spinalfusionrunner

[spinalfusionrunner]

Who? Me?

What comes to mind when you think of someone who has back problems? Often you might think of someone who can’t bend over, who can’t walk well, can’t lift things and most certainly can not run. Exactly what I thought of myself, especially since that is what I was told a good portion of my life at least. My name is Val and I am defying the odds of being a female runner with a spinal fusion, one step at a time.

I was diagnosed with scoliosis in 2004 and was told the growth of my spinal curve was progressing quickly. A spinal fusion was in my near future. It all was a blink of an eye when I had grown up horseback riding every day, biking, riding ATVs, performing barn chores, lifting things of all shapes and sizes to “ you can’t ride for a year”. Fall 2009 a spinal fusion was performed on my 85 degree curve, stabilizing my spine, but not improving the curve much. My life had changed forever. Shortly after that it seemed like people liked to tell me more and more what I can and can not do. I found myself in 2010 pretty stuck with what I enjoyed doing, I was away at boarding school now, not on the horse farm everyday, limited to what I was able to do since I was still healing from the spinal fusion. I enjoy exercise, I enjoy sweating, I like to feel accomplished, that i’ve taken care of my body. And suddenly it felt like I didn’t know how I was supposed to do that.

Current Xray of my full spine

2011 I was able to ride again, I found myself back riding horses, but things just didn’t feel the same. I was at boarding school so it was limited the time I was able to spend at the barn, it was basically lessons and back to campus. That isn’t the life I used to live. I used to wake up in the morning head to the barn and be back home 10 at night on weekends. Work several horses, jump a few, lunge a few, take care of tack and other things around the farm. It just wasn’t the same. I had gained weight since my surgery and was significantly out of shape when it came to riding. But this limited time was not getting me the time at the farm I needed to be myself again. I wasn’t as active as I used to be and being away at boarding school was not going to change my barn life. I was not one of those girls who enjoyed an hour lesson after school. The farm was my life, not a hobby. I decided at that point riding would become a secondary thing for me and I would need to make something full time for myself to feel that feeling of accomplishment again.

I enjoyed hiking, that was one thing I could do for hours, days, weeks, months (and I have!) Backpacking specifically was something I loved to do but comes to find out probably isn’t the best idea. I backpacked with a group for 108 days in Pisgah, DuPont and Nantahala National forest in North Carolina and it was eye opening, exhilarating! However the packs were relatively lighter, resupply was once a week, and we never had a whole lot on us. Between my junior to senior year in high school I decided to buddy up with a friend and take on a NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership) course. It was a backpacking trip in the Pacific North West, Cascade Mountains of Washington State that would run for 30 days. Psh 30 days? I’ve got this I thought. The day we prepped all of our gear and prepared to be taken out to the trail head, I realized things were a bit heavier than anticipated. I surely didn’t want to speak up or have someone carry more than me, that is embarrassing. So I carried on. About a week into my course, carrying these heavy bags, up some slippery terrain, ice, mud, water, my back decided this was it. I felt a huge pinch in my back, down my left leg, my toes tingled and I went down. I kept feeling as if I could not feel my left leg and everything was pins and needles. I was helicopter lifted off of a mountain (OH yeah that was a pretty bill to pay for...) After examination at a hospital in Seattle, it was shown that it was purely muscle spasms and nothing of my fusion or hardware had been misplaced. Kind of embarrassing for that much pain, and all I wanted to do was fight through it and be with my group. I spent a week locally to the NOLS base in Washington state while my group came back down for resupply to a near by trail head, they allowed me to rejoin with my group as long as I carried less weight. I enjoyed the rest of the trip and didn’t push myself to any extreme limits (however this was what this course was intended for...) Maybe let’s stick to hiking and a little less backpacking.

NOLS PNW 2011

Last semester of my senior year in high school I decided I wanted to join cross country. Why? Living at home in New Jersey I had really enjoyed going for a jog around the community from time to time and thought this may be the opportunity to make a hobby full time versus “part time” like my barn life had been cut to. Here I was standing in the gym lobby waiting on my Spanish teacher who was also the cross country coach, Mirna Valerio. Who would have known this decision I made would land me knowing I trained with who is now known as “The Mirnavator” now! Not me!

I enjoyed the runs! Ms. Valerio would take us to all different roads and trails, it was great. A couple weekend 5k races, I had the opportunity to do a 5k for the North Face Endurance Challenge in Bear Mountain State Park, NY (very challenging but awesome!) Some back pain started setting in. Lower back and part of my ribs had been feeling a bit odd. The school nurse recommended I see a physical therapist. A visit with my orthopedic surgeon first, who confirmed everything in my hardware looked fine as well as my spinal fusion, and off with a recommendation for physical therapy I went. Tuesday evenings I was now taken after classes to a physical therapist. I was confused because the exercises I was being given were not really helping, but I was continuing to be told that “you know, these kind of back problems and running don’t really mix” and that was that. My orthopedic doctor/surgeon never said this? Being 17 at the time, I was supposed to trust doctors opinions and go with it. I really wanted to run in college, but with continuous setbacks like this doctors assured me, and I just knew it was not going to happen. After high school came a huge gap in my journey to run. 


