February 2020

About ME

Hello, name is Kim, I am a wife of 32 years to David, The mom of 2 adult boys, and a grandma. I live in the heart at the USA. I was born and grew up in the middle of the United States. I have always worked in health care, except as a teenager when I worked in a small-town family owned restaurant. I have several wonderful friends some from childhood and some that I’ve met along my journeys. I am a hard worker; I believe that you should work for your needs and wants. I believe that any able body American should be willing to work and do whatever it is that they can to contribute to our great country. I believe in God, I believe in his blessings and have been the recipient of many, many, many blessings over the years. I believe in family; I believe that family should help family. I believe in America.

In my blog as its title states “exploring life after 50”, I plan to talk about 3 subjects over the years. Those subjects are exercise, travel and health.

-Exercise, because it’s important to stay healthy and to do what you can to be as healthy as possible. I will discuss setting goals and working toward those goals to make you the best that you can be.

-Travel, learning about different States, Cities, Countries, traditions is something that I would love to explore and love to share with you.

-Health, in order to retire and to be able to travel and do the things that I want to do, and for you to be able to do the things you want to do we must understand our health, and the impacts. While I will be discussing certain health Conditions, possible treatments, how exercise and diet may contribute to or improve those conditions. This is NOT medical advice; this is simply education to help you understand what you may be going through. You must discuss your health conditions with your primary care provider. Again, this is not medical advice or treatment it is only for education. You must see your doctor, physician assistant, nurse practitioner for medical advice and treatment for your conditions. I will not be held liable for your choices in taking care of yourself or others. I will help to educate you on these topics.

-I want this blog to be a place that you can go to read and understand a little more about the topics that we discuss. In my post I will have a challenge, something that you can do for yourself to help you explore life after 50.

With this plan I hope to help you live your best live. Please come on this exploration with me.

Preventive Care Men

As we explore life after 50, one of the things we have more of to deal with is preventative care. Preventative care is different for men than for women so I will do these in two separate post. Preventative care for men over 50, Includes colonoscopy(newest recommendation is age 45), prostate exams, lab work, AAA, skin cancer screening and others.

Colonoscopy: At age 45 is recommended for first colonoscopy. Then if normal every ten years, unless something happens that requires earlier check. You have options, you could do nothing, occult stool cards, small bowel follow through. However, if any positives…. colonoscopy is recommended. Colonoscopy is the gold standard. Getting a visual of the lining of the large intestine (colon). Most insurances are covering the cost, check with yours to see what is covered.

There are many results that might be found, I will discuss the common ones.

Normal: speaks for itself.

Hemorrhoids: small “skin tag” looking areas. Normally benign but can be painful. Can have blood clots in them requiring them to be lanced (opened).

Diverticulosis: small out pouching of the colon. Usually benign, but if they get irritated, can become infected, causing pain and illness. Requiring a visit to primary care and or emergent care. They can bleed which can be an emergency. Special diets help to keep these from becoming irritated.

Polyps: these can be benign, precancerous or cancerous. Depending on the number and what category they fall within depends on what follow up is needed.

Colonoscopies are normally recommended every 10 years if normal starting at age 50, unless you have a first degree relative who has colon cancer then it is suggested 10 years prior to when they were diagnosed if that is before age 50. Follow ups depend on the initial screening. Recommendation from the American Cancer Society here.

Prostate exam: This is a rectal exam, normally completed in primary care office. The prostate can be felt. The primary care provider is feeling for firmness, bumps, size. Results can be normal, large, boggy. Labs are often drawn to obtain prostate specific antigen normal is less than 4. It is also monitored from year to year if the number doubles in one year it is concerning. The CDC recommendations can be found here.

Labs: your doctor may have already started with initial labs, checking your complete blood count, cholesterol, kidney and liver function, and blood sugar. You can look here to find why labs are ordered and normal values.

Blood pressure: as we age many adults have high blood pressure it is a good idea to monitor this at least yearly. If you see a monitor at your local store, go ahead and measure your blood pressure. Write down the numbers, or put them in your smart phone note pad so that you can go back and look at them. While many factors go into your blood pressure, the old 120/80 or lower is still a good number to by, however talk with your primary care provider to find out what the optimal blood pressure is for you. Hypertension/high blood pressure is called the silent killer. It can be causing problems before you realize you have high blood pressure.

Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA): Screening is an ultrasound of your abdomen. Men age 65 or older are at a higher risk for AAA. The issue is that if you have one it needs to be monitored as there are not symptoms until it is a big problem, at times requiring emergent surgery. You can find the recommendations according to medicare here.

Skin Cancer Screenings: It is suggested to have a screening yearly. Most primary care providers do this when you have your yearly physical. You can also have these at a dermatologist office. The recommendations from the American cancer society can be found here.

While it easy to skip screenings and preventive care I challenge you to keep up to date on your screenings. Talk with your primary care provider to see what all screenings you need.45

Preventive Care Women

As we explore life after 50, one of the things we need to make a priority is preventative care. Preventative care is different for men than for women so I will do these in two separate post. Preventative care for women 50 and over, Includes colonoscopy(newest recommendation is 45), mammogram, lab work, pap, clinic breast and cervical exam, bone density exam and any others that your primary care provider may discuss with you.

There are many results that might be found, I will discuss the common ones.

Normal: speaks for itself.

Hemorrhoids: small “skin tag” looking areas. Normally benign but can be painful. Can have blood clots in them requiring them to be lanced (opened).

Polyps: these can be benign, precancerous or cancerous. Depending on the number and what category they fall within depends on what follow up is needed.

Clinical breast and cervical exam: Going to see your primary care physician for a clinical breast exam and cervical exam (if you still have your uterus). If you have had a hysterectomy it will depend on what your primary care provider and or GYN recommends for this exam. CDC recommendations for breast cancer screenings. Cervical exam screening recommendations by CDC.

Mammogram: Yearly exam of your breast that can find cancer before it is felt by the self-exam. You should do monthly self-exams, and if you feel something go to your primary care for further eval, even if it has not been a year since last exam. If something has changed or looks concerning the radiologist may suggest that you return for spot compression views. Then if there is continued concerns further testing may be warranted. Breast ultrasounds are also used in some cases to get better view what the area of concern. The radiologist, Primary care provider or GYN will guide you to the best imagining. CDC has guideline recommendations.

Labs: your doctor may have already started with initial labs, checking your complete blood count, cholesterol, kidney and liver function, and blood sugar. Find your answers about lab test here.

Blood pressure: as we age many adults have high blood pressure it is a good idea to monitor this at least yearly. If you see a monitor at your local store, go ahead and measure your blood pressure. Write down the numbers, or put them in your smart phone note pad, they will be available to share at your next appointment. While many factors go into your blood pressure, the old 120/80 or lower is still a good number to by, however talk with your primary care provider to find out what the optimal blood pressure is for you. Hypertension or high blood pressure is called the silent killer as there are few if any symptoms but start causing changes in your body before you realize you have a problem.

Bone density exam: these are completed at the hospital. This exam is painless and looks at the density(strength) of your bones. Women more than men have issues with bone loss. Calcium helps our bones to be strong. As we age the calcium is leached from our bones if we do not have enough circulating for other body functions. Therefore our bones get weak. Ways to keep your bones strong are taking some extra calcium daily. Look at the recommendations for dosage on your favorite over the counter supplement. Exercise and light weight training also help keep our bones strong. Information from the US preventative task force recommendations.

This is a list of important preventive measures I feel important for those of us ladies over 50. Remember to talk with your primary care provider for their recommendations and discuss what is best for you.

Be a Warrior in your life!

It was once said by Bruce Lee ” it’s better to be a Warrior in the garden, then to be a gardener in the war ” As soon as I heard this, I thought about the warrior that we all should be for our health. We have the opportunity on a daily basis to make a decision on what we put in our mouth and what we do for our bodies each day.

Today am I going to wake up and have donut for breakfast or maybe oatmeal or maybe a good whole grain cereal. Should I park as close to the door as I can, or am I going to park out a way in the parking lot, so that I can get more steps in today? We have to consciously make these decisions every day all day long.

It’s not a secret my family are mostly all overweight, we have heart disease, diabetes, cancer, arthritis throughout my family. As my blog implies exploring life after 50. Many of us heard when we were younger, 50 years old is over the Hill; the golden years aren’t near as golden as they appear; when I wake up, I’m going to hurt because I am old. Another daily thought process must become am I going to live my life by these quotations that I’ve heard? Is 50 really over the hill for me? Are my golden years really not going to be golden? Do I have to hurt every morning when I get out of bed? I’m going to take each of these and discuss them, as if I were having this discussion with myself every morning.

