HEAL THYSELF

Having to deal with chronic pain makes one think of ways to either drug themselves out so they do not have to feel.. or Stand up.. Take charge and find something that works with out drug intervention..
I have gone the drug path.. and it was a disaster..that was a couple years ago.. Most often I just suck it up and move on.. but sometimes the pain just screams.. I try not to listen to it.. but the ear ringing can drive me bonkers.. the ringing in my ears is related to the Fibro I believe as well the IBS and the other side issues I deal with when I have a flair up  It can be very depressing...
Recently I have decided to take the depression and turn it around.. in other words.. why let the dark cloud take over.. why not just take charge.. even if it is not the norm. I have been exploring other forms of treatment for my PTTS. as well as my Fibro. since my orthopedic doctor is moving on and I have to start over anyway.. he wants to send me to a doctor he likes.. which is fine however I would basically be starting over treating my foot.  but I wonder if going the way of a physiatrist (a medical doctor who specializes in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R) .. might be a good path.... so I am not sure but its  something I will explore. I find it  interesting because here is one doctor that can treat all of my chronic pain from the PTTS to the chest wall pain to the Fibromyalgia.
Our Dinner was great last night.. baked potatoes with vegetarian Chili spooned on top.. yum.. I added a little fat free Greek yogurt to give it a more creamy texture and sprinkled a little 2%  shredded cheddar cheese on it.. absolutely wonderful.. and very filling... its kinda strange in that we have found we eat more types of what would be considered Starches  and a lot more fruit and vegetables...than ever before yet we are losing weight.. I guess all this whole grain , whole food ... plant based goodness is true.. if you follow it.. and again  it is not easy.. Its hard to pass up all the other stuff.. but sometimes feeling better outweighs something that might taste good for a few seconds.. I am also exploring foods that reduce inflammation.. that may be a lot of hokem I do not know yet.. but supposedly you can eat certain things that help reduce inflammation.. ..
Well time to get into the world and start working..  Protein shake  for breakfast and apple for mid morning snack and water through out the day.. coming up.. not sure about lunch..
 Oh one thing i wanted to share...  I was at the store and noticed aside from regular vegetarian frozen fair .. Lean Cuisine and Healthy Choice are venturing into the market.. here is some info I found:
VEGGIE CUISINE  and some photos

I bought the Tuscan Style Lasagna to try for lunch one day... Sometimes these products are hit or miss will let you know what I think when I try it.
Have a great day !

GOING FORWARD

So much going on... I keep thinking we are going to have some down time but it does not look like it..
We did some great cooking over the last week,, Vegetarian Chili... OUTSTANDING,  Vegetable Soup OUTSTANDING.. Baked Eggplant Parmesan a hit to the last bit...
I have been silently reading a lot of blogs lately..  Seems most everyone has the same story they had a year or so ago... and out of that dust there are Success stories... some are very inspiring...
I think reaching the point in  your life where you can truly lose weight and get yourself healthy takes  time.. preferably not your whole life...
IT IS REALLY NOT EASY~
  We are going into 2 months of eliminating certain foods and changing the way we eat.. both of us have had significant weight loss... I hate saying with out trying.. but it feels like we have not been trying..  I guess its more that we are doing new things and that occupies the hard factor...the hardest thing we have had to deal with is the hunger issue.. however we are finding there are more recipes than not that yield meals that are filling and stay with us.. 
It is a learning experience~ we just purchased the Idiots guide to plant based eating....and that is a great basic guide following Dr. Mcdougall and Drs. Campbell and Esselstyn... now they really want you to go VEGAN..  but we are taking it one step at a time...
SO we go forward with our transition..  Got a lot going on this week with the holidays approaching later in the week ( Erev Rosh Hashanah and Rosh Hashanah Day ) we only have two big meals to contend with  as opposed 3 or 4  like others I know... My aunts are great  about having lots of salads and veggies to choose from... so we should have not problem.. we probably will eat the chicken...
We were looking at definitions last night... as we go forward with  exploring being vegetarian.. and found one that fits us for now. Flexitarian.. that is one who eats primarily a plant based diet but will eat Chicken and Fish on occasion. They break down Lacto and ovo vegetarians as well.. being people who will eat dairy ( lacto)  to people who will just eat eggs ( ovo)  or both..
Well off to keep working on Monday..
Have a great day!.

