Today isnt a good day and I question my own judgement in writing this here, but I swore that I would live my life out loud, where people could see that others go through maybe what they're going through....and so here we are...

About ten minutes ago, I posted this to Facebook...soon it will go onto my other site:

I want to apologize in advance that I may be scarce in the coming weeks/months. I have some mental and physical health problems that I need to take care of and really focus on. This may mean me taking more time for myself so that I can get well enough to tackle life head on again. I've been trying to juggle so much that I'm not giving my best to anything and the guilt and stress of that are adding to everything and are taking their toll. I know that I owe things to people and I will get them done. I just can't say when. All I can do is apologize and hope that you can understand that right now I need some time away from things that aren't directly helping me get better.

 I promise all of you that I will get better and I will come back stronger. I'm not disappearing but taking a step back. Call me, text me, email me, message me...it all helps but please understand that right now my focus is on fixing myself and my world. I love you all very, very much. That will never change. I just want to be okay and that's going to take some work.

I wrote that last night and waited about ten hours before posting it. I had hoped that sleep would change how I felt, but it didn't. I feel as if I'm falling apart and nobody sees me anymore. Oh sure, the rational part of my brain knows that isn't true, but as so often is the case with the things I suffer with, the rational side isn't completely in charge.  Instead, I find myself in this place that I don't understand and I don't like. For 90% of Valentines Day, I was okay. It was just another day and then suddenly a post was made by a friend of mine and I got angry. I got angry that he's with someone and I'm not...and yes, a bit that when he was single, he didn't notice me. Please, don't mistake this for jealousy. It could easily be seen that way and it's not. It's not just certain people being in relationships. It happens when a friend had a story published in an anthology and I saw him give a ton of credit for it to someone else even though I was his cheerleader and his editor. It happens when someone tells me I have no idea what I'm talking about even though I've been doing something for years. It's just that right now, I'm having these knee jerk reactions...I'm reacting and it's taking every last bit of energy that I have not to lash out. I'm living in a constant state of stress...my chest feels as if it's ice cold and burning at the same time all the time. I'm breaking apart and though I know there are others struggling too, all I seem to be able to see is everyone else's joy...new babies, new relationships, happy relationships, etc. More and more I feel like an outsider and it allows my fears to get a stronger grip.

Things that I thought I had gotten past...like my family and their pure jackassedness ...are popping up and instead of walking away and shaking my head, I'm struggling with the desire to just tell them precisely how I feel about how they're behaving now and in the past. My blood pressure is up, my body is one stress reaction after another...
 
How many of us have seen this image on places like Facebook? I'm sure a lot of us. I saw it again last night and it hit me...I'm not getting better. I had been getting better, but something shifted and now I'm getting bitter. When I feel as if nobody sees me or nobody appreciates what I do, I'm getting angry. I'm getting frustrated. I just want to throw my hands up in the air and walk away from everything. I want to say "fuck off" to everyone and just live a life of seclusion where I can be alone...except, I'd be alone with my anger and everything else. It wouldn't help. 

There's so much more to this....how I've become afraid of the outside world, why I hoard people even those who have been nasty to me, how I don't feel as if I'm worth spending $35 on....and I know that I'll write those and maybe a few of you will read them and maybe it will resonate with one or two of you and somehow help. If it helps even one person, it makes the fight a little more worth it. 



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During his more than thirty years as a vascular surgeon, Richard Furman literally held clogged arteries and diseased hearts in his hands and wondered why the person lying on the table hadn't been more careful. Heart disease is the number one killer of men and women in America, and in most cases it is completely preventable. So why are we slowly destroying our bodies and killing ourselves? And what can we do to turn it around?

The good news is, simple, sustainable lifestyle changes can mean the difference between health and infirmity, between life and death. Putting his three decades of experience and education to work, Dr. Furman gives readers the strategies they need to live not just longer, but "younger." This essential resource to health helps readers :
-achieve and maintain their ideal weight
-reduce their risk for life-threatening diseases
-make exercise a natural part of their lives
-learn what foods to eat and what foods to avoid

It even shows how following the plan can not only eliminate heart disease, but also keep people safe from various cancers, dementia, diabetes, stroke, erectile dysfunction, and other age- and obesity-related problems.

Dr. Furman wants readers to realize that poor health during one's "golden years" is not inevitable. It can and should be avoided at all cost. And with his expert advice, readers can live long, healthy, vibrant lives, enjoying time with friends and family instead of wasting it in doctors' offices and hospitals.
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Recently, I made a decision that I needed to change my life. I've had high cholesterol for as long as I can remember and I've been overweight for nearly as long. So, when this book came up for review, I jumped at the chance. I'm so glad that I did..while it took me a little while to get through (it gives you a lot to think about), I learned a lot too. For years, I've heard that I need to lower one type of cholesterol and raise another, but nobody told me how to do that. This book does. Filled with a ton of information and written in a way that anyone can understand it, I found myself highlighting entire passages and I even have a post it sticking out at one part to remind me where to find a certain chart. If you have weight, cholesterol or heart problems, this book could be a major help to you. Even if you're in perfect health, this book could make you look at  certain things differently. As for me, this one is going into my bedside table so I can pull it out whenever I have a question.



I received a copy of this book for the purpose of this review.  All thoughts, comments and opinions are my own.
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