The Gabriel Method and My Love/Hate Relationship with Unpredictability

I just LOVE how army life can be so all over the place...

Did anyone catch my sarcasm there?

Caleb just re-enlisted, so I thought we'd be here for another year and a half or so, and then the army would put us where they need my husband to work. But a few opportunities have come up for Caleb recently, so now I literally have no idea where I'm going to be come summer time.

I do actually enjoy that I know I will never get stuck in a rut. That is to say, I won't get stuck in that pattern most people find themselves in of doing the same things every day- leading very predictable lives. At the same time, I feel like my life is a little TOO unpredictable. 

For instance- Caleb just finished doing a "pre-ranger" outing that took him away for 3 days. Those 3 days just happened to be the 3 days my body decides it needs to be SUPER sick. Of course, he had to be taken away at the LEAST convenient time possible. Not even 3 days later, he had to show up early to work just in case they picked him to go to the Warrior Leader Course (WLC). We were both hoping he wouldn't go because today is his birthday, and he would get a 4-day weekend if he didn't have to be there. But of course, they picked him. 

DIDN'T SEE THAT ONE COMING! 

There's more of that sarcasm stuff.

So now, he'll be gone for pretty much all of this month. He will also be gone all of next month for one of those "opportunities" I mentioned. Once he's home from that, his unit has field rotations and all kinds of trainings scheduled, so there is a really good possibility that I just won't see my husband for the next 3 months. It's dumb that he's not even deployed, but he might as well be for all the time I'll get to spend with him between now and April.

Like I said, glad that my life isn't predictable and boring, but I envy those who get a little more stability in their lives. And those whose husbands don't have to be taken away ALL THE TIME. But I know that if I did have that stability, my life could get really boring. Is there no happy medium?!

I guess have to get back into "deployment mode" where I throw myself into things that keep me busy. I'm still doing Crossfit, I'm doing more massages lately, and I've just discovered one of the coolest weight-loss methods I've ever seen.

Ever heard of the Gabriel Method? This guy lost 220 pounds WITHOUT DIETING (some of my favorite words ever) and wrote a book about it. Now he does seminars and has a website with a support group, recipes, workout videos, and most importantly, Visualization audio bits all based on the method he used to drop his weight.

This method is based ENTIRELY on your mind-body connection and re-training your brain to send different signals to your body. The kind of signals that make your body want to get the fat off ASAP. The kind of signals that help you live healthier and happier by creating better habits. His book is great, and the visualization audios are lovely. I would HIGHLY recommend looking into it.

Go to this website for free Gabriel Method stuff if you wanna get started. While you're there, check out his story and see what he's all about! If you want the book, I'm pretty sure he's still giving it away for free too. Well, you pay $1 for shipping. You also get an account to his support group website for a month for free, and there are loads of videos and stuff you can download.

What I actually love about this guy is that he isn't pushy. His whole attitude is: "This thing worked for me and I wanna show you how I did it. If it's not for you, that's cool. Thanks for stopping by anyway." He also has supplements that will help your body become more balanced and hopefully provide some things your body is missing in order to help lose the extra weight, but he's not the kinda person that's like, "If you don't buy my supplements, this won't work for you at all." He only SUGGESTS that you supplement your diet with these things because they can help a lot, and that you should get them if you can.

I LOVE NOT PUSHY PEOPLE.

I feel like Jon and I would get along really well if we ever met in real life. He makes me feel like I can still accomplish great things even if I don't pay to stay on his website after my free month, even if I don't buy his supplements, and even if I give into my cravings. And guess what??

It's working!

I am actually starting to crave healthier things, I am not hungry as often, and I'm losing weight- which I thought would be nearly impossible with this birth control I've got! I went to a Zumba class last night (which TOTALLY kicked my butt, by the way) and when I got home, the only thing I wanted for dinner was an apple and some juice. You might think that's not healthy, but part of the Gabriel Method is eating WHENEVER YOU WANT TO. If that means eating another meal between breakfast and lunch, then do it. If that means only eating a small amount for dinner because you're not that hungry, then don't force yourself to eat if your body doesn't want to!

I am loving this whole concept. Everything he says just makes sense, and it's kind of blowing my mind. I encourage you to look into it if you have ANY amount of weight to lose.

That's my two cents for the day. If you decide to hop on the Gabriel Method wagon, let me know so we can get into it together!

