CasandraW wrote: »

Hi everyone, checking in. I'm back from my birthday weekend away. We had a good time, walked lots, ate lots too though..

It’s so important to take time to pause, refresh, and reset. I’m glad you had a good time. That experience can give you resilience and ‘reserve’ energy to get through the difficult times.

I'm having a hard time getting back into my routine…. I do best with routine, I eat the same things for lunch most days, no snacks and a protein with a vegetable for dinner. Right now I want to snack, and not of nutritional foods of course. Candies, cookies, chips etc. Will power and water are the current attack plan.

It takes a little time to get back into the rhythm of our routines. It might be a good time to refine what’s working, etc. After giving yourself some grace, I hope you’re settling back into a more comfortable and healthy approach. You deserve to treat yourself well and your body will appreciate the protein and nutrient rich vegetables. The extra water is a great idea!

I think it's because I feel like my plate is full again and I'm having a hard time making room for good nutrition and exercise. I'm going to ramble through what's filling my plate - feel free to skip.

😊 I’m adding some reactions to the issues you outlined and hope you feel more grounded after some time to settle back into your routine. Good for you for seeking help from the professionals trained on these areas!

1. my teeth - (for those that know my story with my middle child) the stress caused some serious tooth grinding and clenching….I have managed to crack at least one tooth, maybe two now….The tooth is complicated to root canal so I need to wait for a specific specialist. My original appoint was May 15th, I've managed to get one for Friday this week instead. This tooth has been sore for more than a month already.

I also grind my teeth while sleeping. Originally, I tried a small over-the-counter ‘wing’ to bite. However, the dentist found some wearing down of my front teeth, too, and warned me it could lead to a crack. So, I bought a mouth guard I could shape to my teeth and I’m working on a bedtime routine to address the underlying stress so I’m not just treating the symptoms. If the problem persists, I might have to pay the dentist for a more professionally-formed guard. I don’t like the idea of clenching plastic at night because I’m sure I end up ingesting some small amounts of material but, for now, that’s my solution. Did the oral surgeon/ specialist consider the option of an implant instead of a crown? I decided to try one for a tooth that had some old fillings caused by too many childhood sweets and I’m very happy with the new tooth.

2. My thyroid - I had thyroiditis 2.5 years ago that caused a big spike in hormones being released that caused a very fast heart rate, massive head aches and shaking that lasted a couple weeks. Now I've had pain around my thyroid for the past couple months and I'm waiting to get a doctors appointment…There is a huge family Doctor shortage where I live. I know it's not thyroiditis again, but I'm at risk of developing an underactive thyroid now.

Stress reaks havoc on our auto-immune system, doesn’t it?! I’m sorry you’re dealing with a thyroid problem. My sister was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s disease a few years ago and it took awhile before she could adjust the treatment medication so that it worked for her. She’s a nurse in the office of a general practitioner and they’ve also been struggling with staff shortages. The health care system in the United States really needs to make some changes. In my work, we’re dealing with terrible shortages of teachers and mental health clinicians. We could really learn from other countries where the system works better @Pupowl but our citizens are so divided on this topic. Our daily pays an extra annual fee so our doctors can keep their patient case load lower but it’s expensive. Personally, I think congress members should be required to use the system of care they approve for Medicaid and Medicare programs. That should encourage improvement!

3. My middle child is back in hospital again, she hasn't actually told me…. I want to respect her privacy…. I've texted with her a couple times, but she keeps it short and very direct answers only, not interested in engaging. I'm ok with that, that is her choice and I can respect that. I hope that she can find a way to help herself and accept the help she is offered.

It’s so hard to see our children suffer but you are keeping the lines of communication open and making sure your child is safe — these are the short term priorities. I’m sure it means a lot even if it’s difficult for your child to express it. They feel safest lashing out at those who love them. I hope it becomes easier and improves with time.

