Wellness

Wellness speaks to a healthy person in mind, body, and spirit.

Refined and Polished

by ladypbwiggins

Yesterday I celebrated my 70th birthday. Today is the beginning of my 71st year of life. Leading up to this time I had determined that it was time to re-invent myself. I planned to address my insecurities that are responsible for me living an impactless life. My plans have changed some what. Yesterday as part of my birthday celebration my baby daughter orchestrated a video presentation. She invited my family and people she knows have known me for a long time to express how I had impacted their life and to share a memory. I sat there listening to those who shared and thought I didn’t know they felt like that. I was just being me. Some cited incidents that they felt showed my strength. I felt they just seemed to me in trouble and caused people to dislike me. i really thought I was just tolerated because I was attached to Carl. I thought who are they talking about. They believe that I am strong. One even said I was fierce. I had been shot down and stomped on so often that I felt like there really was no reason that I should be using up the space and air others could have benefited from. To some extent this attitude caused me to deny myself of things I wanted or the quality of things I did get.

My friends and family have a different opinion of me. For that I am grateful and thankful. I awoke this morning realizing I like their view, their perspective. I have purposed to see myself through their eyes, I have decided not to re-invent myself. Apparently the core of who they see is who I wanted to be. Therefore I will leave the essence of who I am unchanged. I an asking for Yaweh’s help to refine that which needs refining and polish that which needs to shine brighter.

I am renewing my thinking about myself . I purpose to give myself the same grace and compassion that I give others. I give my best to others and now I purpose to give it to myself. I am moving myself up on my list . Oh, don’t worry. I am not going to become haughty and self-centered. I’m just going to treat myself better. I know this is not going to be something that happens overnite but I am beginning.

This post is my first step. Now you all know and those near and dear will hold me accountable, Second step is to become more consistent with my Bible study. Thirdly, I will wear more of what I like. People have seen glimpses of my style but not on a consistent level or the quality that I really like. I spent the money on my kids and my husband. They were in the public eye more than I. Really, who neede to dress up to clean bathrooms. 😀 The kids are grown and hubby is no longer Pastor Carl and community activist. I am making it my turn now. Not making do any more. I’ve wanted to sew, so sew I will. Before the pandemic I had lost weight and was wearing clothes that I loved. I had replaced the fat clothes. Over this last year of isolation, I have regained the weight. Food was my only physical comfort. I will eliminate the vegan fast food and return to the healthier versions. I will lose the weight again but I will dress the fat body well in the mean time. Not waiting.

Let the refining and polishing begin. 70 is the new 40.

Be Aware

by ladypbwiggins

It’s sneaky. It’s stealth. It camoflages its true appearance.It’s described erroneously in many ways. My most common was fatigue. While I was truly tired it was the truth. It goes unnoticed by those around you most times. I hear many people say, “I don’t know what is wrong with me. I don’t feel sick but I just don’t feel right.” It can be the root cause of many other conditions. It can be minor. It can be severe, even deadly. Sadly, many people deny its presence until it’s too late.

What is it? It is mental illness. We usually think of people that have severe emotional problems when we think of mental illness but it can be as minor as a mild case of depression. That was my illness. I didn’t realize it until the pressure of the isolation of the pandemic began to be relaxed. You think you are just doing what is necessary to survive, to live and you think everything is fine. Suddenly you realize something is a little off kilter. Becasue I recognized it and the cause I was able to pull out of it rather easily. Pay attention to yourself and those around you. They may be suffering and don’t know it. You might be suffering and aren’t aware.

Be Aware!

It is Mental Illness Awareness Week. October 3-9.

