Stand up & re-energize

It’s been a long while, but I’m finally back to blogging.   And I’m happy to say, I’ve officially dedicated this blog to digging out, standing up, and re-energizing.    For some karmic reason, I’ve been blessed with a life that has trained me to become a professional funk-buster.

This past April brought me some deeply personalized funk, in the form of Stent #2 being implanted in my right coronary artery.  Long, complicated story short, it appears that over-grown surgical scar tissue (from my 2008 aortic valve replacement) had obstructed and closed the artery.

Stent #1, in case you’re wondering, was implanted in July 2009, by my cardiologist, Mark Blum.  He re-opened my artery, which was 99.5% closed.  I was, and still am, incredibly grateful.   I knew I had been granted new life.

Unfortunately, at the time, I was completely and totally exhausted from the ordeal.   Even more fortunately,  I was able to re-energize with the help of healing foods and herbs.

When my artery closed AGAIN this past April, I was somewhat in denial.  But I had all the symptoms – fatigue, pain in my jaw and teeth upon exertion, muscle weakness, and shortness of breath.   So, very reluctantly, I dragged myself in to see my cardiologist.  And  ZAP.  Within 5 minutes of listening to my symptoms, he ordered a cardiac catheterization.  4 days later, he placed Stent #2 inside Stent #1 (the sandwich technique), to re-open my artery,  which was 95% closed.

Again, I am extremely grateful.  I know how lucky I am.  Truthfully, I am a little un-nerved that it happened again.   I can only trust that my doubly-fortified-sandwich-stent will hold.

Of course,  I am also feeling self-righteously p.o.’d  that despite the fact that my arteries aren’t clogged with plaque, and never have been, I have been diagnosed with CAD (Coronary Artery Disease).  When I complained to my doctor, he told me I have a rare condition for which there is no diagnosis.  CAD is the only one that fits.

“Just relax,”  I tell myself,  breathing deeply,  “and let go of this wound to my healthy-all-natural-organic  ego.”

Stent #2 ,  and its accompanying funk, threw me back into dark depths.   I began to experience the symptoms which made me believe that the stents were closing again.    I thought for sure I would need surgery to correct the situation.

After a few tense visits to my cardiologist, another catheterization, and frightful thoughts of yet another open-heart surgery, we determined that I was  ‘de-conditioned’.  In other words,  completely out of shape.   Depleted from months of lack of exercise, illness,  and low energy.

No surgery.  Thank God.

So today,  I am once again re-energizing my life.  I am so grateful for having the tools to do so.   As a gesture of my gratitude,  I have decided to use this blog to share some of my best-ever funk-busting foods, herbs and techniques.

Stay tuned to De-Funk and  Re-Energize your life.

Be Well,

Marian