8/4/2014                          What Next?    

 

Changing the bed.  Why not take the mattress cover off and wash it.  After I took it off it became large and thick and puffy.  Oh well.  The water started bubbling in the wash machine.  I was laboring stuffing the "thing" in the water.  Ah ha.  I called for my husband.  We almost got it in together.

 

We both looked down at the floor at the same time and wondered why our feet were wet. Water was pouring out of the bottom

of the wash machine.  "Let’s  get this thing out of here into a garbage bag."  When I opened the garbage bag it was too small.  We carried it to our large garbage type thick container in the garage.  We felt comfortable we got rid of our problem.

 

The garage door was open to the hall inside the house where the wash machine and water was gushing out.  I turned the wash machine on spin.  It did get the remaining water out of the machine.  Yes?  No.

 

We then began sharing a squiggly mop and I with the broom to sweep the water from the house area to the garage.  Just like dominos I then had to sweep the water out of the garage floor.  We had to pull the wash machine out of its position and clean behind it.  We had a large fan in place to help dry the tile floor.

 

After that area was clean.  I thought we might as well pull the dryer out and see if any of the water had gone under it.  There was nothing wet under the dryer.  Instead there was dirt, a thick lone sock and a wash rag.  I can clean that up in a minute.  I got the vacuum.  The dirt which came up easily, so did the sock and wash cloth, making the vacuum stuck and silent.  This was a mess.  We both continued to have intervals of heavy laughter.

 

My husband was thrilled.  He could now get to use his new wonder drill.  He hummed.  I laughed.  He unscrewed the hose from the machine and got the sock and wash rag out.  Gee, what a great man.  I will never say,  "What do you need a new drill for?"

 

With the hose in place he quickly found he missed attaching a small rubber circle that should have gone on first .  So he had to use his new found wonder drill again.  I was laughing more at this point.  Poor man.

 

We both were laughing.  This is what people do when they are eighty and eighty-five.  Stuff happens!       Phyllis Rehmar       www.women70andover.com  

 

                          Doctor    Anyone?  8/2/2013 

     Appointments of all sorts for two people is not an easy job.  The Ipad is a

big help until I do a screw-up of not putting in which person the appointment is

for.  Infact,  that was the lesson I learned this morning at the eye doctor

appointment.

     They were so creative.  They swapped appointments.  Everything glossed over

my error.  I deleted my mistake.

     Every doctor appointment is a learning experience.  How long have I been

trying to convince the eye doctor I was able to see better than I do?  If I was

really smart I could memorize the letters they ask each time.  The last letter

is an e.  Am I right?  A four you say.  I am  not even close.  They catch on real

quick.  What is the point of my deception?  One perk of it is it makes me laugh

when I am found out in the doctor's office.

       The internist office presents a different deception.  I have to get on

the scale .  Off come my shoes.  Do they really weigh five pounds?  It is too

late to help myself when I get on the scale.

     This all started with my last  birthday.  Eighty.   I must try and be

honest with myself.  Is it too late? 

      There is no reason to be so hard on myself.  Laughing is the best way to

make sense of my doctor's appointments.  That last letter is an e.  A four you

say.  You are right...I am not even close.

 

Post your comments here on your doctor appointmets.  Just press the button  www.women70andover.com  phyllis

 

3/27/2013 The 80 Choo! Choo! Almost Here! pf

The thought of comparing myself to fine wine will not work.  Who would ever have
a bottle of eighty year old wine un-opened?  I feel very much opened!  As far as
feeling old.  I do feel old when I tell someone I will soon be eighty.  There is
no doubt about it! Eighty is old.  It is almost one hundred years old!  Who in
the world could ever make that?  The statics are if major illnesses have not hit
before you are eighty, it is possible you could have quality of life.  Good
health maintenance throughout your life does have rewards for us.  Even if you
get hit with with  major illness, your stamina and energy will kick in for you.  All
those apples you ate will help!

Eighty coming up and recuperation from breast mastectomy is challenging.  Being a
vegan for years  that turned into a McMoo burger and back to a vegan.  I was
pleased I could keep something down.  With a recovering  Cancer patient, me ! 
My food likes can Change from day to day.  Just the other day, I craved fruit. 
Off I went and got cherries, blue berries, mango's and red seedless grapes.  What
a party I have had.  My belly talks to me quickly if I eat something I think I
really want, only to learn here comes a burning in the esophagus that stops me .

