Pressing Pause: From Sky-High to Shutdown in 24 Hours

I had a whole “get-back-in-the-arena, mind-over-matter” post ready for Monday—bootstraps, grit, the works. But when the alarm went off, I knew it wasn’t the day to hit publish.

Sunday was electric. Jordan and I recorded a podcast with pro pickler Rob Nunnery, and the vibe was magic—equal parts raw honesty (we compared autoimmune battle scars) and loud belly laughs (my husband and son said the house shook). That night we jumped into a pop-up tournament where the fun kept rolling. It was the kind of day that lights a fuse in your soul and makes you believe the high will last for weeks.

Monday proved otherwise. Three hours of sleep? Sure, I’ve powered through worse—back before MS started charging interest on overdoing it. But I’d promised friends I’d play, and I hate letting people down. Add sticky Virginia humidity (a personal kryptonite), and the crash was inevitable. By noon I was in bed, migraine, nausea, completely wiped out and canceling a guest interview I’d been excited about for weeks.

So, was it worth it? Yes. No. I genuinely don’t know.

What I do know is that my body now demands choices I never had to make before: sleep over spontaneity, shade over sun, recovery over “one more game.” The old days of pushing through without a bill coming due are gone.

That “arena” post will have its moment—I’m just calling a brief timeout. Consider this the deep breath before the next serve. I’m regrouping mentally, emotionally, and physically so I can show up, fully charged, for the adventures still waiting on deck.

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