A New Lease on Life
This past year has been one of the most uncertain and trying seasons of my life. I am overjoyed to share that this season is behind me, and I’m looking forward to whatever God has for me next. It all started at the end of February 2021, and I really haven’t been quite the same since… until about two weeks ago.
Early 2021 was really troubling for me. I experienced a foggy brain, fatigue, exhaustion, and slight head and chest tension that just didn’t seem to go away. I was functional but felt like I was running on a reduced clarity of thought, decreased physical ability, a steady slight head pressure, and the reality that it takes a great deal of effort to get through normal daily routines.
At the end of July 2021, the brain fog lifted, and I finally felt closer to my normal mental state again with the exception of an ongoing moderate headache and constant head tension that I could feel in my entire head and through parts of my face, neck and shoulder area.
My approach to problem solving has always been to start with the most likely reason. I keep digging through potential solutions until I find out what is at the core of the issue and then solve the root problem. As a world class ultra-endurance athlete and entrepreneur, I’m one of the most disciplined and self-monitored people that I know with the ability to track changes over time and make the necessary adjustments in both ultra-endurance sports and business development.
Through this process, I went to multiple walk-in clinics, doctors, chiropractors, massage therapists, and an acupuncturist. I received vitamin B injections, antihistamines, a Zio heart monitor and an MRI. About six months ago in July, I finally found some reprieve from my symptoms after taking a series of vitamins and supplements I received from Dr. Jerry Springhob who specializes in morphic field therapy.
This season of distress pushed me to drop my training volume substantially, minimize my work load as much as possible, decrease my instruction hours, and put all career and project expansion plans on hold. I was not doing well, something was wrong with me, and I was unwilling to stop searching until I identified and rectified the underlying source in order to take action towards healing.
I’ve ruled out as many things as possible and as of now the most likely cause and really the only that makes sense to me is the Moderna vaccine shot I received back on February 22, 2021. I had my booster shot in December 2021 after reading some scholarly articles that had outlined how 30-40% of people that are having similar symptoms as mine were finding a surprising full recovery.
At the end of January 2022 I caught some sort of cold and within a few days as I started to recover, the head tension and headache have gone away along with the snotty nose from the cold. It was almost as if my body had done a complete reboot, and I am back to who I was mentally and physically a year ago.
It feels like I had a whole year of life sucked away from me, and yet in the midst of that struggle, God has been so gentle with me and allowed me to maintain and excel in many areas of my life. I was forced to slow down, narrow my focus, give grace to myself and others, and become highly present and engaged with each moment.
I will take full advantage of this new lease on life and am thankful for all those who prayed for and encouraged me during this season.