Both her and my son looked at each other and held each others hands as the technicians whisked me away for yet another test.
Rewind. How did I get there? Why was I there? Why am I at home now?
It started the last week in June, a week full of stress with multiple projects being due, multiple house repairs to be done, finances being what they are and still the notion of preparedness in the back of my mind. The last one was the least of my worries as I trusted in my preps and more so, my Lord and Savior. As the week progressed, the tell-tale sign of me getting tired and stressed is my words. The stuttering and stammering had returned. This, along with the lack of sleep was not a good thing for two reasons: I speak, or rather, present to people for a living and that meant something was seriously wrong.
Sunday, my body had apparently had enough and in the middle of the grains aisle at the grocery store, I got dizzy and grabbed a shelf for stability. My face grew pale and I became disoriented and wasn't sure why I was there. Thankfully I was with my wife and daughter and they started watching my like a hawk through the rest of the store. Yes, I got my bearings and realized what was going on but something still wasn't right. The week progressed, my doctor's visit went poorly and the look of fear on his face was a sure sign of why he sent me to the hospital.
Test after test, hour after hour, minute after grueling minute went by with my family by my side and the conclusion...non-conclusive. So, they blamed it on stress. Thankfully. Why thankfully? Because it was something that could be remedied. No immediate danger was there, but if I didn't and don't tend to it, it could lead to a real stroke as opposed to the stroke like symptoms that brought me to the hospital in the first place.
What does all of this have to do with preparedness? GREAT question. I am back home after one day, not quite 24-hours, in the hospital due to one main thing. My eating habits. I had been moving towards a healthier lifestyle so I could be around to use my preps and take care of my family if I needed to. Yes, that means less of the crap that is easy to obtain or the dash for a donut from the local convenient store and a 64 oz soft drink for breakfast and lunch.
How do I eat healthy and how do I add these things to my preps? Let's break this into the full two questions.
How do I eat healthy? There are many resources available on the web that will tell you about how to eat and what to eat to obtain a healthy diet. I am also not a nutritionist so I won't pretend to play one on TV. I will say this:
- More sleep
- Less Salt
- Lower Fat / Good Fats
- Lower cholesterol
- Back to basics
Back to basics? That means that you determine what the food is naturally and eat it as close to that as possible. In other words, a potato doesn't come from the ground in a thin slice and deep fried to be coated with salt and vinegar (yes, a weakness of mine). Eat the potato instead. If you have to have fries then slice up the potato, put a light coating of olive oil, a pinch of salt and even a sprig of rosemary and throw it in the oven for 20 minutes. <- Recipe :)
It is these things that you can do to eat better. That along with exercise will keep you healthy or at least get you going. I am back home because I was already heading down that road and because I had made a choice on what to eat. Review your diet and then add those things to your preps. A root cellar may be just what the doctor ordered. I know, but there are plenty of ways to build a root cellar that doesn't add a hole in your floor because you have no basement.
I hope this little Health 101 talk helps you. I am just sharing my experiences and resting on the road to recovery.
Until then,
Use your instincts to survive
