No Weapon Formed Against Me...

I have seen the verse from Isaiah 54:17 that is the title of this blog many, many times. Even though I consider the book of Isaiah to be one of my favorite go to books, I never realized how much that verse "No weapon formed against you shall prosper" really meant to my life. It was about four years ago that I really started realizing something was wrong with me. I remember that the school year was over, and I had a lot of time on my hands but that I couldn't enjoy that time because I couldn't get off the couch for very long. I was so, so tired all of the time. It wasn't just a regular tired, it was a hit by a truck kind of tired and on most days there was no real reason for this! I remember telling my husband something just doesn't seem right. Then a couple of weeks after that I had my first episode in the middle of the night where I couldn't move my legs. Shortly after that we found out I had a small tumor on the base of my brain. We thought "ok, now we know" but little did we know that wasn't the root of the problem. It would take months, and many more appointments to find out that the real culprit was M.S. Fast forward four years, I just came in from a tough work out with my trainer, it was leg day and anyone who works out knows that leg day is the worst day! While I was struggling through a few of my reps at the end of the workout I was thinking about where I was four years ago and how I never imagined that I would be here, right now, not in the best shape by far, but in the best shape of my life. I often wonder about another saying that I hear pretty often, "God gives his toughest battles to his strongest soldiers". M.S. is certainly a battle, I don't know without this diagnosis if I would have pushed myself to run a 5k nearly every weekend, or to run another half marathon this year, or to do zumba like a maniac, or even to put myself through the pain and torture of working out with my trainer! I was doing some reps with the sled today along side some high school volleyball girls. We were all struggling a little bit and while they were starting to get a little silly I realized they are there because they are young and they are trying to get better at their sport, I am there because...I chose to be...because I can't stand the thought of ever going back to the place that I was four years ago...because I want to inspire others to never give up. I know that I am blessed, I thank God many times a day for where I am. I still have bad days, don't get me wrong, but right now I am beating the odds!

It's been awhile...you know what that means!

Wow, it certainly has been a while since my last post. Those of you who have followed me since the inception of this blog know that when it has been a while my health is good. Since my health has been so great, I have been super busy with workouts and running. Now that basketball season is over and I have a few weeks to myself I have really tried to amp it up. I met with my MS specialist about a month ago and he was amazed at the progress I have made since my diagnosis three and a half years ago. He actually showed me a chart that is supposed to be a good predictor of mobility later in the disease. Based on where I am now he feels that my good mobility will continue. He attributes this to a combination of the right medication, my fitness level, and cleaner eating habits. When I began this journey three and a half years ago I was taking around 12 pills a day. I am down to three! We all know that MS hits everyone differently so I am not saying that if you have MS and you do what I am doing you too will have the same results. What I am saying is that there is power in positive thinking. I decided when I started running again a year and a half ago that I was going to do this when I felt good and not feel guilty when I didn't. I have way more good days than bad! I went through the calendar and added up that I competed in 25 5K's last year and a half marathon. I plan to do just as many 5K's this year and TWO half marathons. My running buddy and I are both super busy with our day jobs and our kids so we have started getting a mile in while our students are at lunch and then getting the rest of our runs in at night. I also do Zumba two to three times a week. Anyone who has ever told you that Zumba is just a bunch of people dancing around has clearly never been. It is a FULL BODY workout, but it is so awesome and empowering. I can only thank God for the strength and energy to work and be fit. This definitely didn't seem like the hand I would be holding when the doctor said "You have M.S." I'll try hard to do better at updating but the weather is getting good, so you know... no news is good news!