Those Who Inspire Patty on Her Fitness Journey - UPDATE on Marisa Sandoval

For all of you who see me as the girl who’s always smiling and is always happy, I want you to read this.

Spring break of my junior year was full of excitement as I was going to take classes over the week to become a certified lifeguard. The classes were from 8am-5pm and I was exhausted by the end of each day to say the least. Learning how to perform saves for people at the bottom of a 12 foot pool was one of the hardest things I have done in a while.

Knowing that my mom spent $250 on this class for the possibility of getting nothing out of the class scared me beyond belief. I gave myself such severe anxiety that I felt like I couldn’t breathe and was choking even when my head was above water. Watching everyone else perform the saves successfully gave me even more anxiety because every time I tried, I couldn’t reach the ground, as we had been in the water for hours prior - treading water in the 12 foot pool.

At the end of the day I stayed after everyone left to talk to my instructor to maybe meet the next morning to practice, because my test would be later that day. When I tried asking, I couldn’t even ask the question because I started crying. That crying led to me hyperventilating and feeling like I would pass out. I couldn’t stop crying no matter what I tried to do, my mind took over. My instructor was so worried about me because he knew how I normally was and realized I was having a panic attack.

I had never thought of myself as being able to experience one because of how amazing my life was. I was training for my second body building show, I was a straight A student, had amazing friends and loved how my life was going. I was in denial that I could ever have anxiety, much less depression.

That evening I thought back to my freshman year when I swam. I remember my mom driving me to CMU to practice and I remember my heart racing and feeling like I couldn’t breathe. Some days I would even cry when I left the car. I didn’t want to fail, the expectations were set so high for me that my fear of failing led me to success. There came a point where a drill would be explained and I would ask to go to the bathroom and I would stay in there and cry because I didn’t want to let my coaches down by not doing the drill perfectly. After swimming ended, I would feel like I couldn’t breathe every time I saw a lap pool or went to CMU to support friends.

As time went on, I would be sitting in class and I would suddenly feel like I was being choked and that I couldn’t breathe. When I slept, I would suddenly wake up in a cold sweat with fear that I could never describe. I would dream about my biggest fear every night-- me failing.

Then, I realized that I had been putting my mental health aside for so long that I needed help. I reached out to my mom after the classes ended and I got my lifeguard certification - to schedule me an appointment for the doctor.

After some tests and talking to my doctor, I was diagnosed with anxiety and depression and was started on medication and therapy immediately. I sat in the room and felt so numb that I couldn’t even cry. More than anything, I wanted it all to be a dream. I was so mentally exhausted that I couldn’t say a word and didn’t comprehend how big of a deal this was.

I went and worked out with my dad and could barely tell him what the doctor told me. My life felt like it was crumbling down and I was so numb and I didn’t have feelings. I watched how my parents reacted but I couldn’t react back. It was the worst day of my life. It was such a strain on my family because I couldn’t explain how I felt and my parents felt like they had done something wrong.

I knew that reaching out for help was the best thing for me even though we were all in denial that I in fact had anxiety and depression. After being diagnosed, I slept and ate. That’s all my body had energy for. I slept for 16 hours a day, waking up just to eat and respond on my phone. Within three months after my last bodybuilding show I gained 30 pounds. I lost who I was. I felt so lonely and scared because I felt like no one knew what I was going through.

Through talking with my therapist, I realized that my self critique is what made my great but ended up leading me to a deep dark hole that I never wanted to be in. After 8 months of therapy I realized how to self love and was able to decrease my dosage of medicine. My relationship with my family slowly got mended back together, I got my health under control and I started training for my senior year of softball.

I started going to a new doctor because my previous doctor was a pediatrician and I wanted to get advice to see if I could wean off the medication. I got news that I didn’t want but I respected his professional opinion. My medicine treats anxiety and depression by helping to restore the balance of serotonin in the brain. Therefore, I was told that since the medicine is in fact helping me, I will never be able to get off of it because my body has a shortage of the chemical that controls all of my attributes that make me who I am.

