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Just in time

I’ve broken my record for length between posts, I think. Which must mean my life is finally getting back on track (insanely busy)!

It’s been just over a month now since “the surgery”, and I’m finally almost back to normal. I’m done dressing changes, and although there is still some healing needing to be done- I’m pretty much able to forget about it and just let it happen. Which is good, because that means I can ride! Yesterday was my first real ride back since surgery, and I haven’t been that happy in a long time! Willard has been moved to McMullans for the week as we’re planning on going to Fall Harvest this weekend. Yes, a show right after a month off- an excellent plan, isn’t it? Any other year I might not have felt comfortable doing this, but this year I have complete faith in my horse and our ability that this shouldn’t be too much of a problem. And here is where I need to say a HUGE thank you to my friend and fellow rider Laura Clark, who rides at Bluebear and also hails from Carman. She has been coming and hacking Willard for me over the past month and after riding him tonight in the ring I was so happy to find he was moving beautifully and so willing to do lateral work. Like I never got off! I knew he would be in good  hands with her. So, Laura if you read this, thank you thank you thank you!  It’s great to know my horse is in relative condition even when I’ve been unable to ride for a while.

I rode for about an hour and a half yesterday, and an hour today- I just couldn’t bring myself to get off. Even though my body has gotten a little too used to the easy life. I’ve been slowly trying to add things to my schedule, like work outs and now riding, plus work- and soon school again. 2 months ago it was easy to do all of those things in one day and still have energy at the end of the day. Now, it’s a little more challenging. I’m still trying to find the energy I used to have. I’m sure it will come back, I’m not really giving it a choice. Hopefully over the next couple weeks, as my schedule starts to pick up again I will feel back to normal. School is only a couple weeks away!!! I can’t believe how excited I am! Before I started this post I had my nose stuck in one of my texts already. Wonder how long this will last? Haha

My class schedule is pretty full. Actually, it is completely full. I have 10 courses, my 5 for the fall are: Nutrition, Biomechanics, Data Analysis, Anatomy and Physiology, and Scientific Principles of Fitness and Conditioning. Following those, with my AP running all year, are: Intro Kinesiology, Research Methods, Prevention and Care of Injuries, and Psych in Sport and Life. It’s definitely going to be a challenging year, to say the least. To add onto my school schedule, I plan on riding and working as well. Although fall has some of my tougher courses, I think it will be the easier term, schedule wise as most days all my classes are in the afternoons- so I’ll have most mornings and evenings free to work and ride and study. The winter term things get a little crazier with courses spanning from late morning to evening classes plus a Saturday class- which means I’ll be in school 6 days a week. Unfortunately this was the only way I could schedule things so I got into all my classes and labs, so it will have to do! The past week or so has been a flurry of me organizing text books, gym memberships, locker rentals, and everything in between. Thankfully most of that is done now and I can focus on Fall Harvest, and then finish moving things to the city and settle in there. As much as I’ve been pretty stressed lately, it’s all for the right reasons and I’m very excited to face the challenges that come up this year in school. I proved to myself in Anatomy this spring that I can get decent grades if I work hard at it, so I hope I can continue proving that to myself in the future. That B was definitely not easy for me, but it was such an accomplishment when I got it! I still stop and wonder sometimes why I chose this path. What is someone who has always drifted towards arts and never did well in sciences doing in a Bachelor of Science degree in one of the most challenging specialities?! At the same time, I can’t see myself doing anything else. And the more I talk to other people in the profession, the more I fall in love with it.

That’s all I’ve got for now, I’m exhausted! Here are a couple pictures from my ride on Sunday- and I hope I write again soon! There will definitely be a Fall Harvest update!

MS River Rouge cruise!

Roomies!

Diamond- 60 years

 

It was my gorgeous grandparents 60th Anniversary last weekend, and so we celebrated this weekend with friends and family. I could not have been more blessed with the family I have, and am so inspired by my grandparents. They are two amazing people and not one day goes by where I’m not grateful for them. All they’ve accomplished in their lifetime is truly inspiring and makes me proud to be part of their story. Here are some shots from Saturday’s party!

