Rethinking what is medicine

I threw away the bottles...

                                              of pain pills.

Starting April 7, 2015, I broke up with OTC products. I was subjecting myself to an organic detox program and decided to make it life changing. It was the last day I reached for my side-kicks "Acetaminophen" and "Ibuprofen." I wanted to make the expensive detox carry over into other areas of my life. 

This was "breakup" was hard and nearly unthinkable. I had chronic pain from multiple physical traumas. I convinced myself that those "sidekicks" were benign compared to the prescription pain pills I could have become addicted to. But my body was telling me, I was not doing it any favors. 

Other than taking one headache pill, I have been completely off OTC medications for pain or for cold/flu. I have relied on essential oils, exercise and a fairly conscientious diet (less meat, more organic foods, more veggies and fermented foods). My experience with the detox was a surprise to me. 

I thought I would feel better immediately afterwards. But, my body was feeling sick and achy from the detox treatments. Then it hit me--- perhaps the pain is part of detoxing that my body has been doing on its own. Instead of trusting what my body was doing, I fed it the two side kicks as if I lost faith in my body's ability to restore itself. 

And to take things a step further... I decided to get my hormone IUD removed (procedure done today). Since having the IUD, I've collected a lot of fat around my midsection. I suspect my body was not liking the IUD and protecting it with the fat deposits. I have always been petite and nearly effortlessly slim until the IUD.

I have read testimonials from other women who gained a significant amount of weight on hormone IUDs. I will be blogging on my body changes in the coming months. I will continue my exercising throughout the week (monitored by my MisFit Shine) and taking my vitamins, minerals and fish oil. 

My newest health effort is to get better quality of sleep. I've put my cell-phone far away from my body and brain so there are no electrical interferences with restorative sleep. I'm careful to use f.lux on my desktop computer and on my cellphone (EasyEyes) if I'm using it at night.

As an added "health twist," I have been building new friendships that will help me with my fitness accountability, emotional health and general support. The nice upside is that both my husband and I are enjoying spending time with mutual friends. Friends take the pressure off spouses to fulfill all of the social needs a person has.

picture was taken in 2015

Now that I have officially hit 35 years of age, I feel that getting a grip on my health is of great importance if I am going to live a long vibrant life. I don't want to be the old person who is miserable from unnecessary body system decay. I know I'll never look like I did at 25 years of age, but I do plan on keeping people guessing about my chronological age. Thankfully, my mental age is progressing and improving my sense of well-being. 

I have a sound mind that is connected

to a 13-year-old face! Yeah~

What is your experience with detox or birth control? 

Start the conversation in the comment box below!

Dear Step Families

Combat your Prejudice

The area of blended families is the last frontier of socially sanctioned prejudice. There are activist groups for most sub-populations of Americans. The one population who gets the most legal and social prejudice is step-parents and step-families. I think this is the most insidious place for discrimination. If I write this post within my intentions, I will insult you little and motivate you to do better.

If it is okay to discriminate at home, then how easy does that make it to do it elsewhere? On top of that, we are basically modeling to our children that we CAN and SHOULD prejudice people who are not genetically related to us. Ok, to put that in perspective: how much of the global population to you claim as your genetic family? 

It's not just that step-parents succumb to prejudice, so do the children. But, I'm talking to adults and adults are the ones who need to be the "bigger people." I get it. You were a stepchild once and your stepmother mistreated you. And then, low and behold, you find yourself married to a person who has kids from a previous marriage.

The visceral reaction is to play out those unhealthy dynamics with an INNOCENT child. Your feelings and memories are valid. But they are not valid in this new environment. Don't get me wrong, every one has their pain and needs grace. But, for the love of your spouse, this largely innocent child, and the future of the marriage that holds together your present family, keep your past in your past.

When Love Goes the Distance

A Helicopter Tour in Colorado

Distance can put a huge strain on relationships. Jen Im from “Clothes Encounters” on YouTube has a long distance relationship with a guy in England. Michelle Phan has a long distance relationship with her man in mainland Europe. Many military couples endure long separations so that they can serve their country on the home-front and abroad.

Driving down the road today, I realized that God was supplying me and my husband everything we needed to nurture and grow our relationship. Our communication is constrained by time, text or video chats that can be tense. There is also an inability to have physical intimacy with each other.

I know my husband, being a different person than I, does not share exactly the same view and experience of this separation, I still think that my perspective is worth sharing as it shows God’s hand in enriching our relationship. He replaced physical intimacy with physical longing. He gave us opportunities and inspiration to grow on a whole new level of intimacy—the spiritual kind.

Despite the fact that he is not a professing “Christian,” I see God knocking on his heart more and more fervently during this time. God knows that even though my husband longs for my comfort, that His comfort is enough. His kind of comfort can minister to my husband in his time zone when I cannot.

This period of spiritual growth (with God being the conduit that overcomes constraints of time differences) is monumental because it was a major point of weakness (or absent) in our relationship when we were face to face. It makes me realize that even with physical intimacy, there can be a lack of spiritual intimacy. And let’s face it, we all want to reach the mecca of spiritual intimacy. Anyone can knock boots, but can they resonate on a spiritual level?

With this realization, the promise that God honors our marriage has come to life. Our eyes were not on the spiritual side of our marriage in this “season of life.” In fact we were quite locked in on the mundane aspects of keeping the family going while separated. He has infused a supernatural aspect to our relationship.

Despite our physical distance apart, I have never felt so “known” by my husband. Chances are, we would not have reached this point if he were right in front of me. It was the hidden gift in this time apart. It makes me think of the work God wants us to do in our time apart, from hours to months to years.

God substituted something better than what was missing. He supplied spiritual intimacy when we lacked the physical kind. It is akin to losing a cubic zirconia ring and getting a free diamond for a replacement. It feels like a relationship jackpot. He is waiting to make your (future) marriage a testament for his will and love for all people.