Four years ago, my body gave me some feedback to let me know it wasn’t very happy with me. For the previous nine years I had participated in the Charlotte Half Marathon. (I mentioned this previously on Day 48.) I was super excited to run in this race that had become a tradition, as it would mean that I’d completed that event ten years in a row.
My body has always required training for these races to build up the required strength and stamina. For my tenth race, I wanted to achieve a personal record (PR), so I knew I needed to level up my training and push harder. I added in some interval training which meant running around a track, alternating sprints and periods of walking rest. Unfortunately, no one warned me that I should change direction occasionally by running around the track in the opposite direction. Sprinting around the track in the same direction every time put an uneven amount of strain on one of my hips. Had I alternated, I might have maintained a balanced amount of wear and tear on either side. I learned this the hard way and halfway through my training that year, my right hip decided it didn’t want me to run anymore by sending pain into my lower back and down my right leg to my foot.
I spent a year or so meeting with chiropractors and doctors trying to figure out what was wrong. I had X-rays done on my foot and on my lower back. If I took pills and rested the pain would go away, but if I got out to run, the pain came right back. (This is why I switched to swimming as I shared on Day 48.) Frustrated with the pain, I was convinced that it was time to have an MRI done which would likely result in surgery. Thanks to synchronicity, I happened to catch up with a good friend about that time who encouraged me to see her sports rehab chiropractor before getting the MRI. I admire and trust her judgement and decided to give it a shot.
I walked into the doctor’s office and she took one look at me and said, “You don’t need an MRI.” I was confused, but I listened and followed her direction. After watching me demonstrate some simple movements, she was confident that I had never learned to “move” correctly, and a lifetime of poor posture and motion was finally taking its toll. She referred me to a personal trainer for further strengthening and rehab and that’s how I met Rich O’Neill. My first experience with Rich was not dissimilar to that initial appointment with the chiropractor. Rich put me on a treadmill and watched me walk for five minutes. He explained that my feet were pointing slightly outward when I walked and this was causing my legs and consequently the balls of my hips, in their sockets, to rotate. This improper alignment was not a big deal when walking, but running, and the force created by the impact of my feet pounding on the ground, was exacerbating the issue.
The cause of my pain had become clear and if I wanted the pain to stop, I had to learn how to move the right way. Rich sent me away with the simple instruction to focus on keeping my feet pointing directly forward when I walk. It was awkward at first, but as I became more aware of my outward pointing feet, I slowly retrained myself to keep them straight. Progress! After six weeks of that basic change, I started working out with Rich weekly and we began to work on all of my bad postural movements. Just like retraining my feet, I’ve had to retrain how I squat, bend over, carry my shoulders, stabilize myself with my core and breathe from my belly. Who said you can’t teach an old dog new tricks? I’m in better shape now than I’ve been in a long time and I’m back to running several times a week, pain free.
In Carl Jung’s process of individuation, we become awakened by bringing unconscious contents into conscious awareness. This is exactly what happened to me. Over the course of my lifetime, I was moving in many improper ways without realizing it. I’m sure my body previously gave me many signs that I chose to ignore. Perhaps, if I had been more holistically aligned in mind, body, and soul I would have been aware enough to recognize what was happening. Eventually, the abuse became so bad that my cells decided enough was enough! It was at that point that I was ready to discover the unconscious contents of my psyche that were causing this problem. Armed with new knowledge, I had to retrain myself to correct the source of my pain. I could have gotten the MRI, followed by surgery, but that would not have corrected the improper motion and my back pain likely would not have been fixed.
I’m thankful for all the synchronicities that took place during the last four years of back pain rehab. The experience helped me learn a lot about my body and to trust the feedback it gives me. The most frustrating part of the story was not realizing I had bad habits in the first place. My body is stronger now and I have a better perspective about investigating the causes of pain and correcting those before resorting to medication. I’ve had many new experiences which include learning how to swim the butterfly stroke. Most importantly, I’ve met many people who have helped me along the journey as coaches, care givers, and friends.
Photo by Nigel Msipa on Unsplash
