You Know, Like Groundhog Day

In September of 2014, infection was discovered in my husband's chest (where it was cracked open for bypass surgery four years earlier). He underwent a debridement and was left with an open wound 18 cm long.

For the next eight months, we did everything we could to heal that wound without surgery. We eventually caved and Mark had a plastic surgeon perform a muscle flap procedure, after which he spent a month in a rehab facility with strict sternal precautions.

A month after returning home, two small abscesses formed on Mark's chest. He went to the ER and was admitted to the hospital for several days due to infection. He came home on both IV antibiotics and an anti-fungal.

Just as those two small wounds were THISCLOSE to healed, another abscess formed right in the middle of his chest. A CT scan was done and Mark was referred back to a cardiothoracic surgeon.

How I Became Visually Impaired

I think it was the summer that I was seven when I first realized I couldn’t see the stop sign at the end of the street clearly. My mom took me to an optometrist and I got my first pair of glasses.

No biggie. Kids needs glasses all the time.

A few years later, when I was 10, I noticed some little fuzzy, black dots floating around in my field of vision. This was some inflammation in my right eye. It was treated with a shot of steroids (in my eye!) and life went on.

During the summer after my freshman year of high school (I was 15), I completely lost the sight in my left eye.

Being Discreet at Target

I first wrote about my occasional light bladder leakage and Always Discreet almost nine months ago.

Since then I have been relieved to have this product on hand in my bathroom.

Relieved. Ha.

Because, it doesn't appear that this is a problem that will just magically go away. In fact, sometimes I can't strain my lower abdominal muscles even a little bit without a something escaping.

Ahem.

The View From Here: No More Self-Sabotage

This week's View is from Mari Farthing of Mari, Quite Contrary.

Mari wrote about a very personal issue for her.

I hope you will read and give her supportive comments.

__________

No More Self-Sabotage

A few years back, my doctor told me I had something called metabolic syndrome—meaning that I was a victim of my insulin, which was completely out of whack and I would need diet, exercise and medication to put my life back into order. More specifically, I would have to lose a significant amount of weight to get my insulin in control.

My Kids Step Up When I Need Them To

What makes your kid extraordinary isn’t just the epic stuff, like getting good grades, shooting a goal or winning an award. It’s the little things too. The small moments that maybe only you see — and quietly celebrate every day.

My kids have been doing something over the last several months that has been, and is, a very big deal to me.

The View From Here: Cancer Mom

This week's View is coming to you from Samantha of From Foreclosure to Frugal,

but she is not sharing anything about financial issues.

No, she has chosen to share a very personal story of hers.

__________

Cancer Mom

I was diagnosed with cancer when I was 24 years old. I had three babies at home and we were trying :unsuccessfully: for number 4 when I decided to go in for a physical to make sure nothing was physically preventing us from becoming pregnant.

Good Health Guilt

I'm guessing "good health guilt" is similar to survivor's guilt, only different.

I don't know. I think I made it up. A Google search revealed it doesn't seem to be a real thing.

I have good health guilt because of the stark contrast in how well I am compared to how unwell my husband is.

And lately? Twenty fourteen is proving to be The Year of One Thing After Another. Mark has to have his fistula checked out AGAIN this week because, after two surgeries and an infection, it is flowing slower than the dialysis folks would like it to.

Every time I bound up or down the stairs. Each day I head out for one of my walks. When I lift something heavy and move it without losing my balance.

I feel it.

30 Day Leg Lift Challenge

I was sans a fitness challenge the last two months.

I don't like it.

Need a new one!

And did you know May is National Physical Fitness and Sports Month?
Well it is.

It’s Fitness & Sports Month! Check out this toolkit for ways to #MoveInMay: http://t.co/lmHjlAHgPr. #LetsMove pic.twitter.com/ICnvJDq5u0
— President's Council (@FitnessGov) May 1, 2014

What haven't I don't yet.....?

