It’s been a few weeks but things were not going as well as I’d like (plus I was busy as the dickens with work) so I wanted to work through those things before I posted.

I finally feel like my energy is returning from the surgery. It took much longer than I expected which is probably a function of both the type of surgery and my age (nah!) but at least I’m feeling stronger.

I had started trying to run but was not happy at all and in fact, was downright discouraged because I felt worse than when I first started running in 1994. I had no endurance and everything hurt. And then….something unusual developed in my ankle – I got some sort of bursitis in the heel – very unusual for me.  I couldn’t run OR walk. So that was a big downer too.

As a result, I had to ask myself what the Universe was trying to tell me. Was it that I wasn’t going to be able to run anymore or that I wasn’t going to be able to do the Tennessee event in July (running out of time) or even that I needed to revisit my purpose in life? Many questions, no answers.

So, I just relaxed and let the answers come. One answer was that it was NOT too late to consider Tennessee but that I shouldn’t fall into the trap I did last year and try to do too much in too short a time and then violate all the training laws I had ever learned – thus, leading to my injury and early pull out. That answer was very helpful.

Also, I was feeling discouraged but realized that I had control over my feelings no matter what the external circumstances were. I pulled myself up by the bootstraps and realized that my life was NOT dependent on running and that even though I love it very much, if I can’t run, there are many other things I can (and want to) do. Building my coaching program is a major part of my life especially since I’m so immersed in the course I’m taking right now. Also, finishing my book is very important to me. I showed myself how rich and rewarding my life is whether I’m out there on the road or not. It’s ok to take the time to let my ankle heal (no pun intended). If I don’t make it to Tennessee this year, there is next year.

Bottom line, just relax and let the Universe unfold in front of me, holding the positive things that I want to do with my life in the front of my mind, not concentrating on the negatives, or worse yet, the ‘possibles’.  As Mark Twain said –

The post Tuesdays With Terrie first appeared on Getting Unstuck, LLC.

COMING SOON!! That’s the best way I can describe this week – I feel as if the Academy Awards show is Friday and I’m the star…ha  ha – no such luck.  But in my defense I did say I “feel”. So I can do anything I want inside my head and heart.

Ok so I’ll get to the point – this Friday I can RUN AGAIN – hope I remember how…

It will be six weeks and my “prison sentence” will be over. I’m just kidding. It’s been a good “sentence” and I’m not complaining. I’ve learned a lot and done a lot in that time that I couldn’t run. It’s actually been closer to 3 months since I could really do anything serious because my back was injured before the surgery. So it will be very interesting to see how I do. I know that my running leg muscles are well rested even though I’ve been able to walk as much as I wanted. See – there are silver linings in all of those clouds. It’s just up to us to fly our own airplanes up and through the clouds to see those linings.

I’ve learned a great deal about myself and even developed some patience and different perspective in these 6 weeks. Lots has happened in my life and in the lives of friends so running can be put in its proper place. It’s very important to me but I now have a much better idea of how and why.

I also realized that I’m very powerful because I’m sure that I created this medical problem requiring surgery to get out of two events I was not prepared for. I really do have to learn to pay more attention to my thoughts and change them immediately. This is the second time I’ve done something significant like this in the context of a running event. The first time, though, I was able to remove it/correct it quickly. This time not so lucky. Oh well. I am glad I’m powerful but as I keep telling everyone, once you’re aware of the Law of Attraction and how you create everything in your life, you have increased responsibility to behave properly. I know better and yet it’s my subconscious that does all this. Argh…I will pay more attention.

Anyway, I’m so happy Friday is almost here. Even my messed up second external monitor can’t take away from my happiness about that. Thank you Universe for everything I’ve learned in the past 6 weeks!

Terrie

The post Tuesdays With Terrie first appeared on Getting Unstuck, LLC.

Separation Anxiety – that’s the best way to describe it. A certain group of readers will understand this completely..ha ha.

It’s now been over a month since I’ve been able to/allowed to run. Even though I am allowed to walk, it’s just not the same. Every day I walk by my Garmin wrist device and I have to stop and talk to it so it doesn’t feel lonely. It just sits there wanting to jump onto my wrist and go out and play with me. But, it sees me walk away – it feels snubbed. Who ever thought a device could feel snubbed? But I swear it does. I just hope I remember how to operate it when I’m allowed to run again.

