Columbia, MD

Talbott Springs Trails 52:38 + 2-minute kick; Thunder Hill Trails 52:40.5 + 2-minute kick

A long hiatus from track/trail running on the road. I had some difficulties probably related to the Vegas Fall when I traveled to Baltimore for a trade show in November. I became disoriented, felt nauseous, had cognitive problems, and had extreme difficulty communicating and performing familiar tasks such as sending a text message. It was very scary. Fortunately my youngest son Christopher was with me and shepherded me through it.

So here I am back in Maryland – this time a training session at the corporate office of my employee, followed by a company holiday party. First night I ran on the treadmill, then I explored two connected trail arrays that were close to the hotel.

Brain injuries are unpredictable, it seems. After I got home from the Baltimore trip, my wife got me in to see Lauren Ziaks at the Park City Physical Therapy Center. Dr. Ziaks is a Concussion Specialist. She ran me through some tests and put me on a program of daily exercises. The turn-around was quick and profound. I had no idea that recent problems with reading comprehension and mental focus were related to the Baltimore episode – apparently they were. Within a couple of days of starting the exercises, I was reading with more comprehension and focus than I have had in years, perhaps more than I have ever had. Many of the exercises involve core muscles, so my strength and balance improved.

I took a break from running just to make sure things were going to be alright. I started doing some walking instead, and I waited for my follow-up visit to Dr. Ziaks a few weeks after the initial visit before I started running again. I did a full weekday track run at the local high school near our home in Utah, and that went well (other than sore muscles). The treadmill run went better than most treadmill runs, and these two trail runs were good. My calves are stiff and sore. Asphalt, of course, is not ideal.

When I was in the midst of the fog, I really had very little idea what was happening to me. I had been having trouble focusing, and I had been unable to think of some words, and it got really bad when we landed in Baltimore. At the rental car facility, I could not remember the name or location of our hotel, and I also could not remember how to look it up on my phone or laptop. I finally managed to find it in an email, and we got there somehow. The next day I drove Christopher to St. Johns College to visit his friend Amado, and then the wheels really fell off. I could not figure out what to enter into the mapping app, or even really how to use it, and I should not have been driving at all. I somehow got on the right freeway at some point and followed the signs to Baltimore, and once I got to the Inner Harbor area, I circled around endless blocks until I found the entrance to the hotel parking garage.

I was supposed to attend multiple trade show events, and I was unable to attend any. I also could not communicate effectively. I sent blank emails and texts to multiple recipients. Phone conversations with my wife back in Utah were painful and scary. I think I might have gotten a glimpse of what some symptoms of dementia are like to experience. Being unable to think of a word is terrifying. When it happens frequently, you feel helpless and hopeless.

I am relatively confident now that it was all related to recent and previous concussions, and that the PT program Dr. Ziaks has me on is leading to long-term fix. Still, though, I wonder what might trigger the same type of episode, and how to handle it if it happens. I am hoping that my body can help my brain stay on the right track, and running will continue to be part of that. It’s good to be back on the track/trail.