Leg lifts!

30 Day Lunge Challenge

I hope you didn't think I wasn't going to keep trying fitness challenges in the new year.

I haven't done lunges yet!

Here is the chart I'm going to follow:

150 really seems like a lot, doesn't it??

And because I wanted to be sure I knew how to do lunges properly,

I found a video:

Heads-up!
After doing lunges this month, I'm going to do a MULTI part challenge in February, so stay tuned for that!
I feel I must admit I'm not 100% perfect with these. My grand idea to stay centered with Yoga last month pretty much fizzled. But I do genuinely try hard at each thing, and learn stuff along the way.
Wanna join me?
Happy New Year!

31 Day Yoga Challenge

One more fitness challenge for the year!

I want to do something a little different for December.

The Holidays can be a very crazy time of year.

People get stressed.

We eat too much sugar.

Maybe drink a little too much alcohol.

So the idea of doing yoga came to mind.

Whenever I've done yoga, I've felt better for it.

I found this lovely blog where they have been doing a "Year of Yoga".

UPDATE:

Their December challenge wasn't up at the time I was ready to publish this post,
but I'm sure they'll get that posted soon.

Their December chart looks like this:

OR, the next most recent month with 31 days is October:

Not sure which one I will follow.
Maybe I'll do TWO poses a day!

Join me?

Easy Blood Pressure Monitoring at Home

*This post is sponsored by the Ozeri CardioTech Digital Blood Pressure Monitor.I was provided with the product to review. All opinions are my own.

Temperature, heart rate, oxygen saturation and blood pressure are four "vitals" doctors and nurses like to get readings of on their patients.

ALL.THE.TIME. There is a reason people say hospitals are no place to get rest. After spending more time than I care to in hospitals with my husband, I can attest to the fact that doctors find it necessary to monitor these vitals around the clock.

My husband is on dialysis and his BP is checked every so often throughout every four hour treatment, three times a week. It also behooves us to have some sort of blood pressure monitor at home.

Maintaining level BP levels when you're on dialysis can be pretty tricky. My husband often deals with low blood pressure immediately after treatment. And then it can be high on an off-dialysis day.

I have never really trusted blood pressure cuffs you can buy for yourself to use at home. We've had manual and digital. I think I've most trusted the manual ones, oddly enough.

However, this new monitor I was sent is pretty cool.

Here are the product's main bullet points:

• New intelligent voice-guided feature alerts you to the proper positioning of your wrist for accurate blood pressure measurements.
• Automatically provides an audible hypertension assessment via a new talking function (as well as a display on the LCD screen).
• Portable, accurate, and simple-to-use with clinically proven technology, stores 180 blood pressure readings (90 x 2 users) with date and time recordings.
• Automatic Irregular heartbeat (Arrhythmia) detection and Hypertension Indicator.
• Push-button access to average blood pressure readings based on all readings in memory, AM versus PM readings, or the 3 most recent readings.

What I/we like about it:

• It's small, completely contained in the device itself. No arm cuff or need to be connected to something else.
• Comes with a handy-dandy hard protective storage box.
• It takes your BP on your wrist rather than your upper arm. I love this because it doesn't hurt or cut off circulation so much that my arm throbs and my hand tingles. (Yes, I tried it myself. I didn't make Hubs be the only guinea pig.)
• It TALKS, guiding you through the process of taking your blood pressure. Now, my husband would like the option of being able to turn that feature off, but as a visually impaired person, I find it quite helpful. Also, the voice feature makes doing something like this, which isn't fun by any means, and you may be doing when you don't feel well, a no-brainer.

I had my husband take the monitor to his dialysis clinic with him to test its accuracy against their blood pressure cuffs. He reported that the readings were pretty much the same.

Would I recommend the Ozeri CardioTech Digital Blood Pressure Monitor?

Yes, I would. I think it's a very helpful product for people like us who need it. (Um, otherwise I wouldn't have written this post, thankyouverymuch!)

