Sometimes it's the injuries of others that make us stop and pause. Remember, it's not all about us! The other person in my case is my wife Susan. Very early one morning two week ago she was having some abdominal pain. We both thought it was food poisoning. We sat around the house that day doing nothing but watching television and waiting for her to feel better. That night was sleepless for her and for me. We got out of bed late that next morning hoping that the episode had passed. It had not! We made a few calls to our primary care physicians but were unable to schedule an appointment. We decided to head to the hospital emergency room. It's a good thing we did.
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| Peidmont Fayette Hospital |
We arrived a Piedmont Fayette hospital in Fayetteville at around 1pm. The nurses did a few tests and before we knew it Susan was in a bed waiting for a Computed Tomography (CT) Scan. The scan took place at around 6pm and by 7pm we knew she was going to need surgery. The diagnosis was a ruptured appendix. Sometime around 10pm that defective little sucker was out and Susan was in recovery by 11pm. The surgery itself only took about an hour.
So, what have I learned from this experience?
1) Don't wait to go to the hospital until it's too late.
2) Susan folds a lot of laundry - mostly mine.
3) Max is the best dog in the world but he did miss his momma.
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| Max says "THROW THE BALL!!" |
Susan came home after spending two nights in the hospital. I guess the most important lesson I've learned from this emergency is that normal people (I consider myself in that category "normal", and "people") can't achieve great things (I consider Ironman a great thing) without some help from others. It's only when that aide is taken away that we realize how dependent we are on others. I'm sure that you folks with small children are saying you know what I'm talking about. Whether it's a friend, a spouse, family member, or significant other, we all need help at some point in our lives. Training for an Ironman only compounds things. Fortunately, I've been able to help my wife and still be able to train.
Just a bit of pre-race reflection! It's been a long journey, and it's still not over.
As directed no pictures of Susan in or near the hospital were included in this blog. The injuries sustained to me should that occur would surely affect my chances of participating in Florida.
Thanks for reading.
