Facebook reminded me that four years ago today I went to the MRI Shields Facility in Framingham to have an MRI of my left knee. After having run 9 races in 9 months and going for several PR's, my left knee "blew out." It was a gradual process of increasing pain that I somewhat foolishly ignored running through the pain until I could no longer bear weight on it. I made a deal with the Universe, as I've been known to do throughout my healing odyssey with healing the effects of paralytic polio and trauma, that if I could be weight bearing again, I would go get it checked out. I spent two days in deep meditation, hobbling around the house and wondering what the future would hold.
Like a dog with its tail between its legs, I reluctantly returned to the Spaulding Rehab's International Center for Polio and Post-Polio where I had been told to prepare to spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair in December of 2006. I was given the warning, "If you use it, you will lose it." I went on to harness the power of my mind/body connection through the power of my pen, my divining rod for healing and ran the 2009 Boston Marathon. I fell in love with the sport of running.
While Dr. Rosenberg did not wholeheartedly support my choice to run given my history of paralytic polio and the beliefs that the medical establishment had about polio survivors as they age, he did understand that ultimately it was my choice.
The MRI results were grim and indicated that I would need a total knee replacement in a few years. The cartilage was shredded beyond repair and degenerative changes in the joint. There were bone spurs and a fatty lipoma and degenerative changes consistent with aging and surgical repair. "We know your gastroc muscle has been atrophied for years as a result of polio. There's nothing you can do about that." He went on to say that he knew I was going to run but tor urged me to cap my distance at a 5K or at most 5 miles. He gave me a referral to a physical therapist, who turned out to be the physical therapist from hell.
But all that I set in motion to heal my life since receiving the diagnosis of Post-Polio Syndrome led me to Dr. Ryan, a healer chiropractor who told me I just HAD to read Dr. Joe Dispenza's book, 'You Are The Placebo.'
I was so inspired by Dr. Joe's healing journey and the healing stories in the book that I immersed myself in the meditations he offered for healing the body through the mind. Dr. Ryan's chiropractic care and my own fiery determination to go the distance again led me to three consecutive Bermuda Half Marathons in 2016, 2017 and 2018. Dr. Ryan prescribed a new cross training and strength training routine for me and reminded me at every turn of my body's tremendous capacity to heal.
Even though he moved to China in late summer of 2015, we maintained our connection. When he returned to the States for a visit, we met in New York and he taped my knee and gastroc again to give me a healing boost. I found my way to a most remarkable chiropractor, Dr. Lizzie Sobel who subscribes to the same philosophy of healing as I do.
Dr. Joe talks about the power of mirror neurons that have been used to aid in the recovery of stroke patients. Initially, I could not go up on my toes to strengthen my gastroc muscle. In my mind's eye I imagined how it would feel to have my left leg be able to move the way my right leg did going up on my toes. I did the gastroc strengthening exercises using both legs until my left leg responded. In my meditations I sent electrical energy to my left gastroc muscle, dissolved bone spurs and grew new cartilage. I believed in every fiber of my Being that I could and would and already healed all that I needed to heal to train for a half marathon.
So how did I do that? Run 3 consecutive Bermuda Half Marathons and heal my left knee and leg?
As Dr. Joe often says, "The Power that made the body, heals the body." I consistently, and persistently meditated, continued to write poetry, trained mind, body and soul and drew upon my faith from all that I had healed before through the power of the mind/body connection.
And if ever you wonder and might even say that's not possible..just remember:
To your health and wellness
From my heart to yours
Mary
My healing journey using the power of visualization is featured in David R. Hamilton's book, "How Your Mind Can Heal Your Body-Anniversary Edition." It's available on Amazon.
Be sure to visit my website by following this link.
My books are available on Amazon.
Feel the Heal: An Anthology of Poems to Heal Your Life
Coming Home: A Memoir of Healing Hope and Possibility that chronicles the first 7 years of my healing journey:
Going the Distance: The Power of Endurance (With a Foreword by Jacqueline Hansen):
***Coming Soon - The Adventures of Runnergirl 1953***
“The Adventures of Runnergirl 1953” takes you on Mary McManus’ healing odyssey from a wheelchair to the finish line of the 2009 Boston Marathon and beyond. After the diagnosis of Post-Polio Syndrome in December 2006, Mary got still and asked for Divine Guidance tapping into the powerful connection she experienced to the Divine from an early age. She harnessed the power of her mind to heal her body, feverishly writing poetry in which she imagined herself healthy, whole and free from the shackles of her youth. Mary’s quest to heal her life led her to the sport of running. Her story is one that will leave you cheering for the underdog, discovering the meaning of different ability and experiencing the stunning view from the back of the pack of a race. You will have the privilege of bearing witness to how Mary overcame every challenge that life presented to her. The sport of running provides the backdrop for her journey of transformation from a survivor of childhood paralytic polio and severe trauma at the hands of family members to a woman who embodies faith, grace under fire, courage, determination, endurance and resilience. Running became a way of life for Mary that tested her mettle while forging friendships to last a lifetime. As you’ll discover in “The Adventures of Runnergirl 1953” nothing, not even a serious knee injury in December of 2014 could stop her on the roads or in her life.
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