Victory comes in finishing the race

By Veronica (Smith) Constantine

There will never be an article written about how fast I am, or an article reporting me as a winner in a 5K race or any other race for that matter.

I am not fast; and by most people’s standards I am not a winner. But what I lack in speed, I make up for with passion! I love to run and while I never manage to cross the finish line first, I always cross it without having stopped or walked. For me, each time I do this is a victory. I think there are others who probably share my sentiments and fall into this same category; we are runners, but we are not racers. Our goal is not to finish first, but rather to finish and improve over time.

However, I recently faced an unusual medical condition that proved to be my greatest challenge ever. It has been far more difficult than even the most challenging 5K route. I had hydrocephalus and as a result, had to have brain surgery in January. I know it sounds like a bad episode on a soap opera, but for me this is reality; it is my life.

On Jan. 12, 2007, I sat quietly, and as calmly as possible, while a neurosurgeon drilled a hole in my head to release the pressure caused by the hydrocephalus.

Hydrocephalus, for those of you who do not know (which was the category I fell into before this happened to me), is a condition where too much cerebral spinal fluid builds up in someone’s brain and as a result the intracranial pressure within the person’s head increases to dangerous levels.

While hydrocephalus is a fairly common birth defect in premature babies, it is quite uncommon in adults. In adults, hydrocepha-lus is usually caused by a brain tumor, head trauma or infections of the brain, such as meningitis or encephalitis. The bizarre twist in my case was that I had experienced none of these. To date, the doctors still have no explanation as to why I got so sick.

I woke up on Jan. 11 feeling normal, went to work, and developed a terrible headache which only worsened as the day went on, despite my consumption of more than the recommended dose of Excedrin. By 8 p.m. that night, I found myself at the emergency room getting a CAT scan.

Because of the rarity of my case, I was not diagnosed and treated until the following evening when I found myself with the surgeon and the drill. The drill procedure was only a temporary fix, and on Jan. 15 I underwent a second surgery that placed a permanent ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt within my body. The VP shunt works as a bypass, rerouting the fluid from my brain to my abdominal cavity where my body naturally reabsorbs the excess fluid.

The recovery from this has been far more difficult than any race I have ever completed. I won’t get into too many details other than to say that I went from a confident, active individual who ran or walked almost every day, to an individual who struggled

to get out of a bed by herself and had to call on her family to help with even the most simple of tasks.

I will skip past the details of the tough in-between months when I was feeling better, but not anywhere near normal. These were the times when I would over do it and find myself in terrible pain. I will skip past these times and move on to my victory! My win.

On June 30, after more than five months of recovery and just six weeks of training, I ran the Reeds Lake 5K run in East Grand Rapids! I remember thinking to myself that morning, “Am I ready?” and “What if I don’t finish?” I was so unsure of myself going into the race that I almost had myself talked out of running at all.

Just as before my surgery, I didn’t win and I was not fast as many of the other runners, but I finished and I didn’t stop or walk. A victory for me! Not only did I finish my first 5K since the surgery, but I finished with a respectable time of 27:44 which was a personal record! I was ecstatic and so happy that I cried later that day when I realized what I had accomplished and just how far I had come.

Looking back on the past 15 months, I reminisce about the tough times and the challenges, I celebrate each victory, no matter how small, and I find that I still have the passion to run.

Any extra passion and energy that I have these days goes toward fundraising efforts for STARS-kids, a 501c3 nonprofit organization that works to financially support research into hydrocephalus and VP shunt technology. My efforts have already resulted in more than $12,000 being raised for STARS-kids.

Upcoming STARS-kids events: Brainy Day 5K Run/Walk - Saturday, Aug. 23, 8:30 a.m. start time at 12718 Cleveland St. in Nunica. Cross country/dirt road race course. $20 registration includes T-shirt. Refreshments and awards ceremony immediately following. Contact Veronica Constantine at 616-837-6242 or Neva Smith at 924-3827 for more details or for registration information.

Second annual West Michigan STARS-kids Walkathon - Saturday, Oct. 25, 9:15 a.m. start time at the Grand River Sailing Clubhouse at 219 N. Harbor Dr. in Grand Haven. The walkathon is a three-mile loop, and walkers gather pledges for their walk. There will be refreshments, door prizes and a silent auction.

For more information about STARS visit www.STARS-kids.org. If anyone is interested in more information about any of the upcoming events, or donating to the cause, please contact me at 616-837-6242 today!

*** Veronica (Smith) Constantine is a 1994 graduate of Fremont High School. She is the daughter of Randy and Neva Smith of Fremont.