Enough is Enough! I Finally Kicked the Habit!

Some habits are hard to break.

Nicotine…fatty/sugary foods…they can be oh so hard to give up.

We all know the harm these products can cause but giving them up is like being asked to cut ties with someone you love.

I became an emotional eater as a child for lots of different reasons and with emotional eating comes extra weight.

This extra weight and I have had an on-again off-again relationship for decades.

This backwards relationship caused some health concerns and resulted in me being put on a medication to help reduce my cholesterol.

I took this medication for years and didn’t connect the weirdness going on in my body with the continued use of this drug.

I had:

• Many sleepless nights.
• The worst case of acid reflux I’ve ever known.
• Other weird kind of digestive issues.
• Hair loss.
• Severe tingling and numbness in my hands and feet (and I’m not diabetic so it wasn’t neuropathy).
• Unexplained pain in my back near my kidneys.
• Weird eye twitches and pain.
• Headaches.
• Chest pains.

I Self-Diagnosed and Man Was I Wrong

At first I contributed it to getting older especially since my trips to the doctor turned up nothing. I knew something was wrong though. I didn’t like how I was feeling. I ran out of my medicine and was waiting for my new prescription to be delivered. While I waited I noticed the tingling in my hands and feet went away and I could go to sleep at night. I noticed I didn’t need any antacids. These symptoms I was experiencing…the weird feelings went away completely. When the meds did arrive, I took one before bed and yep, you guessed it, every single symptom returned..sleeplessness, restlessness, upset stomach and the worst tingling sensation to date.

It was the greatest aha moment of my life.

I’ve been feeling like crap for years behind a drug I was taking over something I really could control…my eating and my weight.

I was done.

I was pissed.

I’ve missed HOURS of GOOD sleep and rest behind an eating habit?

I’ve been choking down TUMS and Prevacid and didn’t really have to?

This chick did a 180 that day and I haven’t looked back.

All that stuff you’re supposed to do to be healthy and don’t do for lots of “throwed-off” reasons…I do them now.

Without fail…without question.

I’ve had enough chocolate cake in my lifetime so if I never have another piece I’m okay because I know exactly what it tastes like.

Sometimes It’s Real Easy to Kick a Hhabit.

Being slapped in the face with the truth that I suffered needlessly and tortured my body was the straw that broke the proverbial camel’s back.

Am I worried about slipping or failure or being tempted beyond what I can bare?

I’ve been to Panera Bread twice since then and kindly left the pecan braid, the souffle and bear claw in the display case.

This chick is so done.

Statins can go kick rocks.

Bad eating habits have been duly kicked.

There were no tears, no feeling sorry for myself, no sulking, no “why me?”

Just a simple resolve that said I’m done and I want to feel like my old self again and I’m willing to do whatever it takes to make that happen.

#ThisWomanKnows emotional eating, obesity and statins totally suck.

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DISCLAIMER: Please talk to your doctor before you stop taking any medication. Sometimes high cholesterol can’t be managed by diet and exercise alone…in this case cholesterol lowering drugs can help keep your cholesterol at a healthy level.