Guest Blog: A Circle of Support

A Circle of Support

By Samantha Bluhm, Vibrant Health Family Clinics

 

A cancer surgeon shared with me that when he delivered the news of the cancer diagnosis to his patients, he would get one of two responses. Regardless of age, sex, or gender, they would either decide to defeat it or let it defeat them.

 

The surgeon noticed that the attitude difference typically boiled down to one key factor – what kind of support system did the patient have in place – friends, family and neighbors and people who cared about their physical and emotional well-being?  The surgeon’s observation that kicking cancer was as much about the support systems as it was about the medicine. It was an awareness that stayed with me.  Since that time, I’ve come to discover that support systems drive most of our decisions.

 

So when Renae Rasmussen of Vibrant Health Family Clinics Health Information Department decided to challenge herself to walk her first 5K, I wasn’t surprised to learn that her motivation was centered on her support system.  Her first 5K was to support her friend and her second was being supported by her friends and family.

 

“I had never done a race but I started walking in the 5K for Halos to support my friend’s hardship,” said Rasmussen.  “I just wanted to do something to let her know she wasn’t alone and it felt like the right thing. Then in 2016, my 10-year-old son Gavin wanted to walk the First National Bank of River Falls 5K so I signed us both up.”

 

That was the beginning of the journey for Rasmussen and her son.  The momentum and adrenaline of the race and the energy from the other runners prompted Gavin to want to run. “He just took off and started jogging,” said Rasmussen. “So I tried to keep up” she says with a laugh.  She hadn’t formally trained to run the distance, but that didn’t stop her from having fun and finishing with a smile on her face.

 

Since that time, Renae has committed to making healthy choices for herself. She participates in the Vibrant Health Employee Wellness Program and takes long walks with her family. She’s even starting running to improve her time over last year’s FNB 5K. 

 

“I downloaded the ‘coach to 5K’ app on my phone and have been following the training program.  It’s been fun to share it with my son because it documents and shows us our gains and successes. It’s very motivating,” says Rasmussen, whose goal is to cross the finish line with her son.”

 

Whether you’re supporting somebody who is participating or being supported, we hope you’ll feel powered by health and wellness and join Renae, her son Gavin and the rest of the Vibrant Health team and other runners at the First National Bank race on April 22. The circle of support is more important that you can imagine.

 

To register online, follow this link: First National Bank 5K

 

See you there!