When I hopped into my car to leave work today, the radio was blasting Simon and Garfunkel. Slow down, you're moving too fast. How fitting, I thought, for my situation right now, and for my life in general.
I am a "speedaholic"-- I like to get things done, and I like to get them done fast. While this has benefited me in a lot of ways, such as succeeding in school and sports in the past, it has definitely caught up with me in the past couple of years. I've been engaged in a full-time Ph.D. program in Immunology which involves full-time laboratory research on tuberculosis for the past 3.5 years, an exhausting job in itself due to the mental demands of the program and also the physical demands of wearing this sexy biohazard suit everyday.
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| And the sexiest career award goes to... |
Like most women, I have this superwoman complex where I feel like I can and have to do everything. On top of my work stresses, I try to work out five times a week for my own enjoyment and have run countless road races in the past few years.
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| 5K turkey trot on Thanksgiving morning |
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| 4 mile race for colon cancer research, in memory of my grandfather |
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| After another 5K race! |
Recently, I was training for a half marathon on top of everything going on, probably a bit more than I could physically handle, and I literally and figuratively ran myself into the ground, leaving myself with this horrendous back injury. It has forced me to slow down every aspect of my everyday life, even the easiest tasks, such as bending over to tie my shoes! To my surprise, it is actually very peaceful to take a breather and slow down. I have started appreciating all of the people and things around me, stopping to say hi to people I haven't seen in a while or have never met. I had become that stressed-out, overworked American that is so concerned with finishing tasks in a rush to get to the next one, the type of person I shouldn't be.
As much agony as I am in with this back injury, I am starting to think it is a blessing in disguise. Maybe this was a message for me to slow down and stop rushing through life just to get things done. As I've learned from this injury, I should be advocating moderation not just in your diet, but I should also be advocating moderation in everyday situations as well.
Maybe I need to take my own advice more often!
xoxo.
