Em is off to Boston soon, and so we wanted to do a fun send-off before she leaves.
Along with sending her off with some of her favorite carb-loading foods. I am glad I have one friend who loves Dots too, because it’s a rare characteristic to come across in this world.
8 miles at an 8:10 pace, and the green is popping!
And we are getting some snow runoff!
Curly joined Beck and me at one of my favorite stores in the world. I could buy everything inside and outside of this building!
A greenhouse is an instant mood shifter.
Brooke had a game, and they won!
We had a copycat Chipotle bowl for dinner courtesy of Curly. THE BEST.
Make them.
This episode. Was phenomenal. Pain is such an interesting topic, and the way it warns us of danger. I loved how she explained how pain is made in the brain and how so many different factors can influence pain. Of course, pain is REAL and extremely hard and physical, but I find it interesting that in my own life, in hindsight, I can see ties to pain being more intense when other things are going on, too! Instead of just focusing on the body part that hurts (<–I’ve had specific body part injuries, too)… looking at the whole body (stress/isolation/nutrition/sleeping habits). A few things this episode made me think about:
- When I was pregnant with Beck, I was the sickest I had ever been. It was also during Covid and I was very lonely (few social events, Andrew was working crazy hours in the ICU, I didn’t see my parents for months, and the kids were all very young)… I remember being at a wedding for a very close friend, having been so sick all day, but feeling nearly normal at the wedding. I am a VERY social human, and I wonder if the lack of it made the pain more intense??
- My back injury 2 years ago… I have zero back pain now. But for a few months there in 2024, it was SO bad. But if I look back at that time, I was going through a lot of stress (nothing to do with my family), and a lot of tears. Do I get an MRI and see if my bulge is gone, or did the other factors I was dealing with amplify the danger my brain was feeling?!? I did make a lot of changes in lifestyle etc with this injury but I bet the life stress made it worse!
- Pain during runs…. It is so interesting to me how much pain differs for me when doing the exact same pace. If there are things distracting me, or I’m running with people, or I’m having a positive attitude that day… My pain perception is low. If I am alone, or bored, or negative… man, those paces hurt.
- On the other hand, when Brooke was in so much pain that she couldn’t walk, I took her to the Emergency Room, and the doctor told me there was nothing they could do for her because her pain was psychosomatic. I told them there wasn’t a chance we were leaving, and then the bloodwork showed she had a massive infection and needed to be admitted.
- Long story short, I’ve always thought of pain in just one way and this has opened my eyes to how many different factors are at play…
I enjoyed her thoughts so much that I started listening to her book:
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Dots…. horrible or amazing?
Favorite carb-loading items?
I would love to hear your opinions on pain and any stories you have on the connection with other things going on in your life, etc., or if your pain has always been directly connected to a physical situation?!
What are you having for dinner tonight?
The post Can we please talk about pain… + instant mood shifter. first appeared on The Hungry Runner Girl.