Breaking Through my Barrier: I Went Skiing!

Nov 25, 13 Breaking Through my Barrier: I Went Skiing!

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It had only been 4 years since I last skied, but it seemed like a lifetime ago.  I last went skiing with my family in New Mexico in 2009.  It was beautiful snow and weather and we had a fun day.  Since then I have had so many issues walking that I was sure I would never ski again.  I had a couple of bad falls and then I had something happen that made walking difficult.  It seems to be a corn allergy that gives me MS like symptoms if I eat it.  Last year we started taking our children to Ellicottville, NY to see our friends.  Our friends bought a cottage there and their daughter is close to our boys’ age.  They all run around the hills in the snow, watch movies, and play hard.  They have a great time together.  We were there a couple of times last year–the boys and my husband snowboarded and skied two days over the winter.  Each time I would stay behind and carry the boots  back to the car and wish I could ski, too.  I vowed to ski again.  I set a goal to ski one time this winter. We made plans for 2 weekends with our friends in 2013.  I found a program at Holiday Valley that is an adaptive ski program.    It is called the Lounsbury Adaptive Ski Program.  A way for people with “challenges” to ski.  It is  a 2 hour lesson and it includes lift ticket and rentals for $40.  A person like me would be paired with an instructor and helped to ski.  I contacted them and was so excited that I could book with them.  I told them about my challenges with walking and they said, “we have sliders if you need them.”  There seemed to be no excuse for me.  But I was tired in January and didn’t get the session booked.  I felt too busy and tired and decided to wait.  I think my trepidation got...

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I Accidentally Met My Goal

Jul 22, 13 I Accidentally Met My Goal

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I went for a hike yesterday that took every bit of me.  Before lunch we took a quick trip to Tiffany Falls.  It is about 1.2 km and it was an easy walk.  After lunch we went on the “long hike.” We went to Sulphur Springs road and we were walking on a loop that circles around the Hermitage Ruins and the Rail Trail Station.  What a gorgeous trail with stunning vistas, moss-covered rocks breaking away from the edges of the trail, old forests and wide open meadows.  This trail has everything. The sign said it was 3.4 km and I think it was true, except that we missed a turn and got lost. I have had some struggles with walking.  In 2010 I hurt my SI joint and then I had a really bad fall.  After I thought I had almost recovered, I was walking across the street one day and my leg stopped walking.  I was essentially stranded in the middle of the road.  I recovered partially, but have been compromised physically since then.  Two summers ago we were discussing whether or not we needed to buy a wheelchair as back-up.  I believed at that time I would probably never go on a walk again.  I had MRIs and saw a specialist.  It was unclear what was going on, but I assumed my condition was progressive and I would have to make the best of it. About 18 months ago I lost weight and worked with a nutritionist who hypothesized that I was allergic to corn.  I cut corn from my diet and started to recover.  I got better.  I was able to walk much better last summer but I still wasn’t able to hike.  I felt cautious and afraid of strenuous activity.  I didn’t venture out much.  In February I hired a trainer and started to work out.  We are planning a trip to Europe this summer and I set a goal of walking 5 miles before we leave in July....

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