This was hard to swallow but I have accepted the fact and have thrived ever since. While I was going through the hardest part of my life, I did two body building shows, made the varsity softball team my senior year, got my first job and so much more. I am graduating in May with Summa Cum Laude honors, a biliteracy seal, and National Honor Society honors. I will be attending the Colorado School of Mines in the fall to pursue chemistry.

What I want people to realize is that people aren’t perfect no matter what they make it seem. Mental illness is one of the worst things to experience because you can’t control your feelings and you can’t explain them either. My parents and brother were the only ones who knew for months because I didn’t want people to see me differently.

I’ve accepted my new life and am more open about mental illness to those I love. I hope that anyone who ever needs anything has the support system I did to get through it all. Be there for others, listen, even if you don’t understand. Sometimes people just need to talk to someone who doesn’t judge and will love them no matter what, regardless if they understand. Just know that everything happens for a reason and God has amazing plans for us all.

Much love, Marisa

Those Who Inspire Me - Jessica Deters

This young lady turns 23 today.  Dave and I ask ourselves, "Where did the time go?"  I wanted to take a minute to tell you a bit about her and why she inspires me.

College graduation - May 2017

First off - funny story.  She is our first born.  I come from a family of all girls and there is no one carrying on the Lombardi name.  We wanted to have at least one boy so we would have someone to carry on the name.  Without getting into any details here, let's just say we did everything we knew to do to conceive a boy.  THEN we had an ultrasound when I was about 7 months pregnant and the doctor confirmed we were having a boy.  (Apparently we should have listened more to the nurse when she told us, "He doesn't know how to read those things.")  I will NEVER forget the feeling I had when the doctor held her up to me and said, "Tell everyone what it is?"  I couldn't speak.  I just stared as if in suspended animation.  I kept thinking that does not look like a boy?  The doctor finally had to help me along and he said, "Is it a girl?"  I nodded, yes.

Baby Dedication - 1994

Well, she is my only daughter and I cherish our relationship.  She was an only child for 5 years and we did a ton of stuff together.  I'm slightly a Type A personality which I'm sure I passed on to Jess (sorry Jess).  When she was 2 or younger I had color schedules with pictures from the dinosaur computers of the day.  Eat breakfast (picture), make bed (picture), get dressed (picture), go to playground (picture)..... you get the picture.

I always knew she was smart.  She was 3 or 4 and asking what the double yellow lines in the highway meant, and what the dotted lines meant.  She observed everything and asked lots of questions.  We did a lot of puzzles and games together and I talk all the time.  I'm sure a lot of you can attest to that.  But I think it wasn't until she took the Explore test when she was in 5th grade (it's an 8th grade test.), that I realized we were in for a ride.  We received this super nice plaque in the mail that said she had received the highest score in Math for all 5th graders in the state of Colorado on the Explore Test.  And then she received another plaque that said she received the highest score in English for all 5th graders in the state of Colorado.

We started to think of other ways for her to learn and grow.  When she was 10 years old we let her go to Denver for a three day Swim with the Stars camp.  Michael Phelps was going to be there as well as other Olympic swimmers.  I was so nervous to leave her for three days.  We drive over to Denver, we get her registered, take her to her room.  She looks at us and says, Bye!  Wait, what? you don't need me?  You can leave now, she said. 

Swim with the Stars Camp

From then on she was an explorer, she's been to Australia, New Zealand, China, Italy, Switzerland, France, United Kingdom, Mexico, Canada, the Bahamas, Panama and the Netherlands.

She recently graduated from the Colorado School of Mines with a degree in Mathematics and Statistics and is currently enrolled at Virginia Tech where she is working on her doctorate in Engineering Education.  She is passionate about Education.

Before you have kids, you experience love completely differently.  You love your parents and siblings, your best friends, your husband, and others fiercely.  But having a child makes your heart feel like it will just burst.  All I wanted to be growing up was a mother.  I got laughed at by a high school friend when he asked me, Patty, what are you going to be.  (I had graduated 6th in my class.)  I said, I want to be a mom.  He replied, "What a waste."  Let me tell you, it has NOT been a waste at all.

Jessica has faced adversity many times and come out on top and it has been a joy to watch her persevere.  Her strength and her passion inspire me to want to be better.  So Jessica, have a very happy birthday and know that I love you very much and am inspired by you.

Those Who Inspire Me - Marisa Sandoval

Marisa and me

Today I had a meeting with our sales rep for work and we held the meeting at Barnes and Noble.  Before she arrived, I thought I would browse the "diet" book section of the store.  This is what I found.

My goodness - how many books is that?   No wonder some people have no idea what to do to lose weight.  I was definitely one of those people.  It made me think back to when I sat down to interview Marisa for this blog post.

Marisa remembers being 5 years old and stepping on the bathroom scale and seeing that she weighed 95 pounds.  95 pounds at 5 years old.  She remembers that she knew that was heavy and that devastated her.  She was crying so hard her mom had to come and see what was wrong.  Her mom vowed to make a change.  (What was your first memory?  My first memory was at 5, but it was my mom bringing my baby sister home from the hospital.  It certainly wasn't stepping on a scale.)

Marisa said to me, you were 54 and had no idea how to make the changes necessary to get the weight off.  Imagine being 5?  That hit home.  And then the next week I interviewed Natasha and she pretty much said something similar.  She was getting ready for a garage sale and had over 20 "diet" books in her repertoire.  There are so many books out there, but so little knowledge.

The changes did not come right away for Marisa.  At 8 years old she was on a family cruise and she got  a horrible ear infection in the middle of the night.  She was crying in her sleep.  Her mom took her to the on-call ship doctor and he wanted measurements which included weight.  She looked at her mom terrified because she hadn't weighed herself since she was 5.   The doctor weighed her and she was 118 pounds and she remembers the look on his face of shock.  Her mom looked devastated and Marisa just looked away.  When she went back to her room she cried from the pain of the ear infection and the pain of seeing people's reactions.  Her mom cried and with tears rolling down her face she told Marisa that we had to make a change.

Marisa began playing softball that fall and began to slim down.  She remembers being in 4th grade and the kids who had bullied her in the past were beginning to take note of the slimmer Marisa.

I feel like this is SUCH a young age to have these thoughts, but I had them too and I wasn't even big.  What I loved learning about Marisa is when she looks at people - young or old - she does not see size.  She sees the person's heart and personality.  What a great atrribute to have at such a young age.  I just want to say that again.  She DOES NOT see size.  She remembers being "judged" for her size; therefore she absolutely DOES NOT do this.  This is one of the many things that inspire me about her.  To be in high school where there is so much peer pressure and to look on the heart of people and not their physical appearance is such a great attribute.  She is wise beyond her years.

Softball helped get the extra weight off

She swam her Freshman year of high school.

Yes I know Marisa from Gold's gym, but I also know her because she is my son Joe's friend.  She doesn't know this, but her checking on Joe several times a day when he was in the hospital recovering from scoliosis surgery made my day.  His guy friends definitely checked in on him, but guys are funny.  They might send a text that says, "Hey, do you have a hot nurse?"  or "Hey, what's it feel like on all that pain medicine?"  But Marisa is a girl and I "get" girls.  I come from a family of 7 girls--no boys.  So she would write and ask how he was and tell him about school and let him know she was thinking of him.  I was so impressed and comforted by that it made me want to get to know her better.

