BU has community memberships that allow access to the school's recreations and athletics facilities, including the pool (among many other things.) we have a family membership, which gives me blanketed access, but i have been too chicken to go alone. i know, i know, i'm supposed to be ms. independent and all (shhh, don't tell that my facade is cracking!), but those young, lithe college kids are intimidating! they make me feel so old! i worked with one of the membership/facility directors and was able to score a semi permanent guest pass for Jana. (to be honest, i used the MS card, something i NEVER do. i could probably count on one hand the number of times i've busted that out.) but it was for the greater good, since her neurologist has been suggesting swimming multiple times.
so, i dug out my swimsuit from the verrrrrrrry bottom of my trunk (i think there was dust flying off the straps) and layered up in sweatpants, tshirts, sweatshirts, hoodies, hat, gloves (it's like 8 degrees
here lately) for our initiation into the orange & blue lanes of the kinney natatorium. unfortunately, the facility is about 3 miles from the parking lot, so i was struggling before we even got into the locker room (which is about the size of my apartment- no joke. the field house locker rooms are typical college size monstrosities, but lies on the other end of the facility.) when i'm nervous or anxious, my tremors increase dramatically, and i felt my knees shaking as we walked out on the cold tiles. jana helped me down the floating steps into the QUITE cold water. damn, it was chilly. we decided to suck it up and submerge completely, but i still couldn't shake the shivers off. we shared the lane, walking up and down the lengths talking and venting. notice how casually i wrote that. we just walked up and down the lengths... i was WALKING. not gracefully, obviously, but my legs were submerged, no one could notice. the feeling of being able to not clutch onto a cane or an arm, was honestly exhilarating. the water felt wonderful (even though i was still a bit cold- we weren't swimming laps so didn't get a chance to work up the body temperature.) and i marveled at the fluidity of my movements in the water. i could feel the workout in my legs as they plunged forward through the water's resistance. jana had to show off and swim 4 laps- mad props to you girl!!!! (hopefully she didn't pay for it later.) before we knew it, 40 minutes had passed! we continued for another 5 to even out a solid 45 minutes, and headed towards the floating steps to climb out of the water.
i hesitated before the railing. i didn't want to step up there. my legs were working in the water, and i knew the moment i stepped on that cold tiles, my legs would stop working. i felt jana kind of push me towards the steps, mainly to help support my body as i pulled myself up. the second the first droplet of water hit the floor, my legs started to shake, and my arm unsteady as i grabbed my cane. just like that, i was back to the real world. my guess is that jana's thoughts mirrored some of my own, proud of herself for pushing just a bit further, for taking some control back from the MS, but also a bit of sadness that she was returning to her current challenges. we had taken mom along for moral support (and perhaps physical support, if needed! which you never know with 2 balance challenged MS-ers!) so the 3 of us traipsed back to the closet of a locker room to strip off our wet clothes. ugh, i had forgotten how hard and uncomfortable it is to peel a tight wet bathing suit off your skin!!
but enough about the logistics. the point is- we did it. we braved the pool. we are aquatic masters, the champions of water therapy... i really felt a sense of accomplishment. we're going to try and go 2x a week, which is realistic for my capabilities at the moment since i live in fear of falling and cracking my head open. tomorrow is the first day of yoga in the new winter session! it's my yoga time with the white haired ladies of Lewisburg- chair yoga which is very gentle and easier for elderly people with arthritis and various other ailments. i'm the youngest by about.... 40 years. jk, kind of- there's a couple ladies who might be in their 50s! hah! we seem to be getting these random spurts of snowstorms only on fridays, which is yoga day, and a couple classes were canceled. (i don't know why, sometimes i feel like i'm living in NC again with the freak out factor of impending "weather.") then there was the usual 2 week "break" between sessions, so long story short- i haven't had chair yoga in over a month! so it better not snow this morning.
since it's 12:59, and my required bed time is 1:00am from my new sleep doctor, i should sign off. i don't want to miss curfew...
remember, you can view these postings directly on kit katchat's blog
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