Betty, Vic, and Grandpa

Betty and Vic

Uncle Lyle and Grandpa

Lyle and Terry

Grandpa and Summer

Grandpa and yours truly

Momma and I

Jane, Allyson, Mom!

Jane and Kathy

Darryl, Allyson, and Summer

Grandpa and Grandma!

Watching the slideshow.

Lyle, Grandpa, Grandma, Mom, and Darryl

All of us!

I could write forever on how great these people are, and how much they mean to me. But I think you can see within these pictures what a happy, loving group of people this is. Some of my favourite memories stem from time spent around them, and I draw a lot of what keeps me going from them. I was so glad to see everyone happy and healthy this weekend, and I hope there are many more like it!

The love of a family is life’s greatest blessing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Quality Control

Ever had those days where the universe seems determined to bring you down, no matter what you do? Emotional roller coster, you could call it. I’ve had a few of those lately, and it’s all I can do usually to remind myself of all I have to be grateful for in my life. It’s been a amusement park of a year for me, so far, and if I remember correctly last fall I was going through an equally rough time in my first couple months over seas and really could not see how any part of it was going to get better soon. But it did. By the time I got back to Canada six months later I had experienced so many ups and downs and turnarounds that I was able to hit the ground running almost as soon as I got off the plane. Since then I’ve been going full speed ahead. Lately I’ve been forced to slow down again and one might say I’m not handling it well. Which when I think about it, is not something that should bother me as much as it does. This time I’m spending in recovery is really not going to have that much long term effects on my life after its over. In a few months time I doubt I’ll even think about it much. I probably won’t even have a hugely visible scar. I guess the worst part about this recovery time is that I have too much time to ponder about this, that, and the other things. My friend, who coincidentally just returned from her own NZ adventure, expressed having the same problem of having too much thinking time while she is home a lot of the day and still searching for employment since her return. This can be good, or it can be bad. Right now it’s the latter, through no fault but my own. I get easily frustrated when it comes to my body. And lately, it’s given me plenty of opportunities to become more frustrated. I never really wanted this surgery, however minor. But, it was the best option- I think.  I knew recovery was going to be hard for me, but somehow I underestimated how hard. Past that, I’m still struggling with hip, back, and shoulder problems that seem to linger no matter what I do to remedy them. Right now, they are worse then usual- because  my regular stretching and exercises are impossible due to recovery. If you have read my posts over the past year you’ll know that this has also been similar to a theme park ride, one second these injuries are getting better and we’ve found something that helps long term- and then it’s all flipped again. It’s easy to see how if one thinks about stuff like this for too long, it would lead to frustration and a less then ideal mind set.

What should I be thinking about? I have lots to be thankful for in my life. Parents who support me, wonderful friends, family, and coaches, an amazing horse, overall great health, the opportunity to get an education in a career path I love, and so much else. I’ve had the chance to travel and do things many people my age haven’t. I have so much to look forward to. It’s hard to see through the bad when it’s physically all you can feel. Perspective is what it comes down to. And after the day I had today, I’m realizing I need to check mine. After all, am I really complaining about having time to be lazy and relax during the summer? Who does that?! All that negative stuff in my life is going to be there after I’m recovered. And I’ll be in a much better place to handle it later on, probably. It’s too easy to get stuck in a dark place. I’ve done it too many times already. I don’t often get a chance to slow down with my schedule. I shouldn’t be spending it being grumpy and wishing it was a different way. It’s out of my control, and I can’t change it now. All I can do is make the best of what it is, and remind myself of all the good things.

The happiness of your life depends on the quality of your thoughts.

 

 

 

Relax?