Intentionally My Time!

by ladypbwiggins

It’s amazing how a health scare will bring your life choices into perspective. You would think with all that we have been through with Carl’s health issues this would be something I would have done before. But it was his health that was the focus. Everything that was done was done to improve his health and any benefit I received was tangential. Recently I had a scare. Blood vessels in my eye bled and filled the viscous fluid with blood. It also formed a blob that is still present but seems to be diminishing. I hope it is not wishful thinking. A vitrectomy was performed to remove the fluid and replace it. I have limited vision in my left eye because of the blob. What other damage may have been done is unknown at this time. More assessments will be done soon. So what caused this? I thought it was caused by a reaction to some medication that I was taken for polyneuropathy in my feet. No I am not diabetic. I did have other reactions to that drug but it did not cause the bleeding. I discovered on the day of the procedure that I had been living in a hypertensive crisis state. That is stroke or death level. My blood pressure was so high they couldn’t perform the surgery. The surgery was delayed to get that under controlled. In the mean time I had to live with the thought of possibly losing my sight in that eye. Getting proper medication to accommodate the surgery was an adventure in itself. The first medication interfered with the anesthesia so I had to quickly get it changed so my pressure would be down in time. The meds that worked made me sick so after the surgery I went back to the first one. All that time I thought I was just extremely tired. I knew I needed rest but the blood pressure made it critical.

The Change

My son asked a question of me today that made me really think about my level of self care. He said mom why are you so intent on worrying if I’m comfortable. I told you I was fine. Is it because you are insecure? The truth is deep down inside I have always felt I was not worth it. Everyone else was more important. Looking back on my life I realize I have given all my energy to taking care of someone else. It’s not a bad thing, It’s just a “didn’t prioritize me” thing. I gave me the leftover energy and usually there wasn’t very much left. I don’t regret giving myself to others. I just regret I didn’t take care of me at the same level.

So what am I going to do about it. My daughters, especially the youngest has been preaching the mom you are worth it sermom for a while now. I had intention to change my self care but I guess I needed this to kick me into gear. I am going to be selfish. Some say I already am but they don’t really know me. I am going to be intentional about the choices for my own health and well-being.

Several years ago we changed our dietary lifestyle for Carl’s health. We have slacked a little but now there will be intentional focus for my health. I hate taking pills and I refuse to be on blood pressure medication the rest of my life. I will be under a doctor’s care, so don’t freak out. I know blood pressure can be regulated with food. Dr. Montgomery, Carl’s cardiologist will now be mine. I am going to him to check my heart. I want to be sure that hypertensuve state didn’t damage my heart. I will rely on him to help me wean off the blood pressure meds. I have alreay begun PRP therapy for my back. It seems my spine is in bad condition. I will resume the hobbies I put on hold for my mental health. This is my intentional beginning.

My vision is blurring now so I will end with this.

Don’t wait for something dangerous to happen to get you to accept your worth. Take care of yourself.

MY TIME INTENTIONALLY!

That Is The Question!

by ladypbwiggins

To cook or not to cook? For a period of time we were raw vegan and then slowly began adding cooked vegan meals. Today I created a jackfruit mixture that could be eaten raw or cooked I discovered. I combined jackfruit, mushrooms, sunflower seeds, Bragg’s amino, a few drops of liquid smoke, Kirkland’s no salt seasonings in the food processor and pulsed to blend. I set it aside to let the flavors soak in. Then it hit me. I planned to cook it but it taste so good uncooked. What should I do?

I thought of lettuce wraps. Then I noticed my spaghetti squash sitting on the counter. I need to cook it before it goes bad. Or zuchinni noodles? Hmm. And they say vegans have limited choices. Just the opposite. Soooo many choices as varied as the plant kingdom itself. I have made my decision.

The winner is ….. spaghetti squash, I lightly toasted the jackfruit mixture and spooned it over a bed of spaghetti squash. I added a few slices of avocado and dinner was on.

I have also made another discovery. I have found a mixture whose texture I really like that can be used for other dishes by changing the seasonings: Taco filling by adding mexican seasonings, spaghetti sauce by adding italian seasonings and who knows how far I can take it.

Stroganof Inspired

by ladypbwiggins

Today I was looking through my #Healthy Mind Cookbook and noticed several strogonof recipes. I am not a big creamy sauce person but the thought of using nondairy cream intrigued me. I used sweet peppers from my garden, a red onion for a little bite,fresh chopped garlic, fresh purple basil with its flowers from my plants, cumin, dried oregano, dried dill sauteed in avocado oil. Then I added shitake mushroom and enough flax milk to cover. Salted to taste with Celtic Sea Salt. Simmered until mushrooms were tender.

