My honorable husband had a cornea transplant on Tuesday. He has a rare inherited eye disease that has diminished his sight and his ability to enjoy simple things in life. There is no cure. A transplant is the only way to restore his vision.

I have three quick observations.

1. If you have read my blogs for long, you know how passionate I am about preventive health and taking care of the bodies that God gave us. However, there are health issues that are beyond the scope of nutrition and exercise. This week I am very thankful for medical doctors, researchers, hospitals, nurses, insurance companies, and for everyone else involved in bringing us the outstanding medical care we are privileged to enjoy in the US.

2. HH made the decision to have the first transplant now because of Obamacare. He turns 65 in the fall. On that day, our health insurance becomes a secondary policy and he will be on Medicare. We have watched Medicare drag their feet paying the final bills for my Mom. We have read about other countries with socialized medicine where delicate procedures like transplants are denied. As the government expands its role in health care, we anticipate a decline in care and a scarcity of service. So, while he could have waited a year of two before the transplant would have been absolutely necessary, he decided to do it now while he still has private insurance.

3. Stress eating reared its ugly head again for me. I handled the pressure of making the decision about proceeding with the surgery calmly. I was a tower of strength the day of the surgery. I was optimistic and positive during the initial recovery. But as soon as we got home from the first follow up appointment, all of the tension from the past weeks overwhelmed me. I ate and ate and ate. The urge only lasted a couple of days. I am back to my old self again.

This is where my rule about no avoids in the house paid dividends. If there had been junk food around, I fear I would have been powerless. However, all I did was overeat beneficial and neutrals. Is it really pigging out if you’re eating carrots?