30 Day Squat Challenge

There have been crunches.

There have been push-ups.

Then came planks.

Oh, I did not like the planks, my friends!

Ready for planks, my abs were not.

Therefor, I tapped out at 2 minutes Maybe 2 1/2, tops.

I kept doing them, but I got nowhere near 5 minutes worth.

That's OK. Moving on!

Imma do some squats this month....

source

This chart has the same numbers, but I don't know, maybe you like it better?

30dayfitnesschallenges.com

For November, my "exercise ingredients" will be:

Walk 2.5 - 3 miles
60 crunches
20 push-ups
daily squats

Squats are apparently good for your ass.
I discovered this when I Googled  for squatting charts, and there were all these BUTTS staring me in the face. Even naked ones! It was all I could do to find G-rated charts.
Go ahead, Google for yourself.

So you wanna do some squats with me?

30 Day Plank Challenge

For two months now I have been doing some sort of fitness challenge.

August was crunches and September was push-ups.

Push-ups didn't go as well as crunches, but I still did them! Mostly.

For October I will be attempting planks!

Or planking. Or however you want to say it.

I will be following this chart:

I couldn't track down the original source of this image. If someone claims it, they can let me know.

Or there's this one from 30dayfitnesschallenges.com:

So now my workout ingredients look like this;

Walk

50 crunches

20 push-ups

+

daily planking

Whenever I post about this challenge, I'll use the hashtag #30dayplank.

It's October 1st! Join me?

I Walk

My favorite form of exercise is walking.

This has served me well as someone who has never had a driver's license. When I lived in the Bay Area, I used public transit and walked nearly every day, and stayed in pretty good shape doing so.

After moving to Marysville, Washington and I became a stay-at-home mom, coupled with the amount of rainy days here, walking places totally dwindled. I also had another baby.

And I got seriously out of shape.

I've told you about my high cholesterol. I also expressed how the idea of me starting to have health problems freaks me out because of Mark's. If there's anything I can do to keep myself healthy, I just have to do it.

It was this reality check that got me up and out there walking again. Sometimes even in the rain, although that's pretty miserable and I don't recommend it. Thankfully, I have a treadmill for back-up.

Walking is not only good for your body; it's also good for the soul. The way I feel about life, the world and myself is dramatically improved when I go for a walk.

I step outside, stick my headphones in my ears and start Pandora on my phone. Always on shuffle because I like to hear a variety of music. Now too, I open up the MapMyRun app, make sure it's still set to walk and touch START. I hear the voice say "begin workout" and off I go.

My feet hit the street, I take in a breath of fresh air and am instantly refreshed and invigorated. I know I'm doing good for myself and it spurs me. But I don't start out full on; I know it's best to start slow and work up to a fast pace. The more I'm doing this, though, the sooner I speed up and really give it my all (hopefully without looking like a spaz).

I live in a neighborhood surrounded by small farms. The main road to our development doesn't have sidewalks and no shoulders. So my routine is at least two laps around the perimeter of the neighborhood.

This route, depending on just how far I push what is the "perimeter", MapMyRun tells me is about 2.7 miles. Yesterday I felt it was time to push to three miles. I decided to walk this one section of my route a second time and was able to get that three mile goal. Finally!

It was more like 11:44 am. See my funky route?

Go me! Now, this means I have to continue to do at least three miles, right? Well that's OK. Because I WANT to.

Wanna know what else I'd really like to do? I'd love to do a charity walk. There are several causes I care about. Just need to get back into better shape, and then work up the gumption.

Now, if I could just find some activewear that has a special pocket just for my phone, I'd be in heaven.

What is your favorite form of exercise? Why do you love it?

Inspired by Mama Kat's weekly writing prompts.

30 Day Push Up Challenge

I did a 30 Day Crunch Challenge during August.

Now I want to help the other least favorite part of my body: my upper arms.