A DIFFERENT MENU

When you change your way of eating a lot of things happen, you might go through withdrawals , you might feel not so chipper until the new way of eating sets in... You might feel anxious  etc...
Well I am happy to say the only issue we have had to deal with is excessive hunger... in other  words  yes we are eating  good veggie meals.. but we never quiet get full.. and learning to live with that new feeling... Comfortable but not stuffed.. is ..... different... Its not horrible but it does take time to get used to...SO we are learning.. yesterday I   got to try an  artisan bread  sandwich stuffed with cold grilled squash, grilled onion , tomato, arugula, cucumber and other seasonal veggies... we had baked beat chips with a few baked sweet potato chips as well.. for dinner I had a caprice salad and that was it.. the hunger was there but it was not terrible.. and I slept well too... still learning new things every day.... which is very very good..
Not sure how far into this we will go .... but we still are heading that way... here is a breakfast recipe  we have found interesting and plan on trying  soon for a sunday family brunch..:
THIS is from  E2

INGREDIENTS Serving Size      spelt flour - 2 ounces oat flour - 2 ounces baking powder - 1 teaspoon flaxseed meal (ground) - 1 ounces milk substitute (soy) - 3 ounces applesauce - 1 ounces honey (or agave nectar) - 1 teaspoon vanilla - 1 teaspoon blueberries - 2 ounces

DIRECTIONS

Whisk the flours, baking powder, flax seed meal, and salt together in a large bowl. Combine the wet ingredients in another bowl. Form a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the wet ingredients. Stir the batter just until the dry ingredients are thoroughly moistened; it will seem very thin, but it will thicken. Let the batter rest for 15 minutes (spelt flour takes a little longer to absorb liquids). If you can’t wait, your pancakes won’t be as crisp. After the batter has rested, fold in the blueberries. Cook according to directions for E2 Basics Pancakes. here they are: Combine the mix and the liquid in a large bowl, stirring to remove lumps. Heat a dry skillet until a drop of water dances on its surface. Spraying the skillet once should allow for three batches of pancakes. Ladle a large scoop of batter into the pan. Several pancakes can be cooked at once if you’re using a large skillet. Cook until the batter begins to bubble and the bottom of the pancake is golden. Flip and cook on the other side until both sides are golden. enjoy... here is the link to the E2  recipe site...ENGINE 2

 

OCD

I don't talk about it often ... My sister has OCD... in the early days over 28 years ago... she was obsessed with cleanliness.. I would pull her out of the shower, I saw the skin on her hands peel off....
Now its ritualistic... for example she can not turn on and off a light switch with out a routine.. with out a ritual set of steps she has to do... getting dressed , same thing... basically every aspect of her life is affected... she can not throw out a coke bottle or can with out a specific set of steps.. ( I learned this today and the light switch as well.. )  I watch her and it makes me sad... her battle with in..
If you saw her you would not see it... and if you watched her... you might see it... but if you know what to look for... well as I said it just makes me sad..  She is here visiting..
It makes me think about those of us that are working to change our bodies.. or are trying to get healthier for whatever reason.... We.. as a whole are fixable... for us the solutions are many and somewhat simple.. for my sister not so much....
Well still have some work today.. busy week ahead...
Have a great one.. not sure how much I will post this week due to the shows...

FOOD SHOW TIME

SERIOUSLY BUSY WEEK... not sure how much I will be around...
Had done a super post and the stupid thing never saved... will try and work on it again later.. damn...

