While driving to the hospital this afternoon I realized that I didn't know what the real problem was and why my friend had been there for 4-5 days already - he only mentioned his prostate and surgery. After talking with him and one of his nurses I learned that he had an infection on a portion of his prostate after it had become enlarged and was being irritated by the sphincter (sorry, there just is no nice word for this body part). He went to the ER because he wasn't able to have a bowel movement without excruciating pain - this was his prostate.
The more we talked the more I learned - he had uncontrolled diabetes and was told the infection was so severe and needed surgery because of it. Though blood sugar spikes when there is infection or sickness in the body - his was 380 when he was admitted and 258 after several days of slow and fast insulin injections. He was in so much pain and discomfort that he hadn't been able to sleep and the pain medication wasn't alleviated enough to be able to fall asleep - definitely not helping his sugar and overall health.
He told me that I was looking a lot healthier since the last time he saw me - about one month ago. I had already mentioned the heart disease and the fat free vegan diet previously but didn't elaborate - until today. I had a captive audience and though he was constantly adjusting himself in the hospital bed because of the pain I explained the significance of my diet in the plainest wording I could and I think he actually listened.
One of the problems he was experiencing by being in the hospital - other than being out of work, that is - is that he doesn't want his 3 children to see him in pain. I told him that since he was never away from home and that the children already knew he was in the hospital that it would be better to allow them to see that he is okay and that he had the perfect opportunity to tell them that he was going to make sure that he never had to come back to the hospital because he was going to eat his fresh vegies and fruit AND drink a lot of fresh water. Like most dual-income families, life is so hectic for him and his wife so fast food options are used more than they would like. I thought in that moment that I would find lower cost fresh produce options for him to have - it can be very difficult for low income families to find cost-effective healthy meal options - especially if their waking moments are working.
I spent a fair amount of time in his hospital room talking about how I eat at home and in restaurants - the choices I make and the questions I ask. We also talked about his incentive to make such a positive change to his health - his kids and their life events that are yet to happen...grandchildren...general happiness.
One thing he interjected was that he was under a tremendous amount of stress due to the job market and now his health issues keeping him from earning much needed money. It's so hard to give simple answers to someone in his situation because the truth is I have difficulty with saving my own life and I don't have a 9-5 (or 7a-8p in his case) job, a spouse or children to worry about (well, I sometimes worry about my niece and nephews but from afar...).
All I could do was to remind him of his faith/beliefs and told him that I take at least 20 minutes every day to sit in a peaceful place in my home and clear all of my thoughts. I have a small water fountain that helps me do this but it can be done anywhere that you can be peaceful for a short amount of time (a friend of mine with kids told me once that she sits on the toilet to do this because it's the only place where she has privacy...). I told my friend that it's the disconnection from the frenzied thoughts that was the real exercise - that somehow the feeling of possibilities, hope and peace affects the brain in a positive way. The more I did this the more benefit I was getting because I started craving it - the stressful thoughts are now filled with a feeling of floating on water and watching random situations resolve themselves without me having to take action. At first I felt a little stupid forcing myself to sit quietly and be void of thought - I didn't really understand the significance but I sure do now!
So my day ended with this powerful discussion with my hospitalized friend - I didn't intend for the visit to be that way but I think it was beneficial for both of us. He knows a lot more about how nutrition affects his health (whole body health through nutrition rather than treating only one symptom at a time) and that he has a lot of control over his health going forward. I walked away with a reaffirmation of what I'm doing with my own health and why. I can honestly state that whole body health through nutrition is something that I really believe it - more than anything else in my life.
FOOD
The timing of the visit with my friend in the hospital is interesting - I've felt like 'cheating' on my diet but when I challenge myself I know it's due to a few emotional situations going on around me that I have a lack of control over (ex., news that an uncle has stage 4 lung cancer that has metastasized to his shoulder bone, a first cousin who has lived a difficult/sad life passed away at 47).
I've been so focused on my health for the past few months that I was shielded by real life going on around me - this is a time that I should feel extremely grateful that I am on a path of whole body wellness because of nutrition and I am but, I can't help feel that all of this knowledge didn't save other members of my family. Yes, they made decisions about how they wanted to eat and live but I've somehow survived all of my mis-guided and bad decisions throughout my life. I'll work through this but I know that it will be a process - the bottom line though is that I must continue moving forward in this direction boldly and without reservation. The one thing that no one tells you when you're growing up is that no matter what is going on around you - good and bad - you must move forward in a positive direction.
What I ate today:
- Apples - Honey Crisp
- Cantaloupe
- Carrot, cucumber and avocado sushi rolls
- Vegie skewers with teryaki sauce (mushrooms, onions, red bell pepper and zucchini)
- Crudite (celery, red bell pepper, green bell pepper)
- Pickles - dill
- FF Brownie Oatmeal Cookies
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