If you have me on Facebook, you will know that I’ve had a rough week.. and me and this whole “laying low, recovery, not doing much”, is absolutely driving me nuts. Surgery itself I’m sure went smoothly, however we learned that anesthetic and me don’t mix well..at all- and morphine does not work on me (unless maintaining the pain but crashing my stats is the plan). The first couple days after surgery were easy because I slept for approximately 20 hours a day. By Sunday I had stopped taking pain medication, more because I hate pain meds and less because the pain was manageable. On Monday I had an MRI for my back and hip, which was probably the most painful experience of my life- as I had to lay on my back where I still have stitches- for 40 minutes and try and stay perfectly still. About 10 minutes in I started praying I would pass out. I didn’t, of course. By Tuesday it physically hurt to lay in any position. Not because of the incision site, but because I’d been laying still for so long my body was protesting. By Wednesday I was up the wall with boredom. I love reading, but I can only read so many books before I completely lose all concentration. I hit that point by the third day into recovery. In 7 days, I’ve gone through 6 good size books. I’ve probably watched more TV in the past week then I have in the past 5 years, and I’m even sick of napping. How is that possible?! Going from being so busy I don’t know what day it is to not knowing what day it is due to lack of a life is quite the transition. But I know its for the best. Proof of that came on Monday after my MRI, I couldn’t function. The whole 3 hours I spent away from the house completely wore me out, granted I was in horrible pain for part of the day. Tuesday I spent around the house, and it was my registration time in the afternoon- and after fighting with scheduling for 2 hours- I was really not feeling good. Seriously, if I did anything but stay still I got dizzy, and nauseous. Thankfully by Thursday I started feeling better. This weekend I spent at Lake of the Prairies, doing some fishing and a lot more reading. Tomorrow, finally, I get my stitches out. And this week is starting to look a bit like my old schedule. Which I am ever so grateful for. I’m not sure I could handle much more laying around the house.

As I mentioned earlier, I am finally all registered for classes this fall and winter.  And I did achieve a B in my anatomy class (!!!)- thank heavens, I wasn’t sure where I was going to fit it in if I needed to retake it. My schedule is pretty packed full. In the winter semester I’ll be in classes 6 days a week. Not really surprising, though, knowing me. This week I start back at work, which will hopefully take my mind off of not riding. I figured that I would be able to handle the riding withdrawal as I spent 4 months earlier this year doing just that- not riding, by choice.  But I forgot how hard it is. It was equally as hard back then too. Hopefully it won’t be 4 months before I’m in the saddle again. I caught myself getting teary watching people ride horses on a tv show the other day. Really. Also going through some serious exercise withdrawal. At least last time I took a break from riding I could do other things to keep active. Right now though, I can’t even stretch my lower body. Which does not feel good. Actually, my SI joint has been decent this week. Probably because I haven’t been riding. The real problem is my hip, and glutes. They are very hard to stretch when I can’t lay on my back and I’m laying on my stomach all the time. So very excited for when it doesn’t hurt to lay flat anymore! Soon, soon. I’m realizing that I apparently only have patience when working with horses, or coaching. In all other aspects of my life.. not so much.

 

Beachy Keen

*insert usual line about being busy, time flying, etc..

Legit had to go back and read my last post to remember what it was I last wrote about! But here we are, two weeks have flown by. Last time I was writing about studying for exams while and a show and stressing over course schedules for fall, and fitting in as much physical activity as humanly possible before surgery. Exams are done, so are shows for the time being (not for long if I can help it), courses are planned, and ready for me to register- fingers crossed that I get into the sections I want, and surgery is less than 12 hours away.

Lets start with exams. Because it’s probably the most exciting part, for me anyway! I still don’t know my overall mark for the course- but I do know my exam marks, both bell ringer and written. As you may recall I was a bit worried about the bell ringer, and my instincts were right on that. I got a 35.5/60 which is a 59%. I was still above my class’ average, which was 32. The exciting part is the written. I scored a 138/170 (81%!!!), well above average, which was 108/170. I quadruple checked to make sure I was reading the right line of scores, because it’d be embarrassing if that wasn’t actually mine. But it is! Yay! We know where my test writing skills lie! I also did very well on the last quiz, which is how I felt afterwards. So hopefully between all that I get over a B in the course!

