WHAT HAPPENED, I AM LOSING MY HAIR!!!

Some twenty five years ago I decided to wear my hair in it's natural state. No more relaxers or any kind of chemicals. So after years of "Jerri curls & relaxers" I was free.  Now we know as we get older they tell us certain things are just going to happen because we're getting older. For example: at forty your eye sight changes. All of a sudden your eye doctor is mentioning "bifocals ".  Extra weight seems to have a permanent place on your hips no matter what you do to lose it. So I thought, " at least I will have my hair." Well after wearing extensions for several years, I noticed my hair was thinning at the top of my head. I thought it was the braids, so I stop wearing them.  However the area just seemed to get bigger and wearing wigs seemed to make it worst. I just figured it was another sign of getting older and I prepared myself for the bald look.

About a year ago my daughter attended a presentation by a dermatologist and said I see her. Of course I didn't because I figured what could she do for me. Basically I had given up. Fortunately for me my daughter signed me up for a consultation visit. Well it seems that it wasn't old age taking my hair but Central Centrifugal Cicatricial Alopecia (CCCA). CCCA is a hair disorder that leads to the destruction of hair follicles, scarring and permanent hair loss (alopecia). This condition is seen most frequently in African-American women. It can progress very slowly with gradual hair loss with no symptoms or rapidly with tingling, burning, pain or itching of the scalp.  So it turns out that this it treatable if you catch it in time. So now,  a year later , my hair is growing back.  It's still a little thin on top but there's enough that I can put off shaving my head for a while and wearing wigs all the time. 

What I have learned is that sometimes we have to go back to the beginning and start over.  My advice from this experience is that if your hair is thinning at the top or sides go see a dermatologist. Your hair dresser, wigs or meaningful friends will not be able to help. Be proactive and you may end up keeping all your hair well into old age.  Don't be like me and wake up one day confused thinking "WHAT HAPPENED, I AM LOSING MY HAIR!!!

Shirley 

Stop the Madness!!

We live in a society that has become obsessed with weight loss.  There is a pill, drink or exercise that will let you achieve your goals in the blink of an eye. No one wants to wait, we want it now. What society has failed to let you know is that being thin does not necessarily mean being healthy. We need to take a step back from all the magic solutions and look at what you personally want your life to be. 

I know I want to be around a long time to enjoy family and friends.  I want to be able to travel and not be limited because of health issues.  Sometimes a quick fix can cause more damage to your body than the weight you are trying to lose. You can become stressed because you met the quick goal but did not substain it. Now the cycle starts all over again. 

So I say "Stop the madness". Find something that works for you. Make you own plan and stick to it. Focus on one day at a time and before you now it months have gone by and you are that closer to achieving your goal.

Shirley 

What's Next???

Sometimes taking the next step is the hardest thing to do. What is the next step in our ongoing quest for good health?  We start with the weight loss, then the gym membership, and finally we have reached our goal.  We settle into the new routine, but we also have a safety net. In our closet are clothes of every size.  Just in case we stumble, we are good to go. If we fall off eating right or stop the gym membership we will still look good in what we wear.

Well, the next step is cleaning out that closet.  Getting rid off all the clothes that no longer fit or look good on you.  When you think about it, why would you need clothes in every size?  How much of a challenge would it be to just have clothes in the size that you want to maintain? Would it mean that you believe in yourself? That you believe in the changes you have made in your life. 

I say think positive, believe in yourself and clean out that closet.  Take the next step.

Shirley

It's all about Me!!

Do you ever think, "who loves me?" I think we spend a great deal of time worrying about what others think of us. We go so far as to order our lives around what others think we should be or do. The clothes we wear, our hair style, what we eat is somehow influenced by what someone else thinks.

Well, what do you think??? How do you feel about you? Are you on a quest to lose weight because of how someone thinks you should look?  There is a saying that goes something like "charity starts at home". So I am saying start with how you feel about you.  Do you love you?  So what if you are over weight, so what if you have short hair and not long, so what if you are short and not tall. What matters is that when you look in the mirror you love the person you see. 

Once you acknowledge how you feel about yourself, everything else will fall into place. Remember it is not about what others think, but how you feel about you. When you look in the mirror your first thought should be "It's all about me".

Shirley 

Staying in Touch

When did everything in life become so complicated? Everyone seems to be running around and working very hard. We want what we want now and we will do whatever we can to get it. Always working, always at the gym, always doing something to get to that elusive "something" that we want.

How much time is spent with family and friends.  When was the last time you just called your best buddy to chat.  I attended the funeral of a friend last week. As I watched people come to pay their respects, I wondered how many of us there had not spoken to family or friends in a while.  We run after whatever goals we have set for ourselves at the expense of letting things fall by the wayside.

My family lives in another state. I think about them often, but I have to admit that I don't call a lot.  I am alway thinking that I will get to that call tomorrow.  We make a lot of assumptions that no news is good news.  Well I got a call last year that my brother had passed away unexpectedly. I was in shock, because the last time I spoke with him he was fine.  Then I realized that it had been over six months since I last spoke to him. 

I now try to call my family at least once a week.  I put it in my schedule of things to do because I realized that things can change in the blink of an eye. I ask you, when was the last time you called family or friends just to chit chat?  What good is it to fulfill all your dreams but not have family and friends to share with. 

Make it part of you daily schedule to stay in touch. We don't know what the future will bring so we need to enjoy the here and now.

Shirley 

Life is an Adventure!!

Life is full of so many different and wonderful things.  There is always something new or different to try. I have always wondered how people can say they are bored or unhappy with their lives.  Are you not in control of your happiness? Is it not up to you to relieve  your boredom? I have found that as I get closer to retirement I keep hearing questions like: what will you do or won't you be bored?

When did we let life become full of stressful work and no play?  Are we the sum of our jobs (which we may or may not like)? I think that in our quest for the "American Dream" we have forgotten how to relax and enjoy life. If you are close to retirement or not, why not start thinking about putting play back into your life.

About five years ago I started line dancing and found that it was a great way to have fun and to relax. Now when asked about taking trips or going to a play, my first response is when and where and not I am too busy. Several months ago I went on a off road adventure (in an open jeep up the side of a mountain) wth my daughters.  It was awesome. When are you doing to embrace the fun in your life? If not now, then when???

Remember life can be a joyful adventure if you take the time to make it one.

Shirley 

Are you ready to Change!!!

I remember when I was a child and I thought that all adults were old. They all seem to be losing their teeth, hair and walking really slow.  They always seem to be in pain.  So of course that was what I though I would be like when I grew up. I realized however, that those adults from my childhood were not really old (maybe late forties or early fifties) but were  living with a lot of health issues. Not only were they living with these issues they had come to accept them as part of life.

I know that those in the health care field will tell you that most illnesses are hereditary. If your grandmother or mother had something you will most likely have it too and therefore pass it on to your children. This may be true, but I also think this way of thinking just makes us accept whatever happens to us. 

Let's try something different. I challenge you to break the cycle with change. Change how you cook your food. You don't have to give up the old recipes but change them a little. Try some salt free seasonings, you just might like it.  Instead of sitting at lunch go out for a walk. This will stretch those muscle that have grown stiff from sitting all morning. Getting older does not mean gaining weight and living in pain. It just means "getting older".

What changes will you make to break the cycle you inherited????

Shirley