"Baseball Heals"

"Amazing things happen when large crowds gather to share positive emotions...I was the guinea pig to test whether the heart energy of joy is contagious..." Eric Leskowitz, MD

In the pre game show of Game 1 of the World Series, one of the reporters said, "Baseball heals." They did a #BostonStrong segment.

In the wake of the Boston Marathon bombings, having the Red Sox go from dead last in the 2012 season to winning the World Series in the 2013 season was powerful medicine for our city.

We came together as a community - Red Sox Nation to be exact - to cheer on the home town team who had not won a World Series at Fenway Park since 1918.

My friend, Rick Leskowitz,MD wrote a book and produced a documentary called, "The Joy of Sox," a documentary on sports and spirituality. I highly recommend the book, the DVD and that you follow his blog. Rick is a holistic psychiatrist at Harvard and heads the Integrative Medicine Department at Spaulding Rehab Hospital.

He explores through scientific inquiry, the power of home field advantage, the energy of the crowd, the power of intention and team chemistry.

He also explores the possibility of Fenway Park as a sacred space.



I was fortunate to go to the premiere of The Joy of Sox at the West Newton Cinema. I have read the book and follow Rick's blog. I watched the parallels between the 2004 Red Sox season and this year's team.

In social media and in real life, you could feel the coherent heart energy of joy and everyone coming together to will a win for the Red Sox.

And last night it happened! As it happened in 2004 with the "bearded idiots". Only this year was not just about a World Series Championship. It was about redemption. It was about healing. It was about strength, and power; moving forward and celebration

A game was played at Fenway Park on April 15th, 2013 as it is played every year on Marathon Monday. Less than an hour before the bombs exploded, the Red Sox had beaten the Tampa Bay Rays, 3-2, and celebrated a Patriots Day and Jackie Robinson Day victory. They were en route to Logan Airport. David Ortiz made his now famous, "This is our f****ing city," claim.

And rather than seek revenge or allow anger, resentment and paranoia and fear to fester, the home town team and fans came together for an October Fest feasting on the joy of victory.

Baseball heals. Boston heals. We are Boston Strong.


Focus on the Healing from Seasons of the Soul. My books of inspirational poetry are available on Amazon.

Focus on the healing not on the wound
at first blush imperceptible changes
like the first peak at the crocus breaking ground
we can only imagine
what flower will emerge after the darkness of winter…

I had a dream last night
terror filled my body in the darkness
my father the intruder
thunder and lightning filled the room
crashing around me
home made sticky buns on the stove
what a mess

“I never wanted to harm you”

Hyperventilation slows into steady breath
no longer raw and weary from the fight
wounds bound
roots grounded
peace descends
Spirit soars
only the trace of a scar remains
a reminder of the miracle of my life.

Don't Get Ahead of Yourself

When I woke up this morning, I knew in every fiber of my being that I was ready to increase my mileage on training runs. Jamaica Pond had been our go to place for training runs when we were training for the 2009 Boston Marathon.



We know it is 1.5 miles/loop and I told Tom I was ready to do three times around. There were no parking spaces nearby so I got a little extra mileage complete with a steep hill to and from our car for a total of 5 yes count them 5 miles!!!!

It was a chilly start but I had my layers on. The sun was still warm and felt wonderful as we walked around the Pond laced with fall foliage and feeling leaves crunch underneath our feet. I wasn't concerned about pace and wanted to focus on increasing distance.

As we walked by one of the stone walls, I remembered how seeing them covered with snow and the Pond covered in ice inspired one of my poems that I include in the chapter, Running Free in A Celebration of Life: (now available on Amazon

Courage - January 5, 2009
The fear of ice and snow and slush embedded in my soul
a training run in winter - the path to Being whole.
A winter scene - Jamaica Pond - a feast for eyes' delight
to witness nature's splendor and behold this glorious sight.
A leaf - a tiny dancer - skating free without a sound
God's breath directs her movements,as She guides her twirling 'round.
Families of ducks decide to walk or take a dip
a comedy of errors into icy water slip.
The branches now bejeweled with ice bend with loving Grace
sparkling diamonds' anchor water's surface hold in place.
God's hand a glove of glistening snow hugs rocks along the wall
their heads peek out reminding me I'm answering God's call.
A scene I'd never witness if I let my fear take hold
courage triumphed, steppin' out with footsteps sure and bold.
Knowing that the pain subsides and Spirit can prevail
the Marathon is beckoning - through those miles I shall sail.

There were moments when a runner would pass us and I would instinctively pick up my pace. Tom reminded me to slow down and keep a more steady pace so that my body could get used to the increased mileage. By our third time around, I was feeling my "marathon" self emerge. I wanted to just keep going and going and going. As we were heading into the last half of our final loop, an animal totem appeared moving ever so slowly in our path:



Tom posted the photo on facebook with the caption, "We crossed paths with a little caterpillar on our 5 mile run this morning. We wish him or her a successful journey!"

Today the training began for the 2014 Tufts 10K for Women.

But I can't do this the way I did it back in February of 2008 when I declared that I wanted to run the 2009 Boston Marathon for Spaulding. I went from 0 miles to 26.2 miles in just a little over a year. I pushed my body to move rather than move in my body. I am learning how to move in my body. I am learning how to pace myself and just like that fuzzy caterpillar that crossed our path today I am reminded that I cannot get ahead of myself.

50 Crunches in the Pool

We had a small group for the 4pm Find Your Core Strength Aquatics Therapy Class at Spaulding Rehab. Diana Fischer,DPT, whose energy, enthusiasm, dedication and commitment to helping us find our strength is infectious, was excited to have us use the entire pool. Usually we concentrate on either the deep end or the shallow end of the pool for our workouts.

