Zombies, RUN!

When I was in elementary school I had a huge crush on this boy.  He was fast.  So, so fast.  In 7th grade, we had to run a cross country mile in our gym class several times a week.  He always finished first.  It dawned on me that if I was faster and finished sooner…I could talk to him and you know hang out with him.  And before I knew it, I was sometimes beating HIM.  I was doing the mile in less than six minutes.  It was pretty exciting, even for my 7th grade self.

I wanted to keep it up, but then a cruddy thing happened.  I got boobs.  I mean, I already had them, but they just kept getting bigger.  And I just didn’t like running as much.  We moved away from that school district (Navy Brat!) and I pretty much didn’t run again until the next spring when I signed up for track.  I did join the team and I did run cross country, but I didn’t do that great – I will tell you that I always finished, though.

One thing about it, I miss that feeling.  I miss running.  It will be a long time before I’m ever at a point that I can flat out just run a whole mile without wanting to drop dead, but you have to start somewhere (you know – every journey begins with a single step!).

This summer, I decided to finally make use of the Zombies, Run 5K app I purchased nearly a year ago.  It’s similar to the

ZOMBIES, RUN!!!

couch to 5k program, only way more fun because well, you know…zombies.  This app is AWESOME.  I’m purchased it on my daughter’s phone, too, so we’re both doing it (my boyfriend has it as well, but he’s only come out with us once so far).  They now have two different apps, the 5k trainer that’s still $1.99 and then a regular mission based app that’s free to start but you can open up one new mission each week or pay monthly or yearly.  Since I’m still going to be working with the 5k trainer for awhile, I went ahead and got the free one and I’ve been opening up new missions each week to get a head start.

The app basically is training you to be a “runner” for supplies for a township (a safe place) in a zombie apocalypse.  Since this is the 5k trainer, it’s getting you to a point where you’re running for longer stretches at a time.  Tomorrow night, my daughter and I will be on week three, day one.  Our time out, our distance, and our speed have already increased in just two weeks.

Unfortunately, since we’re on the “old” app, I have to use an outside app to track our walks (I’m using RunKeeper and have that synced with my MyFitnessPal account).

I have never had so much fun while out running – the last few “missions” have been a little more exciting and the story lines as we have gone along have gotten a lot more enjoyable.  I am thinking about signing my daughter and I up for the KC Glow Run on June 27th (my kids leave for Memphis on July 13, and with July 4th, it’s the best 5k I could find).  I hope we’re ready!!!

Intracranial Hypertension – one year “anniversary”

A little over one year ago, I was diagnosed with a rare neurological disorder known as idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH for short).

At the time, I was having dizzying, blinding spells up to 20 times a day that were lasting anywhere from 20 seconds to a minute. They had started several weeks (maybe even months) before…but had just slowly built up in intensity. I think that since they had built up so slowly, it took me longer to realize “THIS IS A PROBLEM”. My awesome opthamologist (Dr. Bradley Kwapiszeski at Heart of America Eyecare) is the one that immediately recognized my symptoms and set me on the right path to get properly diagnosed and rule out anything else it could be so I could get proper treatment. Had I waited much longer to seek treatment, I could have been left permanently blind.

IIH causes increased cranial pressure in the way of raised cerebral spinal fluid (CSF), which in turn puts pressure on the optic nerves, which was causing my bouts of blindness (it makes my brain think it has a brain tumor). This pressure also leads to intense, long-lasting headaches (we’re talking weeks and months of feeling like your head is constantly in a vice…and on top of that, ice-pick headaches that feel like someone is stabbing you in the face). My lumbar puncture that was done to confirm my diagnosis had a reading of 31mm of cerebral spinal fluid. A normal reading is 10-15m. I was more than double – that was how much pressure I had on my optic nerves and on my brain at that time.

IIH has no cure and there are no specific medications for IIH. Doctors just pretty much wing it. Many people with this disorder have shunts placed in their heads to drain the fluid off if medication doesn’t work. There are nutritional guidelines to help lower fluid (limit vitamin A, sodium, alcohol, lose weight, etc), but oftentimes even these guidelines don’t help (and again, it’s more of that whole “just winging it”). We’re all just playing it by ear and hoping for the best.

