Tag Archives: Better Than the Alternative Tuesdays

Better Than the Alternative Tuesdays: Forward

14 May 2013

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This year hasn’t flown for me where school is concerned. The opposite, in fact. It has CRAWLED.

Whatever is slower than a snail, that's what this year has been like.

Whatever is slower than a snail, that’s what this year has been like.

But when I look back at exactly one year ago today, it seems like it was only a few months ago and not twelve. One year ago today, I spent most of the day under anesthesia, in the OR and recovery room, having my colon removed to cure my Ulcerative Colitis.

Sent this the day after so Obi-wan didn't worry so much. See Dad? I'm smiling = I'm ok!

Sent this the day after so Obi-wan didn’t worry so much. See Dad? I’m smiling = I’m ok!

What a difference a year makes.

Last year, I couldn’t run 2 minutes on the treadmill before I had to jump off and race for the bathroom. Last week, I ran a PR in the half marathon. 1:40, thankyouverymuch. Oh, and I’m gonna kick ass in Chicago running for Team Challenge in three weeks!

Jersey, baby!

Jersey, baby!

Last year, I was so sick I was getting chemo pumped into my veins, iron IVs, and hydration solution every week. As of right now, I’m only on one drug, soon to be DRUG-FREE!(This probably means very little to anyone but Mrs. Obi-wan. Look, ma! No drugs!)

No more blogging with one hand and getting Remicade in the other!

No more blogging with one hand and getting Remicade in the other!

Last year, I missed just about every single running/walking/sporting event with my friends. This Thursday, I’m walking in lower Manhattan with my lululemon family and friends in the Taking Steps walk to spread IBD awareness. (Join me!)

Go ahead, ASK ME!

Go ahead, ASK ME!

Last year, I was terrified I wouldn’t make it through my first year of DPT school because of the two surgeries, the colostomy bag, or some other unforeseen disaster. Not only did I conquer my first year of school, this Friday I will be exactly halfway through my first rotation. And I’m feeling great about it!

Abby Bales, Student Physical Therapist and wheelchair driver extraordinaire.

Abby Bales, Student Physical Therapist and wheelchair driver extraordinaire.

What a difference a year makes. I cannot thank my friends, family, classmates, running community, lululemon family, and all of you enough for all of your support and encouragement over this past year.

I guess today’s post embodies all of what Better Than the Alternative Tuesdays are really all about: forward motion in the hopes of a better tomorrow.

I was scared to go forward with surgery but I did it and I don’t regret it one little bit.

I was scared to go forward with school, not knowing if my body would hold up, but I did and I made it through (with a little LOT of help from Birdie).

I was scared to come forward about my disease and surgery and all that but I did and managed to not only make new friends, but reach out into the IBD community to help other people struggling with the same decisions I had to make.

And no matter what happens, it is always better to be here than not to be here. I know that now more than ever.

Happy colon-free-iversary to me! I am totally colon-free and kicking ass!

Now go out and run!

Better Than the Alternative Tuesdays: Crazy

9 April 2013

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So many of you have already emailed, Tweeted, and Facebooked (did I just make that word up?) me your photos from your Virtual 5K this morning. Keep ‘em coming, your photo gets you another raffle entry AND makes me smile.

Ok, they also make me cry a little. But mostly smile.

BIG smiles for such an early hour of the morning!

BIG smiles for such an early hour of the morning!

This has obviously been a HUGE undertaking for me these past few weeks. With finals kicking in, training amping up, and wedding/shower/baby season getting into full swing, this is a Crazy time of year.

I have never shied away from the Crazy. I was, after all, a musical theater major in my first undergraduate career. I think we can all agree that none of us in that program are working with a full deck. But even when things get Crazy in life, I tend to do just fine.

I mean, sometimes I get a little narcoleptic but seriously, who doesn't every now and again?

I mean, sometimes I get a little narcoleptic but seriously, who doesn’t every now and again?

“If you want something done, ask a busy person” ~Lucille Ball

In my world, it would be more like, “If you want something done, ask CRAZY busy Abby.” For better or for worse, I am a girl who operates best when my plate is full overflowing. When life is Crazy, I am at my most efficient.

For some people, Crazy = bad. Crazy = way too much going on. Crazy = stress. Crazy = too much.

(Image courtesy of toonpool.com)

(Image courtesy of toonpool.com)

For me, Crazy means that I have a lot of amazing things happening in my life.

No matter how much I complain (and whine and cry and whine and cry…) about how Crazy I am with finals, I absolutely cannot WAIT to be a physical therapist so I can practice what I’ve been learning.

Name tag-got it. White coat-ordered. Soooooooooo close (but not really).