SERIOUS RESEARCH GOING ON HERE

FOR  a week now We have been researching  the Forks over Knives programs.. and reviewing each of the doctors plans.... the jest is eating Plant based foods.. Whole foods.. NO meat, NO Dairy , No Animal Fat and in  a couple of the plans no OIL whatsoever not even olive oil...  the two easist plans to follow are the Engine 2  plan and Dr. Mcdougalls plan.. they allow for the most variety and creativity in the kitchen and explain in easier terms what to eat and what not to eat... lots of recipes as well.. and shopping in places like Costco Walmart and Publix and going to Specialty stores like health food based stores as needed for certain but not neccessary product... so its a bit easier to follow.. It will be a a HUGE HUGE HUGE thing for Steve to stop eating meat... its how he grew up, he was a butcher growing up... and meat was all 3 meals in some form... since we have been together he eats a lot less meat... and since he had prostate cancer even less.. so I am hoping as we come up with meat substitutes he adapts.. all though he said  that every now and then he will have to have a steak... I know how he feels giving up Dairy is a MASSIVE thing for me... but for both of us a lot of the substitutes so far we like.. Steve loves Lentils... I love soy based products like light soy milk.. ... the week after next ( after the 3 food shows this week) .. we are  going to cut out the meat.. , Steve is not ready to give up fish or chicken yet... but he said he would.. eventually ... He does not want to jump 1000 percent into it and then quit.. we both know thats how we would do it and have had to stop ourselves from jumping right in and being obssessed with it.. .we are eliminating things   so far white bread is gone, so far meat is has been cut out by 3/4ths... chicken and fish are still there... most cheese is gone ( THAT IS HUGE) and we are looking for soy replacements for that as well..  instead of snacking on chips today we snacked on cauliflower with a special homemade light dressing.. . I love that Dr. Mcdougall gives you a list of foods to use.. to help you... and most are foods you can find anywhere... This is a huge serious step for us... to totally change our way of eating and be in the food business selling items that are .. less than healthy.. but this is something that is very livable and can be done... I dont know if we will ever go to the extreme end of the program..Nothing that has a mother, or eyses , no dairy, no fat whatsoever, no Nuts,  we might .. but for now. the other  2 programs are pretty intense.. and that is  going to be our starting part.. Steve has said he would like to be totally on board  no meat at all by  next spring... that means no chicken or fish either... its easier for me because I really like the idea of a vegan way of eating... simply because I feel better.. ... ..we shall see where this takes us....

FAIR FOOD ITS THAT TIME AGAIN

Follow this link .. .its an older post but well worth checking out... what in the hell is fried PEPSI ... lol... 
great article from the blog novice chef... THE NOVICE CHEF
Well  I was taking a quick break... back to work..


Have a great day!..

FORKS OVER KNIVES

We watched a phenomenal documentary the other evening called Forks over Knives... FORKSOVERKNIVES website . the website is a good place to peruse and read about the doc, as well as read about the doctors who did this documentary.. It makes you think about what you eat and what it does to your body and how you can turn food into medicine .. let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food said Hippocrates ... They discuss living on a plant based diet and how it can reverse and stop heart disease and many other aliments that are masked and not cured with medications.. How we eat and what we eat is carefully examined I highly recommend this documentary .. you find even find it on Netflix now..
Steve and I are researching this heavily and are contemplating me going for one of the sessions at Dr. Mcdougalls clinic to learn more and really get started on a totally different way of life... for now though I am reading all I can and reading the recommended books  so i can learn about this.. it would be a tremendous change.. There are plenty of videos to watch on all the doctors websites.. and I am going through those now.. Dr. Caldwell has a very strict program, and so does Dr Esseltyn... Dr. Mcdougall has a very user friendly site as well as providing a list of good foods  to eat .. he is also the one with the clinic and his program is a bit easier to follow and to me seems the most reasonable way to start... Former President Bill Clinton lost all his weight and improved his heart health with  Dr. Dean Ornish as well as Dr. Esselstyn and Dr. Campbell.. its a whole new way of eating and one that deserves some  attention.. I have never looked at being a Vegan until I  started exploring all of this.
I have had  Migraine symptoms since Thursday due to a new pill  the gyn wanted me to try .. BIG DISASTER I am now on the original pill hopefully I will get back to normal soon..i do not like changing things when everything is going smoothly even my internist thought it was a bit wrong to take me off of what was working fine..
Life goes on...
Here is a link to Recipes from Dr.MCDougall the cooking program instructor is Alex Bury
RECIPES

FOOD LISTS

EASY RECIPES WITH GREAT FLAVOR

The  hot wrap up of summer brings to mind two favorite recipes.. 
We enjoyed both for dinner last night and have plenty of the tunafish to enjoy for the next day or two..