Strogonof Sauce Inspired

I poured thos over a baked potato. It was quite tasty. I might be getting good at this vegan cooking thing 😄😄😄

Chickpea & Mushroom Burger or Not

by ladypbwiggins

Took a break from jackfruit to use my baby portabella mushrooms before they went bad. Trying to change the mushroom lose paradigm. I chopped the chickpeas and mushrooms together in the food processor. I added some leftover cooked oatmeal from breakfast to aid in binding. I used onion powder instead of fresh onions because I am trying to determine the source of a bitter taste in my veggie burgers. It was suggested by another vegan to soak the fresh onions before using but it didn’t help. I added my spices and herbs. It was a little too moist so I added some rolled oats. I set the mixture aside while I made jackfruit dinner. 😄. After dinner I decided to wait until the next day to cook the burgers. I put the mixture in a glass container. I noticed it looked like a meatloaf so I thought, why not? The next day I cooked the”meatloaf”. Dinner became black-eyed peas, mixed veggies and meatless meatloaf. Burgers will have to wait.

I am not adding a measured recipe because I didn’t measure. This was totally a “my senses determined how much and what” kind of dish. The flavors were correct but the texture was a little dry. It will definitely be tried again with a little more scientific precision 😄.

Ugh Those Brown Bananas

by ladypbwiggins

I think everyone, at least vegans, have experienced those too ripe bananas that just look terrible and a breath away from the banana graveyard. I keep telling myself that I’m going to make banana bread before it’s too late. I have never made. Today I did. I searched the internet for a vegan recipe and I found quite a few. I then had to narrow it down to those who matched the ingredients I had in the pantry. I landed on Nora Cook’s recipe. Of course I didn’t have everything required. I don’t use all purpose flour. Subtitue number 1. I didn’t feel like softening up my brown sugar. Substitute number 2. I had ground so much today that I didn’t feel like grinding flax seeds to make the flax egg. Subtitute number 3. Had no almond milk. Substitute 4.

The resulting recipe: 2 cups of buckwheat flour, 2 TBLs chia seeds, 12 Tbls Water to make chia eggs. Add more water if needed to get an egg like texture. 1/4 cup flax milk, 1/3 cup melted vegan butter, 1/2 cup Agave nectar, 1 tsp Baking soda, 1/2 tsp salt, walnuts. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Jackfruit Tacos

by ladypbwiggins

Yes I’m on a jackfruit journey. As I mentioned in my last post I discovered an authenic vegan Mexican restaurant in my neighborhood, #VEEGOS. They are my motivation. I decided to try making taco meat from jackfruit. I use young jackfruit packed in water. The only preservatives are lime juice and sea salt. That gives it a salty taste. For those who want to minimize or eliminate that, I suggest rinsing the jackfruit. I haven’t tried it but I think it would work.

I also decided to make my own Mexican spice mix. I did not add salt because of the saltiness of the jackfruit. My mix was cumin, chili powder, smoked paprika, and oregano. I put the jackfruit in the food processor with the mix. Just a note. I was out of chili powder so I ground some chili pepper flakes. While that was marinating I made some pico de gallo. I had no salsa. I used the chili pepper flakes in the mix so I skipped the jalapenos in my pico. Hey use what you got. I used roma tomatoes, green onions (white and green parts), parsley and a pinch of salt. I must say here thank God for food processors. I could have chopped all of this including the jackfruit but the processor made it so easy and quick.

When we were ready to eat, I took the jackfruit mixture out of the fridge and tasted it. Hmm it was good. It could have been eaten raw on a romaine leaf wrap but I added more cumin and it gave it a slightly bitter taste, I added some olive oil and cooked it in a nonstick skillet just like I would have used ground beef or ground turkey. I lightly fried my tortilla shells. I placed grated vegan mozzarella and cheddar cheese, the jackfruit and the pico de gallo on the tortillas. We enjoyed a very good late lunch.

