Wonder Women of the World.. Listen Up!

Do any of you know that this week we celebrate "Women's National Health Week"? And the day after Mother's day is designated as National Women's Check-up Day.  I cannot tell you how important it is to get yearly check-ups, if that might include: Bone health, breast health, cholesterol screening, colorectal health, reproductive, ect.... you name it... get er' done!! 

Working in the healthcare field I meet with alot of patients who have never been to the doctor, cannot afford to, or simply just ignore to make it a priority.   I usually meet with the patients just after their heart attack and/or procedure, or when their kidney's have failed to the point they are now on full time dialysis.   This is the hard part for everyone.. because they now have to make drastic changes to their lifestyle in order to survive day to day.. and recover.  If I could only turn back time (in my Cher voice) and tell these individuals that this was preventable.. and by simply making their health a priority, they would be in a better place.  So with this... let's get this party started!

1.  This week you are going to schedule yourself an appointment and get EVERY area(orifice) of your body checked... that might be skin(for irregular moles), yearly OBGYN visit, or your blood lipid profile. 

2.  You are going to get your butt off the couch....and exercise.. this might be a 20 minute walk around the park, sprint the stairs or hallways at work (I do this when no one is looking)... I feel like an elementary kid running in the hallway.. and make abrupt stops as I am walking by someones office.. so they don't think I am an escapee from the psych unit (where I also do consults)

This is NOT me.. but this is sort of kind of what I look like with a few spectators

Or sign up for a race....for the heck of it like I did... and look what I received at the finish..

3.  Eat Healthy!!!   So I could make this a 100 page blog entry just on how to eat healthy... but I am going to condense it into a few key comments.   First off.. start out by really paying attention to what you are eating...keep a journal... or just a simple notepad on your kitchen counter.. and at the end of the day look at it.. and then make the necessary changes.  For instance... I did this activity just for breakfast.. and realized I was consuming almost 300 calories just in juice one morning.. it is amazing I am not in diabetic shock right now, or missing my feet.  Anyways... secondly...start with baby steps.  Maybe it might be changing up your creamer in your coffee, avoiding artificial sweeteners, going from whole milk to skim, I could go on... and on.. and on... but just make a few simple changes.   I can officially declare that I have went from 6 cups of coffee every morning (by 10AM) to now just 1-2 days a week of coffee.   Disclaimer:  Do not cut coffee out of your diet cold turkey!!

4.  Mental Health:  (My favorite area).... when I discuss improving your mental health I do not mean we are going to discuss those hallucinations that have been plaguing you.  What I am getting at is... SLEEP, STRESS and MOOD.   It is quite amazing what an effect sleep can have on your well being...during my 28 day cleanse.. I challenged myself to being in bed by 9:00 or 10:00 each night.  I seriously felt like a new woman after getting more than my usual 6 hours of sleep(which is my usual).  I also didn't look like this anymore..

Also... remember my blog on Fish Oils??  Read it again...
I also cannot say enough about the book "Spontaneous Happiness" by Dr. Andrew Weil.  I listened to it while I ran, commuted around the bay area and will probably listen to it again... I feel as though it helped me out this past year through some not-so-fun times (cue the 80's love ballad..whatever)

Lastly... utilize your friends and family... I love a good laugh.. and I might also add that I have the FUNNIEST friends EVER.   We seriously laugh all the time (even if it's via text)... we can go from a Sally Field bawling session (like on Steel Magnolia's)

to laughing like like this.....

It is therapeutic... trust me.  If you have no friends to call (maybe there is something wrong with you).. then watch a few re-runs of "Friends".   When I was living overseas.. my neighbors and I would watch "Friends" to curb the homesickness....it worked.

I love this episode where the girls decide to be brides for a day.

So all the ladies out there go out and toast this upcoming week(or day) with your friends... as this could potentially change your life!!

 "If you don't focus on your ass, no one else will." -- Cristina Goyanes, 27, Women's Health associate editor, New York City