Have Nurse, Will Travel

by Teresa Daoust

I’m sure most runners are aware of how travelling, changes in what you eat and drink and being out of normal routine has an effect on your bowels.  On one particular occasion, this made travelling in numbers a tad uncomfortable even though the 11 of us, who had rented a van and were making the long trek from northern Ontario to the 2007 Chicago Marathon, were all very good friends – more like family.

One of the runners was experiencing difficulty in this regard and many times throughout the trip had vocalized his inability to have a bowel movement and the resulting discomfort.  One of our travel companions, who was a nurse, offered him a suppository.  By this point he was in anguish and was willing to try anything to remedy his situation.

Much to the amusement of his travel companions, he had never seen one before and therefore did not know how to use the foil covered, bullet-like object that was handed to him and innocently questioned how he was expected to swallow it.  If that wasn’t humorous enough, the look on his face was priceless when the nurse explained that the suppository was not to be taken orally but rectally and that since she was accustomed to giving them to her patients she was willing to assist him in this matter.  Well everyone in the van erupted with laughter to the point that I don’t know how our driver managed to keep the vehicle on the road.

To this day we still chuckle about the incident. Suffice it to say, no topic is off bounds with our running family.

© 2011 Savvy Runner Inc.

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