiny bit pre-occupied.

Thank you for reading and following my journey through this most wonderful transformation. Goodnight and...

Good Choices,
Sean