The above was written awhile back!  My writing is just like the refrigerator!  Ah! Ha!
There is all is in back of that large box of cereal someone stuck here!
My eating is quite normal as no meat..but I have had a love affair with poached eggs.
We got this two cup looking cooker at Walmart for two bucks!  You put an egg in each
compartment with one teaspoon of water over each egg. Pop it in the microwave for 60
seconds.  Perfection!    OH! OH!, if they come out hard...your microwave is telling you
to try 30 seconds, then stop open the microwave door and put in for another 30 seconds.
It is a high tech thing. Hugs, phyllis  05/06/1933    www.women70andover.com

 

3/4/2013 Pulling It All Together pr

We are both well and very busy.  Just checking in to let you know at this time I will not be writing the blog daily.  Too much to catch up with.  I am taking excerpts from the blog and editing and cutting them. (what a horrible job).  This is for a self published book I hope to complete and perhaps turn into an ebook online.  For me this will be finishing a goal of completion. 

Our other time is being used as we volunteer at Halifax Hospital, here in Daytona.  Bill has designed a Tree of Life that will be used for people recovering from Cancer and other things.  It will be used for posting and messaging in the form of drawings and words.  I with the help of social workers and a large team at the hospital I am helping put together an art therapy program.

All of this mixed with a program for volunteers for Hospice Help.  This is a learning program with the hope we both will help with Hospice.  This is intermingled with our dogie, Precious, as I have trained her to pass the test for Service Dog and Therapy Dog.  She will goes with us some of the times.

I have hope that all of our efforts will help others and lead to me writing about it.  At this point I am very interested on helping people cope with major illnesses as they can be over-whelming.

So, there you have it ...in alot of words!  This is what our bucket list is made of, instead of Bon Bons! Hugs,phyllis 05/06/1933  www.women70andover.com

1/30/2013 Where Are My Keys? pr

Did you ever walk into a room and say, "Gee I forgot what I came in here for?"  @#$% happens!  There are free online test you can easily take from your computer with the test results for you.  The one below you take monthly.  This is an easy way to monitor your progress.  These tests are now available through Medicare at your doctor's office when you are sixty-five. Hugs,phyllis 05/06/1933  www.women70andover.com    phyllisreh@aol.com

The website this is taken from is MEMTRAX.. go there and sign in.  TAKE THE TEST! 

Memory Maintenance Program

10 recommendations to help defer the onset of brain decline

It is important to lead a brain healthy lifestyle to help defer the onset of brain decline, dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. These top 10 recommendations as developed by Dr. Ashford and his colleagues at the Stanford / Veterans Affairs Aging Clinical Research Center.

