Perspective

Today I was sent this story about Sanya Richards, a sprinter in Texas who is a favorite at the Summer Olympics in Beijing. I love those stories with heart, the ones about those who have to overcome. I've always loved those stories, but this one hit me hard because Sanya Richards suffers from the same rare immune disorder as myself: Behcet's Syndrome (or Disease). She spent six months last year wondering what was wrong with her, and talked about how scary it was not knowing what was wrong with her body. I am no Olympic athlete, but at the time I was waiting on a diagnosis from my own doctor six years ago, I was very active, rollerblading almost every day. I had moments of wondering if my body was going to become crippled or if my joints would always be so painful. It was a pretty scary time, and I could totally relate to Sanya's own fear in that story. These types of diseases/disorders are their worst at the beginning, which is where she is. I can't even imagine what the stress of training for the Olympics must do to her, but she must be extremely strong mentally and emotionally. It's funny, but of all the Summer Olympic sports, track is usually my least watched. Now I will be watching Sanya Richards, and cheering her on to get that gold medal.