However, I must admit that I have found pleasure in walking for the past several weeks. Knowing I am not allowed to run has enabled me to not worry about my performance but to just enjoy being outside in the gorgeous weather we’re having here in Texas (sorry East Coast). It’s making me long for my Tennessee trek in July. And definitely making me long for the day (1 1/2-2 weeks away still) when I can just take off and run!

I’m back at work now (yesterday was the first day) and still working through some post-op issues but I “think” they are improving (I can’t ever tell until a few days have gone by because my system is so funky). I was wiped out by noon though so fortunately my great boss let me leave early. I think I will do that again today and tomorrow probably – easing my way back into the full swing of things. More of the “taking it slow” concept.

It was good to see everyone again and fortunately we are pending a major crisis at work so that occupied my mind for quite a while – I do much better with an occupied mind rather than having to just dive right back into the boring aspects of my job.

Learning that the world continued to revolve just fine without me was interesting. A few years ago (and maybe even just a year ago) that would have bothered me and I would have felt unneeded. But, this time, it’s part of embracing the journey. I was proud of the guys who took over for me and did a fine job. I  know that they have learned well and know exactly what to do! That felt great too.

I will continue with my “slow down” theme for the month leading into April and encourage you to embrace the concept as well.  There is so much more that we can get out of life if we just slow down and take our time.

Take your time, enjoy your life, you never know what the next moment will bring. Really try to figure out what “enjoy the moment” means to you. Then just do it.

Terrie

The post Tuesdays With Terrie first appeared on Getting Unstuck, LLC.

I’m home! See – everything DOES work out for me.

Although there are plenty of places I would rather be, this was one of THE most enjoyable hospital experiences I have ever had (no I am not a masochist, just reporting what I experienced).  I had the best care (shame on the Navy – Army medicine here in San Antonio certainly has Navy medicine beat) you could ever ask for. And I had friends to take care of me and be by my side even when I didn’t know they were there – that was a funny part of the story better kept to telling in person.

The EFT work I did with Mary Ayers  before hand was instrumental in my getting out of the hospital in less than 72 hours from the end of my surgery. I just kept using the techniques that Mary went through with me and whenever I was having concerns or worries, I turned to what she taught me and it worked. I highly recommend both EFT AND Mary to anyone who wants to work with an EFT coach. This has just solidified my faith in coaching and the benefit working with another person who is on your side will give you. I would not have made it through with so little anxiety without Mary! I owe her so very much for working with me on this.

That is the primary lesson for this week – find a coach and hold on to them although there may be times when you have to move on to a different coach. People change but the usefulness of a coach is always positive. A “coach” is a vehicle that helps you get from one place to another – a place of your choosing. You can look at a coach as a sounding board or as a guide or even just a friend. A coach is probably the most valuable resource you can have.

From the weather to my arrival home, everything went according to plan! And whether it was my plan or that of the Universe, I can tell you I was very happy with the plan and its results. The weather was supposed to be a mess – a rare winter weather advisory with icy roads was predicted. Did any of that happen? Heck no. It wasn’t even rainy. My friend cruised right up to the hospital and let me out and I went to the waiting room. I guess if there was any “hitch” at all, it would have been that there was a very, very long delay before I went into the operating room. I knew it would be later than I wanted since I was third on the schedule but I didn’t know it would be that late…and there was no way to get messages to people out of state who were waiting to hear what happened.  But I had great company while waiting (my boss was there the whole time – what a wonderful gesture that was and the staff was great). the Anesthesia crew listened to my concerns about my neck and not wanting to have nausea when I woke up and they succeeded in preventing all of those problems.  The surgical staff was wonderful and kept stopping by to fill me in on the progress in the room and then I went in.

I don’t remember much after that until sometime the next day but I know that people were there and they were my advocates while I was under the “influence” so I was in great hands no matter what.

My pain was pretty minimal and for that I was extremely grateful. I have restrictions that I don’t like (so what else is new huh, when someone else tells me what to do – ha ha). But you know what? I AM going to do what I am told and I am going to find the good in every part of it. I can’t run for 4-6 weeks but I can walk which is more than I expected so I am ecstatic. I can also rest and one thing I realized is that I cannot remember the last time I actually took some time to rest. That feels pretty good. I may even take all the time off work that we planned. That would be unusual, wouldn’t it? But I think it would be delightful.