Jackfruit Tacos

I told you VEEGOS was my motivation but it wasn’t just because of the jackfruit. I wanted their nachos. They are loaded and very good. I was all set to go and get them when I realized today is Monday. They are closed on Monday. As a result I made jackfruit tacos. So glad I did. Now I have a raw and cooked option. Give it a try.

Is It Tuna Salad Or Not?

by ladypbwiggins

Many vegans wonder why whould you want to eat something that imitates meat. Well when you have spent your whole life experiencing meat based food, the desire for those flavors and textures don’t go away immediately if at all. We are vegans for a variety of reasons. I wanted to improve our health initially and then my husband had a heart attack. His cardiologist prescribed a raw vegan lifestyle change. However, I did not lose my desire for certain flavors and foods One of those was tuna salad sandwiches or tuna and crackers. Until now I had not tried to make a substitute. All of the substitutes were carrot based mixtures that tasted nothing like tuna or at least remind me of seafood. My motivation for trying to create something now is my new found relationship with young jack fruit.

I must digress for a moment. The first time I tried jack fruit it was in a prepared barbeque meat substitute from the grocery store. I hated it. It was too sweet and it turned me off. Recently I discovered Veegos Authentic Mexican vegan restaurant. One of the protein selections was jack fruit. I loved it.. A customer told me how to get the same product at home. First, you must buy young jack fruit canned in water or brine. I use the packed in water. This product has not ripened so it has no flavor. That makes it perfect for absorbing the flavors of the marinade or seasonings. Back to the not tuna.

I did my research to discover the best things to use to get that seafood flavor. I have used dulse and hijiki seaweed before but it didn’t give me what I was looking for although it did add that seawater taste.What brought it home was Old Bay seasoning. I made my not tuna salad with young jack fruit, cooked pureed chickpeas, celery, dulse, hijiki seaweed, onion powder, garlic powder, It was a success. I served it on a vegetable salad. It was a good dinner. I planned to try it again with rehydrated chickpeas or another fresh bean product to make it a raw meal.

The Universe….?

by ladypbwiggins

When people say the Universe will do it or The Universe caused it or any other action ascribed to the Universe, who or what are they talking about? I checked the definition of the Universe. What I found was what I understood it to be.

The universe (Latin: universus) is all of space and time and their contents, including planets, stars, galaxies, and all other forms of matter and energy. … At the largest scale, galaxies are distributed uniformly and the same in all directions, meaning that the universe has neither an edge nor a center.

So are the people who attribute these supernatural actions to the Universe saying the planets, stars or galaxies are performing these acts? Do inanimate objects have the capacity to think, plan and act? Or are the planets etc animate? Can they create life?Do the planets have this power? Have space and time and all its contents given us the capacity to think, love or feel? I just dont understand. Can someone help me understand?

As I looked at the different definition sources I saw that someone asked the question “Who created the Universe?” The answer that was given was one word, God. I have observed many of those giving the aforementioned attributions to the Universe do not believe in God or they believe there is a Supreme creator but not any God of any known religion. For those who don’t believe in God, they have given God-like abilities or attributes to the Universe. Is the Universe God to them? I’m confused. It seems some God-like something that is beyond or outside of themselves is needed. Something that satisfies an innate spiritual hole. It seems the creation is acknowledged or accepted but the creator (God) is denied. In my logical mind this is totally illogical. Will someone help me please?

I know someone is asking how do you know there is a God. Who created Him and how do you know He is a He? My answer is how do you know the Universe did it, or said it or gave it? Whether it is Jehovah, Yeshua, Allah or any other named diety, there is some belief system that can be held on to and reasoned. Like many liberal arts college students, I analyzed these belief systems. I asked questions and looked at the documents that described or explained their foundation. I almost converted to Judaism. I liked that their beliefs were lived daily and not just on Sunday or special days. It was a lifestyle. Eventually I remainded with my Judeo-Christian belief system. I realized I could have what I loved in Judaism with the less legalistic stance of 1st Century Christianity. I won’t go into the reasons but I am happy with my decision. It is now my lifetyle. FYI this is not the Western European version of Christianity that we see today.

Back to the Universe. I am seriously asking for understanding not a fight.