Name tag-got it. White coat-ordered. Soooooooooo close (but not really).

No matter how Crazy busy work gets, especially with school and life, I have the best clients who trust me with their fitness and health. I love helping them meet their physical goals.

And when I have 5 weddings and 6 baby showers to go to in 6 months (6 MONTHS!!!) and my weekends are Crazy packed with parties, I am reminded that this is such a beautiful time for my friends and family. New journeys, new life. And parties are fun.

And babies. I LOVE babies.

And babies. I LOVE babies.

No matter how Crazy things get, I try to remind myself that they are all a GOOD Crazy. Life is happening all around and embracing the Crazy is the only way for me to stay positive and happy cuz life isn’t gonna slow down and I don’t plan on slowing down either.

And isn’t that a better way to go through life? Happy, positive, and grateful for the Crazy. Way better than the alternative, right?

Now go out and run.

(And don’t forget to send me your pictures from your 5K today!)

Better Than the Alternative Tuesdays: The Ledge

2 April 2013

3 Comments

You survived Monday. Hooray! And Tuesday. Woohoo!

This is how I feel when Monday rolls around. Not because I really hate mornings but am not a fan of Mondays at school.

This is how I feel when Monday rolls around. Not because I really hate mornings but am not a fan of Mondays at school. 11 hours in class will do that to you.

So welcome to Better Than the Alternative Tuesdays where we remind ourselves why is really so much better to be here, no matter what kind of crap we’re dealing with, than not. This idea came about from something Obi-wan (my Dad, not THE Obi-wan Kanobi) has said for years in response to the lemons life has thrown him/us, “Hey, it beats the alternative.”

And it does.

More and more I find myself out on The Ledge. In running, in school, in life. Just…out on there on The Ledge without a parachute, looking down and not knowing whether or not I’m going to fall to my eventual demise or into something better than I could ever have imagined.

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So, I guess I’ve been building my wings.

I went out on The Ledge and got into my dream school.

I went out on The Ledge and had one of the worst marathons of my career.

I went out on The Ledge and had major surgery to take back my life.

I went out on The Ledge and got told “no”. A lot.

I went out on The Ledge and made a friend.

I went out on The Ledge and got burned by people I misjudged. Again. And again.

I went out on The Ledge and met others with my disease.

I went out on The Ledge and true friends came to my aid.

I went out on The Ledge and found that a friend was not there with me.

I went out on The Ledge and found my husband there, right beside me, ready to take a leap with me, pushing me holding my hand.

Always holding my hand.

Always holding my hand.

The Ledge is a scary place. A place where you sink or swim. And for me it means that once I’m out there, someone else knows about it ‘cuz I’m a chatty one. So then I have someone who will know if I back out. Accountability insurance, I suppose?

Maybe I’m just a chatterbox.

Me and Peanut, mid-conversation about how cute her little onesie is. We're chatty girls.

Me and Peanut, mid-conversation about how cute she is. We’re chatty girls.

Take this Virtual 5K. I put it out there and now have over 100 supporters, more than 20 raffle prizes, and people all over the world coming out of the wood work to help me meet my goal of $20,000. I didn’t sandbag my goal. I stepped onto The Ledge and look what happened.

Awesomeness happened.

Screen Shot 2013-04-02 at 8.57.50 PM

Holy awesome! Keep those donations coming, guys! I’m 1/4 of the way to my goal!

I’m learning to trust that regardless of whether or not I’m successful in these endeavors, I’m better for having tried. Yes, it’s lonely and terrifying to put yourself, your ideas, your beliefs, and even your health out there on The Ledge for others to ignore or ridicule.

 

But when you succeed, when you leap and find yourself somewhere better than you were before, even if it’s only once, it’s worth it. And so much better than the alternative.

Whoever thought "Doctor" would ever be in front of MY name? Not me.

Whoever thought “Doctor” would ever be in front of MY name? Not me.

 

Life is nothing without taking chances. Walk out on The Ledge every now and again, friends. The view is spectacular.

Now go out and run.

Better Than the Alternative Tuesdays: Weight

19 February 2013

2 Comments

Guys, I’m in midterm week month, so blogs may be shorter or non-existent until things settle down over here in Crazy Town. But it’s Tuesday so let’s not forget why it’s good to be here instead of the alternative.

Weight.

It’s become a nasty word in the world these days, wouldn’t you say?

Gaining weight. Weight of the world. Light-weight.

It’s not too long ago that the word weight carried a negative connotation to me as well. Yet recently, I’ve begun to embrace it.

What is weight to you? (Image courtesy of shutterstock.com)

What is weight to you?

