The Day I Forgot to Remember

I often have trouble remembering dates.  One that I once considered very important went by a month ago, and it didn't even register to me until today when I read a meme with a quote by Michael J Fox.


“ACCEPTANCE DOESN'T MEAN RESIGNATION; IT MEANS UNDERSTANDING THAT SOMETHING IS WHAT IT IS AND THAT THERE'S GOT TO BE A WAY THROUGH IT.” MICHAEL J. FOX

This quote spoke to me.  One of my best days was finding out, after two years, what was wrong with me.  I didn't experience the denial stage, or at least not right away and not as a full stage.  I had convinced myself I had cancer, a brain tumor, something incurable and that I was going to die right away, without really experiencing life.   When I got the diagnosis of MS, it was a relief.  I knew MS came with its own bought of problems and troubles, but it was what it was, and it wasn't cancer. I still had a change at a long life. I accepted that, and knew that I would be able to deal with it, be able to get through the tough parts, be able to live a happy life because I had it, it did not have me. 

Sure, I've had moments of panic, of fear, of worry about the future.  I've had days where I feel defeated.  I'm always able to pick myself back up though because I know there has to be a way through those tough times.   

I remember celebrating my 6 month anniversary, because I had had so many relapses the year before (7 in 12 months), then my 1 year anniversary.  Between year 1 and 2 I had periods of anxiety, two years was such a long time, I was due wasn't I?  At year 3 I felt triumphant. I had made it to 3 years without a major relapse.   My 4th anniversary, I thankfully forgot.   I forgot to remember I was healthy. I forgot that being healthy was abnormal. I forgot to remember how sick I have been.  I forgot to put an emphasis on the disease that I have... but I remembered to live life. 

Happy Body Happy Self

I'm actually impressed with my body, with the understanding that I know if it was the dead of winter, I wouldn't be feeling this well.

I've been doing a lot of manual labour (7.5hr shifts) the past 2 days, and while I'm sore and tired, I feel okay.  Usually over exertion causes my body to wage an all out war on me (It's better in the summer because everything with my body is better in the summer).  It's not summer, it's not even warm, heck it has been snowing the past two days (It's April... right?  Did I miss something?  Make the snow stop already!)

I haven't even gotten dizzy!  (Which is my brain's go-to way of telling me it's done with whatever I'm doing)

I know I couldn't do this all summer, but I also know that I wouldn't have been able to do one day, let alone 3 days of this 5 years ago, and that makes me really happy, that I'm able to do it now :)

Slowly getting healthier...

Why It Matters

Women aren't special.

I'm sorry but they aren't.

Women are human, we are all human.  They have different struggles, but everyone has struggles.  It is important to recognize them, acknowledge them, and the try to alleviate them, but it's important to do that for everyone... not just women.

Recently my University changed the "Women's Studies" program to "Diversity and Social Justice Studies", a change I was enthusiastically in favour of.

Some people thought this was a ridiculous move, that it didn't matter.  Some thought that it didn't make sense because it was still "women's studies" but by a fancier name.

The reason it changed it's name is because it's not all about studying women. It's about looking at... well, Diversity and Social Justice.

Women have struggled historically, but so have people with disabilities, various ethnicities and races, homosexual, asexual, bisexual people, transgendered people, men who do not fit into the societal norm of "masculine", men for various other reasons, people who don't conform to gender, sexuality or sex normatives.... they have all struggled, they have all faced discrimination and hatred directed towards them, they are all human and they all have the right to be acknowledged as such and offered the same human rights as other humans.

They are all important.

My "Sex and Culture" course, my "Theories of the Body" course, "Aboriginal People & The State in Canada" course, my "Masculinity Studies" course, my "People and Animals" course... none of them have anything specifically to do with women.

They have to do with people, and the way people treat others.

So it matters that Women's Studies changed it's name, because it's important that we acknowledge everyone and treat everyone fairly.

Equality shouldn't have boundaries.


(side note, you should all watch this: Laci Green- Why I'm a Feminist )

What's that word again?

Sometimes I don't get out of bed until 9 or 10am.
It's not because I'm lazy.
I sometimes wish it was.
It's not because I don't want to.
It's because I can't.
Sometimes when I wake up,
My body decides that it has more control over me,
Than I do over it.

Sometimes I speak really fast.
It's not because I'm trying to get something over with,
or that I'm trying to be confusing.
It's because when I slow down,
When I let my brain think
I lose words
I lose thoughts.
They're not actually lost...
They just don't want to come out.

Sometimes I take the elevator.
Not to get some place quicker.
Not to avoid the stairs.
But because the pain in my legs is too much.
Two flights of stairs seems like 200.

