Today I want to reach out to the men.
The men who do not want to go to the doctor because they are too busy. Or they don’t go because they don’t want to know what’s going on in their body.
The men who believe they are invincible, and nothing will happen to them.
I used to be one of you. My reward was an ischemic stroke that could have killed me eight years ago or left me paralyzed. I lay in a hospital bed for eight days. Then I had a second stroke and a scary seizure where my bedroom spun around, and I could not walk.
I thought this was my last day on Earth.
I spent another three days in the hospital.
I lost my job as a talk show host at 97.1 The Ticket. I needed to recover.
A doctor told me this could have been avoided if I’d gone to the doctor.
That was the old me.
The new me goes to the doctor at least twice a year. We men often say we don’t want to know what is going on in our bodies. Yes, you do. Trust me.
I am about to turn 66 years old, and my health is good. That’s because I go to the doctor. Trouble has brewed inside my body but in each case, doctors caught potential roadblocks early because of regular checkups.
** I’d become anemic. My blood levels were low because blood was leaking out of veins inside my legs. If you wait too long a seven-hour long surgery can fix it. My doc caught it early and we fixed it by prescribing 65 mgs of iron tablets. It was much easier swallowing the tablets than prepping for surgery and then recovering.
** My kidney function diminished. If you catch it late there are countless hours of dialysis. We caught it early. I cut down on sodium in my diet, drank more water and quit drinking. I had my physical in October and the doctor said my kidney function was normal.
There are quick fixes if you catch things early. If you don’t catch it early you can be in a world of trouble.
You can repair things if you know what to fight. Doctors gave me a game plan. I used to be a
diabetic. A couple of years ago I gave a speech to doctors at MGM Grand Hotel about how I was no longer diabetic. They wanted to know what my doctors did to keep me coming back. The doctors say that once they diagnose somebody as diabetic, the patients no longer return.
People believe once you get diabetes you can’t get rid of it. That is not true. My motivation was a cartoon my doctors gave me of a guy driving his car through the countryside shopping for fruits and vegetables under the caption “Diabetes. You are in the driver’s seat.” In other words, you control your fate.
I am no longer diabetic thanks to healthy eating and exercise. I thanked my exercise instructor for helping me achieve improved health while taking a class called Body Pump, created by fitness guru Les Mills.
I used to be selfish. Now I want to be healthy because of my family who loves me and needs me.
I unlocked the key to better health. I am glad I made this wonderful discovery.
I want to know what’s going on in my body. You should too.