After nearly six months of trial and error with different medications, and a visit or two to the hospital, I finally found a cocktail that worked for me. This condition drained me dry of my energy, my personality, and my life. I pretty much missed the last half of 2014. There were weddings I didn’t get to attend, an entire summer with my children I felt I didn’t get to enjoy, and if it hadn’t been for Ryan moving out here right after I was diagnosed, I don’t know how I would have made it through the first few months – I wasn’t able to physically take care of myself for at least the first month (I know a lot of people remember “Zombie Hilary”).

Even after getting the right cocktail down, I was still very weak. My right arm had practically become nothing but a dangling limb sometimes due to a combination of medication and the disorder itself. I couldn’t do basic tasks on my own (Ryan helped me do my hair, cut food up for me, etc). I had no energy and I was tired all of the time.

And then at work, everyone got into a fitness kick and brought in Sean and Kendra from Freight House Fitness. I joined up with several other co-workers and have LOVED it. Along with completely overhauling my way of eating (saying goodbye to processed and fast foods and hello to more fresh, organic foods) and going to Freight House during my lunch hour I’m starting to feel healthier – and stronger! – with each passing day (and I’ve lost more than 15 pounds so far to boot!).

I don’t have full use of my arm back (but it’s pretty close!), I still get headaches (although rarely!), I’ve learned that I can’t sneeze with reckless abandon (CSF leak anyone?), the whooshing sound that I’ve had in my head since who-knows-when I now know is not something everyone has (it’s the sound of the extra fluid in my head), and I’ve gotten used to the cloudy brain fog that the pressure causes (not being able to remember simple things/names/words). I know a lot of fancy medical terms that I didn’t know a year ago. I have a condition that has a special awareness day and month and a fancy ribbon (and is a mouthful to say)…BUT…I still feel better than I have in a long time. And more importantly – right here, right now – I am SO HAPPY!

Ryan, my family and friends have been amazing and so supportive throughout this entire ordeal. I’m in several support groups for IIH and it saddens me how many people get no support from their loved ones and friends. It makes me feel very blessed and very lucky to be surrounded by this super awesome family (Ryan included!) and incredible friends. It’s been one heck of a long year. If someone had told me while I was mid-zombie mode last year that I would be feeling like I am today, I wouldn’t have believed it. One year down…now, about that cure…

I said hey, what’s going on

This is my first entry in four years…I have some catching up to do!

As I’ve mentioned, I have a rare neurological disorder known as intracranial hypertension. One of the many side effects that I’ve had to suffer was that I was slowly losing the use of my right arm. I was oftentimes unable to do simple tasks like brush my own hair, pour milk, even hold my purse or fairly light objects in my right hand. The strength in my hand would just give out and I would have to drop things I was holding. My arm was just too weak.

Being on large amounts of various medications also doesn’t help – I had had high blood pressure prior to my diagnosis, but the medications that I ended up on actually raised my blood pressure even more (typical blood pressure for me was well over 200) and I was prescribed a triad of high blood pressure meds that worked together to control it. On average, I was taking nearly 15-20 pills per day.

I knew that I had to do something about my health – I wasn’t gaining anymore, but I was holding steady right around 200 pounds and it wasn’t going anywhere. I had trouble getting from point A to point B because I was always so tired.

Ironically, what’s been my biggest motivator has been my workmates. I started a new job in March of this year. About a month later (right at two months ago!), everyone got into a health kick and they brought in trainers Sean and Kendra from Freight House Fitness to talk to us.

In a word, Sean and Kendra are awesome. I felt immediately relaxed and comfortable with them. They invited us to come and try their gym. Several of us did and still, two months later, an average group of about four to five of us still go every day. This kind of accountability is incredibly motivating and makes me want to go each day. I get in about two to three days each week.

Since starting my Freight House membership, I’ve lost over 16 pounds and have completely overhauled the way I look at food and my diet in general (sugar is almost cut out of my life now). That’s a whole separate post.

My arm feels almost normal (it’s not 100%, but pretty close). I’m down to three pills a day and my blood pressure has stayed in check. I did end up busting my knee falling out of a Bronco after my first week and that’s held me back a little bit, but it’s almost healed (man, knee injuries are the worst!)…but I’ve also started the Zombies Run 5K program with my daughter (which has been a blast!).

So, that’s my “in a nutshell” update – more to come!