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Mike is diabetic, on dialysis, and has major cardiac disease. He is what we nurses affectionately call a "train wreck," a patient who has several body systems functioning sub-optimally, each one affecting another. It takes a monumental effort by Mike and his doctors, dialysis nurses, home health nurses, pharmacists, physical therapists, and friends to keep his body balanced and functioning.
The human body needs protection. It is very basic. The body's largest organ and it's best defense against infection is the skin. How basic is that?
Another very basic fact about the human body: It needs fuel: protein, vitamins, carbohydrates, fats and fluids. It is essential that we view food as fuel for the body.
My heart goes out to diabetics and those with advanced renal failure and cardiac disease.
While food is essential to their survival, most components of the American diet can be their enemy.
When I was diagnosed with blood cancer five-and-half years ago I quickly realized that while the doctors prescribed chemotherapy drugs to knock out the leukemia cells, the medicine couldn't do everything. I had to take responsibility and do my part. I had to keep my body strong and keep it fueled and fine-tuned so my medicine could do it's job. So I joined the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team in Training and became a triathlete, a cyclist, a marathoner. Don't get me wrong...I don't profess to be a big, FAST he-woman athlete. As I always say, I'm not out there on the course to compete, but rather to "COMPLETE" the course as my way of facilitating the control of my disease.
The human body needs the human brain to take control of the situation and provide appropriate fuel, fluid, and fitness. Bottom line. We need to be responsible. We all had a free ride when we were young and disease-free. But not anymore. Don't fool yourself. It's up to you. Be responsible for yourself.
In Mike's case, he has an army of professionals, friends who love him, and a dedicated brother who is pitching in and doing cartwheels all around him to help him be successful and keep him going. I want so much for him to have an "ah-hah!!" moment where he realizes that he really wants to hang in here with us and make this work. No more fast-food. No more canned or processed foods. Hold the salt. Hold the sugar.
If you will, take two points from this rant:
Be responsible. Take control of whatever you can control in your body to tackle your disease.
My suggestion: Eat live food. Fresh veggies, fresh fruit, grilled protein, whole grains, complex carbohydrates, polyunsaturated fats. Small plate. Split the plate in half. One half green vegetables and fruit, one-quarter protein, one-quarter carbohydrate. Basic. Simple. Just do it.
Okay, that's two. Here's one more: I used to say to myself, "here I am doing everything I can to stay alive, and my body is trying to die on me." I don't know how long it was before I realized that was entirely not true. My BODY was designed to live. The cancer was an invader, an outsider, a vigilante set out to destroy.
Maintain the proper perspective and make sure you stay on the right side of the aisle. Work with your body. You don't want to end up being your own worst enemy.
My friend, Mike, walks a tight-rope. It has taken a lifetime for the diseases to take over his body. And now he's supposed to change a lifetime of bad habits overnight. It takes concentration to stay on track.
When you are fighting a disease and trying to save your life, eating is not a social event, an activity, a chance to feel satiated, gratified, stuffed to the gills. It's basic survival.
Eating right can be empowering. It fuels your immune system to fight back. We become so weakened by poor nutrition that it's like trying to fight cancer or diabetes with sticks and stones. Give your immune system fuel. Hold your own. Fight back.
And keep believing..............................
