Time For a Change

[Bryon Anderson 0]

It's been an interesting past week or so. Last Wednesday, I woke up coughing. Not unusual, as I have allergies, sleep with my windows open, and it's pollen season, but it turned out to be blood I was producing, and quite a bit of it. It freaked me out a little, so I took myself to Urgent Care, where they did a chest x-ray. That revealed a "spot" on my lung that was concerning enough for them to order a chest CT (CAT scan) the next day. So, that was a fun 20-some hours of entertaining worst-case-scenarios in my head...

 The CAT scan revealed that the "spot" was a benign pulmonary nodule--whew!--but also revealed--surprise!--a 4 cm aneurysm in my ascending aorta. That was a combination OMG/whew! moment, since, had I not gone to urgent care, no one would have known about the aneurysm unless it grew and ruptured, in which case I'd likely die more or less on the spot. Fun times. 

So, as you might imagine, all this has me taking a closer look at my lifestyle, and realizing it's past time for some changes. Change #1 - no more cigars. This one hurts -- I LOVE my cigars, but I love being alive more, so....goodbye, old friends. (If I'd known my last one was the Last One Ever, I would have gotten a better one... )    Change #2 - start taking my diabetes seriously. I did good for about a year after being diagnosed, but I have gotten lazy and self-indulgent. So....wife and I are taking a stab at the "Keto" (aka Atkins, low-carb, Paleo, whatever you want to call it) diet with hopes of keeping net carbs to 50g a day or less. Change #3 - get off my a**. Walking, 4-5 miles per day. (Working at home has turned me into a shameful slug.) 

As they say, getting older sucks, but it beats the alternative....wish me luck. I hope to be around to trade stories, advice, opinions, and flies with you guys for a while yet.

[vicrider 0]

Except for the cigars (no tobacco for 40+ years) I pretty much emulate the lifestyle you talk about in your last paragraph. I enjoy living but doing a real diabetes diet, excerise, and leaving my recliner for any serious length of time is so engrained I cannot change that lifestyle even knowing it's shortening my life. At 79 I've lived through a lot of good times and some not so good and now I can't shake myself of the feeling I'm just waiting around for the end. I hope you can really turn things around and I do know the older you live to with the bad habits the harder it gets to change them. Glad you took that trip to urgent care and they found what they did. Good luck on the changing of your lifestyle (and your wife's). 

As for tobacco I had a good fishing buddy who smoked about the same amount I did at the time. They found a malignant tumor on one lobe and had half his lungs removed. He came at me so hard I through cigarettes from two pack a day to cold turkey and stayed that way since. They shut down the plant we worked at and I didn't see him for almost a year while we changed courses in our lives. He started a business and I went back to school. We got together to fish about a year later and HE'S SMOKING. I asked him "What the hell?" and his answer was you have to look at it this way..."I'm only smoking half as much". Yes, we lost him a few years later when the second half of his lungs metastasized.

[chugbug27 0]

Well, that's quite a wake up call. Good to hear you're okay and it was benign. Sounds like a good plan

[MuskyFlyGuy 0]

Byron,

That was a great catch. Hope you will be posting your fishing adventures for years to come. 
Tom

[Steeldrifter 0]

Byron that sounds like quite the roller coaster ride of emotions in a 24hrs span. Had to be very scary for you, but glad it turned out to be benign. And thank God they found the aneurysm before it had a chance to become a bigger issue.

Making lifestyle changes that will effect your health (in a good way) is not as hard as it sounds. When you first do it then it is a bit hard at first just because it's a change to your routine and to what you are use to doing, but once you get settled into a healthy routine then it just becomes 2nd nature and seems natural to you. And the really good thing is once you have been into the healthy lifestyle and you start seeing & feeling the positive changes it makes in the way that you feel, then that just motivates you more to keep it up, and it no longer seems like you are giving anything you like up, or having to work for anything.

As you know I've made some serious changes myself in my lifestyle over the years. I use to be 402lbs, alcoholic (drank 3 fifths of Vodka per week), smoked a pack & half of cigs per day, blood pressure use to be about 150/100 and would get winded and have a backache just walking through a store. I was well on my way to diabetes and probably death from cirrhosis of the liver or lung cancer. Now at 51yrs old I'm 240lbs, sober for years, quit smoking 13 yrs ago, eat healthy, bike and walk about 20+ miles per week, blood pressure stays around 100/70 and honestly I have more energy now at 51 than I did when I was 41. 

So it can be done, and when you do it, the first couple weeks of change will be the hardest part, but once you get into the grove of it and you start feeling better and have more energy you will wonder why you didn't make those changes sooner.

[RickZieger 0]

Take care of yourself. I want to see your flies for a long time.

Rick 

[Poopdeck 0]

Lowering your carbs is a good idea. Going on a fad diet is a bad idea. Diets never work long term because they simply are not maintainable. I like to look to really simple lifestyle changes which are easily maintained. Eat early, like 5:30 and don’t eat anything after 7.  I stopped eating bread except once a week on pizza night. Cut out beer, soda, energy drinks and replace them with ice water. Easy enough. Eat less meat and more fish and lots and lots lots of vegetables. Again, easy enough. Cut out all processed foods like lunch meat, tv dinners, anything that comes in its own cheese sauce, pizza hot pockets and the like. You will be surprised how that stuff not only makes you look terrible but also feel terrible. 
 

