The way to get things done!

Last night, I slept from about 7am - 11am. It's now 1:40am, and I am wide awake! No nap, just pure energy. I was put on a new med on wed, which I was to take at bedtime. Wed night found me not sleeping very well. Thurs night, same. Fri night, 4 hours in the morning. and tonight, still awake!! I called my Dr on Friday, and told him how I was feeling. I was so keyed up Thurs and Fri that I was getting worried. Fri night I couldn't sleep at all, even after I had taken my sleep meds. 2 hours later, still awake. So, I took another dose. 2 hours later, yup you guessed it. Still awake. Took a 3rd dose, but doubled it. Still to no avail.

You know the feeling when you have about 10 cups of coffee? Yup, that was me! Tonight at work I was so crazy that I was shaking. My heart was racing, but I got alot done!

So, I got home from work around 10:15pm. I sat down to watch a TV show on our TEVO, and when it was done (around 11) I totally wasn't sleepy. What did I do then? I scrubbed the bathroom with Clorox from top to bottom. Floors, walls, and ceiling. I have been looking at our bathroom ceiling since I moved in 18 months ago. It has ALWAYS had nasty mildew all over it. I couldn't take it any longer. Pulled out the ladder, climbed on up and scrubbed! It looks so pretty! I even cleaned on top and behind the water heater. SO GROSS. There were mouse turds on top of the water heater! How does that even happen?

My next project is to sand and paint my dresser black (not tonight, don't have a sander) and paint my bedroom. I have paint left over from the last time I painted my apartment, about 6 years ago. No idea if it is still good, but we will see! I think I am going to do it in a light tan (very light) it's actually called toasted marshmallow. Then there will be an accent wall of sage green. My bedroom furniture is black, and my duvet cover is chocolate. Throw pillows are sage green. I have considered going the way of my living room the last time I painted, but I would have to find a new bed set. Not that I would mind.

Look here for how my house looked with these color schemes. Right now my room is yellow, as it was the baby boy's room for the last people who lived here. I will have to putty and sand all the holes in the walls, and then prime and paint. But I am so excited to do it! It is going to look so awesome. I think I am going to do the bedroom the same as it is in the pics, and then the bathroom in the living room colors. That would be cool. That way I get both! (Guess I better make sure that this is all ok with my landlord.)

Anyone want to come paint with me? I did consider painting a really cool mural on my bedroom wall, but that would require that I have some artistic talent. Plus, I really like having my room calm and peaceful.

Alright, it's 2am, and I guess I am going to try to sleep!

Sometimes I really hate medication

As many of you know, I have been struggling with severe depression for the past couple years. I found an anti-depressant that worked very well. The only problem: it was a contributing factor in my heart attack. SO, I had to switch to a different medication. I had actually already started tapering off just before the heart attack.

I made the switch to a new one, but there was a side effect that was unbearable. It caused severe dry eye and dehydration. As a result of the dry eye, I got corneal abrasions. If you want to know what they feel like, imagine the burning sensation that you get when you cut onions, add the feeling that you have a big something in your eye, and multiply the whole equation by 10. Yeah, it hurts.

I was given a steroid-antibiotic eye drop. (or several) Supposedly, the abrasions should heal about 6 weeks. However, I have to transition off of the anti-depressant and switch to ANOTHER one. Since I am still in the process of weaning off the 2nd med, the dry eye continues. I constantly put in (think every hour) this very nice eye drop called Celluvisc by Refresh. It is a thick gel that helps coat the eye. Also the steroid drops 4 times a day, and an eye ointment at night.

Needless to say, this has been terrible! But, I am on the last week of this med, so hopefully my eyes will heal in a few weeks. If you want to see what corneal abrasions look like, just google image it. Beware, it is a little disturbing.

These are my new favorite products.

I used them the other day. ALL OVER MY HOUSE. mopped my floor, deep cleaned my bathroom (yes, I got down on my hands and knees and scrubbed the baseboards and edges and corners) It was so amazing to sit back and enjoy such a clean house, and the smell was much more agreeable than Pine-Sol.

I cleaned out my cupboards and pantry, throwing away any expired foods, and donated all the food I wasn't going to eat. Wiped down all the shelves and rearranged the cupboards. 

Cloroxed the stove, even the fan above the stove. Top of the fridge and cabinets. Microwave too.

Yes, I am officially obsessed with cleaning.

Just call me OCD

more cleaning...

Today I did this:

took 2 of these

and 1 of these

and put it all into just this...

Which is now stored in my closet.

Sometimes it is time to say Goodbye

I haven't felt or had the energy to actually clean my room for several months. 

It basically looked like this (this is not my room, but an example)

I hadn't made my bed in about 3 months. 

I would do laundry, and then leave it in the baskets and dig through it when I wanted to get dressed. 

I finally couldn't stand it any longer. Going along with my season of changes, I decided to change my room

.

I got rid of the following:

8 bags of clothes

3 bags of shoes (yes, shoes. I know)

2 bags of sheets

TV

DVD

VCR + tapes

1 bag of garbage

1 bag of recycling

It was amazing how all of my clothes fit in my closet and dresser.

I finally decided I could part with almost all the clothes in the closet, because I didn't even wear them!

I even color coded my closet. 

And my dresser.

Changes Part 2

As an addendum to my previous post about the changes I am making, I have also decided to change the way I dress. A friend told me "even a barn looks better with a coat of paint." I am trying to dress a little classier than jeans and sweatshirts. If I dress better, perhaps I will feel better physically and about myself. So here's to outside changes as well as inside!

PS, I found a really yummy nut mix at Costco the other day. It is called Soy Energy Blend. It has soy nuts, almonds, pumpkin seeds, and cranberries. I also add walnuts, blueberries, pomegranate and mango. It makes a great "trail mix" that I take with me everywhere. It gives me a quick boost, and satisfies any sugar cravings I get.

Life Changes

Since the wake-up call from my Dr., I have decided to make some major changes. I need to lose weight, eat better, and exercise more. SO...Here we go. A friend on Facebook termed this "The Megan Movement"

• I have given away all of my Dr Pepper and any candy stashed throughout the house  
• I am cutting down on my soda pop consumption. To almost nothing.
• I went through my cupboards and weeded out my processed foods and most of the prepackaged junk that I used to eat
• I have begun eating healthier: more fruits and vegetables and salads
• I will walk several days a week. Starting off slow, but working up to faster and longer
• I changed from 2% to 1% milk.
• From full fat Greek yogurt to non-fat Greek yogurt
• I have resolved to eat fish. Probably not a lot, but fish none the less

So far, I am really happy with the changes I am making. I really do not having cravings for the candy and chocolate that I used to eat. If I do need some sweet things, I grab some dried fruit and nuts. Very yummy. When I have a salad, rather than using Ranch Dressing (my favorite) I drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar on it. I tried a pomegranate vinaigrette the other day and it was delicious! Now I just have to find some of my own. Rather than using sugar as a seasoning I have substituted cinnamon and other spices. 

The Megan Movement is also to inspire others to change. Whatever you feel needs to improve in your life, I encourage you to make the change. It is not impossible to change what we feel are habits or behaviors too embedded in our lives. Anything can be done if you put your mind to it. In some cases, it is a physical dependency, as there are very addictive substances out there. However, most of it is a matter of psychological choices. You can train your mind to be in control, rather than your body. I invite you to join me on this journey of bettering myself. Happy changing!