Is 50 really over the Hill? Is being over the hill really a bad thing? Honestly, I don’t feel any older at 50 then I did at 49, 48, 47. I feel young, I feel I can do most things, I feel hungry for more education, experiences and life. So, to answer my question is 50 over the hill? Have I walked through that meadow and I’m now seeing that hill and climbing up or am I at the top, or sliding down the hill. I think I am still climbing, exploring new life experiences, life learning, love.

Are the golden years really not that golden? I hear this over and over again and unfortunately yes; our bodies are getting older even if our minds don’t particularly believe. Yes, as we look as our population as a whole our health tends to decline over a time period this is where I go back to the initial saying of “it’s better to be a Warrior in the garden, then a gardener in the war”. If we take time every day and we ask ourselves the questions above am I going to walk a little farther today? Am I going to lift some light weights today? Am I going to do something for me today? I hope your answer is “yes” It’s in those times that I feel we are able to become that Warrior in our garden. When our garden turns to a war of illness the healthier, the better fit we are prior to that illness the better we are able to take the reins and fight that illness. If we spend our lives being the gardener, we have a beautiful life. When that war comes, when our flowers are no longer blooming are, we prepared to fight that war? Be the warrior, be ready.

For the last question for the day do I have to hurt when I wake up? I’m sure we can all remember when we were young and as our parents or grandparents would get up from the bed in the morning or get up from a chair, they would moan or groan say ouch. Remember thinking is that really going to be me some day. There are certain things in life that we are most likely not going to avoid especially if they’re in our family histories, osteoarthritis; Uncle author always outstays his welcome. While we’re probably going to have arthritis in some part of our body at some point in our lives, how are we going to deal with that period? I plan to deal with that by doing a few things, eating a better diet that lower in Inflammatory type foods. Using exercise to stay as strong as I can. While there is not a cure for arthritis there are things that can make it feel better therefore by doing these 2 items, I can hopefully delay the discomforts and ouch that hurts a little while longer. Of course, there are other ways to deal with the pain chiropractor treatments, acupuncture, physical therapy, medications. However, the aches and pains will be there and we will have to tolerate what we can and control what is our wheelhouse to control.

I realize today’s posting is a little long especially for only answering 3 questions am I over the Hill, I’d say NO. Are the golden years really not that golden? I say mine are going to be golden as long as I have the mind and ability to believe there golden. And finally, do I really have to hurt when I get out of bed in the morning? Probably at some point but it’s my choice on how I handle that pain and what I do to try to alleviate that pain, and/or prolong the onset of that. My challenge for you is move forth in life today think about what it is that you can do to improve your life just one small way today.

Caregivers

Today we’ll discuss care giving for our elderly family. As we age, at some point we need help, those of us who are 50 and exploring our lives have found out. There becomes the reality that our parents who are now seventies, eighties, or nineties or older need some help. Sometimes that help is as easy as mowing the yard or it can be as complicated as they their need to move in with us or have full-time care givers. We find ourselves looking for full-time care givers, hiring them can be very costly. As we’ve discussed in my retirement postings our income decreases when we retire. While our parents as have worked hard and have saved for this time in life the cost is surprising. Many families find this cost prohibitive to actually pay an individual to give full time care. The families then take this task on, some have other family members whom they can share this task and some of which cannot.

For married couples sometimes that’s the spouse who takes on the full-time caregiver position. Being a full-time caregiver can be very tiring for the individual who is giving the care. There are taxing chores, a balance that must be met between what the person needing care is used to and wishes versus what they care giver is used to and is able to give. Many caregivers take on this role possibility unknowingly giving up more of themselves to the care of the family member then they care for themselves.

We must as outsiders looking in be sure that were able to give some relief to the caregivers in our families. If as a care giver you do not have an individual who can come and relieve you allow you to have some “you” time, I recommend you speak with primary care provider. They can see if home health may be warranted and be paid through insurance. As a care giver if you don’t take care of yourself, you’re not able to take care of the individual that you have chosen to take care.

Many areas do have caregiver support groups, that you might find beneficial. You might be able to find that insurance will pay for maybe 8 hours a week of care giving support so that you’re able to take care of yourself. There are respite to programs in some areas, I would check with your local nursing facilities to see if they offer respite. Respite is when the person is taken to a facility for several hours or a day to be cared for during that time. Long term facilities will be able to tell you what the requirements are and/or what the cost of might be for that respite care.