I did wonder how she ended up at Gold's gym at the same time as me.  She told me she joined Gold's gym at the age of 13.  She always played softball though, so she came to Gold's on "off-season."  However three weeks before her Junior year of high school was to begin, she got appendicitis and had to have surgery.  Although she had played softball for years and the coaches knew her ability, she was told she would need to "tryout."  She was able to do the interview portion of the softball tryout, but not the physical tryout because she had just had surgery.  She received a phone call telling her that she had not made the team.  This was kind of a bum deal and we won't go into that, but this is what got her to Gold's Gym at the same time as me.

One day while working out and doing "shrugs" with weights, she noticed the trainer Stewart watching her.  She immediately felt like she must have been doing the exercise wrong.  When she completed the shrugs, Stewart approached her and asked her if she was training for a show.  She said, "I wish."  This was a Friday.  On Monday Stewart met with Marisa and her dad about the possibility of being in a "Figure" show.  She has actually been training for this since just after Thanksgiving.

Whenever she came to Gold's gym with her dad, she would show him the picture wall and say, "Dad, I'm going to be on that wall someday."  

The wall at Gold's Gym.

I am so proud of her for pursuing this dream of hers.  The show was this past weekend. Her family, her trainer, and her boyfriend went to Arizona to support her.  She did amazing.    Here she is!  Isn't she stunning!

Those shoulders - though!  Beautiful inside and out!

I love this pose!

Marisa, at times life is going to give you lemons.  You took the lemons and made lemonade.  Or my softball analogy would be you took the curve ball that was thrown at you and you hit it out of the park.  You keep on being you!    The world can use more people like you-- who have a heart of gold!

Those Who Inspire Me - The Morning Crew - Nancy Blackmon

Nancy and I have been friends now for a little over a year.  I'll never forget her asking me, "Have you seen Miracles from Heaven?"  I don't watch many movies so I told her, "No."  She told me that I needed to watch it.  Nancy and I are firm believers in prayer and so I took her advice and watched the movie.  It was a great movie.  I remember reporting back to Nancy, "Hey I watched the movie."  I'll never forget and I tear up just writing this, she said, "I was that mom.  I had to fight that hard for my son."  All I can say is thank God for mothers (and fathers) who never give up, who push until they find an answer.

I had this in mind when I sat down to talk to Nancy last week at Golds gym.  When we were all done talking, we glanced up at the front counter and we both just had to smile.  The movie playing that day in the cardio cinema was "Miracles from Heaven."

I always like to ask "how did you end up in NLP/Gold's at the same time as I did?"  Nancy tells me she had not been to the gym for at least a year.  She had been having major problems with her neck and major migraines.  She was seeing a chiropractor three times a week for relief.  Sara (Stephenson) made a "cold-call" to Nancy saying something like, we haven't seen you in awhile, would you like to come back in and discuss your fitness goals?   Her phone call got Nancy in the door.  NLP was being promoted at the time, so Nancy decided to give it a try.  This was November of 2015.

She participated in the NLP classes from November through January, but had no weight loss.  Patricia Roberts said, "If you want to talk nutrition, you have to talk to Ryan."  (I love the common thread in these posts.)  Nancy had been observing us during our semi-private sessions-- you know kind of checking us out.  She ended up meeting with Ryan about nutrition and Ryan tells me he remembers not even having to sell her on the semi-privates.  Nancy was just like - That's what I want to do.  There was a spin-the-wheel promotion going on and she won 10.00 off a month so she signed up for a year, right then and there.

When I asked her what she liked about the semi-privates, she said, "I loved showing up and getting my butt kicked.  They pushed me further than I have ever been pushed before.  You wonder why you keep coming back, but you do.  And then our core group -- that morning crew -- we had something special.  We were always checking on one another.  We chatted on Messenger at night.  If someone didn't show up, we were right on it asking what was up.

Patty, Jenna, Ryan, and Nancy (Natasha had started nursing school)

By far the biggest change she saw was physically.  She was supposed to get an injection in her neck on December 30th but the doctor got stuck in a snow storm and had to reschedule.  Well the reschedule pushed it into a new year and new deductibles.  She had begun to feel better so she decided not to reschedule.  In the past anything she lifted would put her neck out and give her a migraine.  As she continued with NLP and with lifting heavy weight and building muscle, all of that changed.  She can now lift her granddaughter and has not had a migraine for almost a year.

Me, Nancy, and Jenna just hanging out.  No neck problems there.

By far her greatest challenge in life has been having a child with a medical condition that noone could figure out.  This started when he was 11 and in 5th grade and it took 2 years to get in contact with a specialist in Denver.  He couldn't eat.  He hadn't grown.  He was losing weight and was down to 55 pounds.   The doctors here could not diagnose what was wrong and they would just keep sending him home.  He didn't have a diagnosis, yet was too sick to go to school and the school was on Nancy for this too.  She remembers that it got to the point where he was dying and they (her husband and her) HAD to figure it out.

She remembers saying, I understand you have run every test but SOMETHING is wrong.  She asked to be sent to Mayo Clinic.  Instead of sending them to Mayo they sent them to Denver (but were treated like Mayo) where a group of specialists came in -- each trying to figure out what was wrong.  She remembers a PET scan being run to determine if he had cancer.  They literally sat in the doctor's office for TWO hours waiting for the doctor.  The doctor came in and said, "Your son does not have cancer."  Now that is comforting to know, but Nancy was like, "Well that's good, but SOMETHING is wrong."  She said that doctor wanted to put him on anti-depressants.  Like it was all in his head.  He even said to Nancy, "If you're so smart, why don't you tell me what is wrong."  She said, "He can't eat!"  That doctor even though he was an ass, sent her to Dr. Stathos, a GI Specialist who slowly began to get the answers they needed.    The diagnosis was that a common bile duct didn't work.  So he couldn't digest his food.  Her determination saved her child's life.

Now watch Miracles from Heaven and you'll see why I tear up.  Her son has had over 50 surgeries in his lifetime.  He is now 22 years old.  The boy never complained.  She is just so proud of him.  When he was able to do something, anything, go to school, play with a friend, he just looked forward to that greatly.  He's doing well now and that is such a blessing.

Nancy and her two boys.

In closing, I asked what else did she want to tell me.  She said that she absolutely loved that we became friends (the feeling is mutual.)  She loves being with people with the same goals.  She enjoys her gym family.  And in light of the challenges she has faced in her life, she states, "I believe God gives us battles, so we can help other people."

Those Who Inspire Me -- The Morning Crew -- Natasha Elmy

This is my smile, Patty.  

I want you to think back to when you were 17 years old (or think ahead).  I was a senior in high school, thinking about college--full of hopes and dreams.  I don't think I could even imagine what it would have been like to hear the words, Patty, you're pregnant.  Yet that is what my good friend Natasha heard when she was just 17.  It's a moment when you realize that your life is perhaps going to take a different direction than you may have thought.  

She had just turned 18 when she went into labor three months early.  The doctors tried to stop the labor, but were unsuccessful, so baby Deon was born three months early.  However, when he was born, he couldn't breathe.  They actually had to give him CPR until they could intubate him.  Now remember Natasha is all of 18 years old.  How frightening that must have been.    When they first tried to intubate him, the tube was too large.  They had to pull it out and get a smaller tube.  Deon was without oxygen for 3 minutes.  This caused Deon to have cerebral palsy and other complications.  When Natasha was allowed to bring Deon home, he was on a heart machine and oxygen for 6 months.

Thankfully Natasha was able to live with mom and dad for 2 years.  It was actually recommended to her that if she had another child, Deon would mimic that other child (crawling and walking); Deon and his sister Keona are just 18 months apart.  Natasha told me that Keona however was one of those children that was walking by 9 months old so it was difficult for Deon to learn from his little sister.

I knew none of this about Natasha when our paths crossed at NLP at Golds Gym in early 2016.  When we first met, we kind of sized each other up.  I was very thankful to have someone else to workout with and she was thankful to be back at the gym and eventually we became great friends.  As I wrote last week when talking about Jenna - these three ladies (Jenna, Natasha, and Nancy) were my counselors, my encouragers, my rocks, my friends.

Nancy, Natasha, Jenna, me and Mana

I think what drew me to her was Deon.  I have a sister who was born three months early and she too has cerebral palsy.  Hers is not as severe as Deon's is, but I have a compassion for children with special needs and had actually just left a job at a middle school as a Special Ed assistant.  I had nothing but mad admiration for Natasha.

I asked Natasha how she ended up at Golds Gym at the same time I did.  She told me about a trainer, Malcolm, that she had previously trained with and how strong and fit she was.  Then one day Malcolm left.  (It kind of throws you when your trainer that you have been so successful with leaves; and especially if the circumstances aren't the best.)  She had stopped coming to the gym.  But Mana (you got to love him) kept calling her and asking her when she was going to be back.  She said, he called and called and called.  She got to where she recognized the number and didn't answer.  But she realized that someone cared about her and his consistent bugging her got her to come back in and workout at NLP with us.  We bonded so well and had a great time together.

Natasha is married and has four children.  She told me she grew up fast and she is definitely more patient with people but less understanding.  If people cry about something minor, she doesn't put up with that.  I was like, how then did you handle me when I was such an emotional wreck.  She said, that was different.  Some things that happerned to me were unfair and she understood that.   (I tell you, I am so thankful for her and for her friendship.  She will always hold a special place in my heart.)

Natasha and family

Natasha and Ray (her husband)

Natasha has agreed to let me tell you one more thing about her life.  I think it's important to know as many of us have considered this option.  After training with Malcolm, but before coming back to the gym with Mana she had the weight loss surgery.  She opted for the "sleeve."  She says now, she wishes she would have done the gastric bypass instead of the sleeve, but she's not sorry she did the surgery.

I was curious to why she opted for the surgery.  (Believe me I had thought about it myself through the years.)  She told me that recently she had been getting ready to have a garage sale.  She said she must have found at least 40 books on weight loss.  She's done a lot of the plans that those books suggest.  She felt like she had tried everything and she couldn't get lower than a certain point; so she opted for the surgery.

Even today (since surgery) she needs to eat more calories, but if you eat too much, she gets sick and she gets heartburn.  The more people I know that have had the surgery, the more I learn about it.  I'm thankful she was willing to talk to me about it.

Natasha inspires me even to this day.  Her days are not easy.  By far her greatest challenge in life has been Deon.   The boy has a sense of humor, but he also has days that he acts up for mom, but not for his sisters.  (Smart boy.)  She recently shared this on her Facebook wall.  I want to share it here.  

Keep on being you Natasha.  You are doing a great job!!!  And thank you for your friendship.

Those Who Inspire Me -- The Morning Crew - Jenna Roberts

I was unprepared for the mental changes I would go through during my weight loss journey, and there were many.  I vowed to never "cry" in front of my trainers - Ryan or Mana; yet many tears were shed in front of my friends.  These three ladies will attest to that.  We are four friends from different walks of life, one in her 20s, one in her 30s, one in her 40s, and me in my 50s.  I will cherish these ladies for the rest of my life.  We met in NLP semi-privates and we worked out with Mana and/or Ryan just about every day (M-F).  They were my counselors, my encouragers, my rocks, my friends.   I am talking about Jenna, Natasha and Nancy.  Today I tell you a little bit about why Jenna inspires me!

We called ourselves "The Morning Crew"

I was working out daily in the semi-private NLP training sessions with Ryan/Mana from January 18, 2016 on.  Jenna had been an NLP member, but not a part of semi-private training.  Guess who talked it up for her?  Marivel McClelland - the very woman who I wrote about last week.  Marivel encouraged Jenna that if she wanted to take it to the next level she should get to know Ryan and she should sign up for the semi-private training.  Up to this point, Jenna had not been seeing any weight loss and it was frustrating to her; so she considered what Marivel was telling her and she went to talk to Ryan.  She began training with me in February of 2016.  

Me and Jenna - February 15, 2017

Jenna tells me that she had been serious about the gym and the workouts, but not as serious with the nutrition.  She loved that Ryan was able to help her with the nutrition aspect.  AND he always checked in with her.  He'd ask her how her weekend went (especially in light of her food.)  He reached out and checked in often.  (I love that about Ryan too.  He doesn't just lay out a path for you and walk away.  He lays out the path; and then checks in to see if you are traveling down the right path for you.) As soon as Jenna implemented the nutritional information that Ryan taught her, she began to see weight loss, but I am getting ahead of myself.

Daniel and Jenna

Jenna and Daniel got married when they were just 20 years old.  They were married in 2011.  They had a baby girl in 2012, a baby boy in 2013, and another baby girl in 2014.  They are now 25 with three kids and they are doing a great job together raising their family.  What I love about Jenna is the maturity and confidence she carries herself with.  Here I am old enough to be her mother, yet she is a great friend who helped me tremendously during those times of my mental distress.  Daniel and Jenna have had to handle some very serious life challenges in their young years and they have done it with grace and maturity.

One of my questions I ask before I write is "What was one of your biggest challenges in life."  Well they've had a few.  Dalaynee (their first born)  was 15 months old when Jenna went into labor 6 weeks early with her son, Karson.  He was breech and the decision was made to deliver him early by c-section.  Because he was 6 weeks early, he spent two weeks in the NICU at St. Marys.   It was during these two weeks, that Miss Dalaynee was not feeling well so they put her in bed with them that night.  She began coughing a lot, so Daniel picked her up and rolled her over (in case she was to get sick - it would go to the floor not the bed.)  When he picked her up, she was limp and she was blue.  Daniel gave his baby girl CPR.  Daniel's CPR got her breathing again.  Jenna recalls that they then called for an ambulance and Dalaynee was taken to St. Marys Hospital.  So Dalaynee on one floor and little Karson was just upstairs on another floor.  (Dalaynee was diagnosed with febrile seizures.  She's had a total of 3 and they typically go away by the age of 6.  Dalaynee is 4 now.)

At St. Mary's Hospital before they knew Karson needed
heart surgery.

After two weeks in NICU, little Karson was having a difficult time wanting to eat and his heartrate kept dipping down.  The doctor called in a cardiologist.  The next thing you know this young couple is being told that their 2 week old baby boy needs heart surgery and he needs it immediately.   The hospital was unable to secure a flight immediately and Karson was stable so Daniel and Jenna went home to pack a bag.  Almost as soon as she got home, she got a call from the hospital saying Karson's heartrate kept dropping and he was not able to breathe on his own.  At this point they needed to intubate him.  They were on a roller coaster of emotions.

Jenna and I have both been taught that it's good to have someone with you at a doctor's appointment or in a hospital situation and she was so thankful Daniel was with her.  Because she heard "heart surgery" and then really didn't hear anything else.  Jenna shared with me how her husband, Daniel, was a rock during this time.  When Jenna was told Karson would need heart surgery, all she could think of was "he's going to die."  Daniel was calm and reassuring telling Jenna, "that's not what they said.  Karson is not going to die.  He just needs the surgery and he will be okay."  I love this.  They are both so young, yet so capable, so mature.  

Jenna and Karson were flown by helicopter to Children's Hospital in Denver.  Karson needed a few days of intubation and rest to prepare for the surgery.  (The diagnosis was coarctation.)  Now think about this.  Jenna is 2 weeks out from having had a C-section.  She and Daniel are all of 22 years old.  They've got 15 month old Dalaynee with them at Children's.  And Dalaynee had just given them a scare with the febrile seizure.  HOLY COW!  They had family support there with them too, but kudos to Daniel and Jenna for believing for their children to be okay.  Karson had the surgery and was immediately better.

