Allergies!

My allergies have been consistently acting up since sometime last week. I don't know if it's because once triggered, my asthma doesn't allow my body to recover or what, but up until today I've been feeling like crap. Breathing has been a laborious chore, and to be honest, it's been a pain. I've relied on my rescue inhaler more times than I can count in the past few days, whereas in the past few years, I have been able to count the number of times I've needed to use it on one hand.

Sunday morning I went for my long run. I was stupid, changing my route halfway through. I ended up extending it and then getting lost. Really dumb. I was smart enough to pack my inhaler in my CamelBak, because after about 7 miles my lungs were feeling it, and breathing started to hurt. I walked a few miles in hopes that if I let my body cool down a bit and recover, I would be able to run some more. I wasn't, and I was really bummed about it. Then I got caught in a crazy thunderstorm complete with huge bolts of lightning and the kinds of thunder you can feel in the pit of your stomach. I was just about a mile home when it hit, and by the time I got home it was letting up. Figures. I was so soaked that it looked as if I had jumped in a pool. To add insult to injury, I wasn't even able to time the run because for a while my watch was MIA (but I found it this morning!).

So all in all, it was a pretty disheartening ordeal. I have my half-marathon this Sunday, and in my heart I just want to push as hard as I can, but I know that's just dumb. I started feeling better yesterday, but I still had to use my inhaler once this morning, though that's an improvement over every 4 hours. Anyway, I've focusing on my lungs, not pushing myself over my limits, and hoping I can get in at least one more solid run tomorrow. If not, that's okay too, I'll just have to let the chips fall where they may. I just want to finish my race healthily. It could mean walking part of it, but I'll take what I can get.

In other news, I got my RoadID today! I'm very excited. It's wider than I expected it to be, which is actually a little reassuring because I was nervous about it looking like some sort of bracelet and being overlooked in the case of an emergency. Thankfully, it is quite clear that it's an ID!

Breathing: Something I've Taken For Granted

In high school I was incredibly unhealthy. For a moment, put aside the fact that I was almost completely sedentary and weight 235+ lbs, I had myriad environmental health issues. I've had asthma since childhood, which I blame on being brought up in a smoking household (if you're a smoker, do yourself and everyone around you a favor and QUIT). My mom and step-dad have since quit, but it seems like one of those things that just can't be undone. Anyway, I also had incredibly awful seasonal allergies... in spring, summer, autumn, and winter. Imagine that!

Before I saw an allergist for the first time at age 15 due to an incident involving a banana nut muffin (because why would anyone go to an allergist for anything other than anaphylactic shock?), my life was completely miserable. If my asthma was under control, it was only a matter of time until my allergies kicked in, which would in turn make my asthma flare. I wasn't on any medication at the time aside from my albuterol inhaler, so these events would also lead to bronchitis, which eventually became chronic. I didn't know anything else - it was just the way life was. A few times a year it would get bad enough to see a doctor for a prescription, but most of the time I just dealt with it. My allergist informed me that I didn't know what if felt like to be healthy, prescribed me allergy meds and an oral asthma med, and life got better.

Then I moved to Massachusetts, and my dependency on my medications disappeared. I no longer had the allergies that made my asthma flare up that induced bronchitis. I was free!

Jump to four years later. It appears as though my body has caught up with the pollen here. My allergies have returned (though not in full force). I hadn't had to use a fast acting inhaler in Massachusetts, save for one (maybe two) times my freshman year until two days ago. I kept telling myself that it would all pass, but it did not. Cue asthma attack last night.

I forgot how scary it is not being able to breathe. My inhaler was no use, and I ended sitting up awake for a few hours before I got a handle on my lungs. So that sucked.

Anyway, I ended up only running 2 miles today. I was kind of bummed, but at the same time, I'm just glad to be breathing relatively easily again. SO, if you can breathe with ease, count your blessings! Wheezing is the pits.