writingwyo's Journal, 24 March 2023

Soon it will be your goodbye party 🎉😄 BTW, have you had any labs done since you added back the dairy, eggs and fish? I’m curious as to how much of a difference there is between vegan and pescatarian — I think it’s been over 3 months since you’ve changed diets. 

Yep, I've had labs! In fact, I was over the moon about them. Total cholesterol, LDL, and Triglycerides all down. HDL up. Best part was my kidney function improved -- it's been questionable in the past. Although I've added dairy back in, I'm mostly sticking with non- or low-fat. Cheese is becoming an occasional thing, usually in smaller amounts than I used to eat. Trying to keep sat fat under 10%. I'm also prioritizing protein a bit more, and continuing to prioritize fiber and fermented foods. Need to get salt down next, as my BP tends to be questionable.  

I did switch back to soymilk, though, for fluid milk. Just found I like the taste better. I'll drink milk if my husband puts it in the thermos of coffee we drink on the way home from skiing, but that's about it  

Looks good! I’m digging the mug. 

Hmmm… while sodium is obviously within your control, I wonder if the BP is simply high due to stress (in which case it will come down once you retire and then play in the snow every day 😁). 

We can always hope that helps, JustBananas! However, it runs in my family, both sides. I will do what I can do, but I'm ok with it if it ever gets to the point where it needs to be treated with meds after all my best efforts. I plan to become more consistently active after retirement, and I'll have more time to plan and cook around both are nutritional needs, so maybe... Trust me, I've done a lot of Googling on foods to reduce blood pressure! 

This might be a landmine I'm stepping on, but does caffeine increase BP? If so, do you anticipate drinking less coffee in retirement? 

Thanks, CrimsonKing! It's my favorite. I have a habit of including it in photos, LOL! JustBanans -- not treading on a mine field at all. I've cut back recently, but I do intend to cut it back even more when I retire. I've switched to decaf or tea in the mornings, with maybe a mug or two of real. We're pretty much letting the coffee run out and won't replace it. We'll switch to tea at that point. I often find that the easiest strategy is to just not bring certain things into my house. At work, I drink Diet Coke, which is a bad habit I just haven't been able to break. At home, I don't buy it, so I don't drink it. So, the Diet Coke will go away then. I've seen some things saying caffeine can raise BP and others indicating it doesn't. More googling and thinking on it in my future. 

I drink 1 cup of decaf coffee Sat / Sun. The work days I drink herbal tea or lemon water  

Great! 

Thanks, Morticia! Little Red Fox -- I admire you. I find just a bit of caffeine keeps my depression at bay, but I'm trying to find a balance since I'm prone to take in too much of it