November 25, 2000; my night of bartending had come to an end. At 25-years-old, things were looking great for me. I was young, healthy, extremely good looking… or hot if you will… like gorgeous. Did I mention young? Anyway, things were looking great for me, and I’m not only talking about my full head of hair. I also had met the love of my life and we had been discussing the possibility of marriage. As I finished counting my drawer, the left side of my body went numb. The corner of my face drooped, and the world began to spin and echo. An ambulance was called and I was rushed to the hospital. I had a stroke.
Sixteen years later, I am fine and the love of my life is my wife. Unfortunately, the great head of hair hasn’t fared as well. And the fragility of the human body is never far from my mind. I’m not a hypochondriac by any means, but the reality that something could go wrong scares me. My dad has heart issues, my grandfather died of a heart attack, and so did his father before him.
We don’t always make the healthiest choices in my home, but we try. When my son was born over 11-years-ago, I made a commitment to eat healthier and live a healthier lifestyle. Again, I try. I don’t only want to be an active participant in their daily lives, but I also want to be an example of how to live. My kids will be adults someday and hopefully they’ll take care of their bodies.
I have partnered with Meta and LifeOfDad.com, to help inspire men to have a “Heart 2 Heart” conversation with their loved ones about being healthy. “Heart 2 Heart” is a campaign from Meta and you can follow the conversation on social media by using the hashtag “#Heart2Heart.” Michael Strahan, a Heart 2 Heart participant, had a conversation with his father and you can find the link to that video here Spr.ly/H2HLOD.
I chose to have my Heart 2 Heart with was my oldest son. He will be turning 12 this summer and is well on his way to Defianceville. Are you familiar with Defianceville? It is right past Preteenangryland and left of Iamamannowtown. I’m kidding, he is still the sweet boy that used to hold my hand and snuggle up close, only now he has more body odor and frequent, sudden bursts of intensity. I chose to discuss a healthy lifestyle with him because he is making choices now that will affect him for the rest of his life. He could slip into unhealthy eating habits now and carry them into his teens and beyond.
Our conversation went great, but I realized that I need to be a better example of eating healthy. He knew the stories of my stroke, but I think the realization that we both come from a long line of people that suffer from heart disease scared him a bit. Maybe I shouldn’t have laid it on so heavy. Hopefully the conversation will rank up there with those we’ve had about sex and drug use, because it is just as important.
And here’s where I mention the great products from Meta to help with living a healthy lifestyle. Meta offers multi-health fiber powders to mix with water for a variety of health benefits. Meta also makes health bars, a nice option for those who are always on the go.
For more information on a heart healthy lifestyle, go to www.MetaWellness.com.
Here are some Meta coupons: spr.ly/MetaCoupon
Need some more reasons to try Meta? Here are some:
- By adding Meta to your diet you can maintain healthy blood sugar levels*
- Metamucil and Meta Health Bars help lower cholesterol to promote heart health †
- †Diets low in saturated fat and cholesterol that include 7 grams of soluble fiber per day from psyllium husk, as in Metamucil and Meta Health Bars, may reduce the risk of heart disease by lowering cholesterol. One adult serving of Metamucil Powder has 2.4 grams of this soluble fiber. One Meta Health Bar and one serving of Metamucil Fiber capsules have at least 1.8 grams of this soluble fiber.
* These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Disclosure: I have partnered with Life of Dad and Meta Wellness for this promotion.
Michael Strahan with dads from the #Heart2Heart campaign.
I am glad to hear this. Perhaps living healthy will enable you to have the same conversation with your grand children and even great grand children.