Six months post accident

Today marks six months since I was hit by a car while running. While I found information on pelvic fractures in the elderly, I could not find much for younger people and nothing for runners. If someone has a pelvic fracture and has questions (or needs to vent), I am always available.

Flashback:
Super Bowl Sunday (February 2nd) I was scheduled to go for my 10 mile run during my Glass Slipper Challenge training. I successfully complete a HOT 5 mile run the day before so in order to beat the heat, I ran at 6 am. My plan was to run up the hotel zone in Cancun. I figured this would be the easiest and safest route since I did not have to cross any roads. A little over half way through my run, I heard a loud noise and turned to the side. I had a split second to process a car was sliding towards me. The pain was excruciating. I was on all fours screaming (I am not too proud to admit this). Later, I figured this was because I was putting pressure on my broken pelvis. 

Despite the corruption of the tourist police of Cancun, I was eventually able to find out that the guy who hit me was drunk. He went over the median, two lanes of traffic, and the curb to hit me. This was at 7:10 in the morning. The ring in my pelvis was stable so I was able to fly home and did not need surgery. My American doctor diagnosed me to have three fractures in my pelvis which required 6 weeks of non weight bearing on my right leg. I could not move. It took all my strength to get out of the wheelchair to go to the bathroom. By week 2, I noticed significant muscle loss in my right leg and butt. I started physical therapy later that week and continued physical therapy for 16 weeks. This was a huge turning point for me because it helped wake up my muscles so by my 6 week checkup I could start walking with crutches. A week later, no crutches (yes, I still got sore if I tried to push myself too hard the first or two after I started walking). I missed almost all of my winter and spring races, but salvaged the NJ Half by signing up for the relay and walking my portion of the race.

Shortly after that I was cleared to run. It was 12 weeks and 3 days after the accident. Four weeks after I started running I was able to complete my first race- Hibiscus 5 miler. 

blurry action shot

Today:
I am mostly symptom free there are still a couple of issues. My achilles feels like there is a knot or something movable on it. It was bothering me since I started walking, but with a recent week off of running it has been pain free. 

Recently while walking I felt a pain in my pelvis (roughly 5 1/2 months post accident). I am not sure if I just twisted my leg slightly while walking or what, but every once in awhile I felt a pain. It did not seem to bother me running until a week or so later. After the Electric Run I took a week off from running, cycling, everything except strength training. The next run I had was in Mexico City and it went well. I do not feel pain, but it feels like my pelvis/hip area is always popping in and out of place. Example: like cracking your elbow or another joint. Oh yes I did survive running in Mexico this time. I ran along a major road but then into a park. No cars here.

There are smaller issues that I am not sure will clear up. My hip flexors are always tight if I am not always stretching them (like at my desk during the day type stuff). I seem to have worse circulation in my right leg. Whenever I crouch down where my leg and knee are bent then stand up, my leg then feel like the it was asleep and painfully waking up. This is only after a few seconds. Other than those issues, all of my other pains and symptoms have cleared up. I am still a lot weaker and slow than before, but am working on it. My longest run post accident has been 7 miles and I plan on duplicating that next weekend.

Moving Forward:
I have an aggressive plan for the fall. The Philly Rock n Roll Half Marathon in September, the Wineglass Half Marathon in October, and the Philly Marathon in November. I am seriously considering downgrading the marathon to the half marathon. While for the most part I am meeting my mileage marks, I am so much weaker than where I feel I should be for training for a marathon. The deadline I give myself is the end of August. I will see how my body responds to adding more miles while I really get into half marathon training. Even if I have to downgrade, being able to compete and complete these races will be a huge accomplishment. It is not about winning a race, but about being able to run. I feel fortune and blessed to be at the point I am. I just want to get out there and run.



Don't forget to vote for me for the Runner's World cover contest 

or if please consider donating towards the Wounded Warrior Project. Every dollar helps! I am running my first half marathon post injury and hoping to raise $500.

And now starting from the beginning...

Everything in my life changed in an instant. One minute I was training for the Glass Slipper Challenge and the next minute I was on the ground in extreme pain.

The Glass Slipper Challenge is a runDisney race which consists of the Enchanted 10k on the Saturday and the Disney Princess Half Marathon on the Sunday. This race was my first back-to-back race and my first I had to travel for. I was excited to get out of the bitter cold that had been hanging around all winter. I much rather run in the cold than the heat, but this was a particularly rough winter. Immediately after the Glass Slipper Challenge, I would have to start training for my three races in April. While I had run most of my life, I had just started racing the year before with the Hershey 10k as my first race. 

On January 31st, my friends and I traveled down to Cancun for a mini vacation. This was the end of week 7 out of 10 of my Glass Slipper Challenge training. I would have to complete a 5 mile and 10 mile run. My 5 mile run was later in the morning when the temperatures were in the 80s. The miserable heat convinced me to wake up early the next day and start my run right at sunrise. At 5:15 am, I woke up and started my pre-run routine. Shortly after 6 am I started running up the hotel zone of Cancun. Further up the hotel zone there is a walking path maybe 10 feet off of the road. I stuck to that path and hit the end of the hotel zone then turned around. The walking path had just ended right before the Grand Park Royal so I went back to the sidewalk, running against the traffic. At 7:10 and about 5.73 into my run I heard a loud noise and turn around. I saw a car sliding towards me. There simply wasn't enough time to get out of the way. The car hit me and I felt pain I could never explain.

(my ride back to the resort after being at the police station)

Pelvis fractured in three places, contusion on my lower back, what felt like bruised ribs, minor whiplash, my entire leg was swollen and tingling, all of my muscles felt tight and sore. I learned at the hospital a drunk driver crossed the median, two lanes of traffic, hopped the curb, and had hit me.

I started this blog to chronicle my recovery back to running. I no longer think of trying for a PR or working on building on my distance for my ultimate goal of a running a marathon. Right now I am trying to mend my hip to get back out on the road. I want to come back stronger than ever and am determined to do so.