I graduated

Counseling - I graduated from counseling.  I've been seeing Tiffany Smith since September of 2011.  With her help, I have had the courage to look at me and like me. In that process, I began to like those around me, namely my husband and my kids.  I loved them and took care of them, but I like them now LIKE them. I find them funny and interesting and want to get to know them, not just take care of them and feed them.

Tiffany guided me to find my own confidence that I had let go of and found myself too.  I began to like me and be willing to look at me and be willing to face me in the mirror.  Counseling has changed my life from this point forward.  It did not change my past, it did not erase my past.  I gained skills to let it go and remain in the past.  It is and was as if the past was the big white elephant in the room.  So I turned and looked at the elephant and faced it and touched it and hugged it.  Finally I was able to look away from it, and most importantly, move on.  There is so much more to me than my white elephant that used to follow me around everywhere i went.  Well i followed me because i had it on a leash - I took it everywhere i went.  I finally learned how to open my hand and let go of the leash.  I am free from my past.  It is still there and it is still mine, but I'm free.

I used my self confidence to look up from seeing the numbers on the scale and only on myself.  Once I looked up from the scale and my feet, life suddenly had so much to offer that I'd been missing and suddenly when I quit looking at myself, it was no longer about me but the world around me and my loved ones.

If I change how I think, I can change how I feel
if I change who i feel, I will change how I see the world around me.

So I have some bad LDL cholesterol

Take Steps to Reduce Cholesterol

Prevention

Adoption of a healthier lifestyle, including aerobic exercise and a low-fat diet, should reduce the prevalence of obesity, high cholesterol, and, ultimately, the risk of coronary heart disease.

• First, see your doctor. A simple blood test checks for high cholesterol. You may be asked to fast overnight before the test. Just knowing your total cholesterol level isn't enough. A complete lipid profile measures your LDL, total cholesterol, HDL (the good cholesterol), and triglycerides. The guidelines say healthy adults should have this analysis every 5 years.
  
• Next, set dietary goals based on the guidelines from the National Cholesterol Education Program.
  
• 
  
• Strive for daily intake of less than 7% of your calories from saturated fat and less than 200 mg of cholesterol from the food you eat.
  
• You may eat up to 30% of your calories from total fat, but most should be from unsaturated fat, which doesn't raise cholesterol levels.
  
• Add more soluble fiber (found in cereal grains, beans, peas, and manyfruits and vegetables) and foods that contain plant stanols and sterols (included in certain margarines and salad dressings) to boost your LDL-lowering power. The best way to know what's in the foods you eat is to read the nutrition label.
  
• Lower cholesterol levels start at the grocery store. Read food labels, and buy foods low in saturated fat and low in cholesterol. To help you know what to look for when grocery shopping, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute has a partial shopping list for you.
  
• Breads - Whole wheat, rye, pumpernickel, or white
  
• Soft tortillas - Corn or whole wheat
  
• Hot and cold cereals - Except granola or muesli
  
• Rice - White, brown, wild, basmati, or jasmine
  
• Grains - Bulgur, couscous, quinoa, barley, hominy, or millet
  
• Fruits - Any fresh, canned, dried, or frozen without added sugar
  
• Vegetables - Any fresh, frozen, or (low-salt) canned without cream or cheese sauce
  
• Fresh or frozen juices without added sugar
  
• Fat-free or 1% milk
  
• Cheese with 3 grams of fat or less per serving
  
• Low-fat or nonfat yogurt
  
• Lean cuts of meat - Eye of round beef, top round, sirloin, or pork tenderloin
  
• Lean or extra lean ground beef
  
• Chicken or turkey - White or light meat, skin removed
  
• Fish - Most white meat fish is very low in fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol.
  
• 
  
• Tuna - Light meat canned in water
  
• Peanut butter, reduced fat
  
• Eggs, egg whites, egg substitutes
  
• Low-fat cookies or angel food cake
  
• Low-fat frozen yogurt, sorbet, sherbet
  
• Popcorn without butter or oil, pretzels, baked tortilla chips
  
• Margarine - Soft, diet, tub, or liquid
  
• Vegetable oil - Canola, olive, corn, peanut, or sunflower
  
• Nonstick cooking spray
  
• Sparkling water, tea, lemonade
  
• Manage your cholesterol. You can take an important first step toward a healthier heart by enrolling in the American Heart Association's Cholesterol Low Down Program. High cholesterol is a leading risk factor for coronary heart disease and stroke. Sign up by phone ([800] AHA-USA1) or online at American Heart Association's Cholesterol Low Down Program to receive life-management tools such as a newsletter, health risk assessment, and healthy-living cookbooks and fitness tips.
  
• Calculate your 10-year risk of having a heart attack. The risk assessment tool presented at this link is from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute's National Cholesterol Education Program. It uses scientific research information to predict your chance of having a heart attack in the next 10 years. For adults older than 20 years who do not have heart disease or diabetes, click the link to assess your risk score. Those with diabetes and others with a 10-year risk greater than 20% are considered to have the same risk for future heart disease events as people with known coronary heart disease. You'll need to know your total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol level, and systolic blood pressure (the first number).
  
• 
  
• The National Cholesterol Education Program Web site will tell you what your LDL cholesterol goal should be. For people with known coronary heart disease and similar risk, the LDL cholesterol goal is less than 100 mg/dL.
  

 

Happy Monday

So it hit me today: How the be the best mom to my boys: Lower my expectations to ZERO and that way anything that is accomplished or turns out good in that day is just bonus and happy extra!!!