Next up was Beach Party horse show. After a very rushed day of pre ops in Winkler, where I was told I was disgustingly healthy (by my own mother, lol), we headed straight for warm ups at the ex grounds. It was hot, and the ground was hard. But my horse mustered up enough energy to be a star- all weekend! Each one of our courses went great. Of course a few mistakes, horse and rider, here and there- but over all I could not have asked for a better show. Again it comes back to both our confidence, and therefore ability improving and things really starting to come together. The highlight for me would have to  be placing 2nd in my Medal class on Sunday. Medal classes are equitation classes and have one round over fences and a flat class judged mainly on the rider. I’m pretty sure this is the highest I’ve ever placed in a medal class, which was a huge boost for me and proof of how far I’ve come over the past couple years. It was so great to be able to go around courses this weekend and know that my horse was there with me, taking me to the jumps. Both our instincts have made leaps and bounds over the past year. He trusts mine, and I trust his. Of course my eye isn’t perfect yet, so we still find some awkward spots. But we’re consistently getting beautiful distances, and staying on a nice rhythm around the course. We’ve turned into a real team this year, and its great to finally be seeing some solid progress.

After the long hot weekend, you’d think the last thing I’d want to be doing is any sort of exercise. WRONG! I crammed in as much as I possibly could this week. Monday was kick boxing, Tuesday was one on one volleyball, and today was tennis. My shoulder and back aren’t quite pleased with this. But it was so worth it, even in the heat. Of course I rode yesterday and today as well, and I’ve found a wonderful young up and coming rider who has agreed to hack Willard for me during my time off. Which will make my goal of being ready for Fall Harvest in late August very plausible.

Tomorrow is surgery, and I opted for general anesthetic instead of the spinal option. Because frankly I don’t want anybody going near my spinal cord with any sort of needle and I hate the idea of A) being awake for the surgery, and B) not being able to feel half my body. Crossing my fingers they stitch it, because that makes recovery much quicker and easier. Overall just not thinking about it because it’s out of my control anyway. Not excited at all for t3’s, as I really do not like pain killers in any form- but I’m sure that will change once I want sleep. I’m well stocked up on books and work to entertain myself, and already have a busy month ahead of me. Looking at my calendar it would not appear that I’m having surgery the way it’s scheduled. But, that’s the way I like it, right?

Here is some video of my rounds over the weekend!

Intro to Summer

As usual the past few weeks have been a blur. Between studying for exams, showing, working, and finally writing exams- I’m now realizing I feel quite lost not having anything to study for.. until September anyway. I’ve filled that gap by trying to plan out my courses for next year. A task that is actually impossible, seeing as I’ve been given a VERY late registration date because somebody in the office screwed up and lost my paperwork along the way, so most of the sections I’m hoping to get into will most likely be full by the time I register, which means I’ll be rearranging this schedule a thousand times over no doubt. Luckily, I have a friend on the inside (my AT) who is always there to help pick the right courses and answer any questions! Can we say hero?

As you may recall, I was at Summer Smiles horse show over the past weekend, and it was definitely summery and full of smiles! I got into Winnipeg from Regina at 8am (getting up at 3:30am was really fun), and made a fast transition from half asleep, grody commuter to semi-awake student and managed to get to the University by 9am to catch my last review lab. After that I had a quick study date at Olive Garden with my favourite study buddy Michelle, and then squeezed in a quick nap before heading out to BHP for warm ups. Because my mom is awesome, my horse was already there and all I had to do was check in at the show office, put numbers on tack, and head out to the ring. Will was a star, very concurrent to how he’s been all spring. So after going over a few jumps, having pizza with Mike and Charlene and a few others from the barn, braiding, and making sure everything was good to go for the morning- I made it back to my apartment, only almost falling asleep on the way back to the city a couple times. Back at the park for Day 1 by 7:30, I quickly realized that Mr. Willard had waaaaay too much energy for the hunter ring, or any ring. So, since I had hours to spare, I set about working his energy levels down. Generally I’ll hack for about half an hour on show mornings. I spent an hour and a half on him that morning, and believe me- one of us was worn out. Nevertheless, it was the right choice- as he was perfect for all our rounds that day! We won our 2’9″ Jr/Amateur class, and placed top 5 in all our Sr. Low rounds. Mike summed it up perfectly later that day by saying “you have to do what’s necessary to be successful”, so if that means spending almost two hours hacking- it’s worth it. My original plan for this weekend was to spend the extra time I always have at shows studying and reviewing for exams. I have no idea why I thought that was going to work. I really tried hard on Saturday to focus on studying, but when I’m in horse show mode- trying to memorize the origin, insertion, actions, and innervation of the pectineus muscle just doesn’t work out. Plus I was extremely tired. So I decided to give up on the day time studying, and focus on studying after the show day was over. Again, why would I think that would work? By the time I got back to my place at 7:30pm, I sat down to study and woke up an hour later with metal ring imprints across my cheek from passing out across my notebook. After that I decided I should maybe just go to bed, at 8pm. That 14 hrs of sleep was worth it though, Sunday was another great day, without excess energy thankfully. We pulled off a reserve champion in the Jr/Amateur Division, and again top 5 placings in the 3ft classes. I even had enough left in the tank to do a little studying that night.

