Have you ever known someone so brilliant that they had absolutely NO common sense? Or maybe the reverse ~ someone who is not particularly book smart but seems to have an uncanny underlying logical, if insanely so, train of thought? My parents are the perfect picture of both of these scenarios. My mother has a genius IQ and a Master's Degree in Nursing, yet often leaves me bewildered by bizarre everyday common-sensical decisions. My father has nothing more than a high school diploma, that I am told my mother was instrumental in helping him achieve, and has one of the wildest yet most logical thought patterns I have ever been privileged to learn from. I am hoping that I have managed to inherit something of the middle ground, but some days I wonder.
I once took one of those online IQ quizzes just for the fun of it. I don't remember exactly what the number was, but I do remember that it was about 10 away from genius. "Wow," I thought, "I'm either a stupid smart person, or a smart stupid person." Some days I wonder.
Like today, for example.
Last night, I had fitful sleep, and though I can't say I had nightmares, my dreams were anxiety provoking and certainly not restful. Some days, the only constant in our office is change, and today was one of those days. My lunch was shifted to accommodate a patient, which is nothing I get upset about, but it does tend to mess with my snack schedule. Needless to say, I was a little off all day.
According to my running schedule, I was supposed to run 2.5 miles of hill intervals today. I got about 15 minutes into a run that usually takes about 26-28, and I was having a hard time keeping a pace that let me catch my breath. I chalked it up to running in the woods with humidity. At the 19 minute mark, I crashed. I absolutely could not continue running. What was up?! I had run this path before - many times - and though it was challenging when my energy level was lacking, this was something different. I walked for 2 minutes to catch my breath and tried the run again. Two more minutes later, I crashed again. Frustrated, I slowly began to realize what I was experiencing - severe low blood sugar. It finally dawned on my that it had been over 6 hours since I'd last eaten, and my blood sugar had bottomed out.
Determined to finish with some degree of strength, I power walked the last mile(ish) and was satisfied that I had finished without strolling. However, by the time I reached the car my vision was blurring, and I was worried I might not be fit to drive. Thankfully, my head cleared and I hit the road home.
I needed to stop at the store on the way home and, though I knew waiting to eat was going to make the trip interesting, I decided to stop anyway. I walked from one end of the store to the other 3 times because my head was so foggy that I kept forgetting what I was there for. By the time I pulled into my driveway I had a solid headache.
Oddly, even eating dinner didn't help much to recoup my sugar level. I still felt very loopy. It took an additional snack, along with a Bailey's and chi, to get me to a point where I began to feel human again. I concluded that the combination of lack of rest, fatigue from an odd work day, and a severe lack of blood sugar, contributed to my shredded evening.
Now, here's where I feel like a really stupid smart person. I have dealt with low blood sugar for 16 years, since I was pregnant with my first-born. One would think that by know I would be in a solid pattern of when to eat. Obviously, such is not the case. It took a crash to remember to eat ~ how pathetic is that?! To look at me, one would not assume that I am a person who forgets to eat. Unfortunately, I only forget to eat when it is most inconvenient. And the worst part about all of this is that I know better. Not feeling like a smart stupid person this evening.
Here's hoping for a better night's rest and better memory for tomorrow. Maybe I can be a smart stupid person again.
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