Starting a New Workout Routine

Tonight, I did a workout routine after months of being turned off from working out. I took a health class last spring semester that got me really motivated about working out, and I wanted to begin right away, but alas, I began too fast and too soon. Everything I tried was too difficult, or I just didn't stick with it very well. What I found was that after working out, my ribs would hurt, and I attribute that to having done too fast, too soon. But I now realize the necessity and great importance of starting off slow. A slow start will allow me to work up to a good level of aerobic health, which I especially need because I have asthma and going up a flight of stairs usually kills me! I do think my aerobic health has improved a bit here because I've been doing more walking. However, I want it to continue to improve and to do so faster, and I also want to build up my strength, especially in my legs and arms. Down with weakness! I say yes to strength and health and no to all else! My goal is to keep doing my 10 minute workout, and I started with this video, but mostly kept it on as background noise and moved along at my MUCH slower pace, for a week, after which I will update about how my workout routine is going. I think that after two steady weeks of the same 10 minute workout,I will be ready to increase it to 15 minutes. For now, I am going VERY SLOWLY and at my own pace, because it's better to start off slow than not to start at all! Wish me luck in my workout journey! :)

P.S. It's about 15-20 minutes after my workout and I feel the need to note that I feel great, I feel like there was a boost of serotonin and energy and I am definitely looking forward to my next workout tomorrow! :D

Be Careful with Painkillers!

One of the sad things that I've experienced as a result of having this disease is the abuse of painkillers. From the time I was in high school to about a year ago, I popped pills like they were candy. Whenever I felt some aches and pains coming on, I hopped right on them with a painkiller. I didn't know how else to manage the pain, and I was doing what the doctors had told me, which was to drink water and take painkillers whenever necessary. Living with this disease has been incredibly difficult, and there were times when I would take some painkillers and drink my water and just go to bed, hoping and wishing that I wouldn't wake up and have to deal with any more pain. Mind you, the pain wasn't always severe. It was just the constancy of it that was wearing me out. I knew that taking many painkillers would damage my body, but I didn't really have much of an alternative. That's one of the most difficult things about this disease. One cannot function with the pain, and yet the painkillers are slowly wreaking havoc upon one's body. And Sickle Cell pain isn't normal pain. It's the kind of pain that can start as a little pinprick and explode into the kind of pain that lands you screaming in the hospital because the painkillers they're giving you simply aren't strong enough.

The best thing about these natural remedies is that they help the body to produce blood cells normally and help the body to make up for what it lacks, especially the Thiocyanate. What I've experienced with various painkillers is this: When I take Tylenol or Acetaminophen, I notice that I have trouble breathing afterward. I have asthma as well as SC, and though my asthma is mild, the Tylenol and Acetaminophen that I used to take in great amounts have grown to aggravate my respiratory system. I developped ulcers as a result of years of taking Ibuprofen (anti-inflammatory) and Aspirin (blood thinner). I knew that I was doing damage to my body when I was taking them, but it was between choosing to live with untreated pain that was driving me to suicide's door, or taking the damaging painkillers to help make life more manageable. I was taking such doses that people who are more sensitive to painkillers would be a bit worried when they noticed what I was taking, but it couldn't be helped. Until now. Now I take painkillers much less frequently, and I hope that my body has become more sensitive to normal doses of painkillers (though I'm not very certain about that.) I am determined to stick to this diet and to this natural way of treating my disease, and I hope that this blog can be an encouragement to others who are dealing with it.