Good health a fitness is 90% diet and the rest exercise. I know I sound like a pitchman but my Peloton is the best thing I ever bought and it’s worth the $45.00 monthly membership. I was formerly the worlds biggest hater of peloton and peloton instructors. Now I embrace them and ride every morning with them, do weights with them and I stretch with them. They provide me with the structure that I need. Walking is great exercise and I walk every evening between 6 and 8 PM to keep me off the coach or out of a chair. Everybody is different but staying off the couch is universal. 
 

glad you came to your senses and good luck to you. You can do this. 

[Bryon Anderson 0]

Thanks, everyone for the encouraging words. I really appreciate it. 

[DarrellP 0]

Good luck on your quest for an improved lifestyle!  We all know what to do, but we have to make it enjoyable to stick with it.  Also, we need goals and a reason to get our asses off of the couch.  I have a camping Elk hunt planned each year that involves a lot of walking and a new Grandchild that I want to be able to run around with.  

[dogfacedoc 0]

Of all the ways to go, a ruptured aortic aneurysm is probably one of the best. Beats withering away with cancer or alzheimers.

[Bryon Anderson 0]

On 6/3/2023 at 8:54 PM, dogfacedoc said:

Of all the ways to go, a ruptured aortic aneurysm is probably one of the best. Beats withering away with cancer or alzheimers.

A fair point Doc, and I agree with you re: going quick vs. withering away. I watched Parkinson's take my dad that way. He died at 65 - I'd like to beat that by a considerable margin if I can. 🙂

[Capt Bob LeMay 0]

Hang in there Byron... and make those changes.  I lost my only brother last year, a year younger than me - he would have been 74 this summer.  He'd complained of a variety of symptoms that I took for the consequences of his lifestyle up in Alaska - living on his own, still smoking and drinking..  What it was actually, was the onset of a nasty form of leukemia that took him down about three months after he was diagnosed... For many years in Alaska he was an outdoorsman - not a fisher - he was a hunter.. His usual weapon in the field - a 375 H&H... 

In this past year I've finally pulled up my socks and begun regular check-ups - with the usual emphasis on specialists in the "old man" health issues, a cardiologist, urologist, and dermatologist (nothing like a touch of skin cancer to give you religion).  I don't intend to "live forever" but hope not to get taken down because of sheer negligence... with a GP to keep me honest...   That said I'm still guiding at age 75 with long hours on the water as well as four hours a day towing my skiff to one ramp or other,  then home at the end of each day.  Not un-common in this area to be a commuting guide since the places with the most fish are either not possible to live next to (Flamingo) or not particularly attractive (the Ten Thousand islands area - Chokoloskee and Everglades City) when you're not on the water.  Still doing both day and night charters (my next booking will start tomorrow night locally at 10pm...).

I don't believe in "retirement"  - many I've known didn't last very long at all after they retired, took it easy, and were gone in six months.... I have no idea what my future holds so I'm just going to get on with it.  It's been a fun ride so far... One thing has stuck with me - a comment my Dad made years ago when he was in retirement - that he never realized he'd be spending so much time in doctor's waiting rooms... Hope to avoid that scenario - but consider the alternative...  Today I've an appointment with a hearing specialist -I've had hearing aids in both ears now for about two weeks and the nice lady doc will check me out and sort out any problems they've caused (hopefully).  I can actually hear my customers now... 

 

[DWSmith 0]

Retired in January.  Had major surgery in February.  Turned 69 years old 15 days ago.  Busier than I've ever been in my life.  I'm glad I don't live in town.  Our hobby farm keeps us busy and it's going to get busier.  Not sure how I kept up with as much as I did while I was still working.  Now I'm playing catch-up and implementing projects that have been on hold for years.

I have some easily managed hypertension but I'm successfully dieting so those morning pills may go away in a few more months.

Started exercising again after I recovered from my surgery.  Feeling better every day.

Bryon, congratulations on your lifestyle changes and catching that aneurysm.

I've done Atkins and it's one of the healthier diets, IMHO, to jump start your weight loss but it's not intended for long term.  I'd suggest that once you get close to your goal start switching from very low carb over to just lower carb with plenty of vegetables but limited fruits.  Dr. Fuhrman has a good, healthy diet that one can stay on forever.  He helps you develop good eating habits.  He's on PBS during pledge drives all the time so maybe you've seen him.

Also, Weight Watchers has a list of free, no point foods that is good to keep handy.

You sound like all of us in that we know what to do but we just need to do it and stick with it.  Good luck!!!

[Bryon Anderson 0]

9 minutes ago, DWSmith said:

I've done Atkins and it's one of the healthier diets, IMHO, to jump start your weight loss but it's not intended for long term.  I'd suggest that once you get close to your goal start switching from very low carb over to just lower carb with plenty of vegetables but limited fruits.  Dr. Fuhrman has a good, healthy diet that one can stay on forever. 

This is my long-term plan -- use the Atkins/Keto to get down to a healthier weight, then switch to something a little less limiting that is sustainable. I have not heard of Dr. Fuhrman but I will check his diet out. Thanks!

[DWSmith 0]

This book helped me: