Pagosa Springs Trip Day #4

Today we did our first official hike in Pagosa Springs. It was a very short hike since the kids have little legs and Alex decided to join us. He is still sick…but it was nice to spend some time with him today. We hiked Treasure Falls. It was only about a 1 mile hike, until we lost Alex!! He just completely disappeared from the trail after we made it to the waterfall. My mother-in-law had the kids sit on a log to each lunch, while my father-in-law and I kept hiking up and down the trail looking for my hubby. I was almost in tears when Alex finally caught up to us. Apparently he had decided to go off the main trail to hike straight up the side of the waterfall. I could have KILLED him! We then hiked back to the car and went to Turkey Creek trailhead. We were the only ones there, surprisingly. Shortly after starting the hike, we were COVERED in mosquitos. I have never seen so many. Literally hundreds!!! We had on insect repellant, but decided to abandon the hike after 0.25 miles. So, we then decided to just take Alex on the same adventure that we did yesterday, Pagosa Springs River Walk. We did bring our bathing suits this time and hopped into the free Hippy Dippy Hot Spring right along the river. It felt so good and the kids were brave enough to stick their heads in the hot water (with goggles on of course). There appeared to be REAL HIPPIES in there with us. They seemed so free and eccentric. At least everyone was wearing clothes :-).

After another quick walk along the river, we jumped in the car and picked up some ice cream at the Pagosa Springs Malt Shoppe. I am pretty sure there was more fudge than ice cream with the sundae that I ordered. Man, this weight watchers diet has been out the window this week.

How am I doing with my chronic pain?

Today was a good day, and I owe it to my In-laws. I think I am just more fatigued than anything. I cannot stress how important it is to have a support system around you when you deal with chronic pains and fatigue. My mother-in-law was there to witness me slip and fall right away on my first hike. At the time of my minor fall, I was stepping backwards, camera in hand, trying to get a photo of my beautiful daughter. She was standing on a tree stump, and requested that I capture the moment with a photo. 

I did not sustain an Injury from what I can tell. After that point, I noticed the weakness in my left leg to be more pronounced, and just I remained intentional to balance my weight more on the AFFECTED limb (see neuroplasticity under my resources menu). This really made a difference today and I went without pain medication.

As far as an update from last night with my “good” hip pain (as I discussed in my last post), I did end up taking over the counter pain medication and a heat pack (in addition to the other interventions previously described)…but it worked and I slept well last night. 

Just remember to take one day at a time. Don’t talk negative to your body, as this can make your perception of the pain more negative. This in turn will result in increased pain and fatigue. Rather than saying “Why are you doing this to me body?”, say “I feel this tight aching sensation in the hip after taking a hike to see a beautiful waterfall, so let’s see what I can do to change this sensation to something more tolerable.”

Remember that this is the body that the good Lord has given you, and He does not give you more than you can handle. He is very intentional and you are LOVED, despite these trials. I am truly blessed that our Lord has provided the most wonderful In-laws I could ever ask for. They have helped in taking care of Alex, me, and the kids. This trip would have been much more difficult without them here. It is sooo important to find your support system and don’t expect to go through life alone.