Where have I been?

That's a great question with a very long answer.  So I will be forced to make it brief.

On May 7, 2013 my doctor discovered that I had a tumor in my abdomen.  He felt it was a benign Uterine Fibroid.  To be safe he ordered a CT scan.  The plan was to get shots for 3 months, shrink the tumor and remove it in the least evasive way possible. 

CT scan performed and we discover that the growth inside me was, as the doctor put it, "enormous".  So large that it was difficult to distinguish exactly where it was originating from.  Also, it was growing rapidly AND had pinched off the ureter leading to my right kidney.  I could not wait 3 months.

One last trail run.  We ran Veteran's Trails.  I couldn't run with a pack because it hurt.  So, I didn't carry my phone and therefore no pictures.  It was a good run, but somber.  A huge disappointing factor in this was the fact that I had been training since November to PR in the Famous Potato Full Marathon.  I knew I would too.  I had the secret goal to qualify for Boston.  My last big run had been a 20 miler in in 2:53.  I knew I would've accomplished my goals.  But I could not run.

Next step, surgery!  I went in on May 20, 2013.  The incision turned out to be 8 inches long straight up my middle.  The tumor?  It turned out to be the size of a football and weighed in between 6-8 pounds!  However, it was something they had never seen before.  Neither my surgeon o the pathologist had any idea what it was and where it originated from. 

Four days in the hospital, and now I am in the midst of recovery.

My tumor was sent off to John Hopkins Research Center and is being studied there by the greatest medical minds in the world.  Their findings?  They did determine that there is no cancer but still have no indication as to what it is.

I am happy to know what it ISN'T.  Knowing it is not cancer is enough for me.

As far as my running?

Right now I am focusing on being able to just get back to everyday activities without pain.  The doctor said 6-8 weeks before I should even say the word run.  It is day 18 and recovery is going steady but slow. 

So, if you are running a trail today or tomorrow, sprint up one of those hills for me!