Shannon Young’s Long Journey to Running the Capital City Marathon Began with a Diagnosis

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By Gail Wood

Rock FitnessShannon Young had an excuse for not running. It hurt.

Even walking to the mailbox from her kitchen hurt. That’s because Shannon had rheumatoid arthritis. But nobody knew – not even her doctors.

“It took a while to diagnosis it,” Shannon said.

Her legs ached. Her feet ached. Her hips ached.

capital city marathon
With the encouragement of her husband, Shannon Young has taken up running.

“The biggest thing is I couldn’t bend very well,” Shannon said, which meant even sitting hurt. This was a major problem because as a mother of three Olympia High School sons involved in sports, she was going to games and cheering on the sidelines.

“Sitting at a stadium, a cold stadium, would be just like torture,” Shannon said.

She’d often take a folding chair with her to her sons’ sporting events. She couldn’t stand for very long.

“I just felt old in my young body,” said Shannon, a 1990 graduate from Clover Park High School.

The throbbing pain was the worst when she slept, or at least tried to sleep, robbing her of rest. When morning came, Shannon would still be tired from a night of fitful sleep.

“That made the day time just miserable because I couldn’t sleep at the night time at all,” Shannon said. “It was just so uncomfortable.”

Shannon’s best/worst day came seven years ago when her doctor told her she had rheumatoid arthritis. She finally had a “why” to her pain. And, more importantly, she had a cure, medicine to take away the pain. Once a week, Shannon gives herself a shot of Enbrel.

For years, Shannon struggled with the pain. Before going to bed she’d take sleeping pills, anti-inflammatory bills and pain pills.

running with arthritis
Shannon and Alex Young, celebrate the completion of the Capital City Marathon on Sunday. Shannon completed the marathon and has become a determined runner despite her diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis.

“I’d take this giant handful of pills, not knowing what’s going to help or if any of it would help,” Shannon said. “But honestly I’d be taking them and hoping I’d wake up in the morning because there was so many I was taking.”

But she was still miserable. When she began taking Enbrel about three years ago, Shannon suddenly had her life back. She was able to move pain free. And once Shannon could move she hasn’t stopped.

“My husband, Alex, is a cyclist and a runner,” Shannon said. “We’d walk to the mailbox and he’d encourage me to walk around the block.”

But walking wasn’t enough for Shannon, who calls herself a “Type A” person.  Over the years, she had gone to the Capital City Marathon and watched her friends run.

“Every time I was there I wanted to be with them,” Shannon said. “I wanted to be part of that. I loved that it was all different sizes of people. It wasn’t just super fit young people.”

Which was good because Shannon, she admits, was anything but fit. She set a goal – she wanted to run. But before Shannon could run she walked – and walked and walked. After several weeks of walking, she ran to her neighbor’s mailbox.

“It was probably 100 yards,” Shannon said.

It wasn’t too long before Shannon ran a half mile. Then she ran a mile.

“That was a huge milestone for me,” Shannon said. “I couldn’t believe I ran that far.”

running with arthritis
Shannon Young receives a big hug at the finish line of the Capital City Marathon on Sunday, May 17, 2015.

Shannon didn’t have any huge expectations. She really didn’t believe she’d ever run a marathon. Not yet at least.

“I just wanted to start moving,” said Shannon, who is a nurse at Tacoma General Hospital.

Eventually, Shannon and her husband signed up to do a 5-mile run. Signing up for that race wasn’t easy. She worried about what people, spectators watching, might think.

“I didn’t see myself as a runner,” Shannon said. “What was I going to look like? Was I going to be one of those people that they’d say, ‘Oh, good for her. At least she’s trying.’ It’s great to be anonymous when you’re overweight.”

Shannon ran the 5 miles that day and enjoyed it. And she didn’t stop with that 5 miler. Last year, she ran half a marathon at the Capital City. On Sunday, she and her husband ran the Capital City Marathon. It was an impressive feat considering only a couple of years ago Shannon couldn’t even walk to her mailbox without being in pain.

living with arthritis
Shannon Young is pictured here with her husband and three sons.

Shannon, who has lost 100 pounds since she started running three years ago, ran 25 to 35 miles a week in her training for the marathon with her husband. She’s living again. Shannon, who is 5-foot-7 and 155 pounds, has her life back.

“I feel like I’m living now and not just surviving,” Shannon said. “Everything is purposeful.”

Shannon’s purpose, her driving motivation, wasn’t just to lose weight. It was to inspire and encourage others. And her road to fitness hasn’t just been about burning calories. It’s also been about reducing calorie intake. She’s tried to be an inspiration to others struggling with their weight.

“The end goal was more than losing weight,” Shannon said. “It’s to be an example for my kids and be an example for people who are struggling to help them keep going.”

Consider it mission accomplished, Shannon.

 

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