1. Maximize and continue your education and mental exercise:
   • Learn about your brain and how to care for it.
   • Develop habits to maintain your brain.
   • Take classes in subjects that interest you; education is associated with decreased Alzheimer’s risk, learning a new language may be very good.
   • Do mentally stimulating activities, including puzzles (like crossword puzzles, sudoku, and most importantly also learn new things).
   • Engage in a personalized brain training program.
2. Maximize and continue your physical exercise:
   • Have a regular exercise program.
   • Physical exercise is best 10-30 minutes after each meal for 10-30 minutes, 3 times per day.
   • Do both aerobic and strengthening exercises.
   • Stretching improves flexibility.
3. Maximize your social network and spiritual interactions:
   • Stay active with your friends.
   • Get involved with your community.
4. Continually monitor and improve your diet:
   • Take your vitamins daily.
   • Take at the morning meals: Vitamin E 200 iu; Vitamin C 250 mg; Multi-vitamin (with folate 400 mcg and no iron). For discussion, see: Willet WC, Stampfer MJ, “What vitamins should I be taking, Doctor?” New England Journal of Medicine, 345, 1819 (2001).
   • Check with your clinician yearly to be sure your homocysteine levels are not high and you have no signs of or risk factors for B12 deficiency.
   • Ask your doctor to make sure your B12 level is above 400. If diet doesn't help, take oral supplement. If oral supplement doesn't work, get monthly B12 shots additionally.
   • Maximize your vegetables.
   • Increase your dietary intake of omega-3-fatty acids.
   • OPTIMIZE Plant products and fish: Fruits - citrus, blue berries; Vegetables - green, leafy; Fish - deep sea, finned, oily, at least 3x/week; Nuts - especially almonds, and also dark chocolate.
   • MINIMIZE other animal products: Red meat (no more than once per week); Dairy (limit to low-fat); Poultry (limit eggs to 7 or fewer per week).
5. Keep your Body Mass Index (BMI) in the optimal range (19-25):
   • If you don’t know your BMI, make a point of finding out.
   • To optimize your BMI, control your food intake and exercise.
6. Physically protect your brain:
   • Wear your car seat belt.
   • Wear a helmet when you are riding a bicycle or participating in any activity where you might hit your head.
   • Decrease your fall risk through physical exercise; improve your balance.
   • Make your environment safe.
7. Visit your clinician on a regular basis. Know your body and your health risks:
   • Decrease your risk of type II diabetes. Monitor your fasting blood sugar yearly. If you have diabetes, make sure that your blood sugar is optimally controlled.
   • Consult your clinician about your joint and muscle pains (treat arthritis with ibuprofen or indomethacin).
   • Keep your hormones stable. Check with your clinician about your thyroid hormone. Discuss sex-hormone replacement therapy with your clinician (such therapy is not currently recommended for Alzheimer prevention, but may help memory and mood).
8. Optimize your cardiovascular health:
   • Take your blood pressure regularly; be sure that the systolic pressure is always less than 130, diastolic blood pressure is less than 85.
   • Watch your cholesterol; if your cholesterol is elevated (above 200), talk to your clinician about appropriate treatment. Consider “statin” medications and be sure your cholesterol is fully controlled.
   • If approved by your clinician: 1 enteric coated baby aspirin each day.
9. Optimize your mental health:
   • If you have difficulty getting to sleep, consider trying 3 - 6 milligrams of melatonin at bedtime (consider different brands if not helpful at first).
   • If you snore, consult your clinician about sleep apnea.
   • Get treatment for depression if needed.
   • Keep your stress level under control. While some stress is needed to maintain motivation, severe stress is bad for health.
   • Avoid excess alcohol use.
10. Optimize your cognitive health:
    • Have your memory screened regularly after 60 year of age.
    • Be sure the people around you are not concerned about your memory.
    • If you think that you have significant difficulty with your memory, talk to your clinician about further evaluation and therapy.
    • Engage in a variety of cognitive stimulation activities .

The Memory Test

• Become familiar with the demonstration before starting the test.
• MemTrax is the unique test that provides you a quick, reliable and easy to use memory screening test.
• Results are clearly detailed and provide an easy memory monitoring.
• Try our iPhone and iPad memory test!

Your Brain Health

• Discover Dr Ashford's recommendations to help defer the onset of brain decline arising with aging.
• What is memory? How do memory losses appear?
• What is a medical examination for memory problems?
• Improve your cognitive abilities with an efficient brain training program.

The Science

• Memory is declining all along aging, that's why a regular follow-up is essential to detect memory troubles.
• Dr Ashford, well-known for his work on Alzheimer's disease, is the inventor of the memory screening test.
• MemTrax is the result of a 10 years research work. Several studies prove its scientific validation.

