What is Your Sodium Intake?

WoW!  Good question.  That hand full of chips or snack crackers can increase your intake by 100-300 mg.  Processed low-fat foods have extra sodium in order to increase flavor.  What about when you eat out?  Restaurants always seem to have increased salt in their menu items.  You can eat a days recommended amount (2300 mg) in one meal. Even "healthy choices" are very high in sodium.

A few tips for a lower sodium diet (for home and eating out):

• Decrease your amount of dressings & condiments
• Use oil & vinegar or squeeze a slice of lemon on your food/salad
• Don't add salt to your coffee 
• Don't add salt to your food at the table
• Read labels and avoid items high in sodium
• Order dressing & sauces on the side
• Go online or call the restaurant and read the sodium & fat content of the menu items
• When eating out, request "lite sodium" options.  Many chefs will prepare your food with little or no salt.  This is wonderful!  Especially if you are a heart patient.  Stix Japanese Steak House is an example of this.  One of our favorite Chinese restaurants will do this for us as well, and we have found that the food is much better!  We love it!
• Purchase low sodium foods.  Read the labels.  You will find that there are many good and healthy options out there right on your market shelf.
• Eat fresh veggies and fruit
• Cook from scratch and modify your ingredients.  Recipes, especially those from older cook books, do not call for a lot of sodium.  Just enough to bring out the flavor.
• Avoid fast foods
•  Use a common sense approach to your diet (I know, it is a 4 letter word!)

 Be aware of what you put in your body.  You only have one and need to take care of it! :-)

Have a blessed day!
Hugs,
Missy

Editing to add: The American Heart Association has so much information on their website as well.  Especially about eating healthier for your heart.  They even have a pamphlet called "Shaking the Salt Habit".  They are wonderful to help you in anyway that they can.  

Tips for Lowering Stress and Blood Pressure

Last week was some week!  I started w/a sugar fast.  And did not have the discipline to hang in there.  I will try again though.  Not sure when.  I did not begin with a prayerful purpose.  In the past, I always did that and God lead me through the fast. 

I also had a check up w/the cardiologist.  He is pleased w/my progress and told me I can increase my cardio getting my heart rate up to about 120 - maybe even 130!  That will help with some of the fluid retention and weight gain. 

Blood pressure medicine will cause fluid retention. So will a sedentary life or day in your life.   Staying busy is key.  And it is great to finally have the energy and stamina to stay busy.  Including being able to more than dusting, light house keeping and .... as most of you know (or may not know) I am a freelance photographer.  While editing is sedentary, shooting is almost an athletic event.  LOL!  Especially with a 1 or 2 year old child.  LOL! 

Today I have some tips for lowering blood pressure and stress:

• A walk.  Just at your own pace.  Check with your doctor first and make sure he/she clarify how much, etc.
• If you are able to care for one, get a pet.  There is nothing that will bring blood pressure and de-stress you like petting and loving a pet.   Do keep in mind that house-training a dog or puppy can increase your stress and blood pressure. 
• Stretching exercises.  Lite Pilates or Yoga.  Anything like that.  Nothing intense.
• Working on a hobby, craft, cooking.  I find cleaning my kitchen counter tops relaxes me. 
• Gardening.  
• Spending quality time with your family/spouse.
• A trip.  (We went to Walt Disney World the week of Thanksgiving. We enjoyed it at a slow pace and we loved it!)
• Walk away from business that will be "not worth it".  If you can tell in the initial client interview/consult that they will be high maintenance, don't take them as a client.  I know, hard to do in this economy, but you will be glad that you did.
• Take your meds.  Everyday and on schedule.
• Lower your sodium intake.  We only need about 2300 mg a day.  The average American takes in 3500 mg or more a day.  A heart patient could stand to take even a tad less than 2300 mg a day.  Read your labels.  You will be surprised at how much you will take in w/processed foods.  
• Let it go!  That is any bitterness, anger, etc. that you might be harboring.  Just let it go.  Give it to God.  Let things, words, etc. roll off of you.  If there is a person who gets under your skin (deliberately or otherwise), just stay away from them. 

If you have other tips for lowering blood pressure and stress, please feel free to share them by posting them in the comments section.

Have a blessed day!
Missy

Physical Healing Continues

How do you heal from a 'torn aorta'? Rest, do what it takes to lower blood pressure, emotial & physical stress. Our December and the beginning of January was not what we would have liked. It started out w/me in the hospital and ended w/my father in law (who we all deeply loved) in the hospital. He passed away the third of January. God is so good. He has given us the grace that we need to see us through this trying time. My Father In Law's life celabration & homegoing. He is with the Lord, my sweet Mother In Law and others who went before him. Healing is coming along well. We now have my blood pressure under control. I rest, limit my activity in order to have no strain on my body. I have a CT scan later on in the week and see a Thorastic Surgeon the following Monday. I feel eager to start exercising (more than walking on a flat surface and light house keeping) and I have photography sessions set up, which will put me back to work. My husband will be assisting me in these sessions. Some photography shoots can be quite physical. I give God the glory for the progress in my healing. Hugs, Missy

It has been a long time since I have posted. Much has happened. For a year or more, I have not felt my best. Chalked it off to being older. Last summer I started having some adominal discomfort. Pain moved to my chest. I went to the ER and diagnosed w/a heart attack. Still experienced pain & adominal discomfort. 5 months later I am back in the ER and I have a dissected anurism of the aorta type B. Also called called a "Torn Aorta". Can you say "John Ritter"? "Lucille Ball"? Apparently it is hard to diagnose. It was missed last summer. 50% of patients are diagnosed on the autopsy table. God is Good! Currently I am being treated medically. The goal is for the aorta to heal on its own, creating scar tissue to reinforce the wall. At this time, there is absolutly nothing on the internet that offers any personal experiences or encouragement on this condition. Currently, I have to be very careful. Keep my blood pressure down. The goal is to heal. For the forseeable future, I plan to use this blog to post my recovery. Not meant to be medical advice in any way, but to have some information out there to offer encouragement for future patients. These last few months would not be possible w/out our personal realtionship with the Lord Jesus Christ. To know that be be "absent from the body is to be present with the Lord." means to much to me. God has sustained us throughout. I will post more later! Missy