Diana kept the cardio intense and was able to give a lot of individualized attention to each member of the class. She made suggestions that strengthened my quad muscles and helped me to chase after Tom into the deep end of the pool by lengthening my stride. And just so you know -- you can in fact sweat in a pool. She gave us an invigorating workout that my body welcomed.

As the final exercise of the day, Diana gave us a "noodle" and had us put it under our legs so we could lie horizontal in the water. She then instructed us to do 50 crunches.

What????

Flashback to just about 7 years ago when I was being evaluated by Kerry, a physical therapist at the Spaulding Rehab International Rehab Center for Polio and Post Polio. She asked me to do a crunch. The pain was intense in my cervical spine and well - everywhere. Every muscle burned. I was so weak and deconditioned. I really had no idea how I would ever regain my strength....

And so I began to engage my abs and work from my core. With the help of a scar tissue treatment session, the scar tissue from a 3 hour abdominal surgery and repeated laparoscopies was released so that I could access my abdominal muscles. Well not only could I access my abdominal muscles but I could isolate them, engage them and do the 50 crunches.

Talk about feeling the burn!

I can engage and strengthen my quad muscles, the muscles of my upper body and now find my core strength.

Diana was so encouraging while I breathed and did my crunches. She said that my form was perfect and after I finished, she gave me a high five. You would think that she was the one who had experienced the accomplishment as she was genuinely joyful to see what I was able to do.

I took the first steps on my healing journey at Spaulding Rehab Hospital and worked to find my strength in the old building on Nashua Street with what would now be considered archaic equipment. From my memoir, "Coming Home:A Memoir of Healing, Hope and Possibility"


The buzzing hum from the fluorescent lights echoed the buzzing in my nervous system. I sat waiting for my first appointment at the post polio clinic at Spaulding Rehab Hospital. My complexion was as white as the paper that covered the exam table. I felt as fragile and vulnerable as that piece of paper that gets ripped off and tossed away after the exam. Every inch of my body hurt. I was exhausted. I was sick and tired of feeling sick and tired. I hadn’t really cared whether or not I woke up in the morning but I had a husband and twins that needed me. Ironically enough I was at the peak of my career as a VA social worker. Somewhere deep inside of me there was a feeling that there had to be a way out of the hell I was living in. I couldn’t sleep. I felt depressed. My award winning career as a social worker at the Department of Veterans Affairs no longer fueled my soul.

The symptoms began in 1996. I had episodes of feeling fatigue and muscle burning. I was anxious. At times, I noticed that the limp from paralytic polio returned. In 1992, I had reconstructive leg surgery to correct the deformity of my left leg and to avoid a total knee replacement at the young age of 39 years old. Here I was 7 years later feeling as though my body was beginning to deteriorate and my life falling apart.

By outward appearances, I had it all. I had a successful career as a social worker at the Department of Veterans Affairs Outpatient Clinic in Boston. I had the usual angst of raising twin teenagers and was blessed with a loving supportive husband. We had our usual share of crises. My husband was laid off during the dot com bubble burst the day before he had surgery for bladder cancer. My mother and his father died within a few short months of each other. We were members of All Saints Episcopal Church and had a beautiful home in Brookline, Massachusetts.

In 2004, I told my primary care provider that I was afraid there was something wrong with me – really wrong with me. When I described my symptoms to him and suggested I had post polio syndrome, he told me that post polio syndrome didn’t exist. He suggested I was experiencing empty nest syndrome even though my twins hadn’t left the nest yet. He gave me a sample of paxil and told me I needed to see a psychiatrist. He told me I was suffering from post traumatic stress disorder. I had been in and out of therapy for years. I knew as a clinical social worker that I probably did suffer from post traumatic stress disorder but this felt different. There was something profound happening in my body that needed medical treatment.

And so it began but I had absolutely no idea that I would return to the new Spaulding Rehab Hospital now being able to build strength, train my body safely and move with efficiency and joy and be able to thoroughly enjoy and celebrate being alive.

The Singing Bowl from A Celebration of Life. My books of inspirational poetry are available on Amazon.

Shaman reaches
palm outstretched
with love
focused intention
the bowl comes to life

vibrating

hovering
a few inches from heart center

she appears

my guardian angel

not as an apparition for eyes to behold
her presence fills the room
an indescribably delicious love

breaking bonds
severing ties with all not love

powerful protector of the light
of my soul

I was saved

I am healed.

I am home.

Training Run in the Fall

When my alarm went off at 7 am the sun was just beginning to rise. I rolled over and checked the temperature on my phone - 54 degrees. Not bad but it wasn't the upper 60 degree temps that has spoiled all of us New Englanders in late October. I felt so happy and grateful that I was getting up early feeling completely recharged after a good night's sleep and going on my training run with Tom. He has to work late tonight so we wouldn't be able to get to Marathon Sports Brookline Run Group our go to place for our Wednesday training runs.

I was so grateful that I had the proper gear to layer for the training run. I overdid it with the Thorlo socks but was glad to have my headband ear warmer and gloves to start. Ellen Gabriel, the store manager at Brookline Marathon Sports gave me the perfect layers for Fall training and I can add one more layer as the winter chill sets in.

After Sunday's training run for the Feaster Five with all of its hills, the twice around flat course for the Route 9 Reservoir seemed easy. I felt really good in my body and we ended up doing a sub 15 minute/mile pace for 3.4 miles.

I share with you these magnificent photos of our Training Run in the Fall!