As we come to the close of 2021, I am looking back over the events of the last year, both personally and on a broader level.
Personally – it has been a rollercoaster. The year started off hopeful – at the beginning of last January I had a great visit to my oncologist who moved me to annual visits. Then came the loss of two of our beloved cats within 2 weeks of each other, followed by moving in to a new home (one of the most stressful life events), learning that my immunodeficiency was likely permanent, surgery for basal cell carcinoma, a fun case of shingles, having an accident and fracturing my femur requiring emergency surgery and three screws put in to hold it together, not to mention a number of other personal issues that have come up in between. 2021 was my 2020.
I just had my annual physical. I was not looking forward to what my results would be. After basically sitting around for the last 2 months as my leg was healing – I felt myself gain weight and become flabby. My diet remained the same but my inactivity level was understandably high. Prior – I had the surgery for my leg with anesthesia and then had to administer daily injections of a blood thinner for the next 4 weeks. I felt as if there would be some impact on my body’s biochemistry. There had to be.
Yes there was a change of my body composition. While I only gained 2 pounds – some of my weight shifted from lean muscle mass to fat. It was what I expected but I thought I had gained more weight. I was sitting around a lot but I wasn’t sitting around eating. This issue is “easy” to fix. As I start becoming more mobile I will burn off more of the fat. And then when ready in the next few months will start to rebuild the muscle mass. I am committed to becoming even more fit than I was in 2021 and I have a plan on how to do so with my physical therapist who was previously a personal trainer.
BUT – my blood work was spectacular. The best it’s been in years. I was shocked. My WBC was 7.7 – mostly driven by neutrophils. This is important because if the WBC was above the range of 11 and there was an abundance of lymphocytes then it could be indicative of my lymphoma returning. It could also mean an infection. My total cholesterol was 186 and my HDL was 74. My HbA1c was 4.4 – I do not have a blood sugar problem. My thyroid was fine, hemoglobin, was extremely strong, inflammation was low, kidney and liver function all normal – lots of great stuff. My blood pressure was 117/70 (and I was anxious about being there), my EKG was normal, I had good pressure in my legs, and I could go on. After the difficult year I had – somehow I managed to keep myself as healthy as possible.
There is a lesson here. I went through some difficult health situations this year – but each time – I was able to get through it and bounce back well, despite my type of immunodeficiency. The part of my immune system that is able to heal is working well. I just don’t make certain antibodies that recognize “invaders”. – which could lead to serious infections. So far I have managed to avoid COVID (this is a MUST) and catching any other communicable disease. I have also not developed any infections on my own – post surgery, from my cats, or any other means.
The lesson is simple: take the best possible care of yourself as you can so that when a health challenge of some sort arises – you can get through it as well as you can. I couldn’t help having the accident but I was able to keep it to only a femur fracture, do well through the surgery and anesthesia, quickly heal from my leg fracture with no complications and now after 8 weeks am moving on – having PT every week to strengthen and then rebuild lost muscle mass. I have proven that doing this simple thing has helped me again and again through my health crises – quickly responding to chemo for my Mantle Cell Lymphoma – going into remission and almost 7 years later there’s not a trace of it. Getting the flu numerous times in a year (due to having low antibodies) and each time recovering with no lasting effects. Sometimes you can’t help having an accident or getting sick but if you keep yourself healthy – you can get through it and move on.
There are several proven components to keeping yourself healthy:
– Eat a mostly whole food, plant-based diet.
– Exercise moderately aerobically, do some strength training and work on flexibility and balance.
– Take certain supplements where you have deficits or extra needs.
– Find a way to help manage stress such as meditation, prayer, talk therapy, exercise, pet ownership or some combination of these.
– Avoid toxins as best as you can – in your food, water, air, home.
– Speaking of toxins – don’t smoke, drink alcohol moderately of at all, don’t take illegal substances.
– Surround yourself with healthy relationships and weed out those that don’t serve you.
– Get 7-8 hours of restful sleep nightly.
– Go for checkups/screenings at regular intervals – in particular – blood work can tell ALOT about how the state of your health. It’s better to catch something early than later in the process.
– Be a part of a community – whether it’s religious, educational, volunteering (so many options), activism, sports-related, book club, something that connects you to others. In these days of the pandemic many of us are feeling more isolated and even virtual or online activities can help you feel more connected.
– Have a purpose in life, a reason to get up every day.
The above are principles that I try to live by the best that I can. It’s now my lifestyle. I have completely changed how I live my life over the last 20 years and it has served me well. Living a healthy lifestyle will help you mitigate the worst if problems come up – and help you feel your best otherwise. The greatest wealth is health. Believe me – when you are seriously ill – nothing else matters. We only have one life – why not feel your best and not let your health get in the way of your future?
Here are some additional resources that I have found helpful as I have discovered the benefits of a healthy lifestyle:
https://plantricianproject.org
Here’s to a better 2022 of ALL of us!
Wishing you good health and a great life –
Sheryl
