Need cheering up...

[Catrin]

Thanks again to everyone, I do appreciate it. I don't know why I was so depressed over this during the weekend, I threw quite the pity party for myself. This can be one of the downsides of living alone...no one there to take my mind off my little obsessions...

It was helpful though, and I do appreciate it. Also my PT said yesterday that I am actually progressing a bit above schedule, I am just in the "step ahead, fall back" stage of things.

[Catrin]

I seem to be "falling back" more than springing forward these days. Think positive, think positive, think positive!

On a positive note, I am going to work with a mountain bike coach who I worked with last year, but this time we will focus on my basic bike skills. I've been riding on the road under 2 years, and I figure ramping up my over-all skills will certainly help me on the mountain bike. Falls must come on the trail, that is a given, but more advanced general skills will hopefully mean fewer of them I've only about 3,500 miles on the bike total, and that isn't very much. I've no idea how many miles I did on the mountain bike last year, but I don't track trail miles.

Aggie-Ama, did your husband totally recover from the whiplash - no pain at all?

[Catrin]

I've actually been behaving myself since my fall (if you can believe that)...and I am probably the slowest person on the trails in the entire state That being said, I am not back on the trails just yet, hoping to by spring.

All summer I took the trails bit by bit, what happened when I fell was just one of those freak things that happen. I do focus on my hear-rate on the road, but not on the trails. On the trails I focus on what I am doing and enjoying my surroundings. I also stop and look at bushes and flowers that get my attention

So I am doing everything they tell me to do, but part of me is beginning to wonder if this is as good as it will get - but I refuse to go there for longer than a few seconds. Positive thinking helps healing!

[bmccasland]

Catrin,
Hang in there. And there's nothing wrong with stopping to smell the flowers - unless you have pollen allergies.

[indysteel]

Catrin, I believe in the power of positive thinking; I do. But I believe more in the power of resilient thinking. In that vein, my therapist sometimes actively encourages me to consider the the "worst case scenario." In the case at hand, she might ask me "Okay, so what if you can't MTB this spring as intended. Then what?" From there, we'll talk about my Plan B (and maybe Plans C and D, too). She's not trying to discount my fears or feelings about something. Rather, she's trying to reinforce my faith in my ability to cope with what life throws me, especially when it comes to things that are largely out of my control.

So, with that in mind, I guess I'd ask you this: So what if your whiplash is slow to heal and you can't start MTBing again this spring as you'd like. What then? Can you devise a Plan B that you can live with? Can you embrace the idea that Plan B, while not your first choice, may be sufficient to sustain you through a difficult time? Are there other things you can do to offset your disappointment or help you more actively deal with the issue?

In sharing this, I'm not trying to make you feel worse; really I'm not. I'm injured too right now and have had to revise my game plan substantially. It's hard and some days I feel really sorry for myself. It's sometimes not easy to accept our bodies as they are day to day. I'm just trying to show you a possible alternative to your current thought pattern.

[Catrin]

Good points Indy, and thank you. In a way I've already gone there, which is part of the reason why I am going to pursue a few sessions with a cycling coach this spring. Before I hit the trails again I will need to know that my neck is strong enough for me to ride without pain - and I also learned last summer where my basic skills are a bit lacking and I will be safer on the trails if I address what I know is lacking first.

Yes, positive thinking is good, and while I've never called it thus, "resilient thinking" is even more important. Thank you for the term, I've never really come up with a name for it.

[OakLeaf]

I don't have anything to add but hugs and "hang in there."

[Catrin]

I don't have anything to add but hugs and "hang in there."

Thanks Oakleaf. My PT today wondered if, perhaps, old bad posture habits at the computer are tweaking muscles that aren't quite healed yet and causing my pain. It does make sense...I hope he is right