Let's Get This Show on the Road

July 4, 2012
Well, I'm going to be 40 in two months, and I have gained over 20 pounds since my 39th birthday.  What on earth is going on?
This blog is going to be a journal of my journey to figure out what is going on with my body.  It will probably be pretty girl-stuff in nature, and definitely revealing of more information than I would normally be comfortable sharing.  But I need to get on top of this.  I have never been so unhappy with my appearance as I am right now.
Here's the background:  My uncle got married last August 27, and I know that I wore a size 4 dress to his wedding, and weighed 127 pounds.  I felt great.  Steve and I had been running together all summer, I had trained for and completed my third triathlon, and I felt the best I had in a long time.
Earlier that week, we had received a phone call which marked the beginning of the process which eventually led to us moving to our new home, our new ministry and essentially our new life, at the end of February this year.
Over the course of the fall and winter, my weight began to creep up.  I attributed this to a combination of stress, lack of exercise and poor eating.  All of those things have been dealt with since our move, and yet my weight has continued to increase.  My periods are becoming irregular (fewer and fewer days between cycles) and I can't sleep.  I now look terrible in a size 10 and I weigh about 150 pounds.
I have Googled until the cows come home.  Could I be pregnant?  Can it all be blamed on cortisol levels?  How can we eat better?  Should I try a diet?  Weight Watchers?  I chatted with a friend today who is a nurse, and she agreed with me that I am probably perimenopausal (even though I'm young) and she suggested I get my thyroid checked.
Steve and I have joined the YMCA and I have signed up for one-on-one pilates classes.  I am determined to get fit and drop this extra weight.
I can't find any pictures from the wedding right now, and I have avoided cameras like the plague lately, but I'm sure there are pictures around.
Tonight, I renew my determination to get better.  I have old friends to see this summer, and I sure don't want them to see me like this.