Bridge Street Health

04/22/2026

www.bridgestreethealth.com/wellness-wednesdays

I DON'T WANT TO BE NORMAL
I have noticed that when my doctor orders lab work for me, I am often in the normal range, which could mean a couple of things. Am in the very top of that scale, meaning my levels are close to being too high? Am in the very low part of that scale, meaning I am nearing a state of deficiency?

Since my emergency heart surgery, I have felt an increasing dissatisfaction of being in the normal range. I no longer want my cholesterol level to be at the high end of normal. In certain testing, I believe there may be a danger with being normal. I want optimal.

I am happy to report that at Bridge Street Health, my doctor (who happens to be my husband), is also not satisfied with normal. He wants my lab work to be optimal. Though I may indeed be his favorite patient, he wants that for all of his patients. Come and see us if you want to be a bit better than normal.

Author and speaker Rebecca Hendrixson reflects on her life altering open heart surgery experience in a series of weekly blogs entitled Wellness Wednesdays.

If you'd like to learn more about symptoms, risk factors and steps you can take keep your heart healthy, visit www.bridgestreethealth.com/womens-heart-health.

04/16/2026

www.bridgestreethealth.com/womens-heart-health

04/15/2026

CHOOSE YOUR HARD
Wellness Wednesdays Blog
www.bridgestreethealth.com/wellness-wednesdays

Being overweight is hard. Choosing healthy foods and using good discernment is hard. Being sedentary and slothful are hard. Rising early to do a workout is hard. Sitting in front of the TV is hard (well, maybe not at the moment, but it will prove to be). Getting up and turning off the TV and taking a 15 minute walk is hard. Lowering your climbing cholesterol level is hard. Ordering steamed broccoli instead of French fries is hard. Are we seeing a pattern here?

We are not getting out of this life with 100% ease and comfort. So we have to choose our hard. Both options are hard. What will you choose today? Temporary comfort and empty joy at bad choices and lethargy, which will indeed to lead to hard things? Or good choices and movement, which is hard, but will lead to better things.

Things to ponder, my friend. Decisions you make every day are leading you on a path where difficulty will be encountered. You just have to choose which hard you prefer.

04/10/2026

Seminar Details
Wednesday, April 15
7:00 - 8:00 pm
Crossroads Church
Meeting Room C
990 Reading Rd
Mason, OH, 45040

04/10/2026

Join us for a powerful seminar led by Rebecca who survived an unexpected cardiac event and her physician husband as they share what every woman needs to know to protect her heart and reduce her risk.

04/10/2026

www.bridgestreethealth.com/wellness-wednesdays

It’s Masters week. I’ve heard people (okay, my husband) call it holy week in golf. I hope God has a sense of humor. The Masters tournament kicks off the golf season. It is a weekend of azaleas and pimento cheese sandwiches, gnomes and best manners, and dreams of green jackets.

Could playing golf reduce the risk of heart disease and in turn reduce the number of deaths attributable to it? Research, particularly from a Swedish study involving 300,000 golfers found they had a 40% lower mortality risk than non-golfers, which translated to golfers living an average of five years longer than non-golfers.
Research has shown that golf is associated with improvements in multiple known risk factors for cardiovascular disease, including body composition, fitness, blood lipid levels, and insulin and glucose levels. The regular exercise time spent outdoors, the social interaction and even friendly competition of a round of golf can all contribute to mental health and physical well-being. It seems to be the blend of physical and cognitive challenges, as well as social connections that have longevity benefits.

And there you go. If you are looking for one more reason to play golf and/or convince your significant other that you need to play more golf, this may be your opportunity.

04/02/2026

Register at www.bridgestreethealth.com/spenga-ntf

04/01/2026

www.bridgestreeethealth.com/wellness-wednesdays

EAT THE ELEPHANT

The question is: “How do you eat an elephant?” The answer is: “One bite at a time.”

And that sums up how we get things done; one bite, one step, one small change. Taking one bite at a time out of an elephant will take longer than we like and will get more challenging than we like. But if we stick with it, that elephant will diminish.

If you normally walk about 800-1000 steps a day, stating that you will now walk 10,000 steps a day is a noble goal but you must make realistic, doable changes. Just begin walking more, aim for 1200 steps a day. Do it. Stick with it. Don’t let yourself off the hook. Start slowly, but start.

Small, sustainable steps are the way to make big changes. Drink one extra glass of water today. Then slowly increase. Switch to olive oil or avocado oil for cooking. Throw in last night’s leftover broccoli to your scrambled eggs. Pack your lunch and pass on the fast food lunch. Give your body what it really needs, and save your money.
Have that difficult conversation when you are rested and calm. Let go of things you cannot control or change. We can’t fix everything.

Let the small changes pile up. Keep taking those bites. You will be amazed at what begins to happen to your body and mind and heart

03/25/2026

www.bridgestreethealth.com/wellness-wednesdays

How’s your Head and Heart?

Heart health is not only about what we eat or how much we exercise. It is about what we feel, what we hold, what we harbor. It is how we handle continual disappointments, quarrels, hurt, fear, setbacks, frustrations, unforgiveness; things that sit deep in our hearts. They brew and stew and very slowly, but surely, begin to build a wall, like sandbags shored up for a flood.

One of the things that will pop up when you do a search about what causes heart disease is “long periods of unrelieved stress in your life”.

Mine always felt very benign, like something I could control, like something that could not possibly physically affect my heart. It was not something I could hold in my hands or perform with my hands, like eating a doughnut or doing pushups. It was far too intangible, too ethereal to impact my physical body. Or so I thought.

According to Circulation, a high-impact weekly journal from the American Heart Association, psychological stress significantly increases cardiovascular risk through both acute and chronic mechanisms, with meta-analyses showing 27-50% increased risk of incident cardiovascular disease depending on the type and duration of stress exposure.

Heart issues are impacted by heart issues, not solely by diet and exercise. It’s the rule of three, the trifecta, the three blind mice, three strikes and you’re out. They are singular and unique, yet cannot be separated.

03/20/2026