At AlgaeCal we regularly hear from women and men just like you, who were living healthy, active lives until one day the were diagnosed with osteoporosis.
Needless to say, it can come as quite a shock.
That’s why I wanted to review a few of the things you should do if you’ve recently been diagnosed.
For some of you these points will serve as a good reminder, and for others, it just might steer you down a healthy path to recovery VS a path laden with more pain, angst, and further damage to your body and health.
I’ve Been Diagnosed with Osteoporosis, Now What?
“I have osteoporosis, now what?”
The first thing to recognize is that if you’ve been diagnosed with osteoporosis or low bone density (osteopenia), it’s not your fault!
Osteoporosis sneaks up on millions of people each and every year. We simply have no way of knowing that our bones are getting weaker, often until it’s too late.
That is of course unless you’re getting regular DEXA scans (bone density scans). The problem with DEXAs, unfortunately, is that most of us aren’t told to get one until we’re in our mid-sixties. The second problem is that they cost $100 or more and are often only covered by insurance every two years. (For any of you in your forties or fifties reading this, this should be a big hint: get a DEXA sooner rather than later!)
And realize that you are not alone. According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, about 8 million women and two million men have osteoporosis in the U.S.
Most of us are unaware of how many people osteoporosis affects. Unfortunately, osteoporosis awareness campaigns are mostly non-existent in comparison to the money invested in raising awareness for breast cancer and other life threatening diseases, even though they often affect far less people than osteo!
A few quick facts:
- A woman’s risk of breaking a hip due to osteoporosis is equal to her risk of breast, ovarian and uterine cancer combined.
- A man age 50 or older is more likely to break a bone due to osteoporosis than he is to get prostate cancer.
- 80% of people learn that they have osteoporosis by breaking a bone.
The third and final thing I want you to understand today is this: you can recover from osteoporosis!
It’s going to take some time (after all your bones didn’t get weaker overnight) but it is possible.
More on this in a minute.
What to Do When You’ve Been diagnosed
Now that we’ve covered a couple of the important things you need to understand, here is a list of action steps I would like to encourage you to take if you or someone you love has just been diagnosed:
1. Talk to someone you trust and can rely on to listen. Don’t go it alone.
In a recent customer survey we conducted, many of you told us you did not tell anyone when you were diagnosed. I highly recommend that if you have someone you trust, you speak with them about the fact that you’ve been diagnosed. Just talking about it can help alleviate some of the fear and frustration you may be experiencing.
2. Begin learning about osteoporosis & your treatment options.
The more you learn about something, the more confident you will be in dealing with it.
If you’re afraid or uncertain or unsure that’s completely o.k. What’s not o.k is to stay that way forever. Instead, decide today that you’re going to spend some time learning about osteoporosis and the various treatment options available to you. The more you learn the better you’ll feel.
Things you should learn about include:
- Natural ways you can support your bone health
- The vitamins and minerals your body needs to build strong healthy bones at any age
- Osteoporosis facts and general information to help you understand what the disease is and how it comes to be. Nof.org is a good place to of course our AlgaeCal blog.
I also highly recommend reading the Amazon bestseller “Your Bones: How You Can Prevent Osteoporosis and Have Strong Bones for Life – Naturally” by Lara Pizzorno.
3. Review what you learn with your doctor.
Your doctor should be your ally in your journey back to full health. You need to speak with them and ask for their guidance and direction.
4. Start an exercise regime that focuses on weight-bearing exercises.
Weight-bearing exercise is one of the best things you can do to increase your bone strength because of the concentrated pressure it puts on your bones. When you don’t regularly stress your muscles, joints and bones, they begin to weaken over time.
Two weight-bearing exercises that you can do are:
- Yoga: Yoga is great at any age because each pose can be modified based on your fitness level. It’s also very versatile and can be done in your room, on a chair or even in your bed. Yoga not only stresses your bones (in a good way) by holding poses, but it also improves and works on your breathing techniques. Breathing helps with relaxation, mood, sleep and overall health and wellness.
- Walking: Walking is easy to do anywhere! Whether you walk to work, to the grocery store, or with a friend on a trail you are reaping its bone health benefits. Walking also improves endurance and balance, which is important for the prevention of falls.
- Other good exercises to consider include: pilates, tai-chi, golf and resistance training or strength training with weights.
Remember to always review an exercise program with your doctor and make sure you’re getting advice from a qualified instructor.
5. Improve Your Nutrition
You have to make a conscious decision to eat the right kinds of foods to build strong healthy bones when you’ve been diagnosed with osteoporosis.
- Your first step is to understand the vitamins and minerals you need to build strong healthy bones. For example, osteoporosis.ca recommends women 50+ take 1200 mg of calcium per day. But if you want a clinically supported bone-building supplement that is effective at a lower dose, try AlgaeCal Plus. Due to its plant-based makeup, it contains additional vitamins and minerals that support bone health.
- Your second step is to download a copy of our “Bone Health Recipes” eBook and start cooking meals high in calcium and other bone healthy nutrients.
- Finally, if you haven’t done so already we highly recommend you add AlgaeCal Plus and Strontium Boost to your daily diet. Combined they have been clinically supported to naturally increase bone density, and are backed by a money back guarantee.
ADELINA
November 7, 2018 , 12:59 pmJust diagnosed. First thing I did was cry, cry,cry. And now I am so so scared.