I dislike them so much I never wear anything sleeveless.

Push ups can be pretty tough, so I looked for two different charts,

one starting with just 5 and the other with 15.

Both get you to an end goal of 40.

Found HERE

30dayfitnesschallenges.com

Yeah. I'll probably be going with the one that starts with 5.
And doing "girl push ups" on my knees!

I've been walking regularly for about 14 months, and will of course keep that up.

I will also continue to try and do at least 50 crunches a day.

I guess I see this as adding in the ingredients of a work out, month by month.

Big thanks to my very supportive friend, J.Ho!
(who also has a blog, Mom Rocks Mealtime)

Tomorrow is September 1st. Let's DO this!

30 Day Crunch Challenge

My friend JHo, who is a food blogger at Mom Rocks Mealtime,

emailed me and her other friends saying we should all do this:

With help from Google, I found 30dayfitnesschallenges.com

where they also have this variation:

A handful of us are on board, complete with a hashtag: #30daycrunch.

I gotta say, ever since having my son 7 1/2 years ago, my belly has been my least favorite

part of my body. The boy gave me "jelly belly"!

My OB/GYN called it that. Nice, hu?

So I'm doing this.

You should join us!

How to finally kick your own ass into shape!

How are you doing with your resolution to start exercising?

I am in no way a health and fitness nut so I am not here to pretend that I am or lecture anyone on such things.

I do, however, want to share what has been my process in arriving at a place where I finally WANT to exercise and take better care of my health.

Maybe "arriving" is the wrong word. Considering all the temptations out there, and that I know I will give into them sometimes, it will continue to be a process.

One thing I know for sure is that making healthier choices has to be something YOU decide to do. No amount of anything besides your own motivation will make you do it. Further, I believe there is a moment when it simply clicks and you will finally see it through.

Psychologically

You have to be FED UP. You have to be sick and tired of how you feel or look or both. Just done with not being wherever it is you want to be physically.

I have this idea of what size clothing I should and shouldn't wear. In my mind I should never be any larger than a size 14, and I would prefer to be a 12 or 10. I honestly don't see myself being any smaller than that because I just am a curvy girl with large breasts and hips. Beyond that, I know that I am on the other side of looking and feeling good if I get up to a size 14.

You have to really want to make a change. Like, this is for real, different from other times. You feel it in your gut. It's not gonna happen if your heart isn't in it

For me, it is literally my HEART that's in it. You put my husband's health problems (including many with his heart) and that my dad has had a heart attack, not to mention that my uncle died from sudden cardiac arrest, all into a bowl, and I have the recipe to create fear for the health of my own heart. The cherry on top? Finding out my cholesterol is "marginally high".

It sucks, but it really helps if there's some key factors motivating you, such as a recent health screening, wanting to be healthier for your family, maybe even a recent health crisis.

Physically

You have to be honest with yourself about what form of exercise will work best for you.

Walking is my thing. I think it has naturally evolved as such due to my inability to drive. When we lived in the Bay Area I walked and used public transportation nearly every day. I stayed in pretty good shape doing so. That was California where it's sunny, or at least not raining, most of the time. I experience the exact opposite here in Washington. I got out of the habit of walking pretty quickly after moving to the Evergreen State, and my body has suffered for it.

But I still really enjoy walking so it is what I have gotten back into over the past several months. I'm not gonna lie, I am having to push myself to walk as fast as I once did, as well as figure out the right things to eat before exercising so I don't go all low blood sugar out in the middle of the street. Walking may not seem like a high impact exercise, but when you've gotten as out of shape as I have, it'll work.

I also like yoga, and from the small amount of it I've done, I am a firm believer in its benefits to the whole you, mind and body.

I've met people here online who love to run. Others who enjoy an elliptical, bicycle or Zumba. We each have to find what we will enjoy doing. If you hate the form of exercise, you're not going to do it regularly, therefor you're not going to lose any weight or feel healthier.