The first recipe is for my tunafish salad...
I have finally come up with a great recipe I am really enjoying and so does everyone I share it with..
 Tuna fish Salad
4 cans white albacore tuna packed in water  
half   Red or Orange pepper
half sweet (preferably Vidalia) onion coarsely chopped
1  heaping tablespoon minced roasted garlic ( I use a jar brand) 
Light helmans or Kraft Mayo.. in this house we do not like the flavor of fat free.
1 large stalk celery coarsly chopped
heaping dollop of sweet relish
a dash of pepper
1 tablespoon smart balance olive oil spread


Directions


 Saute on medium heat  chopped onion and garlic with tablespoon of smart balance olive oil spread.


while onions and garlic saute


DRAIN the Tuna WELL!
Put tuna in a bowl  toss and break up big pieces  
add relish, pepper, dash of pepper, celery


after onions and garlic are a nice semi translucent  or even crispy a little bit ( if you like it that way) 
add to mixture .. toss well... add Mayo and Mix well be sure the tuna is nice and flaked...  be sure and use just enough mayo to hold it all together.. no need to over use the mayo... you just want the mayo as the glue factor...  Less is more... 
Let get chilled and enjoy
the next day  it even gets better  YUM!   


Caprise Salad light


1 pint grape or cherry tomatos  rinsed
5 sticks light  string   cheese sliced up
splash olive oil
splash balsamic vinegar
fresh Basil about 4 or 5 large leaves  coarsely cut


In bowl  add tomatos,  and other ingredients ..use just enough olive oil and balsamic vinegar to taste.. i love balsamic vinegar so I use a good splash..
This sald needs to be chilled and served... 
* because the cheese is not full fat mozzeralla  it will not be as moist... and really only holds up for the one serving.. buts a a very tasty salad..
Enjoy and have a great Labor day weekend..

BAH HEAT

So its the first of September and all I want is for the weather to finally CHILL OUT... we need some cool weather.. a cool breeze...   we need RAIN big time... fall can not come fast enough...
We are preping for a big food show coming up in 2 weeks... we have 3 shows that week.. 1 in Miss. 2 in Alabama... its gonna be crazy!... 
Today is laundry day can I get a whOOOO HOOO ... wow.. ... 
Shake is taken... water is being consumed now..  and waiting for the first load to come out of the wash.. and getting some work done in the process.. today is a stay at home day.. which is fine by me.. not many places I want to go in this heat..
Tomorrow AM  we take Baz for his senior or geriatric check up at the vet... he can hardly get up in the mornings now.. it takes him a while to get moving .. once he does he is in good shape...  
He has gotten very demanding in his old age... he does not like to be outside alone in the back yard... in fact he does not like to be outside anymore ...he will bark like a seal until he is let in... he is dumpster diving big time.. goes into all the waste baskets.. like they were his personal buffet... and does not care now if he gets in trouble... 
He can not hardly see anymore... and while I often joke about him sitting and staring at the wall it is sad... seeing him go into his older years this way..  He is so lumpy and bumpy now... lypomias everwhere... so far the doctors do not think any are cancerous but the fact is .. Baz is about 12 .. and who really knows with out invasive testing whats going on with him.. the lumps are huge .. but the vets say .. it would be harder on him to remove them than leave them.. so we leave them... He still has a HUGE appetite though.. and  is totally a food hound.. he still knows what  ARE YOU HUNGRY means ... and knows if you spell the word F O O D..   he tolerates Cookie.. and ignores Shayna...   he still trys to assert his ALPHA dog attitude with SHAYNA but fact is she no longer gives a shit... and will put him in his place when he gets on her nerves... 
Baz is also losing his bark due to part of his larnyx being paralyzed, its common with pure Labs... as they age.. eventually it will become completely paralyzed should he survive that long...
The vets keep telling us to be prepared.. we might have a year or 2 left with Baz maybe less... 
Its heartbreaking to see him in the mornings try to get up.. his legs are just not getting the message from his brain to work... and the aspirin does not seem to help the arthritis much anymore.. so maybe the vet can give us something to help him along... a suplliment or something.. we have done all the other supplements and they worked for a while.. but now .. not so much...  I guess though this is how it goes as they age though..poor doggie..
Cookie is sitting right by my side right now.. she is 7 ... and she has a little arthritis in her back legs otherwise she is is in great shape..
Shayna... is Shayna .. crazy and sweet as ever.. she is 3.  
Well laundry is calling.. and I best go answer..


                                                           BAZZIE

                           
                                                           COOKIE

SHAYNA

PICTURE OF ME AT STEPHS WEDDING MARCH 2010