Embrace Your Destiny: You Have the Power

Donnie and I celebrated our 47th wedding anniversary in August. We enjoy many of the same things and support each other when we have diverging interests. I really think Donnie only started doing hot yoga so he could keep an eye on me. Now, I'm pretty sure he does it as often as he can because he loves it and how good he feels after doing it. 

I was reminded this week that I am responsible for having many more anniversaries. Much as I would like to dish off this responsibility, it can't be done. Nobody else can substitute for me at the gym or at yoga. Nobody else can take on the discomfort from an injury, poor diet, weight gain or anything. Nobody else knows my body like I do. In short, what it boils down to is that if it is to be it's up to me to make my part happen. I have to stay positive, fight off negativity from all directions and just do it. I do have the power and I intend to use it.

Nathan Garnett

 Donnie and I met this week with our friend Nathan Garnett who does Long Term Care Insurance for people like us. What we learned is that because of my MS condition, there are no insurance companies he has found that will sell me this kind of insurance. The reality is that those of us with MS are on our own to manage our long term care needs. My plan is to:
1) Continue building strength, flexibility and balance, 2) build my own wellness team, 3) stay focused and mindful so I don't fall and break something. 

I did some research about longevity of people with MS. It turns out that it it's not much less than regular people. My type of MS is called Primary Progressive. This means that I will slowly lose mobility. The most notable symptoms of this type of MS effects walking. It sounds like eventuallyI may need some forms of assistance for walking. 

Luckily, my mobility has improved from where it was when I started doing hot yoga. The research says that if a new MS patient doesn't take one of the medicines for MS, they will likely need some form of assistance for walking within fifteen years. I'm beyond that prediction now. Personally, I think my MS has stabilized. My doctor must think so too because I was reminded recently that he doesn't want to see me again until April 2019. This is a huge departure from my previous 14 years dealing with this disease. That date is a year out from my last visit. I've always done a six month visit schedule. Donnie is thrilled. Not so much from me. I enjoy my trips to Raleigh.

George Rollins

I feel like I'm in a good place right now. My goal is to keep this good going and improve it if possible. I want to be proactive in all things health related. Yearly physicals and check-ups with all my doctors are certainly part of my maintenance plan. When Medicare called and offered to send a consulting nurse here for a visit to do a wellness check and screening, I said why not? This is George Rollins, a House Calls nurse with Optum. 

George came at a convenient time. He was happy to talk and get his information out on the patio while I was planting my fall garden in the pots we had cleared of okra and tomatoes. George explained that he travels the Southeast doing these wellness visits. He actually did several screenings while he was here. 

One screening was a urine test checking for protein and glucose. The other was a new one for me that checks for peripheral artery disease. We did this test inside because he needed his computer to read the data coming in. He put a sensor on the big toe of each foot and then on one finger of each hand. He said this indicates blood flow primarily in the lower part of the body. If there had been anything other that regular up and down even reading like a heart monitor, he said that would be concern to report to the doctor. He said in some situations, he has told patients like me to get to the doctor ASAP. He gave me a report that I will take to my doctor at my next exam. 

I am glad to say that George's report was all great. Some answers I was pleased to give him were:

• No falls in past year
• No constipation in past month
• No indigestion
• No chronic pain 

My good report came with a prize of a pillow blanket I'll keep in the car. I'll keep the Optum HouseCalls professionals and their service on my maintenance team. I am reminded often by Sean one of my hot yoga trainers that the most important thing in my life is my life. That being understood, I will plan to take all precautions to keep working on strength, flexibility, balance, and diet to stay  healthy. I'll use the money I would have put into long term insurance into my maintenance team.