Run Into The New Year

Today was my 13th and final race of my "2010 Comeback Year". I wanted to have my best race yet, and I did! I finished in 29:00 minutes, which is a 9:16 pace (last year this race was my first in the "comeback" series - I finished it in 34:00 minutes). It was my fastest 5k of the year, and actually, of ever ever. Not only was I thrilled with my performance, experiencing the rewards of my hard training efforts, but with the weather as well. It was 50 friggin' degrees on 12/31/10! Warm enough for shorts, and warm enough to procure a huge race crowd. Going into the race there were close to 1,500 registered runners, but the mild weather brought more than 400 last minute registrants, creating a full race course of 1900+ runners. Joe volunteered at the race, and was a course marshall at the half-way point, directing us down one of many ugly and boring parking lots that comprised the route along the State Fair grounds. We also ran down some "streets" within the fair grounds, as well as around the Milwaukee Mile. Despite the uninspired course, this race continues to grow each year (this was the 6th), but why? It could be the free bottle of champagne, the wonderfully late 12p.m start time, the excellent race day organization of the RACC (Racers Against Childhood Cancer) sponsors, or the novelty of running a race on the last day of the year, which seems to be a great early start to the new year. Regardless, it's a race that is becoming tradition for me, and will be on my list in 2011. The first race of 2011? That'll be a repeat of the Steve Cullen 8k on 2/12/11. Anyone interested? C'mon! 2011 is a year for greatness - give it a try :)

Day 4 of 5

To have 5 days off in a row that does not include backpacking or traveling, is both unheard of and wonderful. And it gets better. I have one more day off before returning to a 3-day work week, followed by a 4-day weekend, followed by a 4-day work week. I'm on a roll! The time off has been busier than expected though.

Thursday the boys returned to the vet for a standard feline leukemia retest, which came back negative. Chaco, now weighing in at 9.1 pounds, and Denali, a lithe 8.44, were given a clean bill of health and don't need to be seen again for one year. My paychecks will be my own again, instead of signing them over to the Waukesha Small Animal Hospital! And while I love Dr. Jackie, after having 12-15 appointments in the past 6 months, to not see her for a year is just fine.

Chaco & Denali watching squirrels in the yard

Friday Joe had his second Remicade infusion. During the past two weeks he's started titrating his daily prednisone from 30mg to 22.5mg. His symptoms remain improved with this decrease, which seems to indicate the Remicade is working to suppress the immune system specific to his colon. While the symptoms may disappear, it can take months to a year before his colon looks better. He sees Dr. Naik for a follow up 1/11 and has his next infusion 1/21/11. After this second infusion, Joe has yet to experience the fatigue that accompanies most people. In fact, within 24 hours of that infusion, Joe ran 1.45 miles outside (always harder to do), thus reaching 300 miles run for 2011. Congrats to him!

While Joe was being infused, I visited Aunt Shirley. She's lost about 80 pounds in the past year, and appeared surprisingly small and frail. Her spirits were high as she continues to progress in her rehab. She can now walk 60 feet with a walker. She may return to her apartment with a wheel chair and a walker in another month or so.

Yesterday was Christmas. As it was Saturday, I went for my standard 5 mile run before heading to my niece's apartment for a nice low-key family gathering. While running down the street (literally, so as to avoid icy, snowy sidewalks), I encountered others walking or shoveling, and each of them yelled out a hearty, "Merry Christmas!"

Candid shot from Left to Right: Me, my nephew, Evan, niece, Amanda, niece,
Marisa, sister Christine, Terry, Karen's boyfriend, sister, Karen

Today is an actual day of rest. No running, no appointments, no social obligations. Just us and the boys, my jammies and yellow fleece robe, padding around the house.