There are some problems post-operatively that I’m not overly happy about but I’m not going to obsess over them too much, knowing that nothing is insurmountable and I will continue to work with EFT (and hopefully Mary will want to continue to work with m) on them. I am going to use this time to get rested and ready for Vol State this summer but I am also aware of how I messed up my training last year thinking I had to get “it all done” in a short period of time, over trained and got injured to start the run…the perfect recipe for disaster.

If you declare everything good, work to minimize the anticipatory anxiety as much as you can, know what to do when you encounter further anxiety, treat people with gratitude, courtesy and respect no matter what happens and know that you have so much to give to others, NOTHING can go wrong for you.

I thank everyone for their support and concern and hope that you continue to send healing prayers to me as my body works on its molecular level to heal!

Terrie

The post Tuesdays With Terrie first appeared on Getting Unstuck, LLC.

“What’s up Doc?” might be a better lead in for this week’s episode.

I’m two days away from the operating room.

Needless to say I’m worried. I have never used my favorite saying so much in my life. “Everything always works out for me” – over and over again.

I’ve also been using my favorite technique for reducing anxiety and fear – EFT (emotional freedom technique). Fortunately I worked with an EFT practitioner weekly for about 2-3 years so I know what to do and where to go with this. However, I’ve also made an appointment with another EFT practitioner I really respect to fine tune my tapping since when you’re in the middle of things, you can miss some key points. That’s my belief about coaching and an EFT practitioner is a coach.

A Coach helps you get where you need to go but you do the work and you provide the direction.

This past 2 weeks have been a whirlwind of thoughts, emotions and activity. I’ve had to prioritize my life and if others can’t deal with my decisions I just have hoped they would understand and get over it.

Just what I needed at work yesterday – someone got their feelings hurt because I told them to get out of my chair. Really? And I’m upset with myself for letting it bother me that that person is upset with me. Shows me that I really don’t have all my priorities straight.

“Everything always works out for me” – over and over again and again…ha ha. I can tease but it really is true and saying that and “Nothing and no one can interfere with my health and well-being, not even myself”. This is another important phrase in my vocabulary right now.

Remember that I’m a physician and I know what can go wrong. If I were to focus on those things, what would happen? I’d most likely attract that into my life and I surely don’t want that. So, I use these two statements to get my mind back on a better and higher plane and increase  my vibrations so that I set up the best possible environment and situation for myself.

Hopefully I’ll be out of the hospital in time to provide next week’s update. Take care for now.

Terrie

The post Tuesdays With Terrie first appeared on Getting Unstuck, LLC.

  It’s only been a short time since I last gave you an update but I wanted to get   back on track with Tuesdays.

I have slowed down in the past few months. I am pretty sure that there were “clues” or “suggestions” along the way  – especially since last September. However, in my not-so-infinite wisdom I didn’t pay attention.

So, as always will happen, the Universe moved to get my attention. And get my attention it did!

First it was my back (lifting something to help my back..ha ha). That has been about 5 weeks now and is much, much better. But it certainly slowed me down a great deal.

Then, as that was wrapping up, I developed this intestinal/abdominal problem which has also put a hamper on my activities.

Both these events have helped me focus on my body. Now, I could have done that in one of two ways – the “obsessed” way I’ve seen people embrace since I’ve been involved with the medical field. Or, the “attentive” way, where you look at what’s going on with introspection and attention in order to see what else is going on in your life and what you’re really supposed to do.

I much prefer the latter way because “instrospection” is much more positive than bemoaning all that has happened with the “poor me” and “why me” and “what else can happen” mindsets. Instead, I prefer preceding all my “sessions” with myself with “Everything Always Works Out For Me!” and then asking the Universe for Divine Guidance and to “show me the way”.  There’s really no way I can go wrong using those techniques. Even when facing surgery, using the “everything always works out for me” has markedly reduced the anxiety. That potential anxiety is currently compounded by not knowing who will do it or when – uncertainty sucks sometimes. However, one thing I have been taught in a course I’m taking is to embrace uncertainty. When you embrace the uncertaintly, you can enjoy and learn from life as you go through it, experiencing the journey. This is as opposed to waiting until I know what’s going to happen and when before I can relax and enjoy my life. I’ve done that enough times in my life and no longer choose to do that. I’m trying to learn from the medical issues that are ongoing while I wait to have them remedied. And you know what? I am learning a lot AND by slowing down and experiencing everything, I feel pretty darn good!

