General Health Improvement - anyone up for joining me?

[JontyDoggle37]

I've realised I've deprioritised my own health - mental and physical - in the last year and I need to do some things to get myself sorted. I've been trying to lose weight but it's not working, mainly because I'm also stressed, too tired, drinking too much wine, etc etc. I also get migraines and heartburn. So - I'm starting a thread on digging in to the root cause and trying to fix from there up. I'm going to try small fixes day by day rather than set myself a big goal. Today's fixes are a long walk, sunscreen and no alcohol. I'll get more into what I think the root causes might be as I go. Anyone up for joining in?

Jonty, I think you were right to let your colleague know how you feel because hopefully he'll not make 'jokes' about your abilities again. With all that riding and running I picture you as super healthy already by the way!

For me today: I swam for 50 minutes - I love the stretching swimming gives me and was able to ignore the fact that I was repeatedly lapped by a heavily pregnant woman in the next lane...
I also made what I expected to be a difficult phone call. I had spent a few days putting it off, but in fact it wasn't as bad as I had imagined.
And I decluttered one room in the house.

Hi all not caught up yet and not doing well TBH. Absolutely shattered and having a flare up of one of my conditions. Napping a lot! Hope to get back to normal this week

Cagliostro take it easy. Hope your condition calms down soon.

Today I've just walked - my phone says just 6500 steps Must do better tomorrow.

Morning all, sorry for the absence. Migraine yesterday and also spending lots of time trying to get my head round macros and micronutrients. Doing a bit better about not being stressed out by work even though it's been a bit shit. Goals today are a meditation on the train, and a spot of gardening after work. Husband is going away for a week on Tuesday and st the moment I can't wait - he disrupts my sleep more than my toddler! He woke me up at 3am suddenly snoring really loud, I nearly shoved him out of bed!

Thanks molly :)

Flare up seems to have calmed down, but I'm still taking things slowly. Basically I had an epic achy/tired/dizzy day while I was still at mum's, and I couldn't risk travelling home without another adult (none of us drive now). So DH - who had stayed home due to work - had to dash over after his late shift, so we could all go home together. It was still a struggle though. Really frustrating! I don't know if it's because I did too much, or just random.

On the plus side DD has slept a bit better the last two nights (with me lying on cushions outside her room, but still!), I've managed a little more walking on the days I've been out, and we are getting back to some kind of normality post half term. I'm back to tutoring which I hadn't managed much of lately. :)

Today is going to be crazy though. Thursdays always are, although we have changed one element of it which means some Thursdays will now be calmer! But this one seems extra busy as I have to fit voting in, which involves more walking due to the location of the polling station (i.e. No buses). On a normal day this would now be fine as I'm managing more walking generally, but today it may just tip me over the edge into thoroughly exhausted!

Eating not going that well either. The constant nausea seems to have finally eased, and now most of the time I am ravenous instead. I am doing better with drinking water although still nowhere near as much as I should. I love water but I find it makes me uncomfortably full and sort of 'sloshy' if I drink more than a couple of sips.

Caglio glad you're feeling a little better. Is it an option to get a cab to the polling station, or maybe ask a friend or neighbour to take you?
I used to feel the same about water, but weirdly now I'm luging around a litre of it all the time and drinking 3 a day, I seem to have got used to it...

Can I join? Goals are:

Just Eat Normally
Moderately Active
Sleep More

Everything one extreme or the other 👹

Oh and smoking, would be good to do that a bit less excessively 😳

Welcome unavita moderation is a good goal - do you know what needs to change to get you there?

Cheers jonty :) at the moment I am feeling ok so hopefully will manage it. I have occasionally got a cab back from the polling station (it's the Caglets' old school and often I was too unwell to walk them home) and I have cash on me so I have that option. I'm glad you've said it actually as it reminds me it's ok. :) It is a very short distance really and I know I CAN do it now, but if I struggle later it may be too much on the way home as it's steep in places.

It's been a nice day though as spent it with friends between activities (Caglets are home ed) and lots of time just chatting while they all played together.

