It's That Cold Day in Hell...

What a week! 

A Big Snowstorm ✅

Bitter Cold Temperatures ✅

Gale Force Winds ✅

Taken down by a virus ✅

Hepatitis B is no longer a required vaccine ✅

Retirement is back on the table ✅

Weekly Rundown:

Sunday: Trail Sisters hike 5 miles

Monday: Yoga with Adriene, Strength training

Tuesday: Fluid Running

Wednesday: treadmill run 3 miles, trail run 4 miles

Thursday: sick/rest day

Friday: sick/rest day

Saturday: sick/rest day

On Sunday morning, when I woke up, there was about 9 inches of snow on the ground. Our Trail Sisters run wasn't canceled; instead, it was changed to a hike. There were only 3 of us at the trailhead, and we began walking through the deep snow to the trail. It was beautiful. It was still snowing when we first started, but by the time we finished, the sun was beginning to peek out from behind the clouds. Even though our pace was slow, the conversation made the time pass quickly. What an enjoyable morning!

photo courtesy of Ilisa

Monday was deadlift day, and you all know how much I love deadlifts! I was determined to put last week behind me, and yes, I did, hitting 195#! I lifted the first rep all the way up, but couldn't get the second rep past my knees. Looking at the video I took, I noticed that I lifted up my hips before pulling the bar up. Rats! Still, I was happy that I at least got the first rep. Progress!

On Wednesday, I had to drive out to my parents' to accompany my dad to his hematologist appointment. Normally, I run the trails on Wednesday, but it would have been too dark to navigate the snow-packed trails safely. So to the treadmill it was. As I ran, I had lots of thoughts, as runners do, and I decided to do a trail run on my way home from the appointment. The trails were runnable, but uneven, and it was hard to get moving in some spots. My treadmill run gave me some decently paced miles, so I feel as if I got the best of both worlds. I liked this and will utilize this plan again!

All week, I felt the start of a cold. When I woke up Thursday morning, I did not feel well at all. My Oura ring tells the story. I've never had such low readiness scores, with Friday lower than Thursday. Good thing Thursday was my day off. The bad thing is I had a lot to do. By the afternoon, I knew I wasn't going to be able to go to work on Friday. I called off work and canceled the cleaning lady. I spent Thursday, Friday, and Saturday on the couch, Cocoa keeping me company. 

Off the Road...

I can't remember the last time I was this sick. It's not Covid, and I don't think it's the flu, just one of those myriad other viruses circulating around this time of year. I take pride in my healthy streak! Now I'm back to square one. I did take advantage of my downtime to order my Christmas presents and stocking stuffers. The tree is halfway decorated--even that took every ounce of energy I had. 

On Friday, I was following the ACIP meeting regarding the Hepatitis B vaccine and was incredibly disappointed in the committee's decision to change the requirements for the vaccine, requiring it only for infants of women who test positive for Hepatitis B. No matter where you stand on this decision, it wasn't based on science. We're already seeing the impact of this in our practice, with a significant increase in parents refusing Hep B at birth; some are refusing Vitamin K (which babies are born without and is required for blood clotting) and erythromycin eye ointment (to prevent vaginally transmitted infections). 

My employer currently has a policy requiring all patients to be vaccinated according to the schedule within 3 visits, or they will be dismissed from the practice. How long this policy will remain in place is anyone's guess. One thing I do know is that I don't want to care for children who are not vaccinated. In the days before we had vaccines that prevent infection from S. pneumoniae and H. Influenzae, I was a nurse in a PICU in Chicago. I cared for many babies affected by these terrible bacteria; some of them did not survive. Now that we have those vaccines, we rarely see serious infections from these bacteria. I don't want to go back to those days. My job is to keep kids healthy!

This is why retirement is now back on the table. I'm not making the decision right now, but I'm not ruling it out if we are required to allow non-vaccinated patients in our practice. People say we don't see any of these diseases anymore, but that is because we live in a vaccinated world. Actions have consequences, and if people stop vaccinating their children, we will start seeing these illnesses return--in fact, we already are. I don't understand why people don't get this. It's not political. It's science. 

This isn't how I want to wind up my career. It's that cold day in hell, isn't it?

How was your week? Are you experiencing snow and bitter cold? When was the last time you were taken down by an illness? It's been a difficult week all around for me. Here's to better days ahead. 

I'm linking up with Deborah and Kim for the Weekly Rundown.