What Becomes of the Broken Hearted?

I’ve had a lot of time to think this week (spending time in a hospital waiting room does that for you) As I watched the different people come in, some hobbling, others with cuts and bruises and some looking like they’d vomit at any moment. It made me think about my own health and more importantly my heart.

  Of all my organs, I reckon it’s the one I neglect the most and yet (touch wood) it’s never let me down. It beats every day, pumping the blood around my body without question. It’s been “broken” by a few dodgy fellas, it was shattered when my Mum died and I think the bit that belongs to my Mum probably has some sticky back plastic keeping it together and it allows me to love. It never asks me for anything in return.

 Not like my other organs! My brain constantly demands to be stimulated, I repay it by reading and learning. Signing up for courses and trying new things. My brain gets a lot of attention.

  I’ve never smoked so my lungs are pretty sorted.

  Although I love a glass of red, I make sure I have at least 5 alcohol free days a week, which is win win all round really. My liver gets a break and it stops me putting on more weight, which in turn is good for my stomach.

  Speaking of the stomach I’ve radically changed my diet so I don’t eat anything processed, although my culinary skills are limited. The below picture is of my first attempt to make a ham and vegetable omelette! Everything I eat is cooked from fresh. Also because of my limited culinary skills, I’m pretty sure my stomach and intestines can withstand quite a lot!

  I drink a lot of water so my kidneys function well.

All major organs taken care of…… except my heart. I’ve spent a lot of this week sat by a hospital bed and fortunately everything is OK. However, the man in the bed opposite was admitted with his 7^th heart attack. This time he’d been deprived of oxygen and no one could tell his worried wife whether or not he’d have brain damage when / if he ever woke up.

It set me thinking about my own heart, what could I do to keep it safe? To look after it as well as it looked after me. I know the thing I neglect most in my life is me. I make sure everyone around me is OK first, I allow some people to treat me with a lot less respect than I deserve. I take on extra work when I’m running on empty, because if I don’t, I worry it will have an impact on the person I’m doing it for and I have honestly only REALLY lost my temper twice in my life.

  I’m also crap at prioritising exercise. Work comes first.

So as I sat by that hospital bed, I promised my own heart that from now on we were in it together and that I’d repay its loyalty. I won’t give it away so freely, I’ll make sure it gets a proper rest and both it and I are getting fit!!! I’ve called a meeting of all my organs and pointed out that if heart gets fit, it basically benefits the rest of them! Now where do I sign up for Trinder bootcamp?