The bloody toe

So the sore throat is all but a memory.  Although, singing to some Jackson Browne in the truck, this morning- it’s evident that I’m not back to full on that front.  My body feels tired, asthma is a breath away, runny nose in the morning…lots of mucus.  Other than that, I’m in a much better place, now that I can eat, speak and sing without major pain in my throat.  I’m not quite to the point that I can exercise without a problem…and Wasatch Back is only a few days away.

Starting around last Saturday (so about 8 days ago), my throat was so sore that I went to an urgent care on Sunday.  I was prescribed a ZPAK, which is an antibiotic.  After three days, it didn’t seem to be helping, so I went to another doctor and was prescribed amoxicillin and Magic Mouthwash.  MM was supposed to numb my throat (which it did) and the amoxicillion was a stronger antibiotic.

Finally, a week later I am not hurting so bad.  In fact, I’m almost better, throat-wise.  But now I feel like I have a cold or something.  Tired, asthma, morning sniffles, etc.  Just a heath update, is all.

Today, I woke up, feeling pretty congested (I still am), but definitely better.  My asthma was pretty strong last night, but I only had to take my Pro-air inhaler two times in the middle of it (compared to 5-6, a few nights ago).  So I think that I’m getting better.  This is the first time that I’ve actually tried to keep a journal of how my astham/cold/sickness bout has gone.  I’m hoping that if I can do this for a few more years, I’ll have a better understanding of why it happens (is it seasonal?  weather-related?  etc?)

But in the meantime, this also marks the first year, that I’ve exercised through my asthma and colds.  Pretty cool.  I didn’t die.  Apparently, I can keep exercising and won’t end up in the hospital.  This is somewhat revealing.  It would have been a better test if I didn’t have shin problems.  I would have run a lot more through the illness.

So since I’ve been keeping track of my illness, I’m impressed by two things:  1.  I’ve been able to run a few times, though some very tricky asthma problems.  2.  I have been sick for over two weeks.  This, however, I think is typical for me.  My asthma goes through some crazy cycles and appears to be seasonal.  It will go away, eventually.  It always does, every year.

So the difference is:  I haven’t gone to the doctor for it, this time, and I’ve been running, even when it feels difficult to do so.

But I have an appointment scheduled with the much hailed Dr. Toronto for early next month.

Did anyone catch that my post’s title would make a good Facebook status update?

So tomorrow is the second race in the Winter Series races.  It’s a 10K.  In two weeks, the final race will be a 15K.  I’m sort of taking a chance, here.  I’ve (and this is going to sound strange to some) always wanted to run a race, sick.  Part of running, for me, is to challenge my body to do things it’s never done.  I’ve heard about people who race sick and have always marveled that someone would put themself through it.

I am currently dealing with a series of things that should make tomorrow challenging.  My left shin, which I’ve waxed eloquent about for a few weeks, my right knee and its IT Band issues, my asthma has been very strong for a month (inversion), and finally, I’m all stuffed up and feel like I have a cold/allergies.  So it’ll be interesting to see what I can accomplish in this state.  I’m no hero, folks.  I just play one on the street.

This might be a good time to mention that, now that’s it’s 1:17 AM, today is Valentine’s Day.  I’m so thankful to have a wife who supports me in my running.  There are not many women who can handle someone who keeps so many hobbies and extra-curricular activities.  Wendy has been a great supporter of my sport, ever since we married in 2001.  Thanks Wendy, and I love you.  Happy Valentine’s Day!

And Happy Valentine’s day, everyone!