Wellness Wednesday - Mammograms

Today we are going to talk about mammograms.  My yearly check up calls for a mammogram.  I have been getting them for a couple of years now.  I have had a few scares and it can be quite traumatizing.  So what is a mammogram, what does it really do, and why talk about it?

What is a mammogram?  A mammogram is an x-ray picture that can show Radiologists what is going on inside of the breasts.  There are signs that they look for.  If you have never had one, usually at age 40, you will be recommended to have a screening.  Sometimes younger if there are signs or history of breast cancer in your family history.  I had first mammogram before I hit 40.  I remember being scared of the machine that I had only heard about.  You basically get your boobies squeezed to pancakes in every direction in order to get good pictures by a technician.  By the way, they are not allowed to tell you anything about what they see or your results.  Only your doctor or the radiologists can talk to you about what they see, find, or don't find.  One tip from me is don't go when your boobies are sensitive like right before your period.  Also, don't wear a dress because you will have to undress and de-robe.  And they make you leave all your personal belongings in a locker.  No phones or purses are allowed in exam room.

What is next?  In my case, results are mailed.  If any further testing is needed, I will receive a call from my doctor as well to schedule a diagnosis follow up.  In my case this has happened to me more than once.  It is so scary.  Even though they tell you not to worry, you worry.  You start thinking the worse.  The first time it happened my friend came and met me to be with me.  There was something seen in my left breast that look like a spec.  It could have been left over deodorant, this is why they ask for you not to wear deodorant or lotions the day of your testing.  My diagnostic came back as nothing.  It was a lymph node that needed extra looking at and after reviewing it again, there was no signs of anything.  A lymph node carries fluid like a tunnel from one place to another when there is no blockage.  This year I had another diagnostic follow up that needed to be done.  Like before, I started freaking out and was very concerned.  I am getting older.  I am not sure about you but when they tell you they need to see you again in the doctor's office, everything starts to hurt or feel broken all of a sudden.  My diagnostic showed nothing to worry about.  So I started asking several questions.  Are you looking at the same spot as the spot before?  What are you looking at?  What is the difference in my results?  The radiologists was happy to answer all my questions and put my mind at easy because of all my new found concerns.  The spot that was of concern this time was not the same one as before.  Lymph node is stable, no changes.  This was not what they were looking at.  The spot this time was a mass.  A solid mass that needed to be looked at.  But there was no concern from the radiologists after my 3D mammogram and ultrasound.

2D vs 3D?  I have previously had 2D and have been called back for testing.  I figured 3D would be better pictures.  I also thought that I was not going to be abused by that machine, but nope not happening.  The 2D and 3D are done similar.  But the 3D takes more pictures to compare versus the one shot with 2D.

Ultrasound?  This is like any ultrasound you have seen.  A sonogram of the breast.  It is not as painful as the mammogram but it can cause discomfort after you have had the mammogram pancake tests.  Also, when the technicians and the radiologists have to go over the same area several times.

Results?  These are immediate.  The radiologists came in, ran a few more scans on the ultrasound machine, and then she discussed my results.  It was a huge relief that I got the all clear, see you next year.

Costs?  My mammogram is part of my routine check up.  My diagnostic had to be part of my deductible.  I was mad that they could not fit me in the schedule in December.  Deductibles are calendar year.  They start over in January.  I was able to make a payment and pay the rest by mail.  I know that the hospitals have to get paid but I do not think this just prevent us from getting the health care we need.  What if I did not have the money to pay for my tests?

There are places that offer free mammograms, search online.  Also, do your research.  Ask a lot of questions.  There are no dumb questions.

Have you had any scares?  Any more tips?

Wellness Wednesday - Inferno Hot Pilates

The end of the year is upon us with only November and December left.  Where are you in your wellness goals?  As you have been reading in my Wellness Wednesday posts, this year has been a year half empty, half full - glass of life.   The year did not start of this way, but now this girl is on fire!

