I Had High Blood Pressure Medicine

I was rifling through the little plastic white basket that holds our over-the-counter medicine stash the other day, trying to tidy and consolidate.

In among the half-used boxes of daytime and nighttime cold remedies, bottles of ibuprofen, store-brand Dramamine and Pepto Bismol, I found this with my name on it:

I honestly had to idea what it was. I couldn't remember the last time I had a prescription. Was it pain killer from my knees? Was it an antibiotic for something?

I went to the computer and did a search and imagine my surprise when I learned it was used for high blood pressure.

The date on the bottle was Feb. 2010.

And I stood there, so confused. I had absolutely no memory of being prescribed high blood pressure meds.

But clearly, I had.

A little more investigation, on this blog as a matter of fact, showed me that my get-healthy journey officially started in March of 2010 when Jim went in for a physical and we changed the way we ate. I started walking and by May I could run 5 miles at a crack. I ran my first 10K (6.2 miles) in October. By November of that year, 8 short months later, I had shed 70 pounds and was well on my way to the 95 I'd end up dropping.

What I can tell from this bottle is that I never took a single pill. They're all still there.

It's interesting to me that I cannot remember having a blood pressure discussion with my doctor, being prescribed these pills, picking them up or bringing them home. I don't remember them factoring into my decision to change the way I lived.

Perhaps the reality of high blood pressure meds scared me so much that I have chosen to bury the whole episode. And perhaps it really did serve as the impetus for this whole shebang. It's absolutely fascinating to me that the emotional part of being bigger is such a complicated and real thing. And it's proof to me that getting healthier requires more than a list of foods to eat and a list of exercises to do. It must involve some attention to the space between your ears.

What I know for sure is that looking at the bottle and thinking about what could have been freaks me out. I feel the combination of fear, embarrassment and shame the old me surely also felt looking at the same pills.

But guess what? I know with every fiber in my being and in  a way I will never forget that I don't need those pills now and, God willing, I will never need them again. Eating better and moving more has taken care of whatever issue I may have had.

And, it can work for you, too. If I can be of any help to you in your journey, please let me know.