Cowgirl, here comes the grenade!
It was the best of times. It was the worst of times. During my fourteen years working in the pharmaceutical wholesale world, I had amazing customers and job satisfaction, became the Account Manager of the Year, got divorced, added some more race medals and a triathlon medal to my wall, got re-married, was a devoted travel sports mom, got my real estate license and built a successful book of business, all while the health grenade was brewing inside my body and just waiting for the opportune time to detonate. I had no clue. I was still extremely active, but I still didn’t feel ‘right’. I went to Mayo Clinic for assistance with gastrointestinal issues and began pelvic floor physical therapy in addition to so many other facets of PT. To this day, I credit my physical therapist, Linda, as a key person along my path to healing.
During this unsustainable life schedule of mine, I was recruited to work in another corporate role, the VP of Sales and Account Management in the corporate healthcare world. After deliberating for months, I eventually signed up for the role. I left my role in the pharma world, asked for help on the real estate front, and went to battle in the trenches of healthcare insurance. I really enjoyed leading and growing a team. My team was incredible with passion, grace, and eagerness to perform. However, the pace of this role was grossly intense for my sick body. Coupled with a toxic work culture and a steep learning curve, my health was really suffering. I had multiple surgeries that, arguably, were brought on by stress. There was no time to take care of your self or your health – mind, body, or spirit. I had a gallbladder attack during work travel and that was a big a-ha moment for me. I had more blood work done that revealed other organs were suffering. Brain fog was REAL. I was doing yoga whenever I could fit it in with my travel schedule. I had pain – just wasn’t exactly sure when and where. I was at the point where I couldn’t cope – physically or mentally. I worked in healthcare and didn’t believe in our product and that we were making a difference at all. I was a living example. I was not getting any answers when I asked healthcare providers about the source of my problems. I was playing defense instead of offense. I was watching my health from the sidelines. I knew there had to be a better way and there was missing information.
In the fall of 2019, a friend of mine reminded me of the ‘thermography clinic’ that came to town every quarter. This scan was not (and still not) covered by insurance but I figured “what is another $425 out of pocket expense at this point”? I booked the appointment for early January 2020.
A thermography scan is used to detect heat in your body, which correlates to infection. It is commonly used as an alternative to mammography since there is no radiation. The scan itself took about 30 minutes and I waited two weeks for the call back. I took the call on a Saturday afternoon, returning from a weekend of watching boys high school basketball. I remember where I was in the car, driving along the Blackfoot River. The radiologist called to let me know there was definitely a ‘hot spot’ in my right jaw and asked if I had mouth pain.
This call was the catalyst for the turn of events to come.