Disclosure-I was an invited guest.  All opinions stated are my own based on my personal opinion and personal experience.

My journey started late but I started.  I spent more than half of the year living an unhealthy but most of all UNHAPPY life.  I was suffering inside.  I have had a long time to think where did all go wrong, how did this happened, and how long has it been like this?  Five years ago my life was flipped upside down from all angles in my life.  When I thought I was handling it, well I was only repressing it all.  We all handle things differently.  The process can either make us or break us.  I have been broken.  My glass could never get full because it had a crack in it.  That crack just kept spreading and I could not grasp how foggy things were getting until I literally was having vision problems this year.  It has been very hard for me to talk about it all but it has to come out so I can let it go.  I cannot continue to hold on to something that is not mine to hold.  The universe knows why and I have no need to question it.  Not anymore.  

It happened.  I lived it.  I learned from it.  Let's move on.    

It took five years for me to realize that I did nothing wrong.  I tucked and rolled with the punches that life threw and I am now on the other side.  My glass is full, the good kinda full.  It is overflowing.  

Like Pink says, even if you see my scars....could you love me any way?  I can, I love me!

I am still putting the cracked pieces together but the fire that is inside me is filling the holes one by one.  My journey has taken to a place of transparency and has given me a new courage.  I do not even know my own strength.  Mental or physical.

I am trying new things and taking my body to a healthier place.  Have you heard of Pilates?  I had and never had the courage to try it.  I did not think I had that kinda control.  

I was invited to try Inferno Hot Pilates at a new fitness studio, Hot Power Fitness.  Did you know?

Pilates developed in the aftermath of the late 19th century physical culture of exercising in order to alleviate ill health. - Wikipedia

I in no way shape or form would have imagine surviving the first five minutes of the warm up, much less an entire hour.  But the instructor made me feel so comfortable with every move that was modifiable, if needed.  She was so encouraging and her playlist was fire.  Did I mention that it was inferno?  

The heat is provided through infrared panel that allows the heat to penetrate the body maximizing the benefits increasing flexibility, blood circulation, detoxification, stress release, and pain relief.

The class was high energy and intense.  It was fun and it had me waking up body parts that had been asleep.  I burned a gazillion calories and I met some new fitness friends that had the courage to try the class too.

Hot Power Fitness is located in the Houston Westchase area that also offers hot yoga, restorative yoga, Zumba, fitness seminars, and private group classes.  For more information or to take advantage of their new low introductory rates go to:  (Tell them Alba from Independentmami sent you)

12350 Westheimer Road, Houston, TX 77077 - hotpowerfitness.com

Thanks to Hot Power Fitness for the invitation and the kick the you know where.  I will leave you with this that happens to be on their wall -

Wellness Wednesday - Clean Eating

My health has become my priority with all of the doctor's visits and results I have recently received.  I am taking it one day at a time and focusing on getting me better.  Thanks to one headache caused by TMJ.

After I found out I was no longer allergic to the long list of foods, I was still in shock.  See I was still getting hives after eating.  Stumped by the reaction, I decided to eliminate the things I was previously allergic to.  I wanted to try and pin point the problem.  That same week I was challenged by a blogger friend to make one change.  This was the start of me clean eating.

But what does CLEAN EATING mean?  I have been trying to lose weight for awhile now.  Nothing I tried was working.  I was already under doctor's care for my liver issues.

I decided, enough was enough.  This summer we traveled and of course, enjoyed lots of good food.  I had just came back from our last vacation.  I replayed all the sodas, sweet desserts, and don't get me started on all the fast food we ate.  My one thing to change was that I was not going to drink any more sodas or sweet teas.  I am from the South and sweet tea runs in my blood.  Also because in the past I had been allergic to yeast, I decided to give up bread.

That same day I told my husband we were going grocery shopping to start meal prepping.  While at the store I thought about what I wanted to eat.  I made a dinner schedule that worked for all of the family, not just me.  I know that this is a life style change.  I have been here before in the past and know whats to do.  I have done it several times.  Sunday night, meal prepping was done.  I was ready to start my week.

