On my way...the history!

    My mother (Laurel Dodge) is such an inspiration to me in many ways. Her and my dad have always been my cheerleaders and biggest fans! I just started a strict anti-inflammatory diet this week and I decided to follow in her footsteps and blog about my journey. So here it is!
    It all started in 2008 when I found out I was pregnant with my third son. I started contracting at 18 weeks and was put on bedrest for the rest of my pregnancy. Not being allowed to do anything for almost 4 months was hard and a HUGE learning experience for me. It also caused the downfall of my physical body. The summer before this pregnancy, I attended a fitness boot camp and lost 40 pounds with Weight Watchers. I was healthy and strong at the beginning of my pregnancy but it didn't matter. Things were going to happen the way they were meant to....
    The first medical challenge I faced was 8 months after J was born. Kidney stones...lots of them and BIG ones. I had Lithotripsy twice and it wasn't fun for about 4 months. I finally recovered from the kidney thing and realized I wasn't feeling better. The doctor did blood tests and said he couldn't see anything wrong or out of the ordinary so he prescribed an anti-depressant. That wasn't working so I switched doctors for another opinion. That doctor did bloodwork and told me the problem was my thyroid. I was SO tired ALL the time and didn't have any energy. I had constant headaches and frequent migraines. I thought the problem was weight since I gained 40+ pounds with pregnancy but I just couldn't find the energy to exercise and the weight wasn't going anywhere. After several blood tests, I started taking Synthroid. That helped for a little while, but I was soon right back to where I was two moths prior. I was struggling with pain and body aches every day....and depression. I couldn't make it through the day without a nap. Fibromyalgia and arthritis were words thrown around but the symptoms didn't match up. I started seeing Dr. Kris Hansen and he treated me using NAET. I felt amazing after my treatments, but only for a couple of days. I went back to my family doctor. After some more testing, I was diagnosed with pre-diabetes. I HAD to lose weight. The Meformin helped for awhile and I started Weight Watchers again (I had given up about 3 times before this). I slowly started to lose weight then stopped losing and felt bad again. More bloodwork...more Synthroid...no help! My neck was hurting all the time and I didn't have an injury, just stress from not being able to handle my work life and home life while not feeling good. The doctor referred me to physical therapy and that was awesome! Until my insurance cut off my treatments. I scheduled a treatment with Dr. Dutch Workman, chiropractor, for my neck and after several treatments, I was able to make it through work and my headaches went away. He is great!  I still see him every other week or so and my headaches are less intense and less frequent. But what is the real problem? What is keeping my body from healing? Stress is a major culprit and I am trying to work through my sources of stress but it is more than that.
     I went back to the doctor about 6 weeks ago to let him know I am still not feeling good. More blood tests showed my blood sugar was back in the normal range. Yay! The tests confirmed that even though I had lost 25 lbs. my cholesterol was dangerously high. He prescribed another medication. When I picked up the prescription, I thought about it and talked about it with family members. I dumped the medicine down the sink and called Red River Health and Wellness Center and here I am. This has to work!

Here is the link to my daily posts...you can also find under "Pathway to Wellness"

http://www.stamfamilyhappenings.blogspot.com/p/pathway-to-wellness.html