It is a pretty well known fact that it takes 21 days to make or break a habit. You have to push through the early days in order to make exercise a true ROUTINE.

Don't you think I've tried before now to get back into walking? Of course I have! But the difference I discovered last summer is that I hadn't pushed on through for a month before I slacked off again.

When the Holidays (and winter) came I got real worried that all my effort at my walking routine would be ruined. It did slow down, but I got on my treadmill every day that I could, and then I found myself itching to get back to it more often once the new year hit.

I am now in a place where I truly want to exercise and know that I feel better when I do. I am pretty blown away by this.

Once you push through the hurdle of it being extra-ordinary, it becomes ordinary and just a part of your life.

Accountability

I have hated that word over the years. I've never wanted to feel like I had to justify myself to anyone. But the thing is, it really does help. Not in an "answer to" way, but more of a "report to" way.

Not telling anyone of your intention to do something is another way to let yourself not do it. If you didn't tell anyone, they'll never know, hence no disappointment (or judgment). Except in yourself. Letting yourself down is really no better than letting someone else down.

I got involved with Chosen Choas' Run Blog Give last summer, and her Adopt-A-Pantry this fall. All those involved reported their mileage or days exercised to Jamie and she kept track of it on a spreadsheet. I'm not a runner, just a walker, so I didn't log as many miles as most of the other participants. But no one let me feel disappointed in myself for that. On the contrary, Jamie was a friendly cheerleader.

In my experience, accountability can actually translate to encouragement and support. For me, having someone to report to in the beginning is what helped me push past the 21 days I needed to form my new exercise habit. I'm not holding myself accountable to anyone right now, yet I'm still exercising.

Patience

I am a 38 year old woman who has grown, birthed and nursed two babies. I wasn't exercising at all for YEARS. Women's fat cells like to stay put. All that, and I still gotta eat. Therefor, weight loss is not proving easy for me.

Still, I know I am doing good things for my body and that keeps me trying. I'm not on a fad diet, I'm making lifestyle changes for the long-term. I feel good about that.

You need to have patience both with yourself and the process. There is no point in beating yourself up if you decide to eat a cookie, nor to throw in the towel on your exercise routine because you don't think you're seeing results fast enough. Just keep swimming. Hey, swimming is great exercise!

Bottom line (Ha ha - bottom):

• Feel it
• Choose it
• Do it
• Tell someone
• Be patient

Do you have any tips or tricks to motivate yourself or others into healthy habits?

Talking about my body (on my blog!) forces me outside my comfort zone.

This is difficult for me.

But I really want to do it.

Because now....now it seems to be important. On so many levels.

Just before my birthday this year I found out that my serum cholesterol is "marginally high".

I guess this means it's not dangerously high, but is outside what doctors consider to be healthy.

Let me just say right here, that I'm not planning to disclose actual numbers. Not my cholesterol level, and especially not my weight.

I'll tell you my age all day long. I'm 38. There is, however, something different about a woman's (and maybe a man's too) weight. I believe most people to be far more judgmental about a person's weight than their age.

Not only that, but I don't think the number on the scale is the be all, end all in how people should feel about their bodies. In fact, it's kind of a pet peeve of mine. I get very irritated with people who feel like talking about their weight all the time.

Sure, the number on the scale is important to doctors in looking at contributing factors to any medical problems you may be experiencing. And personal trainers and nutritionists have all these calculations they like to make using your height, weight, BMI and whatnot. Fine. Whatever. None of that is where I'm coming from, or will ever care about.

What is of concern to me is my HEALTH and how I FEEL in my own skin. Last on the list is vanity. But yes, it is on the list. You would all call foul on me if I didn't admit that!

Here's the bottom line: I'm 38 years old, overweight and need to lower my cholesterol for the health of my heart. I had gestational diabetes in both of my pregnancies which increases my chances of developing type 2 diabetes. DIABETES, people! The very disease that is slowly killing my husband. I can't have it! I won't have it. Not only that, but heart attack and stroke run in my family. Family that I am blood related to. These are not small things.

