posted
To start things off, my LLND wrote a note to my university and I got back in due to a medical petition!!!!!
WOOOOOTTT!
Anyways, so today my husband and I were just relaxing. I started to register for classes and then I felt the urge to jog...
Now, I have been sick for 9 months. I am not athletic anymore like I use to ( Varsity softball, clogging, jazz, and karate) because of the Lyme.
I have CDC postive results for Lyme and Ehrlichia and Bart. (Yay me)
Anyways, being the bright 20 year old I am, I decided I am going to try to jog (even though I will be in much pain tomorrow for it lol).
Well, I got my tennis shoes on, and Shuffle Ipod, and headed out the door. My husband just starred at me wondering what on earth I was doing, because even sitting my legs get stiff. Turns out he was just shocked that I was acculty going to try to exercise for the first time since I have been sick.
So i went down the 3 flights of stairs and once I got to the ground, I turned on my Ipod to some up beat jogging music and took off jogging.
I cannot explain the Ankle, Knee and shin pain I felt as I began to jog. I stopped within 30 secs, and was going to give up. My body kept saying you cant do this, but then I began to push myself.
I use to be able to run 3 laps around the baseball fields for Varsity Softball practice, I wanted to be able to do that again.
so, I began to jog again, and kept telling myself I can do this, I have lyme but it doesnt have me. And all of a sudden I started sprinting down the street for a good 2-3 mins!!!!
I dunno what got into me all of a sudden. I just started sprinting!!! I felt alive for the first time in 9 months.
Then, as I look up as I got close back to my apartments, I could see my husband in our window, he had been watching the whole time.
Once I got to the apartments, I collapsed into the grass on my stomach because I couldn't breathe. I was sweating so bad. I was so happy i just laid there for about 5 mins breathing so hard. I could care less the people were walking by me looking at me. I could care less that a car slowed down to see if I was ok. I was just so happy that I just did the unthinkable.
THen i got back inside, and my husband was like "Stephanie, Are you okay".
I then grabbed a pop-sickle and took my vitamins.
Now I am aching with shin splints and sore soles.
Oh well, I feel like I just kicked some lyme butt and am so happy I took a chance and tried jogging again even though I will pay for it tomorrow.
Hopefully this gives someone a laugh and some hope. That you just have some faith in yourself, and endure.
-------------------- Stephanie, University Student.
Ehrlichia [POSITIVE] IGG/IGM AB [H] 1.49 indexLyme AB interp. EIA [A] POSITIVE IGG P93 AB [PRESENT] IGG P41 AB [PRESENT] IGM P41 AB [PRESENT] IGM P23 AB [PRESENT] Lyme IGM WB interp. [A] [PRESENT] Posts: 145 | From Idaho | Registered: Feb 2010
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posted
i also try to jog 1 to 2 times a week - regardless to how much pain im in!
i never make more than 2,5 miles. thats the limit. and sometimes i only can run a mile.
sometimes i felt really better afterwards for the rest of the day. but sometimes i feel so weak the next afternoons and evenings that i am not so sure if running is a good idea.
strange, that my extreme weakness is always in the afternoon or evening (maybe because of blood sugar after not eating for hours?).
Posts: 226 | From earth | Registered: Sep 2007
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posted
I understand - what was so simple, isn't, and those who are well don't have a clue about how challenging these kinds of activities are for us.
I have found that swimming works really well for me - I get full exercise, and use a kickboard and snorkle and goggles as aids.
Posts: 13116 | From San Francisco | Registered: May 2006
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seekhelp
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 15067
posted
I know you wanted to do this badly, but I really think it's a dangerous idea. You're body is telling you something for a reason.
Posts: 7545 | From The 5th Dimension - The Twilight Zone | Registered: Mar 2008
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Geneal
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 10375
posted
I say good for you!
Every day we climb small and large mountains.
Good to see you made it to the top of one.
We always pay for over exertion in one way or another.
Yet....the feeling of accomplishment and self-elation cannot be dimmed.
Hang in there.
Hugs,
Geneal
Posts: 6250 | From Louisiana | Registered: Oct 2006
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Keebler
Honored Contributor (25K+ posts)
Member # 12673
posted
- I'm glad to hear you are reinstated to your university. A lot of young people don't take that so seriously. It's good that you do as you build the foundation for your future.
Because you value that, it may help to look over the details below. You want to ensure and protect your future.
Of concern is any activity that caused this: " . . . collapsed into the grass on my stomach because I couldn't breathe. . . ."
To echo seekhelp:
"I know you wanted to do this badly, but I really think it's a dangerous idea. You're body is telling you something for a reason"
Stephanie,
I completely understand your desire to run. I've been there. And each time I tried, it cost me MONTHS in setback and damage to my body.
You were delayed in getting treatment, you've only been in treatment about 3 months and it's vital that you keep very close watch on your activities - your very future is put at risk if you follow the (understandable) impulse to take off and run like the wind.
First, I'll address the matter of hearing. In-the-ear pods to listen to music can cause problems for even those who don't have a brain infection.
