Pyrrhic victory?

[shoshin]

Well, my husband is out of town for a few days and this morning I decided to go to the grocery store to pick up something that I forgot to buy before he left. Since I'm currently afraid to drive, I thought I would walk. According to Google Maps, the grocery store is .9 miles from my house on foot. There and back (1.8 miles) is farther than I've walked in a long time. Sometimes, though, I think we have to challenge our limits or we'll never know where they are. So I decided to go for it.

I got there okay. Before going into the grocery I rested in the a/c of the nearby public library and refreshed myself while reading most of a magazine. The way back was a different story, though. It was soon apparent that I was going to have to push myself. Somewhere around the halfway mark, I managed to trip on an uneven crack in the pavement, presumably because I didn't lift my foot up high enough, and fell flat on my face. I picked myself up and don't seem to have suffered any lasting damage other than a scraped and bloody side of one of my elbows. After that I was careful to pick my feet up more.

However, the longer I went, the tighter my thighs got, the less my knees wanted to bend (Why on earth do people make curbs that are even higher than the sidewalk?? How do they expect people like me to step over those obstacles?), and the less control I seemed to have over my legs. Then I started pitching forward and really not being able to stop when I wanted to pause and rest (took my quite a few stuttering steps to come to a full stop). Finally for the last block I had to pull out the folding cane in order to stay upright. Thankfully, I made it home.

This really wiped my out. Instead of the brain fog fatigue I usually get from lunch on, I got really physically exhausted and spent most of the afternoon napping.

I'm glad I was able to do it, but it turned out to be a harsh reminder of how little I am able to do anymore.

sho

[shoshin]

Thanks, everyone. I'm not sure if I'm brave or just stupid, but I am still paying for my little experiment.

Terry, I know what you mean about stairs--they can seem surprisingly insurmountable. Oddly, I have more trouble going down than up. I find that I do tend to use my arms to pull myself when going up and that helps.

No Peapod around here, unfortunately. No vitamin E oil, either, and I'm definitely not going back out for it.

HVAC, I'm with Ess, that's a lot! Of course, it's been some time since I could walk around all day and the last couple times I did, by the end my knees were trying to give way and I couldn't really walk upright.

sho

[essdipity]

Good heavens, Alex! Just dealing with DC traffic can be agonizing. When I need to do that, I go way out of my way to avoid rush hour.

But then you dealt with the Metro system, which isn't so easy, as you know. And you walked all day!?! Wow, I just can't do that anymore. Are you close to being rested up? You sure have a lot of stamina.

Have a peaceful Monday.

ess

[HVAC]

Good for you. I know it was hard.

This week I stretched myself. I drove into D.C. during rush hour traffic on Wednesday ( no accident). Thursday I took my friend to the Passport office via the metro.

They have these escalators that are several stories high. With vertigo I got on the first one going down and thought I would die. We had four trips all together on these things. By the second one I walked down, then froze, then unfroze, then walked again.

We walked all over D.C. from 7:45 AM until 3:45 PM. My legs hurt and my left leg was shaking. We left the city during rush hour again. It took 2 1/2 hours to clear traffic. We were in the famous mixing bowl. I got home at 11PM. I am still tired but being Labor Day can take it easy.

I carry a trek pole with me and a cell phone as a rule.

Alex

[Guitar_grrrl]

Brave and adventurous one,

Knowing myself as I do, I probably would have attempted the same thing, but I think I would pack my folding trekking poles or collapsible cane into my shopping bag.  

Hope you're healing.  Some vitamin E oil is soothing and healing...

I like the Peapod idea, too.  Unfortunately I live outside their delivery zone 8^(

I'll play a tune for you,
Guitar_grrrl

[Lulu54]

Wow Sho, I'm not quite sure what to make of this - you are certainly brave and adventurous to push yourself that far and hard.  You are also obviously struggling to keep your independence by doing this on your own.  You are so right, we have to keep pushing ourselves....

I'm glad you didn't hurt yourself in a serious way -
be well,
L

[essdipity]

Well now, I think something can be salvaged from this experience, so it's not all for naught.

You now know your max limitations, and unfortunately this is not likely to improve, so you'll need to adjust accordingly. If you can walk for exercise, do that, but make sure that you go in a circle or otherwise keep close to home. Then the worst case scenario won't be more than you can manage. It's all about being realistic, much as we'd rather not.

I've gotten myself into that kind of pickle, so I know just what you're talking about. But even if we get through okay, it's just not worth being exhausted afterwards, sometimes for days or even weeks.

In general, supermarket shopping and lugging the bags can be really tiring. We have a service around here called Peapod, affiliated with a local grocery chain. If I ever get to this point, I will use it to order online and have it all delivered, for an extra ten bucks. Especially for really heavy stuff, it will be worth it to stock up. I know that wasn't your problem this time, Sho, but you might want to look into something like this in your area on general principles, particularly since driving is becoming a problem for you.

ess

[saveone]

Your challenge sounds very scary to me.  Not that you tried it but that you tried it alone.  You are a brave soul.  I would not have the nerve to do what you did because I would be so afraid I could not make it back home.

I find myself looking at stairs and contemplating can I climb them?  Up one flight sounds so easy.  I really want to try.  I then remind myself that stepping up on the curb can be a challenge and I shouldn't attempt the stairs....especially on my own.  It s u c ks not being able to do the things I used to do.

stay safe, terry