My Valiant Effort

At my first Annual Exam -- supported by Medicare, which I now receive as a 65-year-old – I told my doctor – a young woman – that I was concerned about having gained weight in the last 4 years. I was so distraught that I cried.

Poor docs.

How often do people cry in their office?

I also had high blood pressure which was new for me; my blood pressure is always in the normal range.

She said, "It's probably because you were stressed about coming to the doctor's office. It's a real thing. It unnaturally raises a person's blood pressure."

I sniffed back my tears, "I'm not stressed about being here," I told her with a straight face.

She told me to get my blood pressure taken at stores around town and bring her the log of my results. She's certain that those numbers will be more in the normal range.

Why was I crying?

I feel betrayed by my body. For the past 30+ years I have kept the same weight: 147 lbs. I've been proud of myself. No yo-yo dieting for me. If my weight began to climb, I removed something fattening from my regular diet over the course of a year.

·         Chicken skin because, although it's very tasty, it's very fatty.

·         Breakfast cereal and milk.

·         Milk in my coffee.

·         Ice cream every week.

I had maintained my weight through a careful process of removal; of depriving myself of what I enjoyed in order to be healthier. And it worked! My year-long dedication to stop eating or drinking certain foods, worked!

Yet, here I am at 65, gaining weight unexpectedly. I can't seem to remove anything else. In fact, the thought of doing so, makes me sad.

The doctor, and her nurse, told me that women gain weight after menopause. Period. A fact.

What?

I'm pretty sure no one told me this!

If we get to this point in our lives, we will gain weight?

Argh!

I'm not gonna lie. It was another reason to cry at the doctor's office.

She was concerned, asked if I'd like to see a therapist. No, I said, I just want to lose this extra weight.

I told her that in preparation for this doctor visit (I'm always prepared, it's a failing of mine), I was going to change my approach. Instead of depriving myself, taking things away, I was going to start adding things. In fact, I was going to add a walk around our property every single day.

She was surprised (she doesn't know me very well yet so doesn't know how much I overthink everything) and she was pleased.

She said, "I'm going to write down here in your record about your valiant goal of walking every day."

Valiant?

Valiant!

Isn't that like heroic?

I was so happy to hear myself called that! She soothed my heart, gave me courage and additional heart to actually meet my goal. She complimented me. J

I am walking every single day that I'm at home. No other goals just yet, I'm just trying to build a healthy, happy habit.

We don't know when compliments will help someone. Give them out, like flower petals or snowflakes, whatever your age, everywhere you go. It's one tiny method of improving life on the planet.