Okay, a couple more random thoughts

1. Anonymous strikes again! And the message is so true and deserves mentioning.

"You have a charmed life compared to others"

Absolutely. I think this is sometimes a fact that we lose sight of. It's easy to get wrapped up in the trials and tribulations of our own lives. Things don't go our way and we think we are SO unlucky, things are SO terrible, how will we EVER get through this, woe is me. What we fail to do sometimes is step back and take an honest look at our lives. Colleen has been on inpatient pediatrics for the past few weeks. She has been working with the sickest kids in the hospital. It's just absolutely heartbreaking to hear the stories. Kids that will never get a chance at adult life. The parents whose hearts are breaking as they see their children in pain. It just makes you really realize how good you have it. I have been so fortunate in my life. I have a wonderful family, great friends, a warm house, good health, and a phenomenal education. I'm not saying that people who lived charmed lives shouldn't ever complain. Everyone needs to vent. At my house, my roommates and I use our bitching for humor and comic relief. But we all need to realize that our complaints are truly minor, and to appreciate the lives we lead.

2. Transdermal NSAIDS

I had a slight injury to my foot recently. It was just a case of tenosynovitis of the extensor tendon of my toe. I knew this wasn't a season ending injury or anything, but it was very painful and getting worse with each run I did. I laid off it for a week, but when I ran the pain came back. Because I recently had erosive gastritis caused by NSAID use during a long run, I can't take NSAIDs by mouth anymore. So I was stuck with ice, and icy hot (which brought back great memories of HS swimming!)

Anywho, Jonathan recommended a topical anti-inflammatory, but my local hippie pharmacy didn't have it. But the cool pharmacist, who seemed to know more than I ever would have expected about sports injury, recommended I get a prescription for flurbiprofin/ketoprofin, a long lasting trans-dermal anti-inflammatory gel that they made. Thankfully, I work with a bunch of docs who could call it in for me.

Well, it's expensive- $48/30 grams, but it is worth every penny. Within a day my tendon was finally slipping through it's sheath comfortably (before, I could feel it creaking as the inflammation was preventing proper tracking). Now the swelling is almost gone. The pharmacist also showed me a bunch of places to check on my foot and knees for running pain that might be able to use a little treatment (thankfully I don't have pain in any of those places).

Because of my experience with oral NSAIDs, I highly recommend people out there consider transdermal agents for joint and muscle inflammation. My Dad recently talked to a gastroenterologist who said that ulcers and erosive gastritis are extremely common in endurance athletes who take NSAIDs. So if you can, save your stomachs!

3. Join our Triathlon network!

See the link on the sidebar I have for the Triathlon feedburner network? We're trying to get a larger network together of triathletes. If you're interested in your blog being added to our little circle, just email Gary for more details: garyditsch at gmail dot com