1/24/2013 Double Time! This happens! pr

http://www.ivanhoe.com Reported January 23, 2013 New Test for Predicting Breast Cancer (Ivanhoe Newswire) – One in eight women will be affected by breast cancer in their lifetime.  A new study finds a new test that can predict the presence of BRCA mutations.     A new multiple gene expression profile test  predicted the presence of harmful BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations in otherwise healthy women carrying the mutations.     “This novel technology aims to provide a layer of information regarding the cell functionality aspect of BRCA mutations that could greatly enhance the doctor's ability to identify high-risk carriers," Asher Y. Salmon, M.D., a breast cancer specialist at the Hadassah Hebrew University Medical Center in Jerusalem, Israel was quoted as saying.   Women who have a mutated BRCA1 gene have an increased risk for developing breast cancer or ovarian cancer.  Scientists are investigating ways to detect these genetic mutations so women who carry the genes can take measures to reduce their risk of cancer.      "The current tool for mutation detection is gene sequencing, which is expensive, time-consuming and, in many cases, lacking clear and decisive clinical decision making information.  In many cases, the current sequencing tool identifies a mutation, but we do not know if the mutation is neutral or harmful,” Dr. Salmon was quoted as saying.   Dr. Salmon says that emerging evidence has revealed that cells with a mutation in one of the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes have a gene expression profile when exposed to causes of DNA damage, like radiation.  Researchers collected white blood cells from 9 healthy women with a mutated BRCA1 gene and 8 healthy women with a mutated BRCA2 gene.  Dr. Salmon cultured the cells and then exposed them to radiation.  Then, they extracted the RNA from the cells and compared it to the RNA from identical white blood cells from 10 healthy women without a mutation.    Close to 1,500 genes were differentially expressed between non-carriers and carriers.  The list got narrowed down to 18 genes that were mostly differentiated between the 2 groups.  Then, they narrowed it down further with a validation study of a model using 21 of the new genes and 5 control genes to predict the risk.  Blood samples were used from an independent group of 40 women, who were carriers of mutated BRCA1 and BRCA2 and 17 non-carrier women.  The model had a sensitivity of 95 percent and specificity of 88 percent.     "In wealthy societies, it can become a screening tool for identifying individuals with a very high susceptibility for carrying a mutation, and full sequencing can be reserved only for them.  In societies in which sequencing is not feasible, this test can substitute for it with a very high accuracy rate,” Dr. Salmon concluded.   Dr. Salmon and his colleagues are conducting a large validation study in North America and Europe to analyze the efficacy of the test in heterogeneous populations.   SOURCE:  Cancer Prevention Research: A Journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, January 2013   Want to be the FIRST TO KNOW? Click Here for a free weekly email with Ivanhoe's latest Medical Breakthroughs.

For a FREE weekly e-mail update of upcoming Medical Breakthroughs from Ivanhoe.com, sign up at /FirstToKnow/.

webdoctor@ivanhoe.com Copyright © 2013 Ivanhoe Broadcast News, Inc. 2745 West Fairbanks Avenue Winter Park, Florida 32789 (407) 740-0789 P.O. Box 865

1/24/2013 printed with permission .....pr

This is from one of the best free health newsletters. I share this with you with permission from the editors.  You may receive this.  You will find their link in the article..Hugs,phyllis  www.women70andover.com 

http://www.ivanhoe.com Reported January 23, 2013 New Test for Predicting Breast Cancer (Ivanhoe Newswire) – One in eight women will be affected by breast cancer in their lifetime.  A new study finds a new test that can predict the presence of BRCA mutations.     A new multiple gene expression profile test  predicted the presence of harmful BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations in otherwise healthy women carrying the mutations.     “This novel technology aims to provide a layer of information regarding the cell functionality aspect of BRCA mutations that could greatly enhance the doctor's ability to identify high-risk carriers," Asher Y. Salmon, M.D., a breast cancer specialist at the Hadassah Hebrew University Medical Center in Jerusalem, Israel was quoted as saying.   Women who have a mutated BRCA1 gene have an increased risk for developing breast cancer or ovarian cancer.  Scientists are investigating ways to detect these genetic mutations so women who carry the genes can take measures to reduce their risk of cancer.      "The current tool for mutation detection is gene sequencing, which is expensive, time-consuming and, in many cases, lacking clear and decisive clinical decision making information.  In many cases, the current sequencing tool identifies a mutation, but we do not know if the mutation is neutral or harmful,” Dr. Salmon was quoted as saying.   Dr. Salmon says that emerging evidence has revealed that cells with a mutation in one of the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes have a gene expression profile when exposed to causes of DNA damage, like radiation.  Researchers collected white blood cells from 9 healthy women with a mutated BRCA1 gene and 8 healthy women with a mutated BRCA2 gene.  Dr. Salmon cultured the cells and then exposed them to radiation.  Then, they extracted the RNA from the cells and compared it to the RNA from identical white blood cells from 10 healthy women without a mutation.    Close to 1,500 genes were differentially expressed between non-carriers and carriers.  The list got narrowed down to 18 genes that were mostly differentiated between the 2 groups.  Then, they narrowed it down further with a validation study of a model using 21 of the new genes and 5 control genes to predict the risk.  Blood samples were used from an independent group of 40 women, who were carriers of mutated BRCA1 and BRCA2 and 17 non-carrier women.  The model had a sensitivity of 95 percent and specificity of 88 percent.     "In wealthy societies, it can become a screening tool for identifying individuals with a very high susceptibility for carrying a mutation, and full sequencing can be reserved only for them.  In societies in which sequencing is not feasible, this test can substitute for it with a very high accuracy rate,” Dr. Salmon concluded.   Dr. Salmon and his colleagues are conducting a large validation study in North America and Europe to analyze the efficacy of the test in heterogeneous populations.   SOURCE:  Cancer Prevention Research: A Journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, January 2013   Want to be the FIRST TO KNOW? Click Here for a free weekly email with Ivanhoe's latest Medical Breakthroughs. For a FREE weekly e-mail update of upcoming Medical Breakthroughs from Ivanhoe.com, sign up at /FirstToKnow/. webdoctor@ivanhoe.com Copyright © 2013 Ivanhoe Broadcast News, Inc. 2745 West Fairbanks Avenue Winter Park, Florida 32789 (407) 740-0789 P.O. Box 865