Sometimes my mind is foggy
Words don't come out right
Numbers don't make sense
I can't think straight
I feel like all the knowledge
I've gained in the worlds
Has disappeared under a cloud of grey

Sometimes I type words incorrectly
Not because I'm not paying attention,
But because my fingers and brain,
Don't seem to be communicating.

Sometimes I remember who I used to be,
A person in the distant path,
That doesn't seem like me at all.

Sometimes I am absolutely terrified of the future.
Sometimes I'm not though.
I'm thankful for everything I have
I am grateful that I'm alive.
I am hopeful about the opportunities in life,
that I have been given.

Sometimes the hard things overwhelm me...
but most of the time I am happy with the life I have,
even though it means constantly changing and adapting.
I am stronger, I am more focused on happiness.
I live in the moment, because even if you're healthy,
you never know what life will bring.


Stay Healthy,
Elyse

Totally Different

As you can tell,  I suck at updating blogs.  I think it's because there's so much on my mind, especially with school, that I often don't allocate enough time to it.

I've been thinking about starting another blog, a general one... then I realized, I should just modify this one.

So this blog is now devoted to... everything I want to talk or rant about.

Ranting is healthy, it gets things off your chest, so the title is still appropriate :)


Stay Healthy!

Elyse

Crock Pot Chili

First up is Crock Pot Chili.

This recipe is a staple of mine, because it is super quick, and has practically no prep time.

You can substitute the canned for dried that has been soaked and rinsed.  As a usually broke students, I tend to stock up on canned beans when they go on sale for 99cents or less.

If getting canned try to get no salt added.

Ingredients:

1 Can Chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 Can Black Beans, drained and rinsed
1 Can whole corn kernels, drained and rinsed
1 large(769ml) can diced tomatoes
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced/chopped finely
1-2 bell peppers, washed and cut (any colour, I like red and orange)
1 cup mushrooms washed and cut. 
chili seasoning

Sometimes I omit the peppers if peppers are really expensive, and it still tastes good.

Empty cans into crock pot,  add onion, garlic, peppers and mushrooms.  Stir.

Add chili seasoning... I vary on how much I put in and don't really keep track, but I find it also depends on the brand.  I would start with 2-3 tablespoons, you can always add more later.  Stir again.

Turn crock pot on low, and cover.  Let cook overnight (6-8 hours, I've let it go up to 10 before).

It should yield 6 servings.   The general nutritional breakdown is:

                     Calories,  Carbs,  Fat,   Protein:

Only 1 Gram of fat per serving, and 8 grams of protein!

You can also serve it over rice, quinoa or baked potatoes. 

Stay Healthy,

Elyse 

Swanky Swank

Long time no talk.  

I kind of got busy and lost my motivation for blogging.  This past year has been... interesting.

I'm inspired again, and taking a slightly different approach to blogging (I'm sure there will be plenty of rants in the future)


I recently discovered the SWANK diet.   I was developed for patients with Multiple Sclerosis.

There is no medical evidence to show that this diet has any benefits, but there are a lot of people around who say that it has helped them feel better... and sometimes feeling better is better than medical evidence (as long as all nutritional requirements are being met).

The basis of the diet (taken from Wikipedia) is: 

1. Saturated fat should not exceed 15 grams per day
2. Unsaturated fat (oils) should be kept to 20-50 grams per day
3. No red meat for the first year; after that, a maximum of 3 oz. (85 grams) of red meat per week
4. Dairy products must contain 1% or less butterfat
5. No processed foods containing saturated fat
6. A good source of omega-3 (oily fish, cod liver oil, cod liver oil tablets, etc.) along with a multi-vitamin and mineral supplement are recommended daily
7. Wheat, gluten or dairy product quantities are not restricted. But foods which cause allergies or reactions to an MS sufferer should be avoided^[3]

My comments

1.  Very good rule,  Saturated fats should be minimized in general.

2. This is below the recommended intake of fat, however #6 will bump that up, so it should be okay.

3, I don't eat meat anyway, so that is easy.

4.  But... cheese... :(   0% fat yogourt I can do, 0% fat cheese should be interesting. 

5. I rarely eat processed foods anyway so this should be okay.

6.  Eating flax seeds and chia seeds are going to have to satisfy this.  Oil supplements and I do not get along. 

7.  I need to greatly restrict my wheat and gluten intake.  I feel better when I don't eat them, and I get migraines when I eat it often.  I've been gluten free before, it requires more effort and full time student + working full time makes life a little hectic.

I'm going to post recipes (I know, every blog posts recipes these days).  Of Vegetarian, Swank, Gluten Free, Processed Sugar Free recipes.   (Chocolate free too, I'm allergic)

Stay tuned!

If you want to learn more about the Swank Diet,  this is the link: Swank MS Diet

Stay Healthy!

Elyse