19 Months Later…Trail of this Beautiful Life

Hi everyone!
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I wanted to share a beautiful milestone I had over the weekend. See those trees and that absolute beauty of a scene?

I ran and ENJOYED being out there.  It was a really happy moment for me because a year ago my eyes wouldn’t have been able to focus on trees.  I felt disconnected from my body, stumbling through this thing, and sinking in anxiety…and I wouldn’t have dreamed of running that stretch.

I’m 19 months in with my vestibular disorder and the last week has been the best since it all hit.  By that I mean that my symptoms were so minimal that I almost didn’t notice them, running on adrenaline, and just ecstatic to experience the world “normally” again.  I felt 95% better (which I know means nothing to most, as of course we’re all different with what it means to feel good). I’m well aware that my symptoms can change moment to moment, and a week from now I could be in a worse place, but that’s ok. I’ve gotten this far and I’ll continue to fight forward.

When it all hit suddenly at the end of 2016…vertigo and then I was left with a world of horrible symptoms that I knew nothing about, connecting with others provided insight, hope and relief. I wasn’t alone!

Each day I work to move forward, with the most important piece being that I’m living.

Life is not on hold.

I started doing yoga and other workouts again in March and plan to slowly find my way back on the trails running that I love so much. I eat healthy (plant-based diet and recently cut out sugar, but that’s another post), work with a holistic doctor, go to work, and I’m a mom of young children (my two amazing boys). Over the last 19 months living has sometimes meant just going through the motions, but over time that changed to enjoying this beautiful life again.

If you’re going through something, keep going, ok? If it’s consuming every second of your life, spend a few minutes thinking about it, cry if you need to, but then move forward. It’s easier said than done, believe me, I know.  But it has made such a difference in my life.  I never could have predicted how a vestibular dysfunction would change my world, but I’m more me from going through this experience than I’ve ever been and I’m excited to keep running forward.

I hope you all find something to smile about today!
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How are you?

{note: For any of you that may suffer from vestibular neuritis, vestibular migraines, or some sort of vestibular disorder, please know there is help out there.  You can always message me and I’d be happy to guide you to resources and talk to you about what has helped me.}