|
Long ago, in my twenties, when I worked at Children’s Medical Center of Dallas and was perhaps a bit unappreciative of my health, I got very sick. I experienced something undoubtedly real but in the end, never definitively diagnosed. Over the course of almost 10 months, I experienced extreme fatigue, achiness and a daily low grade fever (100-101degrees). What started as a severe bronchial infection morphed into a prolonged illness that made a notable impact on my life. I was evaluated by many, including an internist, pulmonologist and an infectious disease specialist (I got some very interesting questions at that visit!). Nobody really knew what to do for me and I felt increasingly discouraged. I’m quite sure I would have been labeled a “psych case” towards the end, if it had not been for the well documented red flag – fever. They questioned Chronic Fatigue Syndrome in the end.., but this diagnosis had little credibility back then.
Actually, I think I could have accepted the fever but not the impact it had on my daily life. By five pm every day, I was either in tears or in bed. I quickly discovered food gave me a temporary boost of energy, so I ate more junk in essence to medicate myself and felt way too tired to do my regular exercise! This, as you know, is not a recipe for improved health. I read some random information on Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and some anecdotal reports that exercise improved the symptoms.
Meanwhile, as a level of acceptance settled in, I hesitantly accepted an invitation to hike the Grand Canyon- remembering the positive aspects of being outdoors and being active. Well, if you’re not familiar, let me just tell you-the Grand Canyon is quite GRAND-not only in beauty but in its depth, height and overall expansion! We hiked down (don’t let “down” fool you) a total of 8 hours on the first day. Each of us carried a back pack packed for a three day hike down, across and up the GRAND ole canyon! About half way down, I felt like my airway was closing and wished I had a bronchodilator. I was able to recover and continue down (okay, I know this could have been a very bad decision but give me a break I was in my twenties).
We finally made it to the bottom of the canyon after dark. We set up a tent and slept under the moon and stars. I slept hard that night! The next morning I woke, crawled from the tent and looked up-and I mean way up. Very much in awe, my initial thoughts were of how I might secure a helicopter ride out of the large, albeit beautiful, hole I had just climbed into.
Our second day was used to travel across the canyon and the last day we hiked straight up! Anyway, the trip was exhausting in many ways for me, but overall a fabulous life changing experience. When I got home, I “made myself” workout. I remember having to internally coach myself during the early stages of exercising again because I still battled significant fatigue. “Now listen,” I recall saying to myself “If you can hike down, across, and up the Grand Canyon you sure as heck can do thirty on the Stairmaster! Just put one foot in front of the other!”
It wasn’t easy, but I climbed myself out of more than one hole on my trip to the Grand Canyon! I am convinced that taking charge of my health, exercising and revamping my eating patterns, assuring adequate but not too much sleep-doing my body good, made me well. To any skeptics out there-beware.
Memories of this time in my life rear up sometimes and remind me of the importance of my health and really how much my choices impact how I feel every day. I share this "not so short story" with you, so that you might be encouraged to take charge of your health today, before one of life lessons places you in the depths of a canyon yearning for a helicopter!
(What’s your story?)
Leigh
|
Comments