For one thing, slowing down has made me aware of the amount of low level stress I have been experiencing in my life for oh, so many years. I’ve been paying attention to that now and doing all I can to eliminate as much of what is causing the stress as possible. This often means letting go of the past, while opening my mind to the future and taking action. There is one particular project I have definitely been procrastinating over and I know that the roots of that procrastination are in my past. Obviously I’m holding on to them and that’s what has made me continue to procrastinate. Well, now that I’ve realized what that (and the cause) has done to my body, it’s time to take action and rid myself and my thoughts of those causes (limiting beliefs) and replacing them with new energy and action. This is a very significant life lesson for me.

I feel very calm about all of this and that’s just amazing in and of itself.

Slow down some and see what it feels like.

More next week if we’re lucky.

Terrie

The post Tuesdays With Terrie first appeared on Getting Unstuck, LLC.

I should have titled this post as “embrace the moment” but I couldn’t resist the rodeo reference for San Antonio.  And thanks to the wonderful folks at KJ 97 I get to go to the Rodeo on Monday night!

But, I digress (so what else is new, huh?).

Tuesday morning after a long weekend I was finishing up my chores and just getting ready to write “Tuesdays with Terrie” when something happened to me that landed me in the Emergency Room and has me now facing surgery. Obviously I didn’t get the post done. It’s been a week of riding the emotional roller coaster but it has taught me a great deal. Needless to say I’m not going to be able to do the 100 miler I had planned at the end of March – so that’s two events that my body has “told” me I wasn’t going to do. There probably is a deeper message in there somewhere but I’m not looking that deep.

It’s also keeping me from a publicity event I wanted to go to in April.

How do I feel and how have I felt about these happenings (or should I say NOT happenings)? Initially those thoughts and feelings were overshadowed by fears and concerns about the medical issue but then as I did embrace the moment, I realized that there are other things for me to learn, experience and enjoy on this new road I’m going to travel. I am learning to take things as they come and deal with whatever drops in the road in front of me. To assess the new obstacle, figure out what it means (if possible – sometimes it’s not possible to figure that out right at the moment), and then enjoy the journey with it – almost as if I’d picked up a friend or other traveler along the way. Enjoy the time with that companion and learn every single thing I can from it. Everything always works our for me (and you too) as long as you recognize when you’re resisting something and then drop that resistance and go with the flow. It will work out, you just cannot control how or any of the other details. Just declare that it does work out for you and it will.

I’ll keep you posted about my journey and hopefully Tuesday we’ll have another “episode”.

Take care

Terrie

The post Weekend Round-up – After All, It’s Rodeo Time in San Antonio! first appeared on Getting Unstuck, LLC.

Well, well, well….it’s now been 9 days that I’ve been unable to do anything exercise wise.
Needless to say, I’m not a happy camper. So, what the heck could I write about that would be beneficial to everyone as a result of this event?

There really is always a silver lining however. That’s what I want to share with you today.

Brief background for those who haven’t heard my whining (ha ha). Last Sunday morning while trying to “install” a device that is intended to help my back (a desk extension that elevates the desk top so you don’t sit all day long – not good for your system), my short stature allowed me to only go so far in the lifting attempt. Then I heard and felt a vertebrae move in my back. Since then, well, you can just imagine.

Here’s the good that came from it:

•  I wasn’t feeling great Monday but had to go to work for a going away luncheon and left work early to go home and go to bed. But instead, I was leaving at exactly the right time to be able to take a detour and help a very good friend get through something that was very painful. If I hadn’t been hurt and leaving early, then I would not have been able to be there! How cool is that?
•  I have been standing pretty much constantly both at work and home. This has helped increase the time on my feet which should eventually help my endurance (it’s all about time on your feet) when I can get back to running.
•  I have found that standing helps your entire gastrointestinal process, something which I had been having problems with. The standing has allowed this amazing human body I have to do what it’s supposed to do (we were NOT created to sit so much). That was a very welcome benefit to all this.
•  I’ve gotten to see two people I hadn’t seen in about 7 months – my AIRROSTI and my Acupuncture providers. They are not only medical practitioners but also very good friends and it was wonderful to see them.
•  I remembered (finally) my proteolytic enzymes and started taking them and am starting to feel better.
•  Not being able to run or do other exercise has given me the time to spend studying my coaching course which is very time intensive.
•  Not being able to run has shown me how important running is to me.
•  Posting once on Facebook about my withdrawal problems has resulted in an outpouring of support which I greatly appreciate.
•  Most importantly, I did NOT revert to my past performance matrix of going to work to get more done to “catch up” since I can’t run or do much of anything else. It took me a long time and intense work to get out of that habit.
•  This has forced me to work standing up and I am liking it.