Then the week started and my 6 small meals was not cutting it.  Day one was super hard.  I felt as all I did all day was eat.  I was too hard to keep up with my eating schedule.  Day two came and it was still hard.  I decided that in order to be accountable I was going to be sharing my story online.  Soon enough I had friends and followers giving support and offering their success stories.  They shared what worked for them.  I felt very supported and listened to each suggestion.

Clean eating for me meant that I eliminate the food that was causing my body to react.  I eliminated sodas and sugars.  I eliminated yeast as it always made my stomach swell.  I started keeping a food diary and watching how my body reacted.  The changes I made actually worked.  I no longer suffer from hives after dinner and the scale has actually started moving.

In a little over a month, I had lost 20 pounds and after 3 months a total of 30.  I made changes to our eating.  We cleaned out our refrigerator and pantry of items that we were not eating.  We stopped eating food that comes in a box.  We started eating all fresh food.  I even have started purchasing organic and grass fed.  We plan a dinner schedule that everyone can enjoy.  We eat foods that we all like.  We cook together.  The life style change has began because we all are in this together.  I am really enjoying my husband cooking for us as well.  He is learning that he enjoys cooking.

And lastly, we eat something different everyday.  Previously meal prepping meant eating the same thing at least two to three times a week.  This time, we are enjoying a variety of choices.

Find what works for you and your family.  Start with one change and see how much this will change.

Wellness Wednesday - TMJ

The body gives you signals, are you listening?  Do not wait until it is too late to respond.  We are moving too fast through this life.  But what happens when life slows us done?

The one appointment that was pushed back would be the answer to all my suffering.  The visits had all been long, the results all disappointing, and in the end I was just so exhausted.  I drove across town almost everyday to try and find answers.  The Allergist had mentioned that she thought the dentist may be able to confirm what she only could assume.

I walked into the dentist office like a regular visit.  They took my symptoms and did the regular testing to include X-rays.  I sat in the chair just waiting.  And then the dentist comes over and says it's TMJ.  I felt like she had the mic, said TMJ, and then dropped mic.  As I picked up my jaw off the floor, I had a lot of questions....

Ladies and gentlemen, ever heard of TMJ.  (Temporomandibular Joint Dysfunction)  What does that even mean? 

In simple terms, my jaw bone was jammed into my cheek bone.  My medical history does not show this being genetic and I had not had a jaw injury.  The next most obvious was STRESS.  But let's rewind, what were my symptoms:

-I felt a pain like an ear ache but different, in my left ear
-Chewing caused my headaches flare up
-Shooting pain in my face on my left side

The prime suspect was stress.  Stress was causing me to grind my teeth which I had never done before.  And when the dentist ask, "do you grind your teeth?"  You answer, "Um, I am asleep.  How am I suppose to know?"  Dumb question...next.

Due to the overload that I had allowed in my life, my body had started to fall apart.  I finally had answers.  But how do you fix this?  Yeah NO, to those of you who want to just smack me a good one to pop it right out.  Not happening.  A mouth guard was ordered and I will be wearing this for the rest of my life.  

So what was the lesson here, slow it down.  Let others help.  You may think you can handle all things, super person, but your body may know differently.  And now TMJ rules my world:

Timeouts R

My

Jam

This really was a really scary situation from start to finish.  It caused me to slow down but for reals.  The timeouts were great and allowed my body to heal.  The healing process was very therapeutic and very much needed.  

Do you visit the dentist every year?  Did you know you are suppose to go every six months for check ups?    Wellness dentist check ups may be covered with your insurance, so what is your excuse?

Wellness Wednesday - Eye Spy Answers

I have not always had 20/15 vision.  Maybe when I was little but through the years, I had to start using glasses.  And after several years of wearing glasses I decided to get lasik.  Best decision ever.