    

http://www.ivanhoe.com Reported January 23, 2013 New Test for Predicting Breast Cancer (Ivanhoe Newswire) – One in eight women will be affected by breast cancer in their lifetime.  A new study finds a new test that can predict the presence of BRCA mutations.     A new multiple gene expression profile test  predicted the presence of harmful BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations in otherwise healthy women carrying the mutations.     “This novel technology aims to provide a layer of information regarding the cell functionality aspect of BRCA mutations that could greatly enhance the doctor's ability to identify high-risk carriers," Asher Y. Salmon, M.D., a breast cancer specialist at the Hadassah Hebrew University Medical Center in Jerusalem, Israel was quoted as saying.   Women who have a mutated BRCA1 gene have an increased risk for developing breast cancer or ovarian cancer.  Scientists are investigating ways to detect these genetic mutations so women who carry the genes can take measures to reduce their risk of cancer.      "The current tool for mutation detection is gene sequencing, which is expensive, time-consuming and, in many cases, lacking clear and decisive clinical decision making information.  In many cases, the current sequencing tool identifies a mutation, but we do not know if the mutation is neutral or harmful,” Dr. Salmon was quoted as saying.   Dr. Salmon says that emerging evidence has revealed that cells with a mutation in one of the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes have a gene expression profile when exposed to causes of DNA damage, like radiation.  Researchers collected white blood cells from 9 healthy women with a mutated BRCA1 gene and 8 healthy women with a mutated BRCA2 gene.  Dr. Salmon cultured the cells and then exposed them to radiation.  Then, they extracted the RNA from the cells and compared it to the RNA from identical white blood cells from 10 healthy women without a mutation.    Close to 1,500 genes were differentially expressed between non-carriers and carriers.  The list got narrowed down to 18 genes that were mostly differentiated between the 2 groups.  Then, they narrowed it down further with a validation study of a model using 21 of the new genes and 5 control genes to predict the risk.  Blood samples were used from an independent group of 40 women, who were carriers of mutated BRCA1 and BRCA2 and 17 non-carrier women.  The model had a sensitivity of 95 percent and specificity of 88 percent.     "In wealthy societies, it can become a screening tool for identifying individuals with a very high susceptibility for carrying a mutation, and full sequencing can be reserved only for them.  In societies in which sequencing is not feasible, this test can substitute for it with a very high accuracy rate,” Dr. Salmon concluded.   Dr. Salmon and his colleagues are conducting a large validation study in North America and Europe to analyze the efficacy of the test in heterogeneous populations.   SOURCE:  Cancer Prevention Research: A Journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, January 2013   Want to be the FIRST TO KNOW? Click Here for a free weekly email with Ivanhoe's latest Medical Breakthroughs.

For a FREE weekly e-mail update of upcoming Medical Breakthroughs from Ivanhoe.com, sign up at /FirstToKnow/.

webdoctor@ivanhoe.com Copyright © 2013 Ivanhoe Broadcast News, Inc. 2745 West Fairbanks Avenue Winter Park, Florida 32789 (407) 740-0789 P.O. Box 865

1/11/2013 My Mom's Face ? pr

We all think  we know so much when it comes to aging!  The older I get the less I know!  Of course, I am finding the mirror is the best teacher out there!  Instead of looking like my Mom, I look like my Dad!  It happens in the best of families.  Did it have to happen to me?  My Mom had such a lovely round face.  My Dad had a bony face.  I have a bony face with sunk in cheeks that land over my cheekbones.  At least they have something to hang on to.  I have lost weight in my face.  Does that happen to everyone?  No!  I really think all other women I see must have faces like their Mom's  I have not seen one other lady with a bony face.  Aging is so personal.  Nice thick hair!  No!  I do not have that either.  Instead, I have waves in my hair that look as if they flew off my Dad's head.  There is no remedy for this.  No face creams, no beauty shops, no nothing.  Just cold turkey truth!