I’m sure there are other positives (silver linings) but this is enough to give you the idea. If you look for the good, it is there. Sometimes we’re looking for major things and we miss the little ones. In my experience it’s the little things that ad up to the major ones!

Hope this helps you look at things differently in your life.

Terrie

The post Tuesdays With Terrie first appeared on Getting Unstuck, LLC.

This is a new series and will not necessarily be every week but when I have something that reflects what I teach here I have to share it.

You may remember that 1 1/2 years ago when I was worried and scared about doing my second 100 miler in just 6 weeks, I created and then got rid of low back pain. That showed me my power at that time…however, I obviously forgot that lesson.

I am scheduled to do a 100 mile event in Las Vegas over Valentine’s Day weekend. But since I’ve been trying this “Whole30” (http://www.Whole30.com ) program and my body has been switching to a “Fat burning” mode (no, not for weight loss but to get rid of my addiction to sugar), I have felt like my body had no endurance. Since the 30 days won’t be over until the day before the race, I’ve been questioning whether or not to do it (the race, not the program although I should have planned that one better too). So, the worry and concern (translate that into equaling FEAR) were there in my subconscious mind, marinading like a luscious meal.

This is actually very ironic/funny – Sunday I finally decided that I would implement this strategy for imroving your back health. I had a Varidesk that I bought over 8 months ago but never figured out how to really make it work. But Sunday I was determined!

I am pretty strong and it didn’t seem that heavy. But when I tried to move it from its storage place to my desk, I had to slide it on the tile. Not so bad. But then I had to lift it up onto the desk. I’m so short that when I got it to the desk level, it wasn’t going any further. I tried again. This time as I gave it my all, I felt my vertebrae move in my back. Down went the object and I just stood there wondering if I had done significant damage. When the dizziness passed, I realized I was not paralyzed but that I had hurt my back. As the day went on, the pain continued and increased. Etc…typical back pain scenario. Nothing special here.

What’s the lesson here? Even injuries can be brought on via the Law of Attraction. People tend to think that because it’s an injury, caused by an external event (“how can that be something I created?”) there’s no way you can attract it.

Let me ask you this – why did I decide on this particular Sunday, just two weeks from my event, to change my setup. Why not a month from now, why not a month ago?

My answer – because I wasn’t so focused on this race a month ago like I have been for the past 1 1/2 weeks since I felt my training had gone to pot.

I have to turn this around because there are upcoming events that are really important to me. Last year my fear (and stupidity in not following all the training rules I had ever learned) led to the back problem that interfered with my trek across Tennessee.

How am I going to turn it around? By using a variety of means. EFT, journaling and visualization as the primary means.

You might ask if I shouldn’t wait until my back is “healed” before I start all of that? The answer is a resounding “no”! The key is to identify what you have attracted into your life as quickly as possible and then take action to correct that. I almost immediately realized what I had done and so was able to start working on it Sunday. I am constantly amazed at the power of EFT to assist with, not only pain, but also the issues behind that pain. So, that is going to be my primary focus. What is it that’s going on deep inside that I keep repeating this pattern?

Stay tuned for those answers though.

Just remember that we attract EVERYTHING in our lives even if it seems ludicrous. Go deep – that’s my new motto – go deep within and you’ll eventually find the answers. Sometimes we have to be beat over the head to figure out the why and how but it’s there. I guarantee you.

Til next time….I hope this has helped you realize that all of us are subject to the same laws, even those of us who have studied and “worked” the laws for years.

Terrie

The post Tuesdays Wtih Terrie first appeared on Getting Unstuck, LLC.