Postscript

Things are going well and I feel remarkably good physically but have been sorting through the emotions of it all and here are a few conclusions I've come to :)

From a human standpoint, life is brief and unpredictable. All is well can suddenly become not much is well. Be prepared for either and show the ones you love how much they mean to you! Hug, talk, enjoy!

Be good to yourself. This is not a nagging lecture because I know that won't do. If someone had said to me this time last week, "you better lay those cigarettes down," I would have smiled and continued to smoke, slightly agreeable but lost in my own excuses. Of all the changes I've had to make this week, smoking has been the most difficult. I haven't smoked since 11:30PM, Thursday, August 4, one week ago almost exactly. But I take no pride in that because I know I could pick one up right now and smoke a pack by morning. I just keep remembering that pain (and I have eaten A LOT of carrots! Lol)

The rest has been pretty simple for me because I love to walk, I love trying to cook as healthy as possible, I've set an alarm to remind me to take my blood thinner, and I will have a new job on day shift soon. My blood pressure is way down and I feel good. Occasionally all that happened dawns on me and I get afraid and worry for some fleeting seconds but then I deep breathe because worry is bad and makes me want a smoke lol!

Back to being good to yourself, I'll just say give a try. Make doing what is essential to a healthy life a priority. Lay the cigarettes down, take a walk, move your body, eat what is truly good for you...you deserve the best but you may have a hard time convincing yourself of that if you haven't been good to yourself in a long while. My prayers are for all my family and friends to make good choices but I have a few on top of the list because I know they are not too far from where I was last Friday.

Nurses and doctors, what wonderful professions we have! No, everything we do isn't saving a life but we get to participate in that awesome challenge, often more frequently than we'd like. Several someones saved my life last week and I am so grateful. I'm glad most of them were not burnt out (unimpressed EMS boy may have been and it showed,) the majority of them listened carefully to what I said, and the best ones treated me like I mattered to them as a person.

Thank you, Tracy, Miranda, and Mom and John! You were there for me, you encouraged me, you loved me, and it showed (I know Corey had to stay with the girls). It's so important to show one another our love! You are the best and I love y'all so much!