Thursday, October 31, 2013
Saturday, October 19, 2013
Priorities, Perspective, and Good Decisions
Dave did a half ironman back in September. This race was brutal for him as he wasn't expected the hilliness of the bike course and then it was super hot for the run. It was an equally unpleasant day for me as spectating this race was pretty boring plus I had to entertain the baby all day in the heat. And he was too young for sunscreen so I was finding creative ways to keep him out of the sun.
At the end of the race, just at the other end of the finisher's chute, Dave picked up Anderson and held him. One of the volunteers said, "and just like that, you're back to being dad."
I loved it.
Obviously, my whole world has changed since I had a baby. And I truly love it. My world seems more complete, more meaningful, more everything. Waiting to have a baby until I we (were) was ready was one of the best decisions.
I love coming home every day from work and seeing his smile. I love watching him peacefully sleep. I enjoy feeding him new foods and watching him discover the world. But mostly I love how he has made everything else in my life less of a big deal.
Running has been meh since I had the baby. Not good, not bad, just meh. I've had some surprisingly good results, but I've been fighting injuries and haven't been able to run the way that I use to. But every run I come home and it's baby time. No time to dwell on the bad run; no time to bask in the great race. It's time to be mom.
Jamie and I had a small Twitter conversation about mental health the other day. I told him I am not ashamed that I needed help for my mental health issues. I have suffered long enough and started medication in March and it was the best decision I could have made for myself, my baby, my family, my marriage. I am so much happier now. Things don't bother me the way that they use to. I can cope with the stresses of life and having a 6 month old is certainly stressful.
My world has changed and it is so much better.
At the end of the race, just at the other end of the finisher's chute, Dave picked up Anderson and held him. One of the volunteers said, "and just like that, you're back to being dad."
I loved it.
Obviously, my whole world has changed since I had a baby. And I truly love it. My world seems more complete, more meaningful, more everything. Waiting to have a baby until I we (were) was ready was one of the best decisions.
I love coming home every day from work and seeing his smile. I love watching him peacefully sleep. I enjoy feeding him new foods and watching him discover the world. But mostly I love how he has made everything else in my life less of a big deal.
Running has been meh since I had the baby. Not good, not bad, just meh. I've had some surprisingly good results, but I've been fighting injuries and haven't been able to run the way that I use to. But every run I come home and it's baby time. No time to dwell on the bad run; no time to bask in the great race. It's time to be mom.
Jamie and I had a small Twitter conversation about mental health the other day. I told him I am not ashamed that I needed help for my mental health issues. I have suffered long enough and started medication in March and it was the best decision I could have made for myself, my baby, my family, my marriage. I am so much happier now. Things don't bother me the way that they use to. I can cope with the stresses of life and having a 6 month old is certainly stressful.
My world has changed and it is so much better.
Thursday, October 17, 2013
Injuries Updates
Yep, it's been another two weeks since I've blogged. Life with a baby is busy, obviously. Throw in working and working out on top of that and there's barely enough time to get to the grocery let alone blog. I used to do most of my blogging at work and then fill in the gaps at home, but I got moved to the "big boys" table and now I sit right next to my boss. So, it wouldn't be exactly a great idea to continue blogging at work.
Anyway, here's a quick update on my endless list of injuries that are plaguing me this fall.
My left hip is doing much better. I continue to do some of the physical therapy exercises assigned. Except for when I do a big run, it really doesn't hurt anymore.
My right shin, on the other hand, is just a mess. It has continued to hurt more and more, to the point where I saw the doctor because I had a stress fracture. (I didn't really think it was fractured as the pain got better when I ran and the pain wasn't pinpointed on the bone, but I didn't really know what else to do.) The doctor diagnosed it as posterior tibial tendonitis and assigned me more physical therapy, specifically ultrasound. I scheduled my appointment and hoped for the best.
But I got the worst. The office called me and informed me that my insurance claim was denied because I had just had a PT evaluation and they wouldn't pay for another one for six months. Shit. So I got on the internet and googled the heck out of my diagnosis. I found some exercises and even found some ways to tape it up to make it feel better. I tried both and it felt better for a while but it was still too painful to run. I was starting to wonder if the rest of my season, the big races I've already paid for, was going to be awash. I sent my doctor an email rambling on and on about insurance, and my pain, and what can we do???? He quickly responded and I had an appointment the next day for ART (active release therapy).
ART is pure torture and hurt so badly I had to hold on to my head to keep from screaming while it was being done. And immediately after it felt terrible. The next day, though, the calf/shin had loosened up quite a bit. I stayed on the elliptical for the rest of my short runs during the week and was able to get through a 17 miler on the trails on Sunday (I had hoped to go 20 miles but ran out of time due to a family commitment.) Monday everything hurt really bad again and I was limping around like my leg was cut off. Tuesday I felt good enough to run the 7 miles from my house to my parents for dinner. Wednesday I was in terrible pain again and today was a little better. I had ART again this afternoon which loosened my shin but my calf still feels really tight.
This weekend I am running a road half marathon which is going to hurt like hell. As for the trail marathon and 50K I still have on the schedule, well, I hope to keep them on the schedule. After this weekend I can switch to all trails, treadmill, and elliptical with no road running. Once the 50K is done at the end of December I am going to take some time off and let the body heal and SLOWLY return to running.
Anyway, here's a quick update on my endless list of injuries that are plaguing me this fall.
My left hip is doing much better. I continue to do some of the physical therapy exercises assigned. Except for when I do a big run, it really doesn't hurt anymore.
My right shin, on the other hand, is just a mess. It has continued to hurt more and more, to the point where I saw the doctor because I had a stress fracture. (I didn't really think it was fractured as the pain got better when I ran and the pain wasn't pinpointed on the bone, but I didn't really know what else to do.) The doctor diagnosed it as posterior tibial tendonitis and assigned me more physical therapy, specifically ultrasound. I scheduled my appointment and hoped for the best.
But I got the worst. The office called me and informed me that my insurance claim was denied because I had just had a PT evaluation and they wouldn't pay for another one for six months. Shit. So I got on the internet and googled the heck out of my diagnosis. I found some exercises and even found some ways to tape it up to make it feel better. I tried both and it felt better for a while but it was still too painful to run. I was starting to wonder if the rest of my season, the big races I've already paid for, was going to be awash. I sent my doctor an email rambling on and on about insurance, and my pain, and what can we do???? He quickly responded and I had an appointment the next day for ART (active release therapy).
ART is pure torture and hurt so badly I had to hold on to my head to keep from screaming while it was being done. And immediately after it felt terrible. The next day, though, the calf/shin had loosened up quite a bit. I stayed on the elliptical for the rest of my short runs during the week and was able to get through a 17 miler on the trails on Sunday (I had hoped to go 20 miles but ran out of time due to a family commitment.) Monday everything hurt really bad again and I was limping around like my leg was cut off. Tuesday I felt good enough to run the 7 miles from my house to my parents for dinner. Wednesday I was in terrible pain again and today was a little better. I had ART again this afternoon which loosened my shin but my calf still feels really tight.
This weekend I am running a road half marathon which is going to hurt like hell. As for the trail marathon and 50K I still have on the schedule, well, I hope to keep them on the schedule. After this weekend I can switch to all trails, treadmill, and elliptical with no road running. Once the 50K is done at the end of December I am going to take some time off and let the body heal and SLOWLY return to running.
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