You might think when you decide to become a care giver would be that you can handle whatever is brought to you or ask of you. The stress of caregiving is real and needs to be addressed from the beginning. So, if you are a care giver, I challenge you to find time for yourself, make time for yourself. Whether that be a few hours a week that you’re able to go shopping, get your hair done, get your nails done. Whatever that might be spending time with a friend, going to the park again whatever it is that makes you happy that you be sure to take that time for you. If you are a family member of someone who has a full-time caregiver, I challenge you, to make time to give that full-time care giver a break. Give1,2.3 hours of your time each week to that person without any strings attached so that they have time for themselves.

We all feel the need to be helpful, we just don’t always see what is in front of us.

Let’s get moving!! Week 4

If you are reading these weekly and setting you goals accordingly this is week 4. Can you look back to week one and if so, are feeling accomplished? Were you able to set your larger goal did you meet my challenge in setting a larger obtainable goal and then smaller goals to get you to that point? We discussed that goal being 2 months we are now 4 weeks into starting your exercise program, how are you doing? I hope that each week as you come back to see this exercise information that you’re able to see improvement and your ability to do certain things in life.

Let’s take a moment and look back week one we discussed standing up during commercials. Were you able to do that? Were you able to start standing up during 1 commercial or 2 or 3? If not it’s OK it’s OK if you’re still working on the ability to stand during the commercials, keep it up. No one says that has to be only 1 week between each set of challenges.

The larger goal can be set at any time frame that’s obtainable for you. There smaller goals are set within that time frame so that you can see progress while you are working toward your larger goal. Celebrate small victories to keep you excited. My challenge to you this week is to think back 3 weeks ago where were you and where are you now. If you’ve set a goal and if you’re meeting your goals. You on your way to meeting that larger goal!

So, assuming that you are doing the weekly challenges this is week 4. In week one you started standing during the commercials. Week two you started walking around the house. Week 3 I gave you my story, hoping that you would continue to work on your previous weekly goals.

Challenge for this week is that you stand between commercials. Stand while watching your show and sit during commercials. You can also walk in place or around the room that you are watching TV in. This first month I have tried to take away all the possible excuses, in the house where weather is not an issue. No equipment needed. If the weather is nice, by all means go outside and do your walking if you can.

Let’s get moving!! Week 3

Over the last two weeks I have you all set goals to increase your exercise tolerance. Today I’m going to talk about mine. Over the years I have had up-and-downs, times that I did and did not exercise. I’ve stuck with things long enough to get where I wanted to get or close, and then would quit. Therefore, I would start gaining weight back feeling less strong. A year ago, I decided to do this class it was a fitness class it was called “jump start to fitness”. Then my husband was diagnosed with renal cell carcinoma. We knew that surgery was the treatment and that he would need me after, so I put off my class until after his recovery.

We talked about excuses in one of my other post. This, was my excuse. After about a month my husband was doing great and I decided I had no more excuses, I needed to get started. The commitment for this class was 6 months 3 or 4 times a week. I jumped in both feet I went 3 times a week every week. No excuses I made sure that I attended class. October came and we went on vacation, I was feeling pretty strong. Now I couldn’t lift a refrigerator by myself but I was a lot stronger than I had been in May, when I started. We went to Belize and went to Mayan ruins I was able to climb up to the top of the temple, I felt accomplished. When I returned from vacation the class had been canceled because of low attendance. To say the least I was frustrated, however shortly after that at work we started working out 30 minutes every morning prior to work. We continue that today. About 2 months ago a friend from work and I decided that we would start going to an early morning class at a workout centers near us, a cardio and weights class. We do that on Mondays and Wednesdays, and we walk on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I feel like I’ve worked my way up in weights, with my continued efforts to get exercise.

I know that we are all at different levels of the exercise that we can tolerate. For those who are reading this, who can’t lift weights or walk for a distance, start where you are, start something, start today make a goal to do it 2 times a week, 3 times a week whatever you can. You can work your way up to a tolerance of doing more. The more fit you are when something happens the easier it will be for you to deal.

My challenge to you this week is to look at your goals that you sat, are they obtainable? Are you reaching your short-term goals? If you are GREAT, if not just make them something you feel you are able to obtain.

