My Tumultuous Thirties

STROKE

My thirties started out good. I got married when I was 30; had my first child when I was 32. That was the end of the normalcy. About 9 months after the birth of my daughter I had a massive ischemic stroke; I was 32. I was home with my family and even though I had taught heart disease and stroke to women in the community, I had no idea I was having a stroke. I had a severe case of the stomach flu, both of my legs were cramping from dehydration (quads and hamstrings at the same time, in both legs). Then I knew I was going to pass out; I laid down; when I woke up; I couldn’t see, walk, talk, or move correctly. We called a family member to take me to the hospital because my now ex-husband and daughter were sick with the stomach flu as well.

I knew what was happening around me, but I couldn’t tell people what was happening with me because no one understood me; and it didn’t make sense to me in the least. (I understood everything perfectly fine.) All I knew is that they thought I was on drugs, and tested me as such for three days. Finally, when all of the tests came back negative (as I knew they would), they looked for other things, and realized what really happened.

I was in the hospital and rehabilitation for a quit some time. I had to learn all of my skills again. I even had a speech accent for four years — I told people I was from Iceland; I went so far as to try to learn the language and learn everything I could about the country. (I don’t have it anymore, and I don’t know where it came from.) It took time, but I slowly learned how to do everything again.

Doctors weren’t able to determine the source of my stroke, but I worked hard, cried a lot, and determined that I wasn’t going to be a victim. I was going to do everything in my power to be a whole as I could be. This made me even mentally stronger than I was before.

EMERGENCY SURGERY

Because I was so determined, I had a full recovery and doctors allowed me to get pregnant again, to which I gave birth to my second, and last child when I was 36. This time, I didn’t have a stroke when he was less than a year old; instead, I had emergency, life-saving surgery a few months after his second birthday. I had been sick for four days, and couldn’t eat or go to the bathroom. I couldn’t keep anything in my body. When I finally went to the emergency department, they determined I did have an obstruction the size of my fist, but so much more. I went into surgery in the early hours of the morning. When I emerged from the operating room, I had a few inches removed of my intestines, and it was determined that I had been born with Meckel’s diverticulum (only occurring in 2 - 3% of the population - more common in males), but shouldn’t have anymore problems in that area of my intestines.

Needless to say, my 30’s were medically rough. I wasn’t unhealthy per say, but my body had been through the ringer. I wanted and needed a change. So like my medical history, I decided to go big.

Beginning in Triathlons

 My first triathlon was schedule to be at the end of summer in 2018, but I wasn’t really into training for it, and I injured my calf running in the middle of summer, and I didn’t have the desire to really work for it. I wasn’t swimming much; I didn’t like it, and I really didn’t know how to swim freestyle. I could ride my bike, but not like I used to. I just didn’t have the competitive spirit I once did.

That off-season, a lot happened, including ending a abusive marriage. I knew I had to look into myself and decide what I wanted out of life to be able to find happiness for myself and my children. I decided that I was going to not just workout; but workout with purpose. Find something that I could continue to do as I aged; that took mental AND physical requirements; and would allow me push me to myself. I decided that since I hadn’t completed the triathlon and there were three sports, one of which I was scared to really to succumb to; that was what I was going to focus on. So I put myself into training. I already had a really nice road bike from a previous life in my 20’s. The rest I knew I could pull off with determination, grit, and sweat. So that’s what I did.

What I’ve Gained

I did six triathlons my first year, not doing very well in any of them. But I was hooked. I knew going into the off-season that year, I was going to change everything I did, and the 2020 season was going to be big for me. From how many races I did to training to my entire outlook on life. And then, well Covid. I started the season strong, Covid hit, I became injured with a plantar fasciitis, that got really bad - almost surgery bad, and well, races and then training went to crap. By the end of the year, I rehabbed, and got back to training, slowly though.

I love triathlon — but it’s more than that. Triathlon is so much more. I want everything for everyone; and now I feel I can do that. I feel invisible. I’m always asking: How can I better myself? How can I better my children? How can I better those around me? How can I better to people I haven’t met? It’s endless, and it’s only the beginning of my journey.