Late December Update

Latest lab work - chemistry, blood count, etc. - showed just about everything is perfect. No diabetes, or even the hint of it, no anemia, no liver problems due to meds. My Vitamin D is now *just* in the normal reference range at 31 (normal 30 - 100) so my dosage is increased again to 5000 mg 5 times a week instead of 3.

The past few months I haven't been sticking to any strict food plan, although I would say 90% of my meals are low fat, starch-based vegan. That other 10% includes the occasional fast-food burger and fries, pizza once or twice, even a Blimpie here and there. And yeah, all my lab work is fine! Because of that, I'm going to continue to eat this way and not feel so guilty about it.

Guilt. About eating foods the rest of the world eats without worrying about, like water-packed tuna and low-fat mozzarella cheese. I wrote about this over on the new Overcoming Overeating forums. You should take a look at the newly re-vamped OO website - lots of bells and whistles but the forums are the only thing new. But I love forums, so it's a big plus for me.

The elderly relative I've mentioned in the past is still sinking physically and mentally. She's only out of bed an hour or so a day, and even then she prefers to sleep rather than eat or participate in any activities. I was told she even sleeps through the children's choirs who have been streaming in on a fairly steady basis all month. Her bedsores aren't healing, she's still anemic and they can't find out why. She doesn't even wake up when we visit any more, just groans and tells us she's tired and is going to go back to sleep. The staff is at a loss as what to do next for her, and they even discontinued her physical therapy because she refuses to allow the therapist to even do range of motion exercises while in bed. All the appetite stimulants are doing are giving her a sweet tooth, and all she's eating are the pastries and donuts that are part of each breakfast, rarely anything else.

At least her house has been sold so there's enough money in her bank account to pay for her nursing care for a few more years.
 

So this is how we're entering Christmas week and the end of 2011. I hope 2012 is better. Right now we're all hoping it WILL bring the end of the world with it!