April 9 PT Session & Fruity Love

I woke up feeling OK this morning. Some noise disturbed me around 6 am, and I slept fitfully the next few hours. I got up at 9 am and, after a shower, decided to take a dive in my HBOT chamber. I spent 45 min in the chamber listening to Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows, sooo good, v sad it's the last one. I came out of the chamber feeling refreshed. My energy level had pepped up, too. I was ready for the day! After a delicious and satisfying 32 oz. banana-celery-date smoothie, we were off to physical therapy (PT).

I returned to PT after a two-week absence, and it was good to be back. I got there early and spent 25 min on the NuStep- invigorating workout! Then Paul, my inspiring therapist, came

and walked with me over to the rehab stairs. He handed me a cane to use as I climbed up and down the stairs with my other hand on the railing for support. It took some getting used to holding a cane and using it for stability rather than leaning on it for support. Paul reminded me that my legs are strong and that I should feel confident using them to support me. Climbing up wasn't too difficult but going down was scary. After my first shaky step down, Paul instructed me to lead with the cane one step ahead and then step down, watching my feet as I stepped. By the last step, I felt more stable and confident.

Next, I did squats on the rebounder holding the stability bar with only one hand. Great, just when I had gotten the hang of doing squats while gripping the bar with both hands! But that is Paul's job: to nudge me out of my comfort zone. As my body learns and adapts, it can get comfortable doing things a certain way (the lazy or easy way) which can hold me back from taking it to the next level. Paul explained that in order to retrain my neuro-muscle behavior, I have to challenge it. He ended our session having me practice sitting and standing from a chair. The action of sitting was much improved, but my standing needed work. I was not coordinating the raising of my upper body with the straightening of my legs. My knees were popping back, straightening my legs as my upper body was still bent over. With proper instruction from Paul and practice, I finally got it! It felt good to get the coordination and do it with ease. I am always amazed at how all this movement used to just come naturally, and now I am having to focus my mind to relearn it. I suppose it's a form of functional amnesia, and I've lost the memory of how to do it. So, I have to learn it all over again. Ah, the things we take for granted until we lose them.

Afterward, Jack and I headed over to REI to pick up a shirt I had ordered for him. I had some dividend $$ from '06 that I wanted to redeem, and buying my honey a new shirt was the perfect way to do it. It's a nice, earthy shirt and he liked it :) He's heavy in earth signs (Capricorn), and I love him in earth tones. WF is in the same Gateway shopping center, so we went there next to pick up some groceries. We needed to restock on bags of frozen organic mango that we love for our smoothies.

After shopping, we came home, and Jack made us a rich banana-carob-cacao smoothie. Yum, it was like a chocolate milkshake without the sugar and dairy- what a treat!

Today makes the 4th day in a row of feeling good and energetic. I believe the raw, fruit-based diet has made all the difference. I tried everything else first, without any success. It wasn't until I gave up my addiction to salty/spicy/fatty cooked carbs that I started to see an improvement. I've always known this, but I have to keep proving it to myself, just to be sure. An added bonus is the emotional boost I feel. Living with my neurological condition and physical disability is a daily psychological difficulty. As I have mentioned before, I often succumb to feelings of hopelessness and despair. But after many fruit-filled days, I feel happier, more optimistic, and brimming with love. Fruity love.... This hangs in our living room for inspiration:

I love being surrounded by tropical fruits, and someday, I'm going to go live where they grow!

Time to get movin!

I woke up this morning with one focus: to workout at the apartment's fitness center. I hadn't been to the center in well over three weeks, and my body was craving the exercise. I am oh so fortunate that our little gym has a stationary recumbent bicycle. I get a great cardio workout without having to worry about balancing myself. I have tried the treadmill, and I can go for about 5 min at the lowest setting as I hold on to the handrails with Jack standing behind me for additional support. I LOVE the rec bike because I can do it on my own, and I can go for up to 30 min.

After the invigorating cardio work, I did bicep curls and tricep extensions with free weights. I started with 3 lbs. and ramped up a pound each set, ending with 5 lbs. It was a great workout, and as I rode my scooter back to the apartment, I felt exhilarated. I told Jack that I must remember this feeling when I am tempted to eat cooked, salty/spicy/fatty foods- whew! That's a mouthful- literally ;) When it comes to diet, "Just Say No!" is not enough. I find that instead of focusing on foods I shouldn't eat, it is helpful to focus on the fruits that I love, how sweet I feel after eating them, and the high I am on after a good workout.

