Get the juice!

Well, I now have a date to work towards. I see a Neurologist on Thursday the 2nd September.

My first reaction was........oh pooh........this really isn't all just a bad dream. I've got to 'face the music' so to speak.

Back came the shallow breathing and the urge to don my sneakers and get the holy heck out of here. But, after a few sprays of rescue remedy on the tongue and a few minutes on the cross trainer to activate the endorphines I felt so much better. FEAR had crept into my letterbox, I felt it and moved on! Yay me!

So I'll let in on my plan so far. I'm not one to sit around and wait. I've always been like that in my teaching, parenting, renovating, gardening, lots of things. Mark is very similar in this way. Put our two heads together and we tend to get things done, and fast.

I mentioned we had bought a juicer. Our impulsive reaction and purchase in response to being told I had a 'brain mass'. We we have certainly juiced up a storm in our house ever since.

I did not realise how much I would enjoy it and actually reap from it. I went and got several nutrition books out of the library and have been creating my own delicious recipes.

I have two juices per day now. My digestive system needed a few days to adjust to receiving liquid vitamins and antioxidants so I started on one only. Juicing does not replace your normal servings of fresh fruit and vegetables, it supplements it. So when considering calorie intake and insulin levels it is important not to overload on fruits only. I'm currently reading about a "maximmunity" food model that encourages NINE servings of fresh produce per day. How tricky would it be to prepare all that food daily!! So juicing provides the perfect solution to this as several varieties can be combined in one recipe.

The morning juice is fruit only. Higher in calories and fructose so a better time of the day to absorb and use the extra calories. We have been including a super food or antioxidant ingredient in every drink so far. Actually...........I should blog about that on a separate post!!!

In the morning I'm also taking (in capsule form) Pomegranate and Acai berry (pronounced AH- SAH -EE). They have HUGELY, MASSIVE antioxidant properties and boost your immune system. Amazing what you can find out there and wonderful people who want to help you maximise wellness!!

The afternoon or evening juice is vegetable, often with flaxseed oil included to ensure we have had our daily intake of plant derived Omega 3. We eat fish as a family occasionally so get our oily fats through them! I sometimes slip in a garlic clove or some ginger to Mark's surprise. I wonder if his workmates have noticed an aromatic change? ;-)

The girls are loving them too. Not the vege ones so much, but I have been known to sneak a handful of spinach into a fruit juice and it going undetected, it looks a lot like kiwifruit :-)

Children only need small amounts of juices, obviously, because of their immature digestive systems. But I'm quite sure their daily half glasses are knocking these colds on the head quickly! Oh and I must blog about blueberries. I will never be without a blueberry in my freezer again. An outstanding food! Chat about that later with you all.

The best thing about this whole process is that it is EMPOWERING. I feel as though I am taking charge of what the cells are doing inside this body of mine. Fighting off free radicals, generating new cells, halting naughty rebellious cells from making new mates. I'm really proud of my new attitude towards mine and my family's temples. Good grief..............could this health scare become a blessing? Food for thought I guess.

I believe in the power of human spirit, nutrition and attitude. I'm thinking that if I can successfully combine all of this with what the health system has to offer, I might just blast this 'mass' into another hemisphere...........after it has taught me the lessons I need to learn from it.

I took some photos of the girls enjoying their own juicing recipe this weekend and a couple of delights from the week prior when my best friend from Christchurch came to stay with us for three nights. We did a lot of talking, positive affirmations and eating chocolate....of course. (The best we could find for medicinal and antioxidant properties LOL).

It's obvious little Phoebe looks up to her middle sister.

A rare pic of all three.............sitting still!

Phoebe and my BFF in the warm Auckland sun :-)

As it is done in Italia?????

Spinach pasta............the best way to get really green greens into them. YUM!

So is it working? Is my diet actually helping?

Well I feel positive. I don't feel the side effects from the steroids are running my day anymore. I also seem to be able to eyeball the fear and stay standing.

All is well,

I hope you are too.

xx