That is an oldie.  Circa 2007, car selfie.

If you are keeping up with my story, up to now, I have no answers.  My next appointment is with my eye doctor.  (Blurred vision often means there is a need for corrective lenses.) 

Did you know there are different types of eye doctors?

Optometrists prescribe and fit eye glasses and contact lenses to correct vision problems. 

Ophthalmologists are the next level.  They diagnose and treat eye diseases and perform surgeries.

I was referred to an Ophthalmologists. 

My eye doctor is an Optometrists.  He has had my chart for over 10 years now.  The testing he does goes beyond what regular eye doctor's have done previously.  I made the executive decision to go to him first.  (Again, do what make sense to you.  You know your body.)  I figured he has my eye's history.  I shared with him my symptoms and the results from previous doctors.  He ran scans of my eyes and compared them to my scans from previous visits.  The results... there was nothing wrong with my vision.  There were no changes that he could see from previous scans.  He showed me each eye and what he looks for.  He explained the different things that the eye can show.  The eyes can show:

- Diabetes
- Diseases
- Deficiencies

Not sure I have mentioned this but I am under doctor's care for my liver.  It really interested me to see how much my eyes showed. 

And yet, we hit another dead-end.  On to the next.

Stay Tuned... Wellness Wednesday - TMJ

Wellness Wednesday - I Am Allergic To What?

Have you ever had an allergic reaction?  Maybe you ate something and your lip started swelling.  Or out of nowhere, you start itching.  Your body gives off signs when it does not like something.  Are you listening to your body?  Are you looking out for the signs that may be there?

Last week, I told you that my doctor referred me to several doctors including the Allergist.  I had previously been to the Allergists when I started suffering from allergic reactions all of sudden a couple of years ago.  I went in then thinking OK I am allergic to something.  When I received my results, I was shocked.  After the birth of my daughter, I started suffering from several body ailments that I had not before.  I questions my doctor and she said our body changes as we get older.  And now my allergy tests, said I was allergic some of my favorite things.  It was like they took all of my favorite things and said you are allergic to all of them.  It was so hard to eliminate those foods that I have always eaten.  I even started the shots to help me.  I did them for close to two years and then, I just gave up.  It was hard keeping up with my shots and all those visits.  So what did I do to help my allergies?  I tried to avoid those foods.  I ate them in moderation.  I dealt with the reactions.

It is never a good idea to cause your body allergic reactions or live on Benadryl for the rest of your life.

Fast forward to this year and my current symptoms, swollen and rash on face.  The Neurologists had no explanation.  The Allergists ordered full allergy testing.  What does that mean?  I get to get poked with very small amounts of several items to try and trigger an allergic reaction.  The tests started.  I had been through this before so it was not a surprise.  But for those of you that have not, what actually happens?  There are two types of tests; blood tests and skin tests.  The skin tests is exactly that.  You get poked on your skin to test if you get a reaction for the items being tested.  They will ask you what caused the reaction, if you remember.  It is good to keep a food diary or write down what happens when you get a reaction.  When I went in for my visit, my face was still a bit swollen.  I explained all the symptoms I had been suffering from and the previous doctors I had seen and would be seeing.  The Allergists read all my results and then sat down with me.  And the results showed that I was allergic to....

NOTHING!!!

The Allergists explained that that is exactly why the shots are good for you.  She said the treatment I did previously had helped me overcome my reactions.  She did warn not to try and test my body.  She advise to take it easy on my body.  The allergies good come back.  Too much of something can become bad for you. 

And this point, she had no answers for the swelling in my face or the rash that I got.  Nothing had reacted.

I was still suffering from my headaches.  The Neurologists and Allergist both were dead-ends.  Next..

Stay Tuned... Wellness Wednesday - Eye Spy Answers

Wellness Wednesday - It All Started With A Headache

Where do I start?  It all started with a headache.  The signs were all there stress, not sleeping, and feeling super tired.  I ignored all those signs until my body decided to give me new signs.  Enough was enough, it said.  It would not take any more abuse from me.

