By the time I let myself entertain the notion that the back pain I’d intermittently been experiencing was more than just an ill-fitting bicycle my mind leaped from strained muscles straight to late-stage cancer. Deep down, I knew it couldn’t possibly be the later and still I let myself entertain the what if? I even asked The Man if he would remain in contact with YaYa if I was to die. Reality kicked back in by the time I was face to face with my physician.

Her exam confirmed observations which I and my fellow yogis have noted over the past many months. My back is not quite the straight and narrow that you’d come to expect; it is crooked. The question is: Why?

» Read the rest of the entry..

When someone continually complains of a physical ailment, I’m the first to tell them to check it out. Then, I get annoyed when they don’t follow through.

But when it comes to my own ailment, namely the back pain I’ve complained of for many months now, it’s a different story. It’s my bike fit, yoga, running, the mattress, anything but medical. Yet, it continues..

The fact that, other than cycling, movement generally makes it feel better and sitting makes it unbearable does beg me to question the theory that its cause is my physical activities.

So here I sit in the waiting room at Kaiser, now at the point where I cannot stand to ignore it any longer — because IT HURTS! I want answers. I want complete assurance that it’s not any of the items listed on my list of horrible-things-it-could-not-possibly-be. Which of course it isn’t. I just need reassurance.

Please, stay tuned.

My quest to find balance has taken me to new levels. This season, with it’s daylight deficient and chill inducing tendencies, I have found comfort in the 90+ degree hot yoga classes. After spending my work days bundled up in jackets and scarves with the space heater working overtime to warm my body, I am driven to find a way to make it to an evening class. If I cannot, for some reason, hibernation in the warmth of my bed is the next best thing.

Now, I know you are thinking, “You live in California, where it has only just started to rain. How cold can it really be?” To this I say, it is too darn cold — for me.

Yoga currently is at the forefront of my athletic activities but indeed it is not the one and only activity. I am striving for balance, you know. I have set aside Saturdays for cycling, and am carving out 2-3 days per week for running. And it feels like the perfect balance — for wintertime.

Perhaps he’s not the most wonderful doctor of all, but Dr. F is pretty darn cool. I’ve known him since the days of bedside nursing when he was in his fellowship (I think), or residency. Anyway, I sent him an email after YaYa spiked a fever of 102.8 degrees fahrenheit and he told us to come on down.