Have you had a turning point in your life?
I would love to hear of your turning point, in the comments section.

I have had many. The latest one was just over three years ago.  My joyful journey is mostly told in my artslim blog.

This was my turning point and also when I began blogging.



My turning point was being so ill I was going into hospital once or twice a week due to extreme low pulse or low oxygen saturations as my lungs and heart were packing it in.
I was finding it difficult to walk, both my feet had been broken and my right leg crushed in an accident and I needed some   mobility products  to move around, even in, my own home.

I was looking at chairs and scooters in mobility compare , and barely managing with Reg’s help (when he could assist me) and walking sticks.

Reg my husband had then and of course, still has a degenerating disease of the frontal lobe of the brain and I needed to care for him not the other way around.
Doctor told me to 'make our final arrangements this involved arranging for someone to care for my husband after I was gone.  We relocated to live 6 minutes walk from my youngest daughters so she could take over when needed. I had a couple of night time life threatening events and needed to call the ambulance when I only needed help to sit up to breath deeper and some steam, but she was out and my man was confused, so the move was still of no help to me in managing my illness at home.

Similarly, when I needed help to manage my husband when he was having a bad episode of dementia, she could not step out of the daughter role, be strong, and learn how to be the one to manage her dad's behaviour. 

I also realized that the risk of having an adult with dementia under your roof is too great a risk factor to give anyone who also has the responsibility of children under the same roof.

I knew that a dementia hostel, would be the emotional and mental death, for my wonderful husband and if he was to stay well most of the time, if he was to live a good and happy life, then I had to be the one to provide the environment in which it happened.
To do that, I needed to be healthy. 

There was only one part of my health situation, I knew I had the power to fix and that was my weight.
I began my joyful journey to a healthier lifestyle and becoming slim, on 28th January 2007. I have only had one slow pulse visit to hospital since then instead of almost twice a week  prior to my commitment to be 100% healthy lifestyle living, no excuses, not ‘just this once’ overeating and I learned how to be more active.  I had already been eating healthy, just too much quantity. 

Illness and injury had gradually made me sedentary.  

How I became active after some serious illness and injury is another story, but I did it and my health returned, conditions considered incurable ceased to be evident and my current Doctors who do not know my past medical history are very unaware of those conditions I used to suffer from.

Today as I swam in the pool, watching Reg sitting reading under the shade of a tree,  I feel so fit and well, I can hardly believe I am 63. 
This afternoon, Reg and I walked on the beach and with Indigo the dog, I did seven 100 meter plus sprints along the sand.  Lol, this is the same woman was once in need of a heart lung transplant. 

This is the same woman who so easily could have been wheelchair bound with feet and legs too painful to stand up on.  
I know I have worked hard to be this fit, but I also know I have been blessed, with an amazing recovery and I do not take it for granted.

If through writing and telling people that you can recover from the near impossible, I can instil in them the belief that it can happen for them, then J, I’ll waffle on about my own recovery for ever. I am so very grateful that the human body has such incredible ability to heal itself given the right degree of self-nurture and positive belief.  
Remember that every cell within our body is replaced, every seven years. Remove the reasons for illness occurring and degenerative illness can reverse.


 

 I joined a forum about six months ago, called "You Are Beautiful" I began spreading the 'You are beautiful', message.
The forum encourage sharing the message that "You are Beautiful." I have not been active with the group and a friend has just reminded me about the positive work they do at http://www.operationbeautiful.com

The mission of Operation Beautiful  is to leave post-its that have heartwarming, pleasant, smile-provoking messages on them.
Write on a bunch of post-its and leave them anywhere: on peoples cars, change room mirrors, wherever - you'll be able to brighten someones day :-) I had some business cards printed up, saying 'You are beautiful'.  I give them out when I do the shopping wearing my T Shirt, I designed,  that says' You are beautiful.

Believe in yourself, YOU are Beautiful, NOW.

A man was strolling along the beach, waves gently lapping at his feet, the sound of the ocean in his ears. As he walked he saw in the distance the most beautiful colours lining the sand. Approaching closer he found the colours were actually tiny starfish - hundreds of them washed up and stranded on the beached, slowly baking in the sun.

In the middle of the starfish was a gentleman frantically picking up each little urchin and tossing them into the water, one, two, ten starfish; harldy making a dent in the hundreds.

'Why are you putting yourself through it?' Asked the walker 'There's so many, it wont make any difference.

'Really?' Said the gentleman tossing yet another starfish safely into the sea 'It made a difference to that one'.

Finding our place in life.

Our goals are not set in stone. Often we start out striving to achieve what we think we should do and on the way there we find new direction.  Changing course part way to goal, deciding there is a new path that leads you to being who you were meant to be, not who other people thought, you should be, is the right thing for you ~ and me.

Express yourself, be yourself, that is what you will do best in life. :-)