Broccoli

“Clear your mind of can’t.”

-Samuel Johnson

I got my butt kicked (again) tonight… and I loved every second of it…

It’s funny how I can feel my mood start to dip when I get tired. Yesterday I got called in to work the overnight shift because someone had called out (yup, I missed boot camp- TRAGIC!) Luckily I had already worked out once that morning, but didn’t get a chance to nap before going in due to the short notice. I slept a couple hours when I got home this morning; but I could tell I was still dragging. It’s funny how my anxiety/PTSD has a way of rearing it’s ugly head when I’m even a little sleep deprived. For example, today I ordered broccoli pizza. I specifically picked a new restaurant because I wanted white broccoli pizza (ricotta, garlic, etc), which our typical place doesn’t offer. Well, they showed up with a regular pizza with broccoli on it, and I kid you not– it almost ruined my day. I think this is partially because I was starving, but even at the time I thought it was RIDICULOUS to be so upset over a pizza. Besides, the sent me a new one when I called, so I got a whole pizza for free which should have made me happy. Instead, I was in a bit of a funk the rest of the day….

Until boot camp. Boot camp always lifts my spirits. It’s the perfect combination of exercise and meeting up with friends. 🙂 It’s about conquering challenges and instantly makes you feel good about yourself (if you survive the workout ;)). Tonight we did intervals of exercises with the goal of going as hard as possible. By the time we got through to end of each round, my quads and calves were outright refusing to function. I attempted to just focus on my breathing and keep pushing. It was definitely rough, but I knew I couldn’t stop.

1) Mike would have totally called me out, and I am secretly (or not so secretly) terrified of him (jk…sort of)

2) I knew everyone else was suffering as much as I was- probably even more in the case of the new people!– and I didn’t want to cheat.

3) I HATE giving up. It’s just not an option for me.

Maybe it’s the joint experience of absolute misery (have I mentioned how much I hate intervals?) that has the group so bonded, but there’s definitely a tight-knit support system- which is a real comfort when you’re struggling!

In the past, I would have stayed home and avoided people if I felt my mood dipping. However, now I know better and use that as even further motivation to drag myself to the gym, for a run, or to boot camp. I’m glad I have gotten to a point with my PTSD symptoms that I can feel them coming on, recognize the source, and do something about it. I am pretty certain that I will never get rid of my symptoms completely, but at least I have gotten better at coping with and managing them. Everyone has his or her own battle or struggles in life, and I certainly could have worse problems to deal with. Instead of focusing on how much happier or healthier I could be, I remind myself of how blessed and lucky I am to have not only survived everything I’ve been through, but overcome it.