I know it has been nearly two years since I've written and a lot has happened over that time. I wish I could say that I've been basking in the post-Olympic glow but unfortunately that hasn't been the case. I'm actually drafting this blog entry up with a bit of post-surgery glow (thank you morphine)! I just had a total thyroidectomy and am recovering but the path to today has been a challenge for me so I'll rewind just a bit.
After the Olympics, I took time off to recover physically and psychologically. Fortunately, my desire and drive came back after a bit and I started running and enjoying it again. But it didn't take long for me to notice that I wasn't quite myself. I thought perhaps I was still burnt out so I trained at more moderate intensities and volume to let my body ease into things. Things would look up and I would have great training sessions and then, inevitably, I would go on runs that felt like I was running through lava. Of course, I didn't think to look into to a broader reason than I was probably washed up, too old, or just unmotivated. In July 2013, things came to a head when upon my return to Athens after a great training camp in Karpenisi my legs start burning. Literally feeling like they are getting cooked from the inside out! Well, that led me to seriously look into what I thought was just a borderline hyperthyroidism that first gave me heart palpitations and other symptoms in 2011. Overtime things worsened and a myopathic condition developed that has prevented me from running for the past 5 months.
After a series of blood tests, ultrasounds, biopsies, and a radioactive scan over the course of the last 10 months, here I am recovering at Stanford Hospital having gotten rid of a multinodular goiter and a "hot" nodule (no I didn't look like a supermodel while I had it).
Before I move on, I have to send many, many thanks to many, many people and not in order of appearance. First, I would like to say thank you to my surgeon, Dr. Holsinger, and really every last person I've come into contact with at Stanford Hospital & Clinics, for treating me like royalty from my very first office visit just last week (although I am sure everyone is privy to the customer service fit for a queen). The wound is still fresh but I can talk (vocal cords can sometimes be affected) and I can still move my muscles (parathyroid glands responsible for regulating your calcium levels also require quite a bit of finesse) so the surgery was definitely a success! Thank you to Adrianna El Calamawy (Stanford) and Dr. Weiss (The Village Doctor, Woodside) for all of your time and efforts in making this happen in record time. Thank you to Dr. Jeffrey Brown in Houston, my endocrinologist who spearheaded the effort in diagnosing the problem and was always available for me even two time zones a part! And to my family who is always by my side and my nephews who make me see the world through the eyes of children - which we should all do every so often.
I notice that this entry is already quite long (I'm going to blame it on the morphine) so please read Perspective: Part 2 when you have time and desire to find out what I learned from all this.
After the Olympics, I took time off to recover physically and psychologically. Fortunately, my desire and drive came back after a bit and I started running and enjoying it again. But it didn't take long for me to notice that I wasn't quite myself. I thought perhaps I was still burnt out so I trained at more moderate intensities and volume to let my body ease into things. Things would look up and I would have great training sessions and then, inevitably, I would go on runs that felt like I was running through lava. Of course, I didn't think to look into to a broader reason than I was probably washed up, too old, or just unmotivated. In July 2013, things came to a head when upon my return to Athens after a great training camp in Karpenisi my legs start burning. Literally feeling like they are getting cooked from the inside out! Well, that led me to seriously look into what I thought was just a borderline hyperthyroidism that first gave me heart palpitations and other symptoms in 2011. Overtime things worsened and a myopathic condition developed that has prevented me from running for the past 5 months.
After a series of blood tests, ultrasounds, biopsies, and a radioactive scan over the course of the last 10 months, here I am recovering at Stanford Hospital having gotten rid of a multinodular goiter and a "hot" nodule (no I didn't look like a supermodel while I had it).
Before I move on, I have to send many, many thanks to many, many people and not in order of appearance. First, I would like to say thank you to my surgeon, Dr. Holsinger, and really every last person I've come into contact with at Stanford Hospital & Clinics, for treating me like royalty from my very first office visit just last week (although I am sure everyone is privy to the customer service fit for a queen). The wound is still fresh but I can talk (vocal cords can sometimes be affected) and I can still move my muscles (parathyroid glands responsible for regulating your calcium levels also require quite a bit of finesse) so the surgery was definitely a success! Thank you to Adrianna El Calamawy (Stanford) and Dr. Weiss (The Village Doctor, Woodside) for all of your time and efforts in making this happen in record time. Thank you to Dr. Jeffrey Brown in Houston, my endocrinologist who spearheaded the effort in diagnosing the problem and was always available for me even two time zones a part! And to my family who is always by my side and my nephews who make me see the world through the eyes of children - which we should all do every so often.
I notice that this entry is already quite long (I'm going to blame it on the morphine) so please read Perspective: Part 2 when you have time and desire to find out what I learned from all this.
Tina I wish you all the best as you recover. Big hugs!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Deva!!
ReplyDeleteWell, off to read Part 2, but all of this feels very real to me. My mom had a thyroidectomy last year (thyroid cancer) and while very scary and daunting going in, she has come out of it doing really well. It's a remarkably fast recovery, just now need to focus on getting your med level right. :) xo
ReplyDeleteJacque, thank you so much for your comforting words of experience and the normalcy that lies ahead! I hope you enjoyed part 2 as well!
ReplyDelete