All Systems GO!
They say that time flies when you’re having fun. I don’t necessarily know that recovering from brain surgery constitutes “fun”, but time has certainly flown by these last 3 months. This past Wednesday was October 25th, 3 months since my surgery. It was also the day of my follow up MRI and appointment with Dr. Sen.
Even though the catscan the day after my surgery showed that the entire cyst was gone, this MRI would be the test that gave a better picture of where things stood.
The last 2 weeks have been great as far as my training goes. I went back to PWR Spin at the gym which is a high intensity, interval based spin class geared towards triathletes and avid cyclists. I have been on the trainer for longer periods of time, had my fastest 3 mile run since coming back and this morning I swam 1200 yards straight which is the longest since surgery. I have also resumed strength training. The most important thing that these last 2 weeks have shown me is that my strength and my endurance are still there and the road back to where I want to be will be difficult, but not as bad as I had thought.
With everything going so well physically and mentally I woke up Wednesday morning feeling great. I had no concerns or sweaty palms like the last time I saw Dr. Sen. This time I was calm and confident feeling like this was the last step before training really begins.
I arrived at the NYU radiology facility and was pleasantly surprised. After checking in with the woman at the desk and being handed the obligatory paperwork I was offered a cup of coffee which I politely declined. I was then taken back to change and escorted into the MRI room where I was asked what kind of music I’d like to listen to. What was this place??? Coffee? Music? Anyway, I chose the Grateful Dead, not that it mattered since I tend to fall asleep in the MRI machine, and this time was no different.
35 minutes later I was dressed and on my way.
After a quick stop at the NYU cafeteria for the BEST apple turnover known to man, yup NYU is Yelp rated as one of the top dining establishments in midtown on the east side and no reservations needed, I headed up to the 8th floor to see Dr. Sen.
He was prompt, as always. This is one of the few medical practices that is consistently on time. After exchanging pleasantries he pulled The images up on the oversized computer screen. On the left were the scans from June and on the right, the scans from earlier that morning. Now, I’m not a brain surgeon, but I knew immediately that the scan was clean. The white mass that was prominently visible in the June exam was no longer there.
I looked at Dr. Sen and he smiled at me and I smiled back with a shit eating grin. “Looks great, can we try and not do this again”, he said. “Absolutely”, I replied.
We spent a few minutes talking about Maine and the races leading up to it as well as what type and how much training I would be embarking on. He gave me a hug, told me to come back in a year and I was on my way.
I pumped my fist as I walked out of his office and immediately texted Lori with the good news.
I then reached out to the people that will help me along in my journey to Maine to let them know that we were no longer in a holding pattern.....We were ALL SYSTEMS GO!
Even though the catscan the day after my surgery showed that the entire cyst was gone, this MRI would be the test that gave a better picture of where things stood.
The last 2 weeks have been great as far as my training goes. I went back to PWR Spin at the gym which is a high intensity, interval based spin class geared towards triathletes and avid cyclists. I have been on the trainer for longer periods of time, had my fastest 3 mile run since coming back and this morning I swam 1200 yards straight which is the longest since surgery. I have also resumed strength training. The most important thing that these last 2 weeks have shown me is that my strength and my endurance are still there and the road back to where I want to be will be difficult, but not as bad as I had thought.
With everything going so well physically and mentally I woke up Wednesday morning feeling great. I had no concerns or sweaty palms like the last time I saw Dr. Sen. This time I was calm and confident feeling like this was the last step before training really begins.
I arrived at the NYU radiology facility and was pleasantly surprised. After checking in with the woman at the desk and being handed the obligatory paperwork I was offered a cup of coffee which I politely declined. I was then taken back to change and escorted into the MRI room where I was asked what kind of music I’d like to listen to. What was this place??? Coffee? Music? Anyway, I chose the Grateful Dead, not that it mattered since I tend to fall asleep in the MRI machine, and this time was no different.
35 minutes later I was dressed and on my way.
After a quick stop at the NYU cafeteria for the BEST apple turnover known to man, yup NYU is Yelp rated as one of the top dining establishments in midtown on the east side and no reservations needed, I headed up to the 8th floor to see Dr. Sen.
He was prompt, as always. This is one of the few medical practices that is consistently on time. After exchanging pleasantries he pulled The images up on the oversized computer screen. On the left were the scans from June and on the right, the scans from earlier that morning. Now, I’m not a brain surgeon, but I knew immediately that the scan was clean. The white mass that was prominently visible in the June exam was no longer there.
I looked at Dr. Sen and he smiled at me and I smiled back with a shit eating grin. “Looks great, can we try and not do this again”, he said. “Absolutely”, I replied.
We spent a few minutes talking about Maine and the races leading up to it as well as what type and how much training I would be embarking on. He gave me a hug, told me to come back in a year and I was on my way.
I pumped my fist as I walked out of his office and immediately texted Lori with the good news.
I then reached out to the people that will help me along in my journey to Maine to let them know that we were no longer in a holding pattern.....We were ALL SYSTEMS GO!
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