This is the first day of the rest of your life

alking out of the doctor’s office, reality had finally sunk in. I was not going to be around for another year. My wife and kids would very likely not have a husband or father within the year. My blood pressure was 255/115, although I was on three medications to bring it down. My cholesterol (300) and triglycerides (279) were off the charts (literally). I was on a ton of heavy medications and I was also self-medicating and struggling with addictions of all kinds. My weight became so out of control that the doctor could no longer weigh me in his office. I was having trouble breathing and had severe sleep apnea. I was born with a genetic disorder called Ehlers Danlos Syndrome and my joints are I would try diets and I would lose some weight and then gain it all back. It was a vicious cycle. The more I hurt, the more I medicated. The more I medicated, the more I hurt. As a result, I had lost my passion for life. I was just surviving with no goals other than to get back to the couch and escape yet another day.