Let’s get moving!! Week 2

Week 1, we talked about chair exercises. So today I would like to talk about getting up and walking around the house a little bit. So just like we discussed with the chair exercises as you start off standing up during one commercial, then work your way up to where you’re standing up throughout the entire set of commercials.

Walking around the house is the same, starting off by walking back-and-forth from 1 Room to the next several times a day for nothing more than just getting in steps. At first you may only be able to do this once or twice a day extra but as time goes on you’ll be building endurance up and be able to walk from one room to the next to the next and be able to do that several times daily.

When you’re doing this, I don’t want this to be because you’re getting up and walking to the restroom or getting up and going to the kitchen to get a sandwich. I really want these to be extra times so maybe again we use the commercials on TV as you’re watching your favorite show when a commercial comes on, you get up and you walk to the next room and then walk back to your chair. Again, we have to remember that any exercise is better than sitting in the chair all day. As you do these things you set your goals. It’s good to have an overall (long term) goal which might be “I will be able to walk one block without rest “. Now this goal may seem unobtainable at this time. However, as you set your smaller goals in the house your larger goal will over time more attainable.

My challenge to you with this post will be to set a larger goal. Make sure that this is a goal that is obtainable by you. This goal should be obtainable within months not years. If you goal is to long it may be easier to give up on it. You have to set your goals in a manner that you know they are something that you can work toward. Because if you’re unable to work toward a goal it will be discouraging. So, set one large goal that is obtainable and then set smaller goals to reach that goal. An example might be by the end of 2 months I will be able to walk down my block and back to my house without rest. Your smaller goals would be week 1 I plan to stand during commercials. Week 2 I plan to walk from 1 room to the other during commercials. Continue your goals until you have reached, your larger goal.

Let’s get moving!!! Week 1

Exercise the 8-letter cussword. Every time we hear somebody say you need to exercise, it’s like a stone thrown right in the gut. However, I would like to put a bright side on the word exercise. The next time you think about exercise I would like for it to be a more positive approach. Throw all the excuses of why I can’t exercise out the window. We’ve all seen the exercise videos where people are in great shape and their lifting weights, running 100-yard race, all things we are unable to do. However, did you realize that exercise doesn’t have to be all of that. Did you know sitting in a chair watching TV you use approximately 90 calories for one hour. Now obviously you could eat that 90 calories fairly quickly in a cookie. However, we’re concentrating on what you’re doing and how that impacts the calories that you use.

While sitting in that chair let’s say you decide to stand up during commercials, not only now have you and burnt 90 calories from sitting in a chair, but now you use more calories. You are using far more calories during the day. The other thing to look at is that by standing up you’re using different muscles therefore those muscles will get stronger and use more calories over time. If the only thing you can do is to stand up during commercials even if it’s only one, your burning more calories than if you were sitting. You are strengthening you leg muscles, improving your balance. If that is you, then work on doing that, every time a commercial comes on get out of your chair and stand. The average commercial being 30 seconds you would stand there. A week from now you may be able to stand during the entire series of commercials which could be 3 to 4 minutes. It is the small steps that get you to the end goal.

During this time of you trying to improve your health by starting with that small step of standing up during commercials. I challenge you to consider other things that you might be able to do while you’re sitting in the chair. For example, some years ago, a study was done where one group of folks were asked to close their eyes and to believe that they were lifting a fairly heavy dumbbell. They were asked to do a certain amount of reps and a certain amount of sets. The 2nd group was actually given dumbbells that were a little heavy for them and they were given the exact amount of reps and sets for a specific amount of time. The end of the study showed that each group gained muscle strength, the group with the dumbbells gained a little more muscle strength. The point of this is sitting in a chair you could pretend to be lifting heavier dumbbells and start with 2 sets of 10 reps that would mean that you would do 2 sets of 10 times bringing your arms from a 90ﾟ up to your shoulder and them back down to the armrest not using anything but your mind to believe that you’re lifting something heavy. If you do this on a regular basis, we could say 3 times a week you will gain some muscle strength.

I challenge you to find something that you can do to improve your health through exercise small steps toward a healthier you. Make a goal that you want to reach in say 2 months, then set smaller goals to reach each week. It is easier to reach smaller goals and you will reach that larger goal before you realize. I will be posting along the way to encourage your progress.