Sometimes I have trouble sleeping. I guess we all go through times when that happens. It happened to me this morning. I woke up at 4:17 and absolutely could not go back to sleep. It is incredibly peaceful at 4:17am. The lake was calm, the light outside is just beginning to lighten from the dark of the night and it is actually before the birds begin to sing. It was also very warm and when it is warm at 4:17 in the morning you know it will be a hot day. I was out on the lake with my grandchildren around 9:30 last night and the stars were absolutely brilliant. I learned later that we actually had a show of the Northern Lights here but I didn’t see them. If it is clear tonight we might go out and see if we can see them. We face the East which is not where they usually do their show. Back to waking up early. I have heard that this time can be the most creative time of day for some. I don’t think it is for me but it is a time that allows me to have time for myself and not feel I need to interact with others. I am actually stewing about something and this was my time to vent in my head. After about an hour of that I decided that perhaps reading a good mystery would be a better use of my time so that is what I did.

My father

In August, about this time, I have a tough time. My father died on the 21st of August in 1973, 42 years ago. When I find myself feeling the way I do today it takes me awhile to realize that it is that time of the year again. I was 24 years old with a six week old baby and a two year old and I was devastated. Being a new mother you have all kinds of hormone things going on and then to lose someone you loved so suddenly was just awful. I was so mad I hit a tree in the parking lot of the hospital. With my fist! I am not mad now but I am very introspective as I continue to recover from my own heart attack. I wish that the procedure that saved me had been around 42 years ago, maybe Dad would have lived to see his great-grandchildren.  My sister walked with me this morning and she said that she thought I was doing really well but that I am still not back to me yet and that I am definitely changed.  The difficulty being a woman who suffers a heart attack is that there aren’t that many of us around.  I have spoken to many, many of my friends who are men who have had a stent put in and I just don’t identify with them.  I empathize but I can’t really talk about my situation.  One of my friends had a stent put in one week after I did but he did not have a heart attack.  I asked him how he was doing and he said just fine he was doing everything he had done before no change except he didn’t get out of breath as much.  For me there has been a period of recovery and building up my strength again.  The emotional part is much harder to pinpoint.  Sometimes I am still in shock that this happened and that I could be so vulnerable and yet be so healthy.  My sister says don’t push too hard it will come.  We all should have a sister like that!

This week’s lectures were actually fun.  The focus was introducing exercise into your life and well-being and needless to say I was interested.  We have discussed the bio-individuality of diet but it applies to  fitness as well.  One exercise may be perfect for you but it may not work for your friend.  I am addicted to walking in the morning for at least an hour or more.  My daughter Margot loves to hike big mountains and to run, not for me to do that although I enjoy a hike sometimes.  My daughter Katie loves to walk.  In 2002 we did the Avon Breast Cancer 3-day walk and it was one of the best winters I ever had because we walked every day for miles often pushing a baby carriage.  My husband really doesn’t like to walk at all but he loves tennis and golf.  Granddaughter is a swimmer and has crossed our lake a couple of times this summer, She is also a soccer player like her Aunt.  Grandson loves lacrosse, and of course, canoeing.  That’s in just one family.  Think about your family and the bio-individuality of your members.

I particularly enjoyed Venus Williams who was our featured speaker for this week.  Listening to her talk about the mental focus of sports and her struggles with her autoimmune disease were inspiring.  She brought her approach to sports into context for us as we continue on our journey of becoming the best Health Coaches we can be.  She was funny and entertaining in a way you don’t see on the court.

Once again it has been a busy week and we are nearing the end of our summer here in Quebec.  By that I mean that the children will go home and we will go back to being just us for a little while.  It has been wonderful and we have had a perfect summer.

I would like to let you all know that I am now offering a one hour FREE Health History Consultation either in person or via Skype.  I would love to take the time to talk with you and to see whether our conversation could be the “One Conversation that could change your life”.  Please email me if you are interested.  I am most interested in you and what your goals are.

Have a wonderful week.