A Tale of a Toenail

If you're one of those people with a weak stomach, skip this post!

Last year during my half marathon training was when I first realized I had plantars fasciitis. It was the source of some major setbacks in my training, so much so that I took the time to research and seek help from a podiatrist. I don't mind going to the doctor if I am sick, but specialty doctors (especially someone I am going to pay to look at my foot) seem like a waste of money to me. The podiatrist gave me a Cortisone shot in my heel and told me that if I am going to be a distance runner, I better get used to running in pain. I brushed off his advice, laid around for a week to give myself time to heal, and went right back to it. This time around, I find myself pushing through the last 2-3 miles of my big runs with knee pain, throbbing toes, and sore ankles. I sincerely hope this is not my body's way of telling me that it can't take the miles because I just ordered my first marathon training guide!

During mine and Rachel's ten mile run three weeks ago, I felt like my toenail was bending backwards. We were 9.5 miles in, and there was no way I was going to stop with a half mile left. I finished the run with some kind of crazy wobble/limp stride, but I finished it! I couldn't tell if it was swollen or if there was any bruising under the nail so I brushed it off. I continued to run and attend Crossfit. Rachel and I ran eleven miles two weeks ago and the same thing happened. This time, I was only 7 or so miles in when my toe began throbbing. I pushed past the pain and completed the run. When I got home I took my nail polish off to see if there was any bruising because it was throbbing like something tight was wrapped around it. Sure enough, my toenail was completely black underneath.

Blakely, being the incredibly smart man that he is, told me we could relieve the pressure by heating a needle and sticking it through the nail. His dad had done it once before, so I texted him to get the low down on the level of pain we were talking about. His dad told me that I won't feel a thing except relief. I agreed, against my better judgement and all common sense, to let my boyfriend perform voo-doo toe surgery on my in our living room with a pumpkin candle and a sewing needle. He heated the needle until the end of it was orange. I held a pillow over my face because I was too afraid to look. I also told him not to count it down or anything. I didn't want to know it was happening. To my pleasant surprise, I didn't feel a thing. He tried twice but was not able to drain anything from it. No relief for me. I was left with a giant black whole in the middle of my toenail. I could barely sleep because of the pressure I was feeling that night. 

I woke up the next day and my toe was horribly swollen and red. It looked terrible and the pain was worse than the night before. The school nurse told me that it looked infected and told me that the doctor would give my antibiotics to help with the infection. I toughed it out at school and even went to Crossfit that night. One of my friends that is a nurse told me that it might be a good idea to get some antibiotics. It was looking rough by that point. The WOD was a lot of running, which was miserable for me. I didn't want to have to take a week off to see if it would heal, so I left immediately after the workout (I still finished second) and went to the doctor's office. 

The nurses there were wonderful. One of them heard me describing what was going on and came in to talk to me about running. She was running her first marathon that weekend, so we yapped the entire time I was there about our running experiences. She recommended a training guide for building up to a marathon distance, which I promptly ordered upon my arrival home. 

I explained to the doctor that I thought it was caused by the continuous pounding my toe takes against the front of my shoe when I run. He told me that he was going to go in through the whole Blakely made and drain the fluid. He also told me that I would probably lose the nail that week, and since I have a race coming up, he advised me to have it pulled if it didn't come off in the next few days so that I would have plenty of time to heal. I love this doctor. He is the same man that saw me last summer when I passed out running. He always tells me exactly what I need to do to get back to running in the shortest amount of time, and I am SO appreciative of that! 

I laid back and refused to watch him go through my nail with the needle. This time around, I felt every single agonizing bit of it. I am not a huge wimp when it comes to needles. I can handle way more pain that a lot of people, but this straight up hurt! He cultured to to see what kind of infection we were looking at and wrote me a prescription for antibotics. Even though it was painful, it was incredibly relieving to have the fluid drained. 

Sure enough, four days later I lost the nail. It's horrifying and completely unattractive, but I wear it as a badge of honor. Only the most dedicated runners lose nails. I ran 8 miles the other day and didn't feel a thing. To my surprise, the sensitivity that he told me I would feel wasn't there. I wrap it up everyday and make sure to keep it clean. Hopefully it will grow back so I won't have to paint the skin for Laura's wedding. 

Last night I went out with the lovely ladies of Stoked Crossfit. We had a fabulous time chatting about horribly inappropriate topics at a ridiculously loud volume. It was fun getting to know new people. The majority of my friends are male, so it was a nice change to hang out with ladies that share my love of Crossfit and vulgarity. We ate all sorts of terrible things and stayed out entirely too late, but it was a great time! When I got home and took my boots off, I noticed my pinky toe was swollen... and disfigured. I think it's broken :(. I also think it's from running. I won't see a doctor because I have broken toes before. All you can do is tape them together and move on. It hurts but not badly enough for me to stop working out. 

My podiatrist wasn't lying. I guess I'm going to have to accept running in pain and with all sorts of crazy injuries. My big race is just a week away. I am terrified and excited at the same time. I feel like I have done less running to prepare for this one, but I feel better during my long runs than last time. Before my first half, I was only running to get ready for the race. This time around, I have been alternating between running and Crossfit. Most days we run during the workout at Crossfit. I try to do those shorter runs at a faster pace than I'm used to. I've also been dedicating one day a week to sprints and stadiums. It's never fun and I am miserable to entire time, but I can feel my endurance improving. My long runs aren't nearly as difficult as they were for me in March before the Tuscaloosa Half. Like I said, I am excited and terrified at the same time. This week will be full of clean eating and light runs. I can't decide if I want to go to Crossfit at all because I am so worried about injuries before race day. Let's be real... I'll probably still go :).