When I found out my cholesterol had crept up, just as with having gestational diabetes, I immediately thought of the welfare of my children. With a chronically ill father, they need their mom to be the healthiest she can be.

I want to be the healthiest I can be.

Since April I have reintroduced breakfast back into my diet (the most important meal of the day!), am drinking a little more water and am eating less of the bad stuff I enjoy. I've decided I don't love french fries that much. More recently, I have begun exercising at least every other day. Nothing extreme; more like small steps. That's just how I roll.

Why am I telling you all this? Honestly I probably wouldn't be if it weren't for an opportunity I have been given to be provided with a 90 day supply of a diet support product to see if it might help me with my weight loss endeavors.

I am going to be trying Diet 1234™ from Creative Bioscience. I have chosen this product because:

Diet 1234™ is for modern dieters who want to lose weight without constantly counting calories and exercising all day. It is a revolutionary diet supplement designed to provide energy and promote weight loss naturally using key herbal extracts clinically supported to aid weight loss. Dieters face fatigue and food cravings as they eat less to slim down, and Diet 1234™ addresses these important issues.

I want to start making better dietary choices and this sounds like something that will help me do that.

Obviously I have already begun making changes to better my health. I will simply keep that up, while adding the supplement. I think this should make it easy for me to see if it is helping me or not.

And yes, I will periodically check what my weight actually is in order to know for sure if the things I am doing are causing me to shed some pounds.

So please, wish me luck!


PS: If any of my blogging friends would like to join me on this journey, you can click HERE to read the details and apply!

Being a Good Health Care Advocate

My husband recently spent 13 days in the hospital, in both the ICU and on the regular care floor.

He has had MANY hospital stays.

After this last one, I quite honestly don't know if he'd have been discharged when he did, or be doing as well as he is, if it weren't for myself, our family members and Mark's kidney doctor being right there to advocate for him.

I say that because there is a serious lack of proper communication in hospitals. Not only that, but probably half of doctors and nurses don't treat patients and their families with respect.

I promise, this is not me being defensive or overly sensitive or whatever else it might be. I have been Mark's significant other for nearly 18 years now. I've been around the hospital block a time or two. I really do know of where I speak.

So many medical professionals think us average schmoes don't know our asses from a hole in the ground. That, or they're just seriously lacking in bedside manner. Either way, they forget that the person in the bed is a human being who is loved.

Some are amazing. Some will listen and answer the hundreds of questions you throw at them with patience and sincerity, without dumbing everything down. Them I love. Them I want to take home with me and make a part of my family. And when they're being awesome like that, I thank them profusely. I am sure to let them know how much I appreciate how well they're doing their job.

But the ones who come into Mark's hospital room and act like my presence is a nuisance, or like they think I can't possibly understand the big words they're using because I didn't go to medical school....they can kiss my ass. And not just me, but anyone they treat that way, you too, should not stand for it.

Doctors and nurses know what they're talking about medically, and you can get a sense of just how much they know and if you can trust them with your loved one. But those of us who love someone who is sick, we know the PERSON they're trying to treat. And someone like me, who loves someone who is chronically ill, I know just as much about Mark's medical history as he does. The two of us got this. Both of us can comprehend what is going on, we can learn and adapt. Yet still, we are underestimated. And I just don't think it's OK.

Patients and their loved ones have the right to ask as many questions as they need to, and they should. No one should take what a doctor tells them without asking questions. Everyone should leave a doctor's office or hospital understanding what is going on and what is being done about it. Everyone, the doctor and patient alike, should be on the same page, with the same goals in mind.

What I said about the lack of communication in hospitals? That is like ten times more frustrating than being talked down to. The latter is annoying, but you can brush it off. When the doctors treating Mark won't TALK TO EACH OTHER, I have to get pushy. And then I look like a bitch. I really don't like looking like a bitch.