In college I was blessed to be living in Brevard NC, surrounded by beautiful forests, mountains and trails. Where would this take me next! I got tons of day hiking in, some small trail runs, learned how to both mountain bike and road bike, but still physically at a stand still. Nothing felt that “good” because I knew I was not supposed to push myself. Everything seemed to be “once and a while” or for shorter periods of time. I wanted to feel the accomplishment, the feeling that my body had done well for it’s self. Nothing I did, made me feel like that. As with college, came gaining even more weight.

I left college about two years later, moving to Maryland with a friend who was originally from there. There I got trapped into the world of retail and found myself quickly having no time for any activities in which I enjoyed. Certainly not hiking, no running, barely any vacations. I lived my life several years just that way. It wasn’t until 2018 that I took a stand. I want to run! that’s it! I want to do a 5k race every month starting March and take it from there. I wanted to make sure my back was in good condition to start doing my little 5ks again so I took myself to a spine specialist in Baltimore, Maryland. This was the one doctors visit that changed everything. I had xrays done, and I waited in the office for the doctor to meet me. He shook my hand, took a look at my xrays and said, “What exactly would you like to do?” I replied “ I would really like to start running again” “How long? What distances?” “Uh, i’m not sure, i’d like to do a 5k race once a month, maybe one day even do a couple 10k races, or a half marathon!” Giving me the nastiest look I have ever gotten from a doctor he replies, “Everything looks fine with your spine, your surgeon clearly knew what he was doing, but you see these discs between your vertebras? You have a pretty significant spinal fusion, so there are only two lower discs left. They are in good condition, however if you are to run on them they will quickly disappear and you will need yet another spinal fusion” My voice began to shake a bit as I replied, “Do.. do you think I could run a couple races, maybe one day one 1/2 marathon and then call it a day?” “YOU are not built to run marathons, I run every day and have run several marathons, but my spine is evenly dispersing the weight between all of my discs, you have two, an uneven set of two which will degenerate quickly” And there came the tears.

He assured me that my spine appeared in good health and “don’t loose any weight but surely don’t gain any more weight” but basically don’t do anything in between. Which sounded entirely odd. I was in disbelief. My whole life I had doctors telling me to be careful, people telling me things were not a good idea to do because I had a spinal fusion from scoliosis but this really hit me hard. I called out of work the next day. Waking up a day after that nightmare of news seemed unreal and the tears began to roll again. About a week later I wanted a second opinion. I felt like something wasn’t right. I called the office of my original pediatric orthopedic doctor, who was my surgeon and asked the nurses if when he was not busy if he could call me back. A couple days later he did. He was always very supportive of my recovery, what I had previously been doing, what I liked to do etc. He was quite confused why the doctor I had seen in Baltimore was being so conservative about my back. He believed that those may be things one day I may have to worry down the road, when i’m in my 40s or 50s but who isn’t having some kind of back issue at that age anyway? There may or may not be procedures down the road I need wether I run my heart out or sit on the couch until then. The last words he said and which I life by every day are “Val, if it hurts, stop. If it doesn’t? keep going” “Listen to your body”. Which I do every day!

My training from that day on, 10 months later, I have become FIT, I lost 1/4 of my body weight. No doctor or physical therapist wanted to tell me I was overweight and that may be why my back was causing me issues. No one wanted to tell me maybe these exercises work well for scoliosis. No one ever said strengthen your core it’s the building blocks to a stable spine, stable back muscles. All of these were contributing factors as to why things were not working out for me and now they are! I went from 13 minute miles, to pacing 10ks at 8 minute miles, 1/2 marathoning at 9 minute miles. I feel fantastic. I feel good about myself. Anything that hurts, wether it’s from muscular imbalances to small back strains I overcame with learning what works best for my body. I placed first in my age group for a 15k, my first 1/2 marathon I came in third place for my age group which was third from the top overall women’s finisher. I am defying the odds everyday. Every body can be a fit body. You just need to learn yourself. I hope to share my personal experiences and inspire people to defy the odds as well, you are not limited to what your body is “supposed to do”

Left- 2011 North Face Endurance Challenge 5k (2012)

Right - Delaware Distance 15k (2018)

Delaware Distance Classic 15k First place Female 20-24 (2018)

April 2017- August 2018