The next day started out as a typical day. The hustle and bustle of getting ready for work and getting 3 kids ready and out the door. One was crying of an earache. I noticed my headache was still present as well...nothing a couple Advil couldn't take care of, so I thought. Onward with a typical day...a visit to the pediatrician's office for one child's earache, then onto daycare, then onto work. My Inbox was flooded with emails, project behind schedule, looming deadlines, much to do. As I was working my way through email I was having a very difficult time focusing. My head was pounding and I was trying to push through it. Then, I started to feel dizzy and nauseous. I thought to myself....this isn't right. Do I need to see a doctor? I called my husband and told him my symptoms. At that time, I knew very little about concussions and so I asked him, do you think I might have gotten one? Do I need to see a doctor for that? Or, just give it a couple of days? My husband, one who sees a doctor once about every 15 years, says "you might want to go see the doctor". Okay, if he says that, I think I'll go in.
I went into an urgent care clinic and the receptionist asked me for the last four digits of my home phone number. I was very confused by her question. I eventually got the answer to her, but struggled to do so. Another indicator my head was not quite right. I saw the doctor, described the incident and my symptoms, and she then tells me I have a concussion. She is very stern with me..."you need to go home and rest." I was told I needed full rest on no work for 2 days. After that, I could try going back to work for half days. She tells me that some people recover from concussions within a few days, but for some it can take several weeks. If headaches continue, I should rest. If I don't rest, it will lengthen the time of recovery.
I was taken back. Wow, really? I can't work at all today or tomorrow? What about all of those emails in my Inbox? The deadlines this week? Oh boy, this is the last thing I need. However, I figured the smart thing to do was to follow doctor's orders and rest. I thought to myself...as long as I rest now, I'll be fine later this week. I didn't even remotely entertain the idea that it would linger longer.
I then ask her, "What about running? I'm a runner and will soon start my marathon training schedule.". "Absolutely not" she responds. "No running until you are asymptomatic. Then, resume light activity first like walking. If you don't have any headaches with walking, then you could gradually resume running". My mindset at that point was that I wouldn't fall too far behind if I had to take a few days off from running. Little did I know that I would later have to come to terms when a few days turned into a few months.
Fast forward a bit...for the next several days I had multiple attempts of returning to work. My symptoms continued to get worse. I had times when I felt okay while resting, but as soon as I tried to do anything I would go downhill very fast. I had difficulty thinking, focusing, and multitasking. When I saw my primary physician for a follow-up his recommendation was that I needed more time to rest and no work. How much time? He couldn't predict, but indicated it could take several weeks. I couldn't believe this was happening to me. I had to accept that this was going to last longer than I initially thought. I felt defeated. I faced the fact that I need to consider filing for a medical leave from work. My hope to train for the Chicago marathon was fading away. I just couldn't believe that what seemed like a minor incident while tubing had landed me here.
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