1 Year 7 Months Update: I DO!!!

In this Update:

• Current State of Affairs
• Birthday AND Wedding
• Training Whenever I Can
• A Muddy Ride
• Things that Made Me Smile

Current State of Affairs
I want to start with an update on the most important thing right now, Ralf’s upcoming surgery November 22^nd and subsequent recovery. It’s been a very surreal time, and it has been very challenging to not let cancer rule our worlds completely. Since I decided to push on and get my MSN degree done this semester, I have been on a tight schedule: working full time 12-hour shifts on the weekends, doing internship hours either at the SimLEARN Center, the VA long-term care, or via online grading on most days off, and squeezing in some training days as well to not completely neglect my own rehab is taking its toll but I am almost there. The worst of all though is that I really want to spend more time with Ralf before the surgery, but I am always busy running around! I do need my job, income, insurance, and finish that damn degree but my heart wants to be home… can’t quite win there either way. Since this blog is aimed at monitoring the status of my back after lumbar ADR surgery, I would like to add that I could have never even attempted to do what I am doing right now. The crippled state I was in prevented me to put on my socks in the morning, so the stress and activities that I am currently subjected to would have been IMPOSSIBLE prior ADR. In fact, I am relieved that I am still progressing through my training with Angela, even though I have not been able to be consistent with going to the gym. But before I get into the rehab update, I am going to share one life-event we have been postponing for almost 10 years….

Birthday AND Wedding
When Ralf and first I met, I knew that he was “it”. We just belonged together and that became very clear early on. He, me, and the Ponce – my family! Looking back makes me realize how much we have shared and overcome throughout the last decade, including adventure racing, learning how to freedive, nursing school (twice!), Ralf’s tenure process, two hip surgeries, and my back-surgery journey. We always wanted to get married but having family overseas and just “life happening” caused us to keep postponing it. Now that we are facing the ultimate challenge, we decided that it was time to “tie the knot”, just him and me and the Ponce. Even though we lost our baby last February, he is still very much part of our small family, and we light a candle for him every night. October 21 marks now two special occasions: Ralf’s’ birthday and our wedding day! We started the day with cake and a candle, but then had to get ready for our next adventure: The Orange County Courthouse! We decided to not even bring witnesses, this was just between him and me, and the real celebration at the Wallaby Ranch will happen next year, same time, when he is all better. There we hope that all our friends and family will gather the way we always envisioned.So, standing in line for security in the courthouse is not a very glamorous process, and most people in line weren’t there to get married, that much was obvious. It was a tad bizarre when my flowers went through the scanner and Ralf had to take off his belt. But after this, it did get much better. The place where we signed our marriage license was not very busy, and the process was smooth. We then took a seat to wait for the ceremony to take place in a separate room, where another couple had just entered before us. There were television screens mounted throughout the waiting room, playing videos with various information, including a thorough introduction on how to get a divorce… that made us chuckle quite a bit. When the lady called us in, I was actually positively surprised: the room was nice and quiet, set up for bringing guests I suppose, and a little podium in the front where the clerk had us recite the wedding vows. Even though it was plain and simple, it was the perfect moment to me – after all, it wasn’t about the “where” but about “to whom” I got married. “You, me, and the Ponce – Always!”

After we said our “I do”, we decided to get out of downtown and back to Lake Nona to have a beautiful lunch at Canvas, including a couple of mimosas for me. Later in the evening, we had tapas at Chromas, sitting outside and enjoying the really nice weather. We debated going to the movies but settled on watching “Crawl” in the comfort of our home instead.  Perfect ending to our day – Happy birthday, Sweety!

Training Whenever I Can
So, as I mentioned earlier, consistent training has been difficulty due to the internship, doctor’s appointments, and work. I also missed some days where I was just too exhausted or depressed to go work out. However, despite all this, I actually made a lot of progress. I am now able to do a pull-up from hanging position, I started deadlifting to further strengthen my back, and I can do now multiple push-ups from the ground. It feels good, all the movements and exercises I do feel good – no pain at all. I know many (including myself) have a fear of injury due to the ADR implant, but I firmly believe that if the workouts are done right, they are extremely beneficial and will help my spine stay strong and healthy. It is when I stop moving for a while, sitting long hours in front of the computer, that I feel stiffness in my back (upper and lower). On the other hand, coming from a challenging workout always makes me feel better. Besides, I have the best workout-buddy I can ask for since Ralf and I often train together 😊

A Muddy Ride
Believe it or not, Ralf and I managed to also get one bike ride in this month. We didn’t go far, and hunting season limited our choices quite a bit, but we spent a couple of hours out at the Hal Scott Preserve. Since the trails were super wet and muddy, this turned out to be a messy adventure. Since Ralf is the much stronger rider, it was more a leisurely ride for him. But for me, I really had to push myself to not fizzle out!

Things that Made Me Smile
In all the madness that October had to offer, there were some precious moments that made me smile (besides my wedding). I had a really bad morning one day (it’s been an emotional roller-coaster, and there are many ups and downs right now), and when I got to work, I was really deflated. Then there was that veteran waiting for me to come in: I took care of him a several weeks back, and he came in that day to give me a Coast Guard challenge coin, complete with handshake! He thanked me for my service and my care, which really caught me by surprise. Getting a coin like that is a huge honor, and I kept looking at it throughout my shift, which lifted my spirits a bit. I don’t think he realized what good timing that was…

The other event that made me smile (and shed a tear, actually) was when I got to my internship site at the National SimLEARN Center the day after my wedding. I still have to complete the 180 hours of internship hours prior to surgery, so I had to push on. Around noon, my preceptor nudged me to the back offices to say “Hello to Susie”… , and when I turned the corner, there were decorations, a beautiful customized cake, a second cake, a gift bag, and a card!!! The card was signed by all the SimLEARN staff, who got together to surprise me that day! I don’t even work there, and they went out of their way to make my day a little more special! Here is a big THANK YOU to my friends Susie, Helen, Jennifer, Lugia, and the rest of the SimLEARN peeps!!!

The third surprise I got was an email from the University of Central Florida, College of Graduate studies: I completely forgot about that interview and the questionnaire I filled out sometime in the summer when I was picked as a “featured graduate student”. They only used a snippet of the interview where I talk about healthcare simulation, but I now can be found on UCF’s website and all their social media accounts, lol! Honestly, it is all a bit much right now, but I must say I am proud to leave my mark on this university before I graduate… and I will NOT be back!