I never in my life thought I would live to be on the verge of eighty years old.  I always thought when one becomes sixty, surely that person would be in a wheel chair.  I was climbing large steep trails when I was sixty and got married again at the age of sixty-three.  I had no thought of old age, or becoming old.  Romance will do that for you!  Now when I ponder eighty years old, I say to myself, "that is  @#$% old!  I am able to continue walking four miles every morning!  That does not count or help my bony face! Hugs,phyllis 05/06/1933      phyllisreh@aol.com     www.women70andover.com

1/10/13 Skin Cancer pr

                             SKIN CANCER

Bill my husband eighty-four continues to have bouts with skin cancer.  He was a sailboat sailor for fifty years, before sunscreens.  He has had a beard for that length of time.  Yesterday that became history.  He cut his beard off as the skin doctor wanted.  His appointment with the skin doctor yesterday included freezing seventeen large skin cancers from his face and head.  This is ongoing with him.  There is pain down to the bone.  He will have a one-hour surgery on January 29, 2013, of a more serious nature in the office.

 

This is skin cancer that occurred twenty years previous or more and shows its ugly head twenty years later.  Use sunscreen to say the very least.  Wear hats and long sleeves.  Better than all of that stay out of the sun.  Hugs,phyllis 05/06/1933     phyllisreh@aol.com           www.women70andover.com

1/9/13 Crowd in ONE MORE THING ! pr

                                            One More Thing

One more thing happens at all ages.   An extra hour at work.  You forgot something at the grocery.  We have all done these things with ease.  As we age these simple chores that you excepted become mountains in your life.  Mountains that are coupled with major illnesses that lead to doctor’s appointments.  New medications.  Your spouse’s major illnesses that hit unexpectedly.  Sleeping gets harder to do at bedtime.  Staying asleep also becomes a problem.  Another trip to the bathroom.  Your head gets full of all these moments of distractions.  You begin an exercise program of walking.  This is great when you are walking, then real life gets in the way and you are back on your scheduled treadmill of one more thing to do. 

This brings about the opportunity to take a time out for you.  Go to a quiet room.  Sit in a chair, or lie down in the bed.  Have some quiet type music on and clear your head.  Do not let anything enter your head except air.  We all need quiet time.  We all need something we do, just for us, so we can give to others.  After a week of this, you will notice your blood pressure going down.  A calmness will run through your shoulders.  You have slowed your body down.  More important you have learned to let go of one more thing!  Give yourself a chance and continue with quiet time and quality time added to your life.  It is free! Hugs,phyllis  05/06/1933     phyllisreh@aol.com       www.women70andover.com

 

 

 

1/8/13 A ROSE IS A ROSE IS A ROSE pf

                                         A Rose Bush with No Thorns?

The article in the Washington Post a few days ago was thought provoking, titled, SHARED PARENTING CAN TEST A MARRIAGE, authored by Janice D’Arcy. I commend the author, Ms D’Arcy.  The article for me was mind stretching, as it was about sharing, chores and real life.   In our case, Bill and me, we are eighty and eighty-four.  We are  light years away from parenting.  On the other hand the sharing, giving and taking with major illnesses  also is over-whelming ..I cannot write about

 how to do it!  Trust me, I wish I could! In retrospect,  I do not know how we both got though this most difficult of year, 2012.  Me with a diagnosis of breast cancer, with an invasive fourteen centimeter  lobular cancer that was not detected for years as it grew and bloomed like a large pumpkin. Then three months later unexpected Bill has open-heart surgery, that included four bypasses. 

Looking back, with some calmness and experience, and reading and doctors, and tests, we dealt with a new life that included doctor’s appointments and medications that throw your life in a tail spin.  Emotions that come out like thorns.  Retracting these thorns inwardly, until you  learned  how to accept them and deal with them.   I wondered would I lose him?  How will he ever get out of this?  Will he be a vegetable?  Cutting one’s chest opened!  What is this all about? 