Blessing

Today I had the privilege of being someone’s blessing. I had a true sense of being used as a vessel of divine intervention. Getting ready in the gym locker room, a woman who I’ve never seen before came in - she must typically work out later in the day. The TV was covering a story about Lindsey Lohan assaulting an aide at her rehab facility, blah, blah, blah. I turned to this woman, and said, “Do we really need this incessant coverage on Lindsey Lohan’s trouble with addiction?” A small discussion ensued about how hard it is to pay for treatment, and how lucky the rich and famous are that they can afford such things, blah, blah, blah. Then the woman suddenly started telling me about her 30 year old daughter who has OCD, ADD and Tourette’s. She is living at home and is unable to keep a job due to the nature of her illnesses. Her daughter has no health insurance, and therefore, isn’t eligible for treatment (or so this woman thought). Enter me as a blessing to this woman and her family. I told her about my role in mental health with Waukesha County and described some of the awesome services we provide on an outpatient basis to people with or without insurance, such as case management, individual and group therapy, vocational/educational support, support with finances and benefits, psychiatry, community living skills, housing support, physical health monitoring and peer support. I seemed to touch on every concern and fear this woman has for her daughter before she could express it, and could provide her resources and hope for things to improve. I gave this woman phone numbers to begin calling for possible services, and received relieved thank you’s from her. She said, “I don’t even know how I started telling you all of this. It was just so heavy on my mind. I was meant to tell you to get this help.”

YTD Mileage

HOT OFF THE PRESSES! THIS JUST IN! BREAKING NEWS!

My year to date running mileage passed over the 1,100 mile mark yesterday!

But more significant and meaningful than that, is that Joe is about to reach 300 miles for the year. This is a tremendous feat given that Joe has been unable to run 8 out of 12 months due to metatarsal stress fractures and his colitis. While Joe is not ready to make his running comeback yet, he was motivated to finish this year with an impressive milestone, and only had 3.65 miles left to do so. Yesterday he ran .5 miles, today .8 miles. He will continue to do a little at a time until he reaches 300. This is extra taxing because his prednisone has his resting heart rate up to 90 beats per minute, so his heart is already getting a work out before he even gets moving.

And when will Joe make his return to running? Hopefully in early 2011. Once the inflammation in his colon decreases his risk for perforation, once his colitis related fatigue lessens, and once he can complete his gait analysis in physical therapy (to pinpoint how his body mechanics may be causing his stress fractures), Joe will start over. Cross your fingers that he can run the Door County Half Marathon with me on our anniversary weekend in May!

December 18th

Today is another significant marker in my life. Two years ago on this date I couldn't sit, stand or lie down without blinding and nauseating pain from my L4/L5 herniated disc. Somehow I was able to be upright long enough for Joe to shuttle me to the emergency room. I remember Joe had to put on my boots and tie the laces while I sat at an awkward angle, sweating through the pain. Pain causes you to sweat as part of the sympathetic nervous system, which also raises your heart rate and blood pressure. With my nervous system in overdrive, I'd spent the night on the floor, as the bed was too soft, sweating through bundles of comforters. My fleece pajamas were a bit damp from the night, and probably a bit malodorous too, but this is what I wore to the ER - there was now way I could maneuver into other clothes. The ER would eventually give me Valium because I react poorly to all pain meds, and I would zone out for another 4 days on Valium until getting 2 epidurals. You guys know the rest. I walked with a cane for a month, had a pronounced limp for 5 months related to left leg and foot nerve damage, avoided surgery, rehabbed with my personal trainer, disregarded my neurosurgeons' recommendation to never run again, and began my climb back to peak fitness. Today, exactly two years later, I ran an easy 6 miles.

In your face herniated disc and worry wort's who advised me not to push too hard! I say life is short, and you have to pursue your dreams even if it means marching to the beat of your own drum. Sometimes only we can know what's best for us.

Turning Tides

After being beaten by relentless waves of stress and strain over the past 105 days, there seems to be a horizon of calm waters approaching. This past week some changes for the better have occurred:

JOE: After much anticipation, Joe finally received his first Remicade infusion yesterday, hopefully getting the healing ball rolling in the right direction. This is how it goes - you sit in a chair (that reclines if you want) in a "room" sectioned from others by curtains. They put a warm compress on the arm to bring the veins to the surface, and then they set up the infusion. The Remicade dosing is done by body weight - beginning with 5mg per kilogram of body weight (theamount may increase as needed for efficacy). For Joe this meant starting with 375 milligrams (quick, do the math!). The infusion administration rate is controlled by a computer, with a nurse checking on vital signs every 15 minutes. Some people develop a headache from the infusion, so Tylenol is administered, as well as beverages and food if so desired. The main thing we've heard from Remicade users is that fatigue follows them for a day or so after a treatment. True to his atypical form, Joe has yet to feel any additional fatigue. Remicade, if successful, may take up to a year to return Joe's colon to a normal state, but signifcant improvements can be experienced by the 8th week. His next infusion will be 12/24/10. And for now, he continues with the Prednisone too.

