Our shared humanity, grief, why I’ve been away, and some musings on pain, biology, life…

I promised a post on the major turning points in my pain experience at the beginning of the year. Then life, and death, happened and it was put on hold. Those posts (there are two, reflecting two major turning points) will come soon, but first I wanted to share why I’ve been away, for those who may be wondering. It’s

Nature photography as chronic pain strategy/therapy

My buddy shared a video on nature photography yesterday and said it reminded him of me and Buster and my picture taking. I loved the post and the video as this has been my experience, too. It’s a video about techniques but it’ll start halfway through where the photographer talks about his story and why he shoots woodland photos and

Relax! Running, pain and my CFT experience

In the last week I’ve gone on 2 runs. This is a big deal for me! I love running. Running has been one of the things I’ve missed most these last 7 years. I’ve given it a go a few times, and was quite successful last summer (read about it here!), but I started experiencing new pain in my left hip


Goals. Whose goals are they, ours or theirs?

I went for a walk today and took pictures, a favorite pastime of mine and one I’m very grateful for. As I was perched on two rocks, squatting to gain a better perspective for a photo, I started thinking about a few things, namely goals and motivation.  For a long time I couldn’t squat, at least not with any comfort.

Trail running: imperfect steps to getting back at it

I started this post about trail running just over a year ago. I thought I was on track to being back at it. I thought trail running was going to be a regular part of my life again. It wasn’t. I didn’t finish the post because that whole being a runner again thing didn’t quite materialize. I’d flare-up, I’d feel the

A moment to reflect: how changing my environment changed my pain experience

I recently attended a writer’s camp in Big Sur, California, a stretch of rugged coast, and afterward took six days to drive from there to Colorado. I wanted to keep myself immersed in nature to let all that I’d learned percolate. I wanted to reflect, to think without distraction, particularly of the digital sort. I didn’t have cell reception for most


Managing thoughts and behaviors when living with chronic pain: lessons from a road trip

A lot has changed for me this past year. I’ve experienced successes I wouldn’t have imagined possible 6 years ago (heck, 3 years ago, or even just a year ago). But this most recent success is a pretty huge one for me. Even bigger than the long hikes, starting to run again, and snowshoeing adventures that have happened in this past year. You see,


The art of walking

The San Diego Pain Summit is still swirling around in my head, an unreal amount of thoughts and ideas associated with all I learned, was exposed to, and talked about there, that it’s hard to even know where to start. I have roughly 4 draft posts in the wings right now because there’s too many directions I want to go

Got Sun? Why we Need to Get Outside. Often. (Part II)

In the last post we talked about some of the benefits of getting outside in nature every day (missed it? click here.), getting in a dose of greenery, trees, plants, and dirt does wonders for our physiological and our mental health. Who doesn’t like nature? Today we’re going to talk about another benefit of getting outside every day: sun exposure.

Got Nature? Why We Need to Get Outside. Often.

Do you love the greening that spring brings, the color jumping back into the world after a winter of white and gray? Or have you ever been walking down a busy city sidewalk and spied a bit of green that lifted your spirits and made your day (or at least the moment!)? Have you ever been stuck indoors and longed to