Weighing In...

I teach a lot of coupon classes, some in public venues through libraries and fundraisers, some privately for different companies. It's not uncommon for people to come up afterwards and ask questions or make comments to me...but one comment after a private class blew my mind:

"You really should quit this couponing thing - it's so unhealthy! Just look at you and how fat you are! You are such a pretty girl, you would be able to loose a lot of weight if you quit".

You don't want to know what the first thoughts running through my head were...honestly.

THEN, a few others things ran through my head like: Did he just sit through my class and listen to NOTHING I said? I talk about fresh produce, dairy and meat. How to work the "Cereal Deals" so you get FREE milk and eggs. About eating organic and gluten free foods. Using coupons for cleaning supplies and personal care items! I show pictures of my stockpile that show toilet paper, juice, granola bars, oatmeal, whole grain pasta, nuts and whole grain cereals...

THEN came the: how rude a person! How dare he judge me, etc...thoughts.

Wow.

I learned a long time ago that people like that already have made up their mind and there was no part trying to get them to see otherwise, so I simply said:

"Thank you for your opinion".

I find it amazing to think you know a person, and their lifestyle, off of such a brief encounter. Everyone has a back story - that has taken their whole life to make them the person they are. Here is mine:

In 1991 you see me a slightly muscular, very active gal who is in college working to be a doctor. I was in the United States Army Reserves (44th General, part of the 86th ARCOM) to help pay for it. I had a $20,000 undergraduate loan repayment and they picked up 75% tuition and books for continuing education. Add the fact that they paid me for my monthly weekend drills, and two week annual training, it was a great job that let me focus on my studies!

Until the car accident.

I stopped at a stoplight in my little Suzuki Samuri Jeep and the person behind me didn't. They figured that she was going about 40 when her Ford Bronco hit my car, shoved it into the already busy intersection and I was hit broadside. The last thing I remember was my raspberry flavored seltzer spraying everywhere...

Let's just say that I am lucky to be walking after that accident.

I was given a medical discharge from the service (3 weeks after my unit was activated for Desert Storm), and am officially a Desert Storm Vet as those 3 weeks saw me at a typewriter helping process soldiers that went through Camp McCoy to move overseas. I was still in a cast and with 2 different braces on, but had to show up for duty until my paperwork cleared, LOL!

I didn't go back to school - I missed a lot of time from the accident and simply couldn't afford it until the settlement came in. (which takes a few years...). By that time, my life had gone in a different direction.

Fast forward about twelve years and there was another car accident...not as bad as the first, but they still had to cut me out of the car.

Add a few fun things like slipping on wet concrete stairs and falling down them (at my own house - sigh) and falling off a ladder onto stairs...the grand total is 16 broken bones. I also have Fibromyalgia and a lot of Arthritis (OA and RA), both which zap your metabolism to make it 20-25% slower than everyone else's while they give you a lot of pain. Add in Chronic Migraine Syndrome too, but that is another story for another day...All three qualify me for medical disability.

I have all of that, yet I am healthy. Seriously.

My numbers for cholesterol, blood sugar, etc are better than most people's...because I eat good, balanced meals and still try to exercise. I watch the sweets, drink water over soda and alcohol, and stick to lean meats.

I don't take any medication for the Fibromyalgia because they all have too many side effects AND make you dopey...a state I simply can't handle while trying to take care of my five year old daughter. I don't take any medication for the Arthritis either because they make it harder for me to breath - I have just been diagnosed with R.A.D. - Restrictive Airway Disease and they are trying to figure out which one. The FM could be starting to stiffen my lungs, the RA could be the problem, as it can spread to your lungs, etc. I get to play with Pulmonary, Rheumatology and Cardiology people over the next few months. (yippe!)

What medicines do I take?

One for my acid reflux, then Magnesium and Riboflavin, both which help vascular health and migraines. That's it.

So, now you know that I have a lot of pain, a beyond slow metabolism and when I breath, I don't get enough oxygen out of my air. That now makes FOUR things that "disable" me legally, yet I refuse to file any paperwork. I simply haven't given up!

Do I have a plan?

Yes.

I know that loosing weight will make it easier for me to breathe, and have actually lost 5 pounds so far this year. When your metabolism is half of what other people have, it takes twice as much effort to loose the same weight. (sigh)

I started with a great pair of shoes that took the stress off my bad foot -- I have bone spurs and it literally hurt to step on it for a given period of time. I could walk my daughter to school this spring and then limped home. My shoes are the Sketcher's Shape Ups - bought in true tightwad fashion at Kohl's, on sale. They don't really let you use your heel when you walk and it has done wonders! (If only they made my hiney look like the picture on the box!)

So walking is on the menu of planned activities, along with using my Wii Fit, laps in the pool (both walking and swimming) and I have 8 months of my health club membership to use up (paid off last year and time banked from medical leave). That means a little weight resistance training thrown into the mix.

You will see this cute little ticker on my blog from now on - my goal is to loose 75 pounds. If I could be disciplined enough to save $40,000 in one year, I should be able to stick to a plan to loose 75 pounds, whether it takes one year or two...

Why am I sharing all of this with you?

So that you, hopefully, will remember that everyone has a back story.

We NEVER know what someone has been through and what it has done to them. I know I am a large lady - but it's not from sitting on a couch all day, eating bon bons and watching soap operas...or, from eating high sodium, chemical packed, pre-made meals that I get by couponing, as that poor, uninformed man had stated.

Blessings --

Dannelle