Patti, Charlene, Alison, and I rushing to wait some more..

Monday morning began with the last quiz of the course, and it went very well! That gave me a little bit of confidence to roll with for the exams on Wednesday and Thursday. The bell ringer on Wednesday wasn’t my best work, I don’t think anyway, but Thursdays written portion felt really good. Either way, I’m done for a couple months! Now what?

On Tuesday this week, I had my second consult with a sports med regarding the old reoccurring back injury that never seems to leave and also opinions on if and how the cyst on my tailbone could be affecting it. A couple weeks ago I had a consult with a doctor at Pan Am, on the same thing, who x-rayed my back and found nothing and ordered a MRI which I’m booked for later in July. She was pretty unhelpful, in the sense that she couldn’t really give a definitive answer to anything I was asking other then saying that the pilonidal sinus could be related, but there were too many factors to be sure, and that SI joints are tricky and the best thing she could suggest is cortisone shots and discussing other invasive treatments outside of the therapy I’m already doing.  The doctor I saw this week, at Legacy, is also very interested in seeing the MRI and hopes to be able to give me a better answer after those results. Although his initial diagnosis, without the MRI results, isn’t the best (mechanical back pain, likely chronic), he seemed pretty proactive and willing to help me try out more treatment options such as acupuncture/dry needling to go along side therapy – seeing as I’ve tried everything else. My AT, who I trust more then anyone, is thinking that this upcoming surgery on the cyst is going to make a big difference. There is a structural problem that keeps reoccurring, and we can’t quite figure out why. Basically what happens is my SI joint slips out of place, causing the left part of my pelvis to rotate funny- in turn causing lower back muscles, hip, and thigh muscles to do really painful things. Bending over lots is usually what really sets it off, which is a good reason that I’m no longer working in the manual labour field- because that’s all I was doing. As much as I’m frustrated that nothing is fixing this problem long term, I’m very glad I have such a talented AT on my side- keeping me functioning and somewhat sane.

And so now I get to enjoy 2 weeks of summer before I go under the knife and spend most of July recovering. I’m loving my new job, although it’s quite a transition going from outdoor work to a office job. What’s on my list of things to do during the next two weeks?

1. Ride (duh), as much as possible! I had an awesome ride tonight, even though it was nothing more then a simple hack in the ring here at home. It was one of those rides where I felt completely ‘in the zone’ the whole time, and like my horse could read my thoughts, and I his. Every rider will know that feeling, and know how great (and addicting) it is. With the MHJA Beach Party show approaching this coming weekend- I’m grateful for every ride I have like this. There is no better feeling then feeling that focused in competition!

I’ve also been coaching a local girl for a few weeks now, and I’m loving watching her progress! It’s a great challenge for me trying to explain the simplest parts of riding to someone who doesn’t necessarily understand them yet. It’s not always easy to explain something that has become second nature to you. I’m getting better at it though, and by the improvements I see every week in my student- she is understanding at least some of what I say! I’m happy that at least if I can’t be riding most of the summer, I can be helping someone else build skills in the sport!

2. Run, bike, plank, push up, pull up, lunge, squat, lift, press, work out! I’m seriously going to miss the gym, almost as much as I’ll miss riding during recovery time. The changes I’ve seen in myself over the past 6-8 weeks of consistent training are amazing, and I am so excited to get back into it as soon as I can.