     Very lucky for us, our son had taken over a year earlier when he encouraged us to get rid of our large home and pick a different more manageable housing, which we did.  The move was monumental.  The stuff was like mountains of Good Will clothes and books and things in boxes we had not seen in years.  Somehow, we did this.  We carted things to Good Will.  We took items to our new two bedrooms, one floor home.  We had a mover.  We had a dear friend, who was also my mentor at Daytona State University, Kevin Donlin.  Repeatedly he would move so many boxes in his truck.  In the meantime, so many wheels of motion came into place that we could not recognize as they were happening.  My daughter who lives out of town and her husband decided this was the year they would move down here.  They will live here half of the year and live in their home the other six months.  Our son bought a home in our sub division.  They will move here in a year or so.  Our lives were  given a stable foundation.  We both started getting our emotional balance.  We knew we had our lives in order, but we did not know how the turmoil and upheaval of these two major illnesses rob you at the same time of stability.  This is when “real life gets in the way”.  You must think fast, but you cannot.  You must act quickly, but you cannot..Somehow, the robot within you takes over.  Doing the wash when Bill was in rehab for six weeks.  Taking him home daily ,with his  wheel chair in the truck of the car.  Trying to adjust to my new meds.  Taking long daily walks to keep my sanity.  Not knowing if I could get through all of this.  With thegrace of the Almighty, family and friends, somehow we are here at this bright spot in our lives. I always say, “The Almighty  teaches, “I can only give you one moment at a time, otherwise you will never get through this” Thank heavens for all our help, and the strength and determination that we unwrapped within us. Hugs, phyllis 05/06/1933   phyllisreh@aol.com         www.women70andover.com  

 

 

 

 

1/4/13 MEDITATION ! WHO? ME? pr

What a difference a meditation makes!  It really works and is easy and free and helpful!  What more can one ask for?  It even adds quality years to one's life! 

Meditation is similar to a pill, except you do not have to swallow it!  The side affects are all positive and you never forget to take this "med" with you!  A win, win, situation.  Meditation will help you sleep better.  Lower your blood pressure, and relieve anxiety for starters.

  Here is one way to do it:  Mood light, you are worth it!  Soft music.  A calm room would be good.  A blanket would be cuddle.  Get rid of your cell phone, children and doorbells!  Lie down.  The music is playing, now is the time to take yourself to a quiet beach, or the cool forest, or the top of the Teton Mountains.  A place where you are aware of nothing else.  Let go as you feel your self getting relaxed.  The more you concentrate on the music, the more you will feel yourself letting go of some of your baggage.  It really works.  Meditation is so memorable I wanted to share it with you! Hugs,phyllis 05/06/1933   phyllisreh@aol.com  www.women70andover.com

1/3/13 I Laugh At Myself ! pr

Even when you have cancer !@#$%  happens:

Compartmentalize:  When my purse has purses within I felt this would be a solution to finding my stuff easily!  Not so!  I looked for my car keys.  I had just dropped them in my purse going into the store.  After pulling everything out of my purse in the parking lot with stuff on top of the car, the keys were no where to be found!  Like a mad woman I turned the purse upside down, in a quiet rage!  They were clanging together somewhere in  that black  cavern in my purse.  Ah! Hah !  I could feel the keys when I ran my hand on the bottom of the lining .  There was a hole in the lining!  The keys found their way through this hole.  I was again out smarted by my car keys!  I threw all the stuff back in my purse with the promise to myself I would organize and clean all this junk when I got home!  This is one of the ways to cope with cancer! Hugs,phyllis 05/06/1933  phyllisreh@aol.com  www.women70andover.com

1/1/13 Tribute to Judy Blume pr

Judy Blume, a master of words.  She proved this to be true with the completion of so many remembered children's books.  She will continued to be read all over the world  world for generations to come.  She recently died of breast cancer.  I will miss her smiles and her courage.  She left me gifts of purpose and determination.  I did not have to know her in person to be a best friend.  When you leave something for others of such value it is a gift of the soul.

Judy Blume wrote this when speaking of her breast cancer: 
Judy Blume: The beloved young adult author, 74, writes about her breast cancer diagnosis and recovering from a mastectomy on her blog in a post titled !@#$% Happens.

phyllis 05/06/1933   phyllisreh@aol.com  www.women70andover.com
Check out Judy Blume's website: judyblume.com ..see for yourself!