4. We are designing a new house (YAY!!) it is stressful though…My parents need help, and it is difficult to merge our two families together. I'm not building a house with a granny suite, I don't want a house that is essentially 2 houses. Now we have to figure out ways to design the house that works for everyone.

It’s so true — a renovation can be so exciting and stressful. Even positive change is hard. We are facing some inter-generational changes, too. I’ll post more on that later because this is already a ridiculously long post (sorry!) but I hope the fun of designing and building your new house outweigh the difficulties! We just renovated two bathrooms and I’m happy with the results but I had to expend a lot of time and energy to ensure our two sons had a chance to provide their input. My husband is very decisive, which can be a good trait in many situations, but it can be stressful to negotiate changes when he has a certain vision in mind. I stood firm on integrating the various wishes the four of us shared for the hallway bathroom decisions and I gave my husband full decision making on the master bathroom to ease any tension. Whew! 😅 I’m glad that’s over. Now, we’re on to yard improvements — 🤔

Hopefully writing it out will help me find some more room on my plate for nutrition and exercise.

I hope so, too! Wishing you and your family all the best!

The March Week 4 Group Challenge is open and will begin on Sunday, Mar 19th. Hope you'll join us for a round of Fitness Bingo this week! Here's your link:

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10886670/march-week-4-group-challenge-fitness-bingo#latest

Jessica

AC204
Thursday
CW: 182.4
PW: 182.6

Steps Goal 7k/daily

3/9 - 8317
3/10 - 2967
3/11 - 2815
3/12 - 2897
3/13 - 5648
3/14 - 3607
3/15 - 8229
3/16 - 6511
3/17 - 8802
3/18 - 7012

Bumbinella
Sunday weigh ins
PW 164.7
CW 164.2

Steps
3/15 8,197
3/16 6,444
3/17 4,572
3/18 3,578
Been really cold with highs only in 20s snow and very windy - so over the winter in WI

Last week, I started attending a soccer training session for women on Sunday afternoons. This week’s session was canceled because the field is not available but there is a pickup game every Sunday evening with the co-ed master’s league so I’ll still get some exercise. It’s really cold today (for our area) but it’s not expected to get any colder tonight so that’s good news at least.

The pickup games are informal winter and summer matches without any referees. We just show up at 7pm and mix up all the players. The idea is to just have fun and get to know one another. Some of the more experienced men can get a little serious and rough for the masters level league so the pickup games are also expected to help players become more friendly with one another and less competitive during the more formal spring and fall team sessions.

My husband and I attended two parties last night and I exceeded my calorie intake. So, I really can’t let the cold weather deter me from playing soccer tonight! I’ll also try to participate in the fitness bingo challenge @jessicakrall8 posted this week. Right now, I just want to take a nap so wish me luck or send some positive energy my way please!

I’m trying to get motivated to gather some items we no longer use and donate them. I’ll sign off now to make sure I don’t procrastinate any more. I hope you all have a good weekend!

Congratulations to the Shape Shifter leaders! Nice work “SavageMrsMoose, @TexanMom8152, and @brttny7979!

Good morning everyone!

Back from my short trip to NYC and I'm up almost 2 pounds, but to be fair, I think I was pretty dehydrated when I weighed Friday, so I'm not too upset. I'm still under 150 which for me is a huge deal. I took a few days off from exercising too. My treadmill run Friday was brutal.

Really enjoyed my quick trip and was able to get tickets to Phantom of the Opera- the Broadway Production will end next month after 35 years. My husband and I saw it together in Houston in 1995 so it was kind of romantic to see it again with him.

@PatriceFitnessPal love the tshirt!

Poor IU lost last night, but the Houston Cougars are still alive!

Steps

3/17 15,536 thanks to torture on the treadmill

3/18 4,328

3/19 7,565

Hope everyone has a great week!

@vanzeem15 You signed up for the Step Challenge but haven't posted ANY of the last 3 weeks of step tallies. I sent a message last week, but didn't get a response. If I don't hear from you soon, I'll assume you've just changed your mind and are not walking this month. Hope all is well!
Jessica