How I Made Myself Sick and Changing It

Wow, the past few days have been super busy that I couldn't even sit down to blog.  I have to tell you why! 

Friday I turned 34!  Wow, time sure flies.  I've been through some serious illnesses in the last year.  One would be Occipital Neuralgia.  This is like a headache in the nerves.  Medicine through the Neurologist cured that.  Expensive. I had thryoid issues.  Big bills for Urgent Care and testing.  I've even dealt with arthritis.  For the first 10 years of my marriage I had major UTI problems that led to kidney damage.  I was one baby away from kidney dialysis. in fact, while pregnant with my sixth, I landed in the hospital for a week completely unconscious. Why did I have my 7th baby after I was told it would kill me?  Complete healing of God.  In  four years, not only have I not had any kidney problems since a pastor praying for me, but I've only had one UTI from dehydration that healed quickly and never returned since.  I've NEVER had a UTI that didn't go to my kidneys.  The next test was having a baby.  I had her free and clear.  Not ONE issue.  In fact, I no longer need a high risk doctor for having babies.  Kinda sad about that because I have one of the best doctors in the state that is hard to get.  So if God is a healer, I have began to look into His very own creation.  Eating better, and exercising more.  He made the plants and the animals.  Why am I going to so much processed foods?  Am I the cause of alllllll my health issues I've had in 14 years?  YES!!!  When I found out I had arthritis I looked up vitamins that could cure it. Well, I found fish oil and glucosamine, calcium, and vitamin D would do the trick.  Sure enough, I am not walking funny in the morning and biting my lip from the pain.  I no longer need my handicap hang tag for my van mirror.  That was embarrassing for me.  I'm in my early thirties and should not be dealing with arthritis. 

My kids visiting sick mommy in the hospital.  I couldn't even talk to them because I was completely out.  Was very sick and could have died that week.



This weekend Charles and I tried a 48 hour detox.  ON MY BIRTHDAY.  (What was I thinking?)  No cake!  We took the kids to Whole Foods and used the recipe from Doctor Oz's website.  Be prepared because its a bit expensive.  WHY does a burger from McDonalds only cost $1 when my healthy vegetables cost me a fortune?  This is sooooo twisted.  It cost $120 for 2 days worth of vegetables.  Whoa!  I did not go to a regular grocery store where I might have gotten a better deal for a good reason.  Plus, some items would not be available at a regular store. 

Here is an idea of what we did.  Just two of them.

 

1/2 cup pineapple

2 large cucumbers

1 bunch of kale, stems removed (4 cups chopped)

1/2 lemon squeezed

1/4 inch of ginger

1 bunch of mint (1/2 cup)

Put in juicer!

 

 

1/2 cup almond or hemp milk (plain/unsweetened)

1 tbsp ground flaxseed or chia

1/4 frozen blueberries

1/4 banana

1/2 ice

Blend!

 

 

It wasn't too bad at first but then by the second day I felt really foggy.  I could hardly do simple tasks.  Turns out it was because my body is getting rid of the toxins.  If I had kept going, the energy and clear mind would of came.  The frustrations of forgetting a few items and having to getting ready for church on the weekend made me give up on the last part of the second day.  Charles and I were just hungry and at least only ate some meat and nothing else bad.  Very costly to do this!  However, I dropped three pounds over night like it was nothing.  Had I kept going, it would have been more and more.  I might not ONLY do a detox for 2-10 days but I would like to do this for breakfast every morning. 

 

 

3 really good documentaries I would recommend:

 

 

Hungry for Change

Fat, sick, and Nearly Dead

Food Matters

 

If you were to pick just one, please watch Hungry for Change!  I'm learning so much about why I made myself sick and how.  Pretty obvious since I'm a fast food junkie.  You can rent it on Amazon to watch for only $3 or if you have Netflix it's available on there. 