But it's not MY problem, it's theirs. During this last hospital stay Mark had his nephrologist (dialysis), a couple of cardiologists and either critical care or floor docs overseeing his care. Once he started improving and was moved out of critical care, I swear if we hadn't made a bunch of noise about getting him discharged, he might still be there.

Perhaps that's a slight exaggeration, but you get the idea. He was doing well enough to get up out of bed, use the bathroom on his own and sit in other parts of the room, even leave his room for a little walk, yet they were making no moves towards releasing him. When we asked about discharge, everyone was clueless! The nurse didn't know what the plan was, nor did the Hospitalist (floor doc). We asked them to get his doctors on the same page. It took 2 days. Mark was not happy.

And then....and then! The biggest problem was the cardiologists. Mark was in the hospital for heart problems, yet there wasn't a cardiologist in sight. Or, they would come, read his stats, make some notes in his chart and just leave without talking to us. I started referring to them as ninja doctors. When one of them finally showed himself, Mark read him the riot act. He felt like they had written him off. It was seriously ridiculous!

Here's the thing. Yes, doctors and nurses are highly trained individuals who most likely know what they're doing. But, we know what we're doing too. They know medical stuff; we know personal stuff. And then when you're like Mark and I and have been dealing with this crap for ages, you also know a lot of medical stuff.

I love Mark's home health nurse right now. She is one who did not walk into our situation and assume we know nothing. She came in with an open mind, listened to us and determined that we have things well in hand. She is impressed with our knowledge of Mark's meds and what he needs. I am impressed that she sees it.

It's a matter of respect. If doctors and nurses want patients and loved ones to respect them, they need to respect us too. And in the absence of that, we must be advocates.

The person in the bed is a human being who is loved.

Random Act of Kindness: Become an Organ Donor

Become an Organ Donor

This is something that is near and dear to my heart.  It should be near and dear to all of our hearts.

I believe we all have a moral obligation to be organ and tissue donors.

And not only because my husband has had a kidney/pancreas transplant and needs another one.  No, it's because 18 people will die each day waiting for an organ.

It does not matter what your religious beliefs are.  All major religions support the principles of donation and transplantation.

It is just your physical body anyway.  You don't need it anymore once you've passed on.  Really.  And even when you're still alive, there are parts of your body that you have multiples of, such as kidneys, or that can regnerate, such as the liver, bone marrow and blood.

Seriously.  Don't be a hoarder!

According to the United Network for Organ Sharing, or UNOS, the current transplant trends are:

• Waiting list candidates as of today: 111,724
• Active waiting list candidates:  72,346
• Transplants January - April 2011: 9,055
• Donors January - April 2011: 4,490

See those last 2 numbers?  Transplants vs. Donors?  The number of transplants is higher than the number of donors.  That's becasue one body can provide as many as 50 opportunities for transplantation. Fifty! Organs, skin, stem cells, eyes, perhaps even limbs. It's truly amazing!

Now here's the tricky part.  If you're all, "Yes!  I absolutely want to be an organ and tissue donor!", that's awesome.  But you have to SHARE YOUR DECISION with your loved ones.

Share your life.  Share your decision.  If your loved ones aren't aware that donation is part of your final wishes, they might say no when the doctors ask.  You can fill out an online donor registration form or tell the DMV you are a donor all you want, but if your next of kin say no, that's it.

The most important thing to do is to sign up  as an organ and tissue donor in your state's donor registry.  Then....

To cover all bases, it's also helpful to:
• Designate your decision on your driver's license
• Tell your family about your donation decision
• Tell your physician, faith leader, and friends
• Include donation in your advance directives,
  will, and living will

There is also an International Association for Organ Donation, as well as the Donate Life website.

I hope that each and every one of my readers will commit to being an organ and tissue donor....and then some!