Saturday, January 7, 2016
Graniteville • Vaucluse • Warrenville
Vol. 3, No. 1
Happy New Year AND You in 2017 by Anne Fulcher Hello New Year 2017, my oh my, how much things have changed since this time last year. 2017 brings me into the year as a better person both physically and economically. Back on June 1, 2016, a classmate suggesting a food challenge for that month. She wanted to eat no breads, no sweets, no fried foods and no beef. I, always the competitive one that I have always been, suggested we make the June food challenge even tougher by eating no white food products, no sweets, no fried foods and no red meats. Why would ANYONE want to do a diet such as this you ask? Because a like a good competition. Two weeks into the food challenge, I realized I felt better than I have ever felt, slept better and was much more focused that pre-food contest. At the end of the four-week competition, I was down eight pounds and decided I wanted to do this the rest of my life. It’s really not as bad as it sounds. I save money because I generally can’t find anything to eat at fast food restaurants. I eat whole wheat breads, whole wheat/ vegetable pastas, fish, seafood, and poultry. If I want a turkey
sandwich, I get some oven roasted turkey, a small corn tortilla and some spicy mustard and make a roll-up. It is really quite yummy. Now, I live with my 85 year old Mom (PLEASE don’t share that (age) tidbit of information), she will evict me. I’ve snuck in many healthy foods into her diet that she has no idea of. I make homemade macaroni and cheese using Veggie pasta with regular cheese and wheat flour and no one, and I mean NO ONE can tell the difference. She loves spaghetti and lasagna and let me tell you how I change that up. I use ground turkey alone with gluten free lasagna noodles or whole wheat spaghetti noodles and she says it’s the BEST she has ever had… I hear you saying YUCK, NO WAY, but really, try it you will like it, I promise. With this lifestyle change, it’s about changing what you put into your body, NOT portion control. It has been AMAZING and as of today, I’ve lost thirty plus pounds! The only thing I have missed has been pizza but many restaurants are now offering gluten free pizza and it is quite tasty. This food challenge was not a New Year’s Resolution, it was a whim and it worked for me. My skin is firmer, my hair is shiner and
the feel good results keep coming. Are you looking to take control of your health and well-being? Find something that fits your lifestyle. Not a diet because a diet means you are eliminating something. A lifestyle change is something you can live with for the rest of your life. I challenge you, take control of your life by finding a plan that works for you and you alone. I come into 2017 in a job that I never dreamed I would have. After graduating with a Master’s Degree in Management in May of 2016, I was looking for my forever job which I just KNEW would be me being the voice of an underserved population. I assumed it would be with people without insurance since that was where my expertise was. At this point God was laughing and saying “I’ll show her!” You see, back in the Spring, I interviewed for a position that I knew was just made for me. I interviewed with several of the board members of this organization only to lose the job to an internal candidate. To say I was devastated was an understatement. I was in a funk for quite a few months. I took a part time job working with a local not for profit and it was wonderful but I needed
full time to meet the bills that were rolling in. On the first Friday of June, I received an email from one of the board members that has interviewed me for my “perfect” job in the spring and she asked me if I was still looking and I said yes. She said that for some reason she had kept my resume and she knew of a position that she felt I would be a good fit in. That brief email was the impetus that led me to my current position of Hitchcock Place an assisted living facility in Aiken. I’ve been in this position for six months now and I TRULY believe God planted me here and therefore I shall grow here. You see, many years ago, I had a dear friend tell me to grow where God plants me and that I will do. I have often written that we need to learn to think outside of the box. Never underestimate the power of what you can do and where you can go. It is NEVER too late and you are NEVER too old. After 35 years of being in healthcare, going back to college and starting over, now I am TRULY the voice of an underserved population of seniors that I have grown to laugh and love each and every day. What will 2017 bring for you?