For anyone on antibiotics, even sound below the usual decibel level for hearing damage can damage the ears. The in-the-ear pods put the impulse, the vibration very close to the ear nerves, especially with a beat going on - with each beat, the ears are hit with a blast. If you have on the ear muffs, turned very low, that would be best when you are out and about with your iPod. But even those can cause hearing problems.
You may notice tinnitus or sensitivity to sound, or you may notice a vertigo or nausea. If so, your ears are telling you something. But, often, the damage happens and we don't get the signs until too late.
About jogging, sprinting or other aerobic exercise, it is not allowed until recovery has been achieved. There are still plenty of things you can do to work off steam but remember that the impulses you get cannot be trusted.
Our control boards are broken, so to speak. We may not get the message we've done too much until too late. Even, then, it's human nature to ignore it and grab onto that adrenal rush from our little run from reality.
Please read over the links below and copy them to your work file. I may have ruined my life for good by having done some similar bolting tries. I don't want this to happen to anyone else.
I did not have the information then about the dangers of aerobics during infection. I didn't know the endocrine tricks my body played or about the mitochondrial dysfunction or how a toxic liver just can be pushed with aerobics. But we know that now. Everything - everything a lyme patient does has to be screened in advance for purpose and safety.
What you want or can do is not the same as what your body needs or can safely manage. We have to separate our ego self from our body when asking - at every juncture - what's the best way to proceed. Check in and then also learn to read the cues for faulty messages. We have to understand the science of what's off kilter.
I will be back with some links that speak more precisely to this. -
Posts: 48021 | From Tree House | Registered: Jul 2007
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Keebler
Honored Contributor (25K+ posts)
Member # 12673
posted
- It is important to understand that the term "exercise" here refers to activity that is NOT aerobic. --------------
Treatment Guidelines, 16th edition, October, 2008 Joseph J. Burrascano, Jr., M.D.
* Page 27 for SUPPORTIVE THERAPY & the CERTAIN ABSOLUTE RULES
Page 31:
LYME DISEASE REHABILITATION
Despite antibiotic treatments, patients will NOT return to normal unless they exercise, so therefore an aggressive rehab program is absolutely necessary. It is a fact that a properly executed exercise program can actually go beyond the antibiotics in helping to clear the symptoms and to maintain a remission.
Although the scientific basis for the benefits of exercises is not known, there are several reasonable theories.
It is known that Bb will die if exposed to all but the tiniest oxygen concentrations. If an aggressive exercise program can increase tissue perfusion and oxygen levels, then this may play a role in what is being seen.
Also, during aggressive exercise, the core body temperature can rise above 102 degrees; it is known that B. burgdorferi is very heat sensitive. Perhaps it is the added tissue oxygenation, or higher body temperature, or the combination that weakens the Lyme Borrelia, and allows the antibiotics and our defenses to be more effective.
Regular exercise-related movements can help mobilize lymph and enhance circulation. In addition,there is now evidence that a carefully structured exercise program may benefit T-cell function: this function will depress for 12 to 24+ hours after exercise, but then rebound.
This T-cell depression is more pronounced after aerobics which is why aerobics are not allowed. The goal is to exercise intermittently, with exercise days separated by days of total rest, including an effort to have plenty of quality sleep.
The trick is to time the exercise days to take advantage of these rebounds. For an example, begin with an exercise day followed by 3 to 5 rest days; as stamina improves, then fewer rest days will be needed in between workouts.
However, because T-cell functions do fall for at least one day after aggressive exercises, be sure to never exercise two days in a row. Finally, an in intermittent exercise program, properly executed, may help to reset the HPA axis more towards normal.
On the following page is an exercise prescription that details these recommendations.
This program may begin with classical physical therapy if necessary. The physical therapy should involve massage, heat, ultrasound and simple range of motion exercises to relieve discomfort and promote better sleep and flexibility.
Ice (vasoconstriction) and electrical stimulation (muscle spasm and trauma) should not be used!
The program must evolve into a graded, ultimately strenuous exercise program that consists of a specific regimen of non-aerobic conditioning- see below.
Have the patient complete a gentle hour of prescribed exercise, then go home, have a hot bath or shower, than try to take a nap. Initially, patients will need this sleep, but as they recover, the exercise will energize them and then a nap will no longer be needed.
NOTE: a cardiac stress test may be necessary prior to exercising to ensure safety. -------------
Page 32:
LYME REHAB-PHYSICAL THERAPY PRESCRIPTION
. . . (there is a P.T. prescription all set to fill out here) . . .
Excerpt:
PROGRAM:
* 1. Aerobic exercises are NOT allowed, not even low impact variety, until the patient has recovered.
2. Conditioning: work to improve strength and reverse the poor conditioning that results from Lyme, through a whole-body exercise program, consisting of light calisthenics and/or resistance training, using light resistance and many repetitions.
This can be accomplished in exercise classes called "stretch and tone", or "body sculpture", or can be achieved in the gym with exercise machines or carefully with free weights (see cautions above).