33 Weeks Pregnant and Remembering God's Healing

I'm 33 weeks pregnant and so hoping the baby turns in the right position soon and does it on her own.  My acid reflux is under control because of Prilocec so I'm grateful.  ;)  MAJORLY grateful.  Who knew that acid was a big cause of my morning sickness?  I mean, I can still get worked up fast like if you mention something gross or if someone does a stinky right next to me.  Orrrr, riding in a car with a friend who does a tootie while I'm driving.  They're laughing while I'm gagging with my head out the window.  Haha.  My doctor said that most pregnant women don't realize that if they can get a control of their acid, it'll prevent some or all of their morning sickness.  It's gone down about 90% for me.  I'm eating better (meaning less) and not needing food to take away the nausea.  Now I have to remind myself to eat because I'm just so busy.  My energy level is awesome and this has been a fantastic pregnancy for me.  

My kids hanging out in my hospital room
while mom was very sick because of kidneys

Some people who are new to my blog don't know the miracle God did for me.  I wasn't supposed to have any more kids because my kidneys were so bad.  If got even the tiniest urinary tract infection I was to rush straight to the ER.  In my last pregnancy it hit me fast.  I was just bending over to put my shoes on so we could walk around the mall when the pain hit me so bad I fell to the floor.  I had no warning whatsoever and the drive to the hospital was agonizing.

 It was very much like giving birth, the pain was so bad.  I was hospitalized at 27 weeks and was unconscious for 6 days.  It was a horrible and scary time.  Somehow we made it safely to the 39 weeks and Caleb was born healthy.  However, I was to schedule surgery as soon as possible for my kidneys and could possibly end up on kidney dialysis.  A little bit after I had Caleb, an evangelist came to our church and called people forward that had kidney problems.  I was in pain that whole night while sitting in service.  I went up to get prayed for and the pain left.  Surgery was cancelled but the true test my doctor said was seeing how I was gonna do with this pregnancy.  Pregnancy can put a strain on everything, especially on my kidneys.  My doctor said it is truly a miracle.  She had been nervous this whole pregnancy.  I have been on bed rest at some point with every single one of my pregnancies (because of my kidneys) except this one.  God is real and He still heals.  We just have to ask.  :)

The revival service I attended

The reason I wanted to share that is because I needed to remind myself.  My faith has been at an all time low, more than ever.  In the last 3 years we were dealt a major financial blow, lost some friends due to their anger of me being pregnant with my sixth child (in 2009), and dealing with other issues.  Things done against me where no one else could see because this person was so secretive about it, literally for the last 3 long years.  In the end, this person getting told on, everything was denied to make me look like a fool.  Being I have to see this person often, it's very awkward for me.  It's caused such a weariness inside of me and a loss of another friend.  I stayed out of church for about a month because I was questioning my faith.  I do believe God is real.  I see Him all around me working in people's lives.  But was He still real to me?  These last 3 years were rough.  I just want to see a breakthrough.  I finally pulled myself into church last Wednesday but I felt so dead inside.  I wanted to cry the entire half hour song service as I just sat there listening to the singing voices around me.  I truly, truly need God's strength right now.  I can't forget that God does heal, does save, and is very much alive whether or not my faith is there.  

Where Are You God?

I have not blogged a lot because I am going through a tough trial right now.  One I can't talk of but just feeling lots of anxiety.  Tears come every day and I don't have the energy to clean or do much of anything.  But I save face for my little ones because they don't need to have that worry.  My husband is a sweetheart and holds me when I am down. When I am alone I cry, "where are you God?  Can you even hear me?"  I've prayed and asked for a certain thing for so long.  A situation that is greatly hurting me and has just reached a boiling point.  My heart hurts so bad.  I've tucked myself into a protective cocoon just to avoid any more embarrassment or hurt.  I hate that someone can have that kind of power over me.

God, I have asked, pleaded and cried

You said those that seek You will find You

Where are You?  

Where are You?

Why should I hang my head in shame

When I have done no wrong?

How did I become the liar?

My heart hurts yet I don't feel You

My heart used to be held in Your embrace

I don't want revenge

That is not what I am asking for

Where are You?

