High Blood Pressure (HEALTH AND LIFESTYLE)

HEALTH AND LIFESTYLE

There is a popular saying that if you have your health you have everything. I never paid a great deal of attention to this. I thought it was something that people that did not have the better things in life said to themselves to feel better. I had the luxury of thinking this because I had always been very healthy. I took this for granted and kept pushing myself harder and harder to achieve financial wealth. By the time I was forty years old I had a very nice bank account however I hardly knew my kids and my wife was ready to divorce me.

I explained to my wife that if she would just hang in there with me for five more years I would have enough money so I would be able to cut back to part time hours and we would do the traveling and other things that we had put off for the past eighteen years. I pushed myself even harder trying to achieve that goal. I started getting headaches and found that my face was flushed a good deal of the time. My wife convinced me to go to the doctor. I found out that I had high blood pressure and was on the verge of having a stroke. The doctor put me on medication to treat the high blood pressure. I felt awful on the medication. The doctor told me that I could try to lower the blood pressure by changing my lifestyle or we could try another medication. I decided that I would try to change my lifestyle rather than put up with the side effects of the medications.

I have always been a type A personality. I ate on the run, slept three to four hours a night and ate whatever I felt hungry for. Suddenly I found myself trying to eat healthy, get exercise and more sleep. I did not want to give up my financial goals; however my doctor was quite blunt with me. He told me that my wife and kids would be enjoying my life insurance money in the near future if I did not get my blood pressure under control soon.

My wife, being the great woman that she is, started reducing the salt in my food and began having healthier choices for me around the house. I ate more meals at home so I could watch the sodium level I was getting. I started cutting back on my work hours. With my extra time I started taking in the sporting events that my children were involved with. My wife and I started taking walks together as well as biking. With her help I managed to lower my blood pressure and I started feeling better. It was such a relief to be rid of the headaches, that in hind sight I realize had been getting worse. Now that I feel better and have better relationships with my family I realize that having your health is the most important thing.

HEALTH AND LIFESTYLE - High Blood Pressure