Hi unavita welcome, great goals! Even one less smoke a day would make a big difference I bet. I like goals that aren't all or nothing - every baby step is a step in the right direction

Hello and thanks 🤗

Moderation, I think could start with evening out my steps for a consistent amount each day. Last week ranged from under 300 one day 😳 to over 35k the next 😕

35k steps! Wow! I expect on the days I stay home I don't do more than 300 TBH. Thankfully I am forced out of the house most weekdays at least once for various clubs the Caglets do, but often have a crash day whenever I get the chance and then end up doing far too little really. So all my muscles seize up and I get all isolated and grumpy. Like you I am struggling with consistency :)

Managed to vote, felt pretty much ok. Foot hurting for no apparent reason and really needed a wee (long bus ride before voting!), didn't have enough battery on my phone to ring a taxi (bad planning) but as luck would have it a council taxi pulled up just as I left the polling station, dropping someone off. So I waved and asked if I could get in and was home within a few minutes. And had a nice little chat with the driver about how nice it was to see such a big turnout to the polls. :)

Good job on the voting ⭐️ what an interesting result!

I have crash days too, good name for it, obviously need the rest but I'd like to incorporate some rest into each day so I'm not swinging from all to nothing. Fatigue is often my biggest obstacle. It's annoying because with an overactive thyroid there is this almost constant feeling of internal unrest. Feels like my body is at war with itself.

Caglio well done and sounds like you had a pretty good day
unavita I don't to my knowledge have an overactive thyroid but I do get the exact feeling you describe a lot of the time...maybe time for a trip to the GP...

Absolutely get thyroid checked, only discovered mine by accident because it had been monitored 6 monthly (t4 and tsh) for over 15 years due to meds that usually cause underactivity. It went very wrong very quickly but equally thyroid problems often creep in super slowly. It can do surprisingly awful things, my mum had several strokes as a result of undetected and untreated hyperthyroidism.

Some symptoms here but I explained mine away with stress, marathon training, anxiety etc

Anyone still improving their health? I went for a lovely long walk today. It was breezy and sunny. Felt great afterwards.

Looks beautiful, lovely dog 😍

Haven't had healthiest weekend but an early night should help 😴

Found and installed an app for tracking (with aim of reducing) smoking.

Off to the gym to clock up some miles on the bike and do some weights for the first time in ages.

Molly that looks like a lovely walk
unavita good moves on getting the app and the gym
Things that are going well: reducing alcohol (prob 50% down), drinking water (managing 3 litres a day), exercise, have started taking vitamins again, mostly eating really well too.
Things that still need work: sleep (last night was my first night of solid sleep for nearly a year, so 1st step but a long way to go), back and neck pain (was doing realllwell at physio but had a setback last week and now everything has gone into massive knots so getting migraines and nerve pains in my arms). In terms of mental health, my confidence outside of work is really rising, my confidence in work is at a bit of a low, not helped by imminent restructure.
To improve sleep we've moved the dog downstairs and so far he's not complaining, and husband is about to go away for a week so no noises from him either, and even more miraculously, DS has slept through last three nights! Going to do my physio stretches very gently twice a day (instead f once) and see if that helps unknot me. Confidence wise, think I need to turn more stuff down so I can focus on a few things and have time to be really good at them. Wow that was long!!!

Hi all. Somewhat off the wagon lately as been extra tired, trying to make good choices mind you. Just super stressed with stuff going on with DD, so it's been tricky to prioritise anyone or anything else

Hi Caglio it's tempting to throw yourself under the bus when your family has problems, but actually if you aren't ok, you can't support them as well, so don't forget your highest priorities at least.
DS and the dog slept through last night, so I had the second night Ina row of decent sleep, and I had a fab ride on DHorse last night too, came home with a massive grin on my face 😁 Have done a full half hour of stretches and back exercises this morning, before I even did any chores (it's rare for me to make that time for me before doing household stuff), so feeling really pleased.
How is everyone else doing?

There's nothing quite like a successful horse ride to lift the mood! Haven't ridden for ages (injured then ill then away from home) but planning to ride out with friends on Thursday.

The smoking app I downloaded (a LIVESTRONG one if anyone's interested) works really well, am already down to around 7 a day (from 30+ 😳) it somehow makes me want to be good.

My sleep is dreadful (non existent) but eating well and knuckling down to running training 😇

unavita well done on the smoking that's amazing! Do you have trouble getting to sleep or staying asleep? If the former, the headspace app has a good ten minute meditation on it you can just put on and drift off to. If it's staying asleep then how about using some herbal Nytol tablets for a few nights, see if you can disrupt the sleepless habit?

It can be either, will check out that app thanks. I love falling asleep listening to something or someone. Never thought of trying over the counter remedies, worth a go, have the big guns (temazepam) on repeat prescription but try v v hard not to use often, only if two nights in a row of no sleep. Thyroid has been overactive for a while which doesn't help, it should all improve soon.