There is nothing more comforting or calming to me than to feel the weight of my husband against me.

A hug, a hand, or when he is recruited to be my blanket because I just can’t get warm enough in the winter. I breathe easier, my heart rate slows down, and I almost always fall asleep.

Something about the weight of my hand in his.

Something about the weight of my hand in his.

When I was recovering from surgery, it was all about the weight. Was I eating? Was it leaving me properly in my new device? Too fast? Too slow? Was I gaining weight?

Despite one person’s comment that my 20 pound weight loss was (after a 5-day hospital stay and one organ removed) “looking good” on me, gaining weight was a top priority post-op. Both times post-op, actually.

GI surgery means things get scary in that world and weight gain = success!!! Normally a dirty phrase in my world, I was thrilled to see the scale headed back toward my normal.

I was healthy again. Weight was a good thing.

Feels good to be healthy again.

Feels good to be healthy again.

And there is nothing in the world that feels better than having the weight of a baby on your shoulder as you rock her to sleep.

My little angel niece.

My little angel niece.

My sister-in-law was always asking if it was too much for me to have her lying on me or if she was heavy in my arms. Heavy? Psh. Weight is no matter when my little Peanut needs to be rocked to sleep. I shooed her away and held Peanut as long as I possibly could.

Like Obi-wan says, there is no house so peaceful as the house of a newborn baby.

I don’t mind feeling the weight anymore. It reminds me to be calm, to be grateful, to be present. And that’s certainly Better Than the Alternative.

Now go out and run.

Better Than the Alternative Tuesdays: Sunrise

12 February 2013

8 Comments

Happy Better Than the Alternative Tuesday, friends! I barely make it through Mondays this semester. 10+ hours of sitting in class feels like a death march. My brain hurts, my body hurts, and by the the end of the day, I don’t even want dinner.

I know. Shocking. I don’t want food? Something is deeply, deeply wrong with Mondays.

Pizza lasts exactly one day in my apartment.

Pizza lasts exactly one day in my apartment.

Not even pizza sounds good, just sleep.

And then I woke up this morning and went for a run. It wasn’t a good run, I felt like crap. I was hungry (duh), tired, and even though I was trucking along at 8:15s most of the 7 miles, I felt like I was running through mud.

But I saw this on my run. This Sunrise over The Lake and Bow Bridge.

Good morning, my beautiful Park.

Good morning, my beautiful Park.

It didn’t change my pace or give me the energy to run faster, but just seeing this beautiful Sunrise was reward enough for getting up early.

When I was chained to the bed recovering in the hospital, I was on the 14th floor overlooking the East River. When the sun rose the day after surgery, I couldn’t help but to breath deep (as deep as my stitches would allow) and appreciate seeing that Sunrise.

It wasn't a sunny morning and the view wasn't even that great, but it was a sunrise I worried I wouldn't see.

It wasn’t a sunny morning and the view wasn’t even that great, but it was a sunrise I worried I wouldn’t see. And there was pudding.

Anyone who goes into surgery and tells you they aren’t scared is…not me. I was scared both times. Terrified, actually.

That Sunrise meant I made it through the operation. That Sunrise meant I got through a horrific night of pain. That Sunrise meant that Mrs. Obi-wan and JB would soon be by my side, keeping me from freaking out.

It wasn’t pretty, it didn’t have to be, it was just a new day and a new life starting.

My 2nd surgery sunrise was far more spectacular. Same floor, same hospital, same staff (oy), different facing bed. Different perspective.

My 2nd surgery Sunrise was far more spectacular. Same floor, same hospital, same staff (oy), different facing bed. Different perspective.

That’s what I like about running at Sunrise. It’s the ultimate symbol of a new day starting.

Just because today’s run was crap doesn’t mean tomorrow’s will be. Just because I’m dragging ass this morning doesn’t mean I will tomorrow. Just because my J-pouch hated me yesterday doesn’t mean it won’t love on me today.

Sunrise is my favorite symbol of starting over and the opportunity to do something different. I know it’s obvious and trite and cheesy, but it’s true.

Sunrise on the Brooklyn Bridge. (Image courtesy of MK Photography)

Sunrise on the Brooklyn Bridge. (Image courtesy of MK Photography)

 

When I woke up from surgery, I was a new me and it was a new day. Those Sunrises were a new start to me. And they certainly made it better to be here, to wake up, to keep going, than not to. And I love that about those Sunrises and every Sunrise I get to see.

Happy BTAT, guys. What does Sunrise mean to you? Does it get you going or is it something you rarely see? Are you more of a sunset kind of person? Tell me all about it!

Now go out and run!

(I mean, it’s 40 degrees out there, NYers! Heat wave!)