Where are You?

At least let me hold my head up high

I have done no wrong

I'm just asking that You remember me

In my distress

Please don't turn Your face from me

I only want to serve You and You alone

Even when I don't feel You

You must be there...somewhere

I am a nice person that doesn't like any controversy with anyone.  I'll do anything to avoid it, even to my own detriment.   There was a time in my life where I was in major distress. I walked into my dark room in defeat and for some reason hit the radio button on my alarm clock. This song was on and I felt a peace come into the room.  God doesn't always come down in a bolt of lightening but I know He speaks to us in other ways.  

Does God Still Heal?

Every morning my favorite thing to do is get my hot cup of coffee, kiss all the babies that are awake, check my email, and blog.  Don't worry, I only drink one cup of caffeinated coffee a day being that I'm pregnant. If I want any more I just do decaf.  Drinking decaf is like hunting with blanks.  There is just no point.  But, I guess the hunt is still fun.

The weekend was great because we were back in church and I could put baby Caleb in nursery.  I even got to volunteer to watch the little babies in the Sunday morning service.  Unfortunately, because of all the sickness issues my kids have missed every Christmas practice up until Sunday night.  The kids' play is this next Sunday!  Oh man.... it should be interesting to watch.

I had a friend that is moving out of town.  Her son is best friend's with my oldest.  Well, I wanted to come over and help her sort through her stuff and pack.  So Monday I woke up feeling some pain thinking maybe a bladder infection had started. I felt GREAT the night before so this was a surprise.  Wanting to keep my promise to my friend, I just ignored it in hopes it would go away if I drank enough water.  When I got to her house, right away I started sorting and packing.  A couple hours later the pain was so intense I just couldn't work anymore.  I wasn't showing it to her but I was so upset because I made a promise to help her all day and I knew I was gonna have to quit and go to see the doctor.  With a promise I was gonna return a couple days later, I headed to Urgent Care.  I stopped to pick up my other friend along the way to go with me.  The doctor said the infection was off the charts bad and prescribed me some medicine.  I was SO HAPPY!  Do you KNOW what this means?  For years my kidneys were getting so bad that I could no longer feel any bladder infections because it would go straight to my kidneys and I'd end up in the hospital.  The doctor told me my kidneys were so bad that as soon as I felt a bladder infection I had to go straight to the ER.  Don't call the doctor.  JUST GO AND CHECK MYSELF IN.  That's how bad my kidneys were.  In fact, I would just be doing something around the house and fall over in horrendous pain from my kidneys.  Well, 2 1/2 years ago I was hospitalized and unconscious for a week it was so bad.  I'm only telling you that to understand why I'm so excited that I actually felt this bladder infection and it didn't go to my kidneys.  Not long after my last hospital stay (2 1/2 years ago) an evangelist came to my church.  He called out for someone that has bad kidney issues.  I went up immediately  for prayer.  In fact, I was in bad pain that night.  Not only did I have kidney pain but I was scheduled for surgery because I had Endometriosis.  God healed me that night.  Surgery was cancelled and I have not had any kidney problems since.  That is a miracle. So when I found out that I had a bladder infection starting yesterday, I felt panicky at first.  However, I didn't want to just go and get help like usual because I wanted to see what would happen.  The infection was only in my bladder and didn't spread.  That has not happened to me in about 7 years.  I was able to just get some antibiotics yesterday.  No hospital stay.  Nothing.  I feel like crying because I'm still so grateful God healed my kidneys.  That doesn't mean I can't go and ruin them again.  LOL.  That comes from not taking care of a bladder infection when it starts. If you let it go too long it'll hurt your kidneys eventually.  My kidneys had been so bad I wasn't supposed to have any more kids.  I am soooooooo grateful for God's healing grace.

With having pain meds and antibiotics, I think we'll go to the zoo today with the kids.  Today we have some extra kids with us so it'll be fun to take them all.  Tomorrow I'll be back at my friends house helping her pack. I'm so grateful for medicine and doctors!