AUNT SHIRLEY: She has found her mojo and is determined to walk again. Since entering the hospital and rehab 6 weeks ago, her motivation and spirits were being undermined by a nasty bacterial infection that was finally diagnosed and treated this week. Since the symptoms connected to C-difficile are resolving, Shirley is feeling encouraged and is able to rally in her physical therapy.

MOM: Three weeks post knee replacement, and the old gal is way ahead of the recovery curve. She's received her doctor's blessings to stop wearing compression tights, to ditch her crutches, drive, return to work and the gym. She has no restrictions -the only directive is to listen to her body, cause her knee will tell her what she can and can't do.

THE BOYS: A stool sample retest was negative for parasites. This means no more roundworm! They've also completed their URI and conjunctivitis treatments, which has helped simplify our lives. In 2 more weeks we'll find out if ringworm is conclusively gone. They continue to grow like grass with Denali reaching the 8 pound mark this week, and Chaco pushing into the upper 8 pound range, just knocking on the door of 9. They love to wrestle and play-fight when they're not following us around for attention.They also love the new cat condo that sits in front of the new dining room picture window.

ME: I had my annual evaluation this past week, and it was stellar. My supervisor agreed with me that I have had my best year yet with the County. There was no constructive feedback to be given, no areas to improve upon. She's going to keep me feeling challenged into 2011. Outside of work, I will keep myself challenged with my running goals. I've started a "Treadin" group with gym friends. Treadin' is a series of progressive treadmill work-outs used in triathlon trainings, that help build speed and stamina. I'm sticking with my off-season plan to run 20 miles per week, with at least one 5 mile long run, and have begun developing my 2011 running goals. In fact, I've just registered for the Trailbreakers Half Marathon held in Waukesha on 4/2/11.

Snunning

I don't like the idea of being beholden to the weather -missing out on things I want to do because it's too cold, rainy, snowy, etc., so I strapped on these micro spikes and hit the fresh snow for my weekend 5-miler. With 3 inches of mostly unshoveled snow, I experienced my first session of "snunning" - snow running :) It was a beautiful run with snow still falling, warmish temps (32°) and no wind. The micro spikes worked wonderfully in the snow to keep me from falling, but a few times I came across eager beavers who'd already shoveled (despite the continued snow fall), and then the spikes didn't feel so great under my soft running shoes when hitting the pressure of pavement. Running through the snow is quite a work-out, and my calves are feeling it today! The snow slows you down too, causing me to run about 1 minute per mile slower than usual, which is nice, cause you are taking it easy by default,without the pressure to pick up the pace as you're already going as fast as you can.

Yesterday's (Saturday) snowfall was timed just right, as we were having new picture windows installed last week, with the work just finishing Friday. In particular, the dining room window is so much better. Before, we had two large windows that were horizontally bisected in the bottom third of the frame by awning windows. Our new window (see below) is a much larger single picture window with two smaller slider windows on each side. The framing for the sliders is vertical, rather than horizontal, which opens up the view of the backyard without the same disturbance as the horizontal framing.

Other life tidbits and updates:

• Joe's first Remicade infusion is this Friday.
• The Boys are nearing the end of their multiple treatments. We'll find out this week if their roundworm is gone.
• My mom is recovering remarkably well from her knee replacement. In fact, she is ahead of the normal recovery schedule.
• Aunt Shirley remains in rehab, and has learned she may never walk again (bad, dark news)
• Heather has met a great guy named Dan. We had dinner with them last night at Roots, and not only does he look normal, but he seems to be intelligent, humorous and considerate - hard things to find in one person from what I've heard of the dating world!