Ups and Downs

January 15, 2008 - Tuesday
Sorry it's been like a week since I've written anything. I was on such a high the last time I wrote and couldn't have been happier about being able to walk with the braces on.
However, the very next day I had some tests done and one of them was an ultrasound. Turns out I had another blood clot. I was soo bummed out I can't even tell you. Not only did that mean that I couldn't do any physical therapy for a couple weeks, but it also meant that I was had to have Lovanox shots in my stomach twice a day, and also an in home nurse would come and draw blood every other day so they could monitor me. And I freakin' HATE needles!
Blood clots can be very serious so no matter how bad I wanted to lift weights or go on an endurance run I didn't because I didn't want to be stupid about it. Instead I've just tried to get caught up on emails, etc. I did my best to turn it into a positive.
It's been a week now and I just went back into see my Dr. yesterday and he had some good news. My blood levels were where they needed to be, but they still need to draw blood tomorrow and Friday and then he needs to get the results before I can start physio again next week. So crossed fingers everything looks okay.

In other random news I was asked by a friend and one of the coaches of the USC Women's Basketball team to come and speak to their team on Friday so that should be fun. I told them I'd only do it for a pair of sweet b-ball shorts since I collect them. That's a little known fact about me. I collect b-ball shorts from all different states and teams. Every time we would have a race in a different state and if we drove from race to race I would try to find one of the bigger colleges around and try to stop and buy some.
I also want to say thank you to Giant for getting the next batch of t-shirts ordered. I will hopefully have them within 3 weeks. I apologize for it taking so long, but we're getting there. So if anyone has an order that has not been filled it should be shortly. :)
Okay, well it's almost midnight and I've hit the delete button way too much to still be up so I'll write more later.
Cheers!
Tara
Never Give Up!

Editor’s Note: Tara Llanes is recording her progress in rehab as she continues to recover from the spinal cord injuries she suffered in a mountain bike race in Colorado on September 1. This is the latest update posted to her MySpace page. Tara has been blogging about her recovery since mid-September. All of her blogs, photos of her recovery and many, many good wishes can be found at:

http://www.myspace.com/mtbtara

Her family, friends, and supporters are urging those folks who want to help contribute to a special fund set up for Tara’s recovery to visit:

http://www.tarallanesroadtorecovery.com

Video of Tara taking her first steps since her accident can be found on her MySpace page at:

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&VideoID=25855573