Jenna feeding Karson after the successful surgery.

Their children are doing great now.  Daniel and Jenna are doing great.  Daniel is really proud of the progress Jenna has made.  Jenna set a weight loss goal and crushed it and surpassed it.  She is smaller now than she was when they got married.  She says the weight she is at now is the weight she was in 9th grade.

Daniel, Karson, Santa, Reagan, Dalaynee and Jenna

I love that Jenna always encouraged me.  I love that she saw the weak side of me (emotionally) and it didn't drive her away; instead she stepped it up and poured on more encouragement for me.  I feel as if I have conquered a lot of that "emotional change" now and Jenna and I just have a blast together working on that "physical change."  I absolutely love working out with her.   I didn't know all of this back story on Jenna when I first met her, but I knew she was mature way beyond her years and I knew I loved being around her.

Always having fun together.

Kind of a private joke - but let's just say we
struggled learning that snatch.

Those Who Inspire Me - Marivel McClelland

In the spring of 2007, my daughter was in 6^th grade and Marivel’s daughter was in 8^th grade.  We all four attended a New York City “music department inspired” field trip.  My daughter had paid extra to have two to a room for her and her friend.  Her friend ended up not going and Jessica needed a room to stay in.  She was put in with Marivel’s daughter and two other 8^th grade girls.  Thus began my relationship with Marivel.  We (parent chaperones) were not allowed to chaperone our own children and we were kept busy from 6 am to 11 pm every day.  It was on this very field trip that I decided I did not ever want to be a chaperone again.   I was overweight and out of shape and I just could not keep up.  We’d walk like 2 miles into the center of Central Park, take a photo, and then immediately walk back to the bus.

Angie on the left and Jessica's other roommates

Me and Jessica

Fast forward to the summer of 2015.  Our son Joe was in high school.  Marivel’s son Jason was in high school.  They had both signed up for a trip to Europe.  Marivel’s family (minus the older girl) and Joe and his dad were all on this trip together.  They all hung out a lot together and ate meals together and Marivel was sharing with my husband Dave all about their successful weight loss with the NLP program at Gold’s gym.

In August of 2015, Joe and I started with the NLP program at Gold’s gym.  This is when I saw what a loyal friend, Marivel could be.  She was “on fire” about her own success and she wanted to motivate and help me.  She literally changed her entire workout schedule at times so that she could attend the same NLP class that I did.   I didn’t really know anyone and she wanted to make sure I was comfortable. 

By December of 2015, she kept telling me about this trainer who wanted to help me win the 12 week challenge that Gold’s put on.  I kind of just kept blowing her off.  I had actually wanted to enter the challenge a few years previous and a trainer had actually told me not to, because I wouldn’t do well.  If you don’t know Marivel, let me tell you that she can be persistent.  We became texting buddies late at night and she kept planting that bug in my ear.  “Ryan wants to help you.”  “Ryan thinks you can win.”  “You should talk to Ryan.”  GEEZE woman – okay then!  I talked to Ryan and the rest is history (or at least the rest is my blog. Haha.)

April 2016

Marivel, I will forever be thankful for how God just worked it out for our paths to cross at the right time and for your ever-loving doggone persistence to get me to talk to Ryan.  Here I am 61 pounds lighter and 9 years older than when I chaperoned that NY trip and I’m thinking – I could chaperone a trip again.  I’d probably kick ass now if I had to march in and out of Central Park for a photo.

Central Park

It's a lot different now for Marivel and I.  We almost never work out together anymore.  She set a goal to run a marathon and she crushed that goal.  She inspires me still every day even though we don't see each other quite as much as we used to.  

Marivel after her marathon