I was also able to see a primary doctor at Kaiser by paying in advance. She did a general check up and we talked about the strange pain that radiates front to back in my general chest area so she ordered an immediate ekg. The doctor told me that her suspicion of having artery blockage in the carrotid arteries was confirmed somewhat by the ekg but that she needed me to do several other tests. Unfortunately, since I was a non-member (without insurance), I'm wasn't able to make appointments to see things through. What the doctor told me initially was that I would need to have surgery to put stents in the arteries.
What I already know to be true about heart and related surgeries is that once you have it you're destined to continue having them throughout your life. In essence, surgery is a band-aid and not a fix or cure. I ruminated on this for about a week because I wasn't expecting to hear anything about my heart at this point in my life. This really had my attention - nothing else, not the myriad of pains and issues I'd been dealing with nor the uncomfortable weight gain for the past 2 years or inability to sleep through the night was able to snap me back into reality but I'm there now.
The week of thought worked for me because I knew I could call my brother who had changed his and his family's meals toward Vegan/Vegetarian over the past few years. He told me about Dr Esselstyn who had been a heart surgeon for years and then made the jump toward preventative medicine/nutrition to save the lives of his patients. I bought the ebook online and downloaded it the same day - I spent 4+ hours pouring through the pages of information and recipes. I was already on board before I talked to my brother - I just needed a jumping off point.
Today started easily enough because I have been waiting for this day for a few years now. I went about the day as I normally do but when I got hungry I realized I didn't have anything to eat but a green apple. After eating that I decided to hit the grocery store after the day's errands.
The grocery store wasn't too difficult to navigate with my new mindset but it was overwhelmingly clear that I need to go to a health store the next time because there were a lot of temptations in a regular store. I spent a lot of time reading labels so I was there a long time. I was very surprised by the way packaged food included oils and milk products (mostly 'whey'). Vegetable broth, for example, sometimes included vegetable oil. I did find a brand (Kitchen Basics) that didn't have any oil so I know I need to read all labels until the new lifestyle becomes automatic.
I got very hungry mid-afternoon after grocery shopping. I didn't have anything "snacky" available (I was thinking about something crispy and tasty) so I settled on celery with roasted garlic salsa (no fat) that was fantastic! I think this salsa is going to become a good friend of mine.
When shopping I kept in mind a few of the recipes from Dr Esselstyn's book like roasted tomatoes, baked potatoes and black bean soup (yum!). I purposely bought smaller, sweeter and vine-ripened tomatoes to roast today - a 3 hour adventure. The smell in the house was incredible and I couldn't wait until I could pop a few of them in my mouth. Dr Esselstyn's book has a recipe from his sister-in-law that includes a crumbled toast, onion, cilantro and tomato juice topping that I will be trying very soon. I love all the vegetables but I can already see that I'll need variety and textures to keep me focused.
I got a bit of a headache in the evening and I'm sure it's due to the lack of caffeine, simple carbs and fat. I already know that if I can make it through the first 3-4 days, I'll be fine going forward. There will be headaches, colon rumbles and change in bowel movement so there won't be any surprises. This is a small price to pay for reversing heart/artery disease.
Alertness is something I've noticed today - I actually got bored in the evening because I'm so much more alert than I have been. I don't have the high fat fog that I got accustomed to.
It's the end of the day and I still have the headache - it made it hard to be productive tonight. I'm hoping it's gone tomorrow so I can focus more on what I need to do.
I need to buy whole grain bread made without eggs or oil - Ezekiel, I think. After reading through John MacDougal's cook book tonight I need to buy other important staples for vegan cooking such as plain frozen hash brown potatoes, condiments (ex., soy sauce) and possibly fat free tortilla chips (can't have any oil). I found myself hungry and feeling unsatisfied this afternoon and evening. I ended the meal cycle with a frozen banana, cherry and pineapple smoothie and that seemed to fill me up.
Reading MacDougal's book starting stirring my thoughts around meals I could make that I would like and then how to make them appropriately for my health now - I think this is a positive step toward committing to this new lifestyle. I did pause a few times this evening to acknowledge that I'm finally here and eating the way I'm supposed to (actually, it was more like "holy crap - I can't believe I'm here...").
Here's what I ate today:
- Green apple (large)
- Instant oatmeal w/cinnamon & honey
- Celery stalks w/roasted garlic salsa
- Steamed frozen spinach w/mushrooms and onions (they were sauteed in vegie broth)
- Baked potato w/salsa
- Roasted tomatoes & red bell pepper
It seemed like a long day and I'm ready to sleep. I'm hoping tomorrow is a little easier and that I don't get another headache.
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