A Touch Anemic

So, a few days ago I discovered that I was a touch anemic.  My roommate's sister pointed it out, after I told her about my last month's exhaustion, over-sleeping, lack of appetite, brain fog, and overall disinterest in everything except sleeping. 

Then I went to Japan and felt wonderful!  I woke up early in the mornings, had breakfast, walked around all day (with chronic pain between my shoulder blades from those damn boots!), ate lots of fish and veggies, slept all night, and generally felt good for the duration of the trip.  But when I got home, it wasn't just jet lag that had me so tired.  I'd reverted to my old diet of drinking black tea and eating nothing.  My brain shut down.  I lost interest in reading and writing.  No care for anything except my bed.

Insert roommate's sister, who is very astute!  She pointed out that I was probably anemic, considering my heavy flows and excessive lethargy.  She suggested that I eat some MEAT.  My iron-deficiency was a serious problem, and for someone like me a little protein goes a long way.

Thus began the quest to EAT BETTER.  And OH MY GOD do I feel better!  It's amazing what even a little protein can do in your daily diet.  I started buying ground beef and making patties and meatballs, eating frozen mixed veggies, and spreading peanut butter on whole grain bread for breakfast.  That's not a lot, and I have yet to eat fish (which is loaded with good stuff), but that little bit made a HUGE difference. 

I FEEL SO MUCH BETTER!

And here's the most amazing thing: the better I feel, the better I want to eat.  I love this feeling so much that I want it to continue, and grow, and get stronger.  Hell, I'm even willing to choke down a tin of sardines if it means feeling this good all the time!    

I mean, this isn't some great revelation for most people.  It wasn't even that shocking of a news flash to me.  But the problem is, the further you fall down that hole of listlessness and disinterest, the harder it is to pull yourself back up.  On an intellectual level you know that you need to eat right and exercise in order to feel good.  But you feel so bad that you can't bring yourself to care.  How do you start the process of feeling better, when you feel bad all the time?  How do you get to the point where you're ready to do something about it?

If it wasn't for my recent trip to Japan, and my roomie's sister talking some sense into me, I probably would have continued as I was.  Weak, tired, listless...

I needed something to open my eyes.  I needed a period of well-being to awaken me to all the advantages of eating right, to have those two feelings for comparison, so I could look back on how good I felt and wonder why the hell I wasn't feeling that good all the time.

Anyway, I'm doing much better now.  Slept well, woke up early, ate breakfast, wrote a little (as last night's story and this morning's blog post can attest) and seriously considering a walk outside.  Such a lovely day!

I may not be the most productive person, and there are times when low feelings wash over me that no amount of protein or exercise can prevent, but for today it's enough.  The real challenge is seeing whether I can keep this up.  For the sake of my mental and physical well-being, let's hope I do!