04/08/2022
Worth the full read!
My Story
I’m Mark and I’d like to share with you how I have found it possible to not only find relief from my addictions I have found ways to overcome and move through the heart disease with numerous successes.
It is strange how what was supposed to be a celebration for my first year in Recovery back in September of 1997 took a strange turn. The place where the meeting was to be held closed down unexpectedly and over the next week while rescheduling to find a new location I began experiencing shortness of breath and chest pains, which grew worse each day, to the point the walk from my car into work became more and more difficult. I entered the hospital and experienced my first Angiogram and Angioplasty.
Fast forward to May of 2021 and I am enjoying many amazing views along the Grand Canyon.
The Journey here has been one of ups and downs and the healing of heart and mind and as you continue reading you will see how the process of healing can work in your life so you too can experience even greater health and abundance in your life.
More and more people are falling into various forms of Heart disease, mine is Coronary Artery Disease (CAD), yet there are many even more destructive ones resulting in Heart Attacks and extreme suffering. For those experiencing this for the first time the Stress and Anxiety can be almost unbearable as the uncertainties and confusions about the various conditions, how they will affect your future and the future of your family can be overwhelming at times.
Over the course of 23 years I have had three different episodes with heart disease, the first being the Angioplasty and one stent in 1997. I had a triple bypass surgery in 2014 and then the most recent experience which started in October of 2020 as my symptoms returned, putting me immediately out of work as a commercial truck driver.
My recoveries from these episodes were very different. Back in 1997 I basically came out of the hospital and did nothing different with my life in regards to my health.
Fortunately after my bypass surgery I took a different approach and got serious about my health and my life. I was working with a couple different coaching programs during this time, both guiding me to not only improved health, but also to a more balanced lifestyle. By the end of 2016 I completed my first half marathon as well as other races, including a “Tough Mudder” in 2017.
During the past year I was connected with a new NLP Coaching Program that came at the perfect time as I had been reduced to only being able to walk shorter and shorter distances and my mental state was decreasing at the same time. The Anxiety of not being able to do the outdoor activities I enjoy most was looking pretty dismal.
Through the week-long training a shift was made within myself.
I created hope and possibilities for my future.
The first set back I experienced was a failed Angioplasty procedure where the Heart Surgeon was not able to get in either of the two stents. The next option was a more difficult 2nd Bypass surgery.
I found the book “The Paleo Cardiologist” by Dr. Jack Wolfson and explored his program, which included blood work, supplementation and intermittent fasting which set me up physically for what came next.
Let me go back to the NLP training as it is vitally important to what comes next. During this process I was able to let go of a number of old thought patterns which were not serving me. I can see why back in 1997 I didn't take positive steps to improve the health situation I faced at the time. I also was able to motivate myself to do whatever was necessary to not only improve my health, to enjoy life thoroughly, which I accomplished on a 3 ½ month road trip I started in May 2021.
One thing I have found is I can’t do this journey alone, I need the help and support of others in my life and especially mentors who share the knowledge I need to progress.
Dealing with the Anxiety of our condition is really the first step in creating a new Outcome for our life when dealing with a heart condition. When we are Anxious over all the negative implications of what may or may not happen for us in the future it is difficult at best to begin the healing process.
Without the NLP training I received prior to the failed Angioplasty I would not have created the mindset I needed to make the lasting changes I needed in order to get the results I achieved. I mean that intermittent fasting stuff was scary for someone who enjoys eating.
When we can have a clearer mind we are more willing to create and implement a plan to get to new improved results in our lives.
It will take you changing your diet, activity and the supplementation to get to where you want to go. While it may sound difficult at first, getting started now is key!
Talking with someone who has been through similar conditions and has come out the other side with good results is a great way to get started and I want to make myself available to you and help you decide what’s next for you and how I can support you through these changes you will need to make, with me or others as you continue your health journey in the near future.
Something I learned the hard way after a bout with Covid back in November of 2021 is how to get back on track and start gaining new successes after a setback like this, which brings back some of the old negative thinking that got us here in the first place.
I’d like to take you back to May 4th and my amazing experience at the Grand Canyon I started this story with.
I didn’t get here overnight, although getting here started in april when I made a decision and took immediate action of starting walking and seeing how far I could go, even with the failed procedure. Day 1 was 2 miles, day 2 was 4 and day 3 I walked 6 miles, all at around 6000 feet elevation in northern Arizona. I stayed consistent with this up to the start of my road trip at the Grand Canyon.
The picture below is during a 9 mile hike on May 3rd.
During that hike, feeling good I decided to do the rim trail the next day which is 7 miles each way from the Village to the end and back.
My first real mental challenge was at the halfway point where I was taking a break and I saw the Shuttle bus show up and had to remind myself “NO F**King WAY am I getting on that thing” this trip is too important!
Yes, there were many amazing views along this hike and it was great being able to accomplish what I was doing.
I stopped at one of these great overlooks and looked down at the pedometer on my phone and I was at 13.2 miles, the distance of a half marathon (2 miles left to get back to my truck) and was overcome with Gratitude for what was happening. I just finished 95% of the Outcome I had set back in March in less than 2 months (I had given myself 2 years to do this!) How was this possible? Physically it should not have been. I mean, I’ve been through this before and know what it took to come close to this in my past.
The difference was the new mindset I created for myself which knew things like this are possible, for anyone who has a clear desire for a new vision of their life, like you.
