perfectly orchestrated. even the bad stuff.

i feel like the luckiest girl in the world to be a patient of Dr. Charles Noble III. he's my cardiologist and seriously, he's a doctor like no other i've ever met. his entire being is nothing but compassionate and he has a sincere passion for educating and empowering his patients to live the best life they possibly can. i've had a heart condition, diagnosed at age 20, and been his patient ever since.

back in April, i blogged about going in to get results from the 30-day heart monitor i had to wear and leaving that visit with an invitation to be involved in a study group for 3 months. a cardiac rehabilitation of sorts with an end goal of improved cardiac health & being medication-free within 3-6 months.

coming from a family with prevalent heart disease, that decided to settle in and stay away a while in my own body, i was completely encouraged that i was chosen to be a part of this pilot study when i got the heart monitor results.

i was so ready to play an active role in improving my cardiac health.

if you've read for any length of time you'll remember my mom died of heart disease at the age of 50. so this program is seriously, like, a big deal for me. to say i was excited to be invited, would be a gross understatement. i seriously didn't want to wait another day to start.

it was supposed to start in May, then May came and went. the new start date was June, and well, that came and went. and i started to get discouraged.

it got postponed to July. but they were still working out the logistics of the program funding. i'll admit, i kinda let go of the excitement with the increase in back pain i've been having and decided that if it came to the point of needing surgery, before this program was ready to roll, then that's what i was going to do.

as ya'll know, the neurosurgeon wanted another diagnostic procedure first. i got results from that test 2 days before the program started----which were, positive for 2 discs needing a spinal fusion, but inconclusive for the third. in the meantime, they did another MRI and found a protrusion compressing my spinal cord in my mid back. all this means, before surgery, i have to repeat that discogram again, with 4-6 discs being injected this time.

definitely not what i wanted to hear. but in reality, repeating the discogram is the best way to ensure i don't have a failed surgery. i haven't decided on scheduling just yet. i'm still coming to terms with my options.

in the meantime, the cardiology program was ready to roll. it FINALLY started last week! so, i've now gotten 6 sessions in.

why does it make me feel like the luckiest girl in the world?

well, besides the fact that my doctor is better than the best, there were only 7 of his patients invited into this program, along with 20 of his staff members.

in this program, i have a fully-paid 3 month membership to Lifetime Fitness, a 24/7 facility, with a personal trainer. how awesome is that!?

prior to the program starting i underwent pre-program...

• Metabolic Testing
• Fasting Lipid & Fasting Blood Sugar Testing
• Weight & Measurements

and throughout the program i'll undergo strength & flexibility testing, in additional to the endurance challenge of every session.

at program end, i'll undergo the same testing as pre-program and hopefully be OFF my heart medication! heck yeah!

i'll have you know.....on wednesday, i walked 2.56 miles in 49 minutes, doing interval training meaning the incline changed throughout the workout from 2.0 to 10.0 with arm strengthing/weight lifting exercises throughout the walk. and it's not to say it wasn't pain-free---because is was nothing of the sort.

in fact, yesterday....i couldn't do even a mile because my right leg became temporarily paralyized during a light jog in session 6. story of my life really. i literally could not move my leg for 10 minutes. definitely something to keep your pride in check.

but wednesday's session....that's HUGE people. huge.

especially considering on august 15th, i couldn't walk from one side of the mall to the other without extreme pain in my right leg.

another unexpected detour.....but one i'm thankful to be on.

just another reminder to me that God is with me always. had it not been for me having more episodes of my heart skipping beats, i would have never gone in to see my cardiologist. had i not gone to see him, i wouldn't have had this opportunity extended to me to strengthen my heart...and the bonus of strengthening my core. and let's not forget losing a few pounds in the process. which just might get me healthy enough to not feel so much pain in my back/leg. which might just mean i don't have to put my body through hell with a three level spinal fusion.

everything happens for a reason. perfectly orchestrated. even the bad stuff. i'm sure of it.

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the neurologist i was referred to this week for the headaches/double & blurred vision scheduled me for an MRI of the brain. this coming thursday. thank you for the concerned emails.