Betsy Simmers for Amy's GoRed Campaign Video Testimonials

Speaker: Betsy Simmers

Betsy Simmers: I've been in the in the training industry for a little over 20 years. My niche in this industry, is overall wellness, corrective exercise of all age groups, and to guide people to feel good physically, mentally, and to be the best versions of themselves. Heart health is not something to be taken lightly, and we hear about it all the time through social media, on TV, on the news, through other people. so when I was asked to be a part of this campaign, I jumped on it because heart health affects not only the aged or unhealthy, it can affect the young, vibrant, full of life people, as well. So, one of my best friends, Kenzie passed away in August of last year. She passed away in her sleep from an undiagnosed pulmonary embolism. She was only 48 years young. and she left behind a beloved husband and two young sons that she adored. Kenzie loved love life. She had so much energy and lots of love to give. She was a vibrant, healthy young woman. Yet, an undiagnosed pulmonary embolism took her away. Yes, a few days before her death, she was experiencing some symptoms, but did not get checked. She had another benign condition going on. Taking benign meds for this benign condition, and she felt that she was just going to have to get used to living like this. I want to use Kenzie's story to inspire all women, not to take any concerning symptoms lightly or allow any medical professional to do the same.

Betsy Simmers: So as women, I think we have been taught or expected to. Learn to live with things concerning our bodies. You know, we experience things differently than men do, We're told, oh, it's your hormones or you're having your period or you're overlooking or you're overcompensating or, you know, it's it's not important. As far as the hormones and all those things going on um in our bodies. It's true to a point, But if something is feeling off, especially if it's affecting our daily lives, our exercise, things that we just do every day, it may be time to get your medical professional to listen and for us as women to push for answers and for us to become proactive. Kenzie was always an active person, whether it be running, walking with friends, walking, her dog, Working out in the gym, I trained her before her work early in the mornings, twice a week. She strength trained And exercised with me, even when she had extensive knee surgery and was unable to drive. I went out to her home and we just improvised because it was important to her to, to stay active, My point is, Kenzie is the last person a pulmonary embolism should have happened to, and that's exactly, you know, how we think and what we think, because it was a huge shock when it happened. I trained her up to about 2 weeks before her death. She had no symptoms and she was cranking out her workouts and having fun with them as she always does, does and did in her Kenzie way. One of the last things she said to me, face to face, was, we were talking about some things going on in her body and she just said to me that she was just going to have to live, learn to live with it, with the symptoms and different things that she was having. In other words, meaning that she was going to have to learn to live with the effects of a non-malignant uterine fibroid. Then she went on vacation. And about that time she did start showing some symptoms of a pulmonary embolism, But In Kenzie fashion, she just kept pushing on, put everybody else first. And as women, I think we are expected and conditioned to take care of ourselves last, you know, whether it be nutrition, exercise, anything. I see it with my clients. I see it with my lady clients of all ages. Ladies, my message is, don't take any unusual, you know, chest pain, breath, breathlessness issues, any weird sensations down your arms, any unusual fatigue that just will not go away. Do not take it lightly. Get checked. Make noise. After all, if we don't take care of ourselves first, how are we gonna take care of the others that we love?

Betsy Simmers: Go for a walk, park, park further away from entrances to public places, ah, whatever movement you want to do, you know, find friends, coworkers, you know, coworkers during lunch hour to get out for a walk, You know, get up from your desk if you're, you know, if you're working, get away from the computer, you know, every 30 minutes, get up, take 10 minutes, 5 minutes, and just go walk around the offices or go get a drink of water, anything to move, play with your kids, you know, You know, young kids always want to play, and they think it's really cool when mom and dad come out and play too. anything like that. Our beautiful bodies were made to move our bodies were not made to sit behind a computer 8, 10, 12 hours a day, And You ask yourself, how can I make this time, I have other people to take care of, I have other responsibilities that I need to fulfill. Well, you are worth having that 20 to 30 minutes a day to yourself, for yourself. You are worthy of that time to keep yourself healthy, keep yourself, you know, good quality of life, because it also helps, movement helps with, you know, our mental well-being as well, our overall wellness. So, I really stress thinking movement, whatever that means to you, and I wish you all luck with that.