on ultras and tonsillectomies

goodbye, tonsils!

i’m still in the process of trying to thank all who offered their encouraging words, positive vibes and pep talks before, during, and after the san francisco 1 day. the outpour of emails, “real-time” messages submitted via the form on the race website, voice messages, text messages, all the hugs and high-fives… it all meant so much more to me than any feeble attempt to express my gratitute through use of our limited means of communication could convey.

it would have been all too easy for me to label the entire endeavor a “failure”, since I did not stay at it for the entire 24 hours (i sucumbed after 19 hours) and ended up way short of my expectations by logging a meager 57.6 miles. thanks for helping reframe that, allowing myself to break free from the tangled web of my impaired judgement.

on a different subject, (it’s been an action-packed past 10 days!), i had surgery to remove my tonsils 5 days ago and am immensely glad that the doctor (and pretty much everyone i talked to prior to surgery) gave me an overly bleak picture of what the next couple of weeks would look like. equipped with advice to arrange for two weeks off work, a prescription for heavy narcotics with 3(!) refills, and a sentence of “two weeks of no driving”. i was mentally ready for the most miserable two weeks until i could begin to feel like myself again. (the consensus is that it is a fairly quick and painless recovery for children, but very painful and at a higher risk of bleeding on adult patients).

i was on the pain medication for exactly 2 and a half days, and had two very productive days at work yesterday and today. i did yoga and calisthenics this morning and plan to go on an easy run tomorrow. i’m back to my awfully bizarre eating habits and now my fridge is stocked with 2 weeks worth of jello and apple sauce that will most likely end up going to waste. (hey, if you’re local and would like an ample flavor spectrum of free jello 100 calorie packs you’re welcome to have them!)

the only positive account of someone who has had a tonsillectomy as an adult came from my ultra-running buddy Pete, and it suddenly made sense to me during my drive from work this afternoon: it is a much valid argument that it is rather hard to assimilate the fact we eagerly PAY to run an ultra in full awareness that we will experience long, miserable hours of pain and agony, and then spend a great deal of time (and more money) planning for the opportunity do it again.

Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2016