Cheers. <3

Finally Together Again

A year ago today (June 22nd), my husband left for an almost 10 month deployment in Afghanistan.

Read the post from that day here:
http://sairahaight.blogspot.de/2012/06/day-i-hoped-would-never-come.html

It was arguably one of the worst days of my life. The months that followed (as documented in my other blogs) definitely were like unto a roller coaster. This post will be the highlights, low-lights, and life lessons that came into my life because of this deployment.

At my lowest, I was MISERABLE. I felt like I was a terrible wife. I hated everyone and everything that had anything to do with Caleb having to leave me. I ESPECIALLY hated the army. I just wanted to curl into a ball and die- to give up on life and effort. During the times he couldn't talk to me, I was extra anxious and panic-y. I would think crazy thoughts about catching a plane to Afghanistan because I COULD NOT take the separation any longer. It didn't help that this was our second long-term separation. I was angry at God for putting me with the most wonderful man I had ever met, but then constantly taking him away from me.

Easily some of the most depressing days of my life happened in those 10 months.

At my highest, I was happy with what I chose to do with myself during the separation (massage school), having a good time with my friends and family, and soaking up all the good I could out of whatever I was doing. I had my family supporting me the whole time. While it was hard at times to have moved back in with my family, I loved the extra time I got to spend with them. I met great new friends, and spent quality time with old ones. I loved what I learned at school and loved the people I learned from and with. I am really glad I ended up choosing to do massage therapy school. The time seemed to drag on forever as it was, I can't imagine what it would have been like if I didn't have anything to do. Plus, not only did I occupy my time with something positive, I now have a career I can take with me wherever I go. Definitely one of the better decisions I've made.

Caleb and I still found ways to make our love grow, despite the fact that our marriage had to rely solely on technology. Having a virtual marriage really blows, but when it's the only option you have, you make it work. Distance doesn't HAVE to tear people apart- it only does that if you're not meant to work out anyway. I sent him packages and he sent me gifts. We Skyped on all the major holidays and whenever else he could. We exchanged emails and pictures, he'd leave comments on my Facebook wall or pictures reminding me how much he cared about me, missed me, and loved me. Those little messages meant the entire world to me. They kept me going and would make me smile, even when my day had been awful. He was a lot stronger than I was, but toward the middle he had just as much of a hard time as I did.

I learned that I am stronger than I thought I was. I didn't know how I was going to make it. But what other choice did I have than to make it? Looking back, not only did I make it, I'd say that I came out better for it. Not that I am happy it had to happen, but I mean, I could have handled it a lot worse than I did. I mean, I didn't go crazy, I didn't cheat, and we didn't let the distance or stress ruin our marriage. I'd say that makes us pretty successful.

When he got back, I'm not going to lie, it was a little strange. See, out of the year and a half we've been married, only roughly 5 months of that has been spent together. So when he returned home, it was like I was reuniting with an old acquaintance. It didn't feel like I was married to this guy. It's hard to describe, but it was like having to get to know each other all over again. It kind of sucked, because I shouldn't have to feel that way about someone I'm married to.

The next month, however, was great. We took a real honeymoon and had basically the time of our lives. That awkward, "I feel like I don't know you" feeling we both had was gone within a few weeks. We just had to get used to being together again. We went from no time together at all, to not being apart for 24 hours a day, every day- that takes time to adjust to. But we didn't mind and were soon living it up in the beautiful Bahamas. It really did feel like we were newlyweds on our honeymoon.

We've been back in Germany about a month and a half now. Living, shopping, making plans and decisions, and spending time together. Things that get boring quickly for most people, I think. But if there is one thing that being apart has taught me, it is to not take ANYTHING for granted and cherish the little things more. I have a hard time doing things without him now. There is A LOT of time in our relationship that should have been spent together that we need to make up for. I guess there really isn't a way to make up for lost time (I can't exactly just add time to a day to make sure all the minutes we lost get added in again.) other than using the time we have now in a really great way. We are going out and doing fun things on the weekends and taking the time to really enjoy each other.

I love my husband more than ever and I am more happy than anything in the world that I get to be with him again. It's such a sweet feeling to be reunited again, knowing that I'm not going to have to give him up again for a good while. No more moving without me, no more deployment to dread, just he and I finally getting the time together we deserve. Now we can really start our life together, which is something I have been waiting for since July of 2011. It was really hard, but we rocked it. So distance can suck it- we won.

Sweetest victory EVER.