3. Work. Because my student life has taken a serious tole on my bank account. The fact that I’ve been in between pay cheques for quite a while now doesn’t help either. Luckily for me, my next pay cheque should come through.. right after surgery. So my two weeks of real summer will be spent doing the cheapest activities I can find. AKA, hanging out with my parents.. a lot 🙂

All that makes for a very, very busy couple weeks. But, I usually function better when I’m kept busy- so I’m glad for that! There will certainly be some crazy days, where I’m not quite sure how the schedule is going to fit. Example being, next thursday when I have my pre-op/anesthesiologist appts all afternoon at Boundary Trails in Winkler, and then warmups at the RRX grounds in Winnipeg. Everything always works out though, in the end- so all I can do is keep right on going- one day at a time.

Somebody told them they could grow up, graduate, and make me feel old!

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Good Morning!

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Up before the sun today! Alarm went off at 3:30am and now I’m packed and ready to catch a cab to the airport and get back to the rest of my life again!

Progress

Again, time is flying. I think I need to clip it’s wings, this is getting out of control.

A LOT has happened in the past few weeks. I’ve been too busy to think, as usual. Cramming my schedule as full as I can, and paying for it. But some things have changed that I hope will make a few things a bit less stressful over the next while.

The biggest news I have is that I’ve changed jobs! Which makes me very happy, because, although Aubin’s was a friendly place to work- it was really effecting my back in ways that did not make me happy- and I’m relearning how touchy my back can be, unfortunately. I’ve been interviewing for a few different positions over the past month or so- all of which would have been good options for me. But then, as life always does, a option came out of the blue that was really too good to pass up. Due to a lucky series of events, I got offered a job at Farm Business Communications- the same company my mom works for- as they needed a position filled ASAP, and knew I was capable of the work (work being video previews/interviews on new and upcoming farm products). These events happened late last week, I accepted the job on Friday, and as of this morning I’ve been in Regina covering Canada’s Farm Progress Show. Talk about jumping right in. I didn’t really do much today, just helped some other FBC staff set up booths around the trade show- tomorrow I’ll start my project. I have about 45 new “innovations” to talk to, take video of, take pictures of over the next two days.

This is something that I feel pretty out of my league in. Not going to lie. Although just bumming around the show today I realized that I am pretty comfortable in this type of situation. It really is just RMWF.. times 10.. on steroids. And the fact that I don’t have a hot clue what half of these products are for will probably be okay, seeing as I’m supposed to put together video explaining them. I won’t have to play dumb, let’s put it that way. No acting necessary. I think my biggest challenge will be keeping the technology on my side. I’ve already realized that the memory cards that came with my video camera don’t work with it, so I’ll be relying on the internal memory, which severely limits my space. So there will be a lot of downloading breaks. Sounds quality will also be a challenge, as the crowds will be spectacular. Another great thing about this new job, I will be able to keep working even during recovery from surgery (July 12th). Something I definitely wouldn’t be doing if I stayed at Aubin’s. Which is a relief. I never thought I’d be grateful for all those times I spent following my mom around at events like this. But I realized today that none of this is new to me- except now I’m the one interviewing and taking notes.. instead of being bored watching Mom do it. And it is SO weird to be at something like this, with my mom’s colleagues, without her here too. I have to say though, even though this is probably the last thing I would have seen myself doing this summer- I’m liking the challenge it brings so far. It’s taking me out of my comfort zones and will help me build new skills that can only help me later on.

I’m here in Regina until Friday, when I fly out bright and early at 6am back to the ‘Peg, getting back just in time to catch my final review class of my Anatomy class and then head to BHP for warm ups at the Summer Smiles Show. Seems like just yesterday I was just starting this course, and now I’m a week away from writing my finals. I was hoping to just be able to focus on studying this week, so I could ease a little stress off the weekend at Summer Smiles and just worry about competing, not cramming- but as my life keeps reminding me this is rarely an option. What fun would it be if things always went to plan right? And this is definitely a acceptable change. I’ve been flash carding myself in almost every possible spare second I have (except for right now, consider this my study break). And if any of you are at the show this weekend and see me sitting around not studying? Smack me, please. Unless I’m riding- then please don’t.

View from my room at U of R, 10th floor.