Countdown to Bermuda: On Patience, Persistence and Trusting the Process

Bermuda Half Marathon III is less than 90 days away! We deposited another 10 miles in the Bank of Bermuda yesterday on a drizzly, cloudy and then the skies opened up just as we finished kind of weather day.


As in running and as in life ... we laughed .... like when we put on our ponchos and the sleeves weren't snapped ... I asked, "Should we snap these or are we going to be wizards?" And when we do slam poetry inspired by sprinkles of rain, swans and anything that catches our eyes or minds while we run.

We got frustrated and barked at each other worked out some "stuff" and then focused on gratitude - for the gift of running and being able to run outdoors in nature experiencing One with all that is.

And we celebrated another training run in the books!

I'm in uncharted territory here....

I wasn't planning to run Bermuda Half Marathon III but of course who could refuse a Bermudian's invitational entry and a great rate at the Fairmount Southampton Princess?

I thought I needed to take time off to recover from Bermuda Marathon II which was a challenging day for me and to be perfectly honest, I didn't want to challenge (read that as tempt fate) the healing I'd done from the effects of paralytic polio and trauma during these past ten years.

But the best way to not have the past have an influence over me, the best way to create my future and continue the process of healing is to challenge myself and have new experiences to create new memories that whisk away the neurological connections that were hard wired from the past rewiring with new connections.

Mile 10 was when the wheels fell off the wagon for me in January during Bermuda Half II. Perhaps that's why I made sure our training schedule amped up to mile 10 and then we did 3 weeks of 10 miles of training.

This month is the anniversary of when I first reached out to Spaulding Rehab's International Rehab Center for Polio and was in the dark night of my mind, body and soul. They diagnosed me with Post-Polio Syndrome, a progressive neuromuscular disease. December is the 3 year anniversary of when I had a serious knee injury that almost sidelined me both in life and in running. That MRI indicated an atrophied gastroc muscle, a knee that would need a total knee in the next two years and the admonishment once again that I should not run.I also received an invitation to return to the Post-Polio Clinic for a re-evaluation of my symptoms because after all, it was only a matter of time before my symptoms worsened as they prognosticated in December of 2006.

But all that I had set into motion with incredibly powerful intention and emotion through my poetry could not be stopped!

In the wake of that knee injury I was blessed to have met Dr. Ryan J. Means, a healer and a chiropractor who helped me to get back on my healing path, back on the roads AND who led me to the work of Dr. Joe Dispenza.

I could feel my energy waning last week and doubts and fears creeping into the training for Bermuda Half Marathon III.

So what did this runnergirl1953 do?

First of all even though I could feel the twinges of what happened at mile 10, I also remembered that I powered through and that my body made an incredibly quick recovery from the muscle spasms and cramps.

The Universe delivered a Live Stream session with Dr. Joe that was powerful for me. It's been available all weekend long. I've reviewed the session, took notes and am doing the meditation again today.

I signed up for his monthly teleclasses.

I scheduled weekly chiropractic sessions with Dr. Lizzie Sobel.

I remind myself over and over and over again that I am healthy, whole, healed and strong.

It's time to visualize and feel the race during training runs and during cross training. I am feeling a stirring in my soul very excited to be representing what's possible when I tether myself to the Divine Mind, be patient with myself and trust the process knowing that the results are here.

Having no control over my body during Bermuda Half II triggered memories from when I collapsed in kindergarten class having been stricken with paralytic polio. Perhaps it was a memory waiting to be triggered that I needed to heal and being able to power through having love and support take me to the finish created new neurological pathways to completely heal that memory by having a different outcome. That was a powerful neurological imprint along with traumatic events that followed that I have been working to rewire ever since I began this healing journey 10 years ago.

After all:


So look out world...next week Team McManus will be running 10.5 miles on the road to Bermuda Marathon Weekend III. I'm tossing my fears and doubts and caution to the wind!



I AM going the distance with patience, persistence and trusting the process of healing and training!

To going the distance with strength and courage
From my heart to yours,
Mary

Be sure to listen to my interview with Keith Cartwright, "From Polio Survivor to Boston Marathon Finisher" by following this link.

Be sure to visit my website by following this link.

My books are available on Amazon.

Feel the Heal: An Anthology of Poems to Heal Your Life


Coming Home: A Memoir of Healing Hope and Possibility that chronicles the first 7 years of my healing journey:


And my latest and greatest book - Going the Distance: The Power of Endurance (With a Foreword by Jacqueline Hansen):

Veterans Day - Thank You Is Never Enough!

Every November 10th, John, head of housekeeping for the VA Outpatient Clinic at 251 Causeway Street would stop by my office and do a trivia quiz about the Marine Corps. I would put the birthday of the Marine Corps on my calendar. We'd pause and take some time for him to share the good, the bad and the ugly of what he experienced and despite the ravages of war, he seemed to walk a little taller and a little prouder every year on the Marine Corps birthday.

I left the VA to heal my own life and to leave the work of caring for those who served to the next generation of social workers. There are so many wonderful, caring people available to serve those who served. Recently I was blessed to reconnect with Renee Gallagher who initially replaced me as the outpatient medical social worker and is now providing support to the caregivers of the post 9/11 veterans who live with the effects of modern warfare including brain injury and post traumatic stress. Renee likes to think outside the box and we talk about how complementary therapies, especially the power of positive touch, can heal trauma and provide care to the caregivers.

When we first began to treat trauma at the VA back when I was an intern in 1983-84 there was a sense of hopelessness and frustration in treating trauma. My mentor, Sarah Haley, LICSW fought to get the diagnosis of PTSD into the Diagnostic and Statistic Manual of Psychiatric Disorders to begin to remove the stigma associated with the manifestation of PTSD such as rages, drinking to self medicate, suicidality and bring compassion to those who experienced trauma.

We have come a long way in understanding trauma and how to treat trauma. There is even a movement to remove the "D" in PTSD saying that the effects of trauma are not a disorder but rather a normal reaction to extraordinary events.

Research is being done on the effects of meditation, yoga, massage, and acupuncture on the effects of trauma. Neuroscientists are touting the good news that the brain and nervous system have neuroplasticity which means that once something happens to the body or the brain, it is not the end of the road but a new beginning. The mind, body and soul have an enormous healing capacity and through love, kindness, compassion and support trauma is transformed into resilience!

As I scrolled through my Facebook feed this morning it was filled with photos of veterans past and present. I thought, someone should share these in one place ... what better place than this place?

Thank you to all who served and to all who continue to serve to protect and defend our freedom. To you I bow! I salute you with hand over heart!

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US Air Force
Integrity First
Service Before Self
Excellence in All We Do

US Coast Guard
"Semper Paratus"
(Always Ready)"

US Marines
"Semper Fidelis"
(Always Faithful)

US Navy
"Honor, Courage, Commitment"

US Army
"This We'll Defend"

Through 11/15 please join the #Give2Veterans campaign that donates $1 for every hashtag #Give2Veterans to the Bob Woodruff Foundation. Veterans Day is every day and we need to find ways to support and help our veterans on the home front because thank you is never enough!