One day, I woke up with blurred vision, my face was swollen, rash, and a piercing headache.  I was suffering and I did not know how to help myself.  Nothing I tried worked.  I was falling apart.

I went to the doctor and she did not have an exact answer for my pain.  She ordered a slew of tests and referred me to see a Neurologists, Allergist, Ophthalmologists, and a Dentist.  

I wanted answers and I wasn't sure how I get through those tough days.  I could not even focus.  The slight sign of any light bothered me.  I had to reevaluate, slow down, and care for me.  By me looking for answers, I would discover so much more.  

Neurologists.  Have you ever been referred to one?  Do you know what to ask?  What tests they will run on you?  Anything that has to do with my head or brain always scares me.  Was I having an aneurysm?  This was the first time I was going to a Neurologists.  I was not prepared.  I followed my doctor's orders and just went to the doctor she referred me to.  I just wanted answers and fast relief.  My experience ended up being horrible.  I did not do my research on the doctor or office I was being sent to.  I also trusted them to know what they were doing as professionals.  Regardless of their unprofessional care, I went through all the tests and visits.  When you are sick, all you want is to feel better.  

What I learned?  

-Research your doctor or referral.  Check online profiles, reviews, and web pages.

-Ask the doctor more questions.  You are paying for care.  There is no time limit for your appointment, so don't feel rushed.

-Review your request for testing prior to you leaving the doctor's office.  Ask why the test is being requested?  Are there different tests that can give the same results?

-Check your insurance coverage.  Does your copay cover the price of all testings?

-Listen to your gut.  If something seems wrong, do something about it.

After a handful of tests which even included an MRI, over $2000, and several visits later, I still had no answers.  

On to the next doctor, hopeful they can give me answers....

Stay tuned for next week, Wellness Wednesday - I am Allergic to What?

Wellness Wake Up Call

Ever suffer from a really bad headache that does not go away for days.  Now imagine, your face swelling, eyes twitching, and much more symptoms for over a month.  Yeah, that was me.   It hit out of nowhere and nothing helped.  I went to urgent care and then followed up with my doctor.  My doctor then ordered a slew of tests and specialists visits to try and find what was wrong with me. 

Things are never what they seem.  Little did I know that I was functioning but not really functioning.  You know that saying, listen to the body.  Well, I should have paid a little more attention.  My body was trying to tell me that something was wrong.  I did not listen.  I have been living a couple of stressful months.  And the more I suppressed it, the more I strained my body.  And this was the result.  After seeing the ophthalmologists, allergist, neurologist, therapist, and dentist; we finally have an answer.  STRESS

To be honest, nobody knows what is going on in my head.  Behind my smile, my mind is working a million miles.  Women carry a lot on their shoulders.  We worry for our children.  We pray for our loved ones.  We are strong for our partners.  We are there for our parents.  We do it all at work and at home.   I fall in this description and then some. 

I give until there is no more to give.  Nothing left for me.  But who carries me, who will tag in when i'm too tired to give, and too worn out to try? 

I continue to fail at taking care of me because I leave me for last.  I do not learn my lesson of putting me first.  How selfish of me to even think to do that! 

The FOMO is real.  The fear of dropping the ball on all who need me and all who depend on me.  But I am not realizing that is will be missing out if I don't take care of myself.

How many wake up calls does it take us to realize that we are needed?  To be present for the moments in life that matter, not for those that won't matter. 

So take a half day, take a full day, heck the week... enjoy the weekend, make memories, and laugh a lot.  Laugh til it makes you cry.  Cry til it makes you smile.  Let it all out, whatever and however it needs to come out.  And love and be loved.

P.S.  My stress caused me to grind my teeth while I slept which caused TMJ.  My jaw bone was jammed into my check bone causing all of my symptoms.  While trying to find a cure, I meditated, I relaxed, and I unwinded.  Taking it a MOM-ent for me.