cue the violins

February 27, 2009

while i unroll a saga or two . . .

#1: working nights sucks.
seriously, it does. it feels lonely and weird and the body just isn’t meant to jump time zones like that. the sun makes you feel awake, and dark makes you sleepy for a REASON. i know someone’s got to staff the ER at 3 am, but aren’t there night owls who thrive on that sort of thing? i am NOT one of them.

on a similar note, why oh WHY does everyone decide to bring their stuffy-nosed febrile children to the ER at 2 AM? what do they think is going to happen at that magical hour? does the word ’emergency’ not ring any sort of bell?

a brief tutorial
breathing problems = emergency.
scabies = gross, but not emergent.
3 day old with a fever = emergency.
3 year old with a fever = not so much.
suicide attempt = emergency.
constipation x 2 days = negatory.

in all honesty, i haven’t minded my time in the ER at all. it goes pretty fast and i like seeing patients and talking to families. but i miss going to bed at night. things are better that way.

#2: (much suckier) i think my hip is busted again.

it feels like it did almost exactly a year ago when i did 99% of the training for the shamrock marathon and then didn’t get to run it. i have to admit i’ve had some warning signs that i didn’t heed as much as i could have, but when it’s not that bad it’s so easy to tell yourself that ‘ohhh it’s just a little soreness, it will work itself out!’.

except just 2 iffy runs later and now i’m already past that point. it hurts when i walk. i know i shouldn’t have been popping advil like candy all week pretending everything was okay, but for some reason that’s what i did, and now i’m paying for it. i know from the MRI that i got last april that i have a torn and partially detached labral cartilage in my right hip. somehow, with rest and cross-training the pain finally faded away and i was able to run a (faux) half marathon without any problems. but now it’s back. last time, it took about 2 months to go away.

so yeah. this is marathon training cycle #3 that has gone bad. apparently, it’s now an annual tradition for me to limp through spring. i get the message: as much as i love the thrill of long distances, i don’t think my body (especially my hip) can tolerate it. for now, i am going to STOP RUNNING and put the idea of the marathon out of my mind. if things improve and i can do it, great, but i’m not expecting anything miraculous.

i’m sad but hopeful that i will again run pain free. i’m disappointed that maybe there will be no more marathons for me. but i’m also okay with it as well. i tried, and it’s 3 strikes . . . i’m out. at least for the near future.

#3: perspective, peeps.

despite all this, i still have my health, my wonderful husband, my family, and i am not going to have to work night shifts forever. even in this eXtreme whine of a post i realize that and am thankful. aaaaaaaaaand i’m also thankful for the fact that it’s bedtime. peace!

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2.26.09

workout: rest day.

doin’ time: rigatoni with sausage and parsley, served with a spinach/orange pepper salad. it was yum, and josh said it was like “the stuff i used to make.” ie, before this whole doin’ time thing.

reading: 25 prep questions.

1 Comment

  • Reply Jess March 10, 2019 at 7:29 pm

    I am so sorry about your hip! I echo Kim’s question about the sports doc.

    I think some people go to the ER because they don’t have health insurance. Why they would choose to go at 2 AM for a non-emergency is absolutely beyond me.

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