I'm Ultra Racing During 2024 to Support Strength, Endurance, and Love For Ourselves as we Support Our Loved Ones W/ SUD

Join me in supporting real change that requires inner strength, endurance, love, and community during the hard road of recovery. The substance use disorder (SUD) journey of our loved ones - touches our lives in so many ways. Sometimes, we experience tough, rough stumbles and falls as we step together through the peaks and valleys. Sometimes we rise in the morning feeling the needed healing happening that is guided by self-care, love, faith, hope, empathy, kindness, and community.

While many of us didn't expect to be in the challenging, heart-wrenching, confusing, frustrating, fearful, and, at times, devastating world of loving someone with a SUD, we still show up, one day at a time, in a loving, kind way we do so with the tools we acquire as we step into our recovery as a result of this family disease.

This illness is powerful, and it wants to win at all costs. But when we come together, in community, and share our stories we learn how to foster self-care and self-love, and how best to maintain our physical, mental, emotional, social, financial, and spiritual wellness. We learn to take each step, each day ... one step and one day at a time.

For me, running has always been therapeutic, and I learned this as a kid way back in 5th grade. I learned I had the skill to endure tough things, outside of my control. Once I learned I could run; I used movement to help my mind, body, and spirit become stronger during the hardest of times. It's allowed me to move the pain and hurt out of my body while building mental resiliency.

After years of losing my mojo to move, I found my motivation again through the gift of therapy, Al-anon, the Aravaipa Running community, and Sally and Eddie McRae. The healing is happening, guided by hope and faith within our Harmony Al-anon community.

The first step of therapy allowed me to share the hard stuff I was taught not to talk about, and my therapist recommended I attend Al-anon. As a 50 something woman, I did not want to climb the steps and enter the meeting because "I" didn't have the SUD. But what I learned over time, as I kept going back, is that I am in control of my attitude and actions. While I didn't cause, can't cure, or control one's SUD, I can tend to my own self-care needs and stop jumping on the disease wheel. This led me to getting back into a love for fitness and I ended up running into a young lady (not literally) at Piestewa Peak Mountains, in Phoenix, AZ. She was wearing a cap that said "ultra." I asked her what this was, and she proceeded to tell me about the wonderful Aravaipa Running community and the monthly races they put on throughout the state. When I got home, I did a google search, and learned all about these "ultra" races which led me to finding Sally McRae's videos, podcast, and book. Sally's childhood journey has sooooo many similarities to mine. Her words spoke to my heart and spirit and her messaging resonates with my thinking patterns.

So here I am, with a newfound pep in my step as I run full speed into a new ultra trail running space with a 30k, 50k, 50 miler and then the Sedona Cayon 125 miler in May. And while I have no idea how these races will feel, I do expect to experience pain accompanied with gratitude during the journey. But I welcome this because I have learned I am stronger than I think, and I can endure … thanks to the hard learning during the journey thus far!

My hope is that with community we stop the shaming and blaming surrounding SUD. This does nothing to help our loved ones recover journal from this disease. We don’t blame folks for other illnesses and so we need to STOP the shaming stigma. Rather, it’s time to support our collective healing by empowering, inspiring, being real, and stepping into recovery with empathy, love, and kindness.

Please consider making a small donation that will go a long way to helping me meet my goal for HERREN PROJECT that supports the recovery journey for those supporting loved ones impacted by SUD.

Best in health,

RBZ