Later in the afternoon, Jack and I went to the UPS Store to ship out an eBay sale. While there, the nice lady helping us offered us a cookie. I had noticed the plate of homemade cookies when we entered the store, and because we hadn't had our afternoon smoothie yet, Jack and I both felt tempted. But we politely declined, and she offered again, suggesting we could share one. Jack and I laughed, and he said, "Thank you but we are trying hard to be good and not have one." I added, "I feel and appreciate the love, though." She seemed a bit surprised at this but then smiled. I find that people are more loving and compassionate towards me because of my disability, and I welcome and fully appreciate the warm sentiments. 

We went to HEB, the grocery store, afterwards and bought our usual: organic naners, mangoes, and a watermelon. We were both ravenous when we got home, and Jack was on it, handing me a 32 oz. banana-date smoothie minutes after I sat on the couch. It hit the spot!

Noon: 32 oz blended watermelon

4pm: 32 oz banana-date smoothie

7pm: banana-date-mango salad, 1 hempball (recipe follows)

We made this yesterday and slightly tweaked RawModel's recipe:

Lime/Lemon Hempballs

1 cup raw organic pumpkin seeds (pepitas)

1 cup raw organic shelled hempseeds

2 cups organic golden raisins

juice of a lime or lemon

splash of raw agave

1/4 c. dry shredded coconut

-Process the pumpkin and hemp seeds into a powder in the food processor. 

-Empty the processor bowl and add the raisins, lime or lemon juice, and a touch of agave nectar. Process into a thick paste.

-Slowly add the seed powder and process until a thick batter is formed.

-Make small balls from the batter and roll in the dry coconut to coat.

This recipe yields about 20 balls.

Aries Lunation & Happy Bday, Sis!

It's been another rough week. After having a couple of good days, I was—again—struck with intense fatigue. For two nights in a row, before my energy plummeted last Tue., I had for dinner a large salad with a fatty dressing and about a cup of homemade vegan (cooked) potato salad. I don't know if that set me back, but I have been back on the no-cooked, lowfat, fruit diet for the past few days, and I am starting to feel better already.

Last night was the New Moon in Aries which makes today, Sunday, April 6, the first full day of the new Aries lunation: a great time to start new projects, make new goals, and spring into action. I started the day with a blended seedless watermelon drunk from my new 32 oz. glass mug. I got the idea for the glass from Sarah's blog. She is a fellow raw-vegan fruitarian, and I have been following her inspiring journey on the diet.

Then, I wished my dear sister, Jayshri, Happy Birthday. She has been a source of tremendous support and counsel through this difficult ordeal. We had a conversation recently that helped me big-time. There have been many moments when I feel weak and hopeless in my current condition, and my thoughts turn to death. I wish for it, invite it, and even wonder about ways to encourage it. I opened up to my sister about my morbid thoughts. She was understanding while reminding me of a spiritual truth: You can not escape from the lessons you have to learn and the obstacles you have to overcome. Even if my current life did end, I would most likely face similar issues in my next incarnation, especially if I left things unresolved. I have been given a wonderful opportunity to work off past karma and to continue on a path toward enlightenment. This conversation uplifted me, and I have bowed out of my mental dance with death. Be careful of what you wish for, I remind myself. ;)

Jack and I went foraging for fruits in the produce sections at the local grocery stores (HEB & WF) in the afternoon. We got organic bananas (our daily staple), ataulfo mangos, and a seedless watermelon. The watermelons aren't that sweet, but it's still early in the season. I can't wait for summer fruits!

In the evening, I felt a surge of energy so I walked (w/the walker) up and down the hallway in our apartment for about 6-7 min. I focused on my posture, swinging my hips, and bending my knees. It was a good bit of exercise. My goal is to be more active this lunation.

What I ate today:

11am: 40 oz. blended watermelon

3pm: 1 large organic grapefruit

5pm: 32 oz smoothie of banana, mango, date

7pm:  banana-date-mango salad