3. Each session should last one hour. * A gentle hour is preferable to a strenuous half-hour. If the patient is unable to continue for the whole hour, then decrease the intensity to allow him/her to do so.
4. Exercise no more often than every other day. The patient may need to start by exercising every 4th or 5th day initially, and as abilities improve, work out more often, but NEVER two days in a row. The nonexercise days should be spent resting.
From Dr. Bruno's "Fainting and Fatigue" in the Spring 1996 CFIDS Chronicle
Post-polio expert Dr. Richard Bruno points out that physical over-activity is the biggest cause of post-polio symptoms. [3]
Excerpt:
``when mice infected with Coxsackie B3 were forced to swim in a warm pool, the virulence of the virus was drastically augmented.
In fact, viral replication was augmented 530 times. This did horrendous things to the animals' hearts. We all know that to play squash with the flu can lead to heart attacks.
Much the same danger can be courted by undertaking hard exercise with M.E. (CFS).'' - End quote.
==============
This thread addresses all sorts of cardiac dysfunctions a lyme patient may experience - and what can help: ----------
Believe it or not, toxic free radical molecules and oxidation by-products are produced whenever you exercise. . . .
==============
GOOD MOVES:
Tai Chi, Qi Gong, some kinds of Yoga and Pilates routines . . . strength training . . . walking . . . maybe slow biking . . . water movement (Tai Chi in water is very nice) . . . whatever brings you joy of movement while safely supporting your body. Do what you love. Dancing can be good. Just not at top speed. -
Posts: 48021 | From Tree House | Registered: Jul 2007
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posted
OMG...I can hear the JOY in your voice.....
Your attitude will get you on the road to wellnsess. Nothing's going to keep you down!
Last year, I couldn't even stand for very long; this year I find joy in taking my dog to the beach in the morning and walking.
Posts: 964 | From san diego | Registered: Oct 2009
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sutherngrl
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 16270
posted
Good for you! I do the same thing, only on my treadmill, since its 105 degrees here.
The urge seems to hit me about every 2 weeks. I don't exactly run...... I walk a moderate pace for 1/2 mile. It hurts, but I force myself to go the 1/2 mile. Sometimes a little over.
I know I need to do it every few days, but it usually ends up being every 1 to 2 weeks. Still it makes me feel like I took some kind of control over this illness.
Posts: 4035 | From Mississippi | Registered: Jul 2008
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steve1906
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 16206
posted
Hi mcg08002, Personally, I think everyone with Lyme needs exercise! At the beginning, three years ago I couldn't do my reg. exercising, so I walked 1-2 miles a day-everyday for about a year.
Then I started back at the gym very slowly, and now I've worked may way up to 4-5 days a week at the gym. It's not as hard as it was when I first got back to the gym, but it's not easy. Remember, everyone is different! For me, I think of the pain as part of getting better, and I do feel better after a workout.
I've also started taking steam baths 4-5 days a week, and feel better after the steam also. I'm still sick, but I can't just sit in a chair and waste my life away. A couple of years ago I almost lost my job, like a lot of unfortunate members here. I'm not going to get into details, but it was one of the hardest things I've ever done - not losing my job.
You can't start working out after a year or more to a full workout. I'm so happy you are feeling the need to workout but, PLEASE go SLOW.
The more you exercise the easer it gets.
I'm going to say this one more time...EVERYONE with Lyme needs exercise (it's good for your WHOLE body)...If all you can do at the beginning is (take a walk) that's okay, DO IT everyday.
I think as humans, we're a lot stronger than we give ourselves credit for. Keep trying as many different ways as possible to get better. Taking all these pills we take everyday is only part of the rehab.
Again, this is only my opinion and you should do lots of research on this... Always talk to your Doctors before you start something new. Go slow and keep trying!!!
posted
Stephanie, I'm SO glad you managed this small but difficult triumph, and felt so good about it.
As you saw, you're not quite up to jogging just now, and it could cause you to crash. If you are determined to start exercising more often, then try yoga, weightlifting, or other nonaerobic things to build up your strength. Going to school again will be a big enough test of your endurance already.
Congratulations on going back to school. I know that's been a huge struggle for you.
And wasn't it great to feel that sprinting elation, even for a few minutes?
We feel rotten for no reason. We do any little thing and we feel rotten because of it. We do everything right and we feel rotten anyway. So isn't it great, just once, to do something that makes us feel a physical elation and freedom that we had forgotten the feeling of?
I think you're wise not to do it again soon. But treasure the feeling and the victory of achieving something difficult. Your morale and determination are what are going to get you well, and taking care of them is at least as important as taking care of yourself physically.
Good luck with school!
-------------------- Don't forget to laugh! And when you're going through hell, keep going!
Bitten 5/25/2009 in Perry County, Indiana. Diagnosed by LLMD 12/2/2009. Posts: 756 | From Inside the tunnel | Registered: Jan 2010
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Always talk to your Doctors before you start something new. Go slow and keep trying!!!
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