A friend to all Addisonian's over the years, Dick Loeppky

I apologize for not posting this sooner.  

Our friend and fellow Addisonian passed away from a combination of atypical Parkinson's and some Addison's complications (I have no details).  Dick was known on Addison's forums for being supportive, generous, explaining scientific things in simple terms and for being kind.  He was loved by many and will be missed.  I feel very fortunate to have met him in person when he passed through Teton Valley in 2004.  We had dinner, drinks and some laughs.  Dick played a big role in my diagnosis in 2001.  

Richard Loeppky, 1937-2012

Sunday, April 29, 2012

Richard Norman Loeppky passed away on Saturday, April 21, 2012. He was cherished by his family and friends and appreciated by his colleagues and students.

Loeppky

Richard was born in Lewiston, Idaho, on Aug. 2, 1937, to Norman and Helen Loeppky. He received his Bachelor of Science in chemistry from the University of Idaho and his Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the University of Michigan. After finishing his post-graduate work at the University of Illinois, he spent his entire academic career as a researcher and organic chemistry instructor at the University of Missouri.

A very generous man, he dedicated most of his life to cancer research. His work led to several discoveries that identified cancer-causing chemicals in retail products.

For his excellence in cancer research he received international recognition, the Founders Award for Outstanding Scientific Achievement from the American Chemical Society and was inducted into the University of Idaho's Alumni Hall of Fame and College of Science Academy of Distinguished Alumni. Recently, he worked with the European Union on the construction and revision of regulations related to cancer-causing chemicals.

He also had a passion for teaching the next generation of scientists and received the Purple Chalk Teaching Award, which acknowledges teaching excellence of select faculty members, from the College of Arts and Science Student Council. This was the award of which he was most proud.

He loved to travel the world, meet new people and take photographs of his surroundings. He had a very inquiring mind and was a gifted individual in so many ways.

Richard is survived by his daughter, Ann Loeppky-Finn (Robert); son, Greg Loeppky (Nicole); granddaughters, Keira Finn and Emma Loeppky; sister, Marilyn French (Carter); niece, Katie (Joel) Yates; and nephew, Ryan French.

He was truly loved and will be deeply missed. A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday, May 5, at Central Lutheran Church in Everett, Wash. In lieu of flowers, please donate to the charity of your choice.

This article was published on page A11 of the Sunday, April 29, 2012 edition of The Columbia Daily Tribune.Click here to Subscribe.

More Inspiration: Jim Schroeder

The Zen Track Athlete  

Interview with Jim Schroeder by Claire Nana

Inspiration: Six year old surfer with adrenal insufficiency

A small surfer makes big waves from ABC Open on Vimeo.

A small surfer makes big waves

from ABC Open PLUS 2 months ago ALL AUDIENCES

At six, Quincy Symonds is already tipped as a future Layne Beachley or Stephanie Gilmore.

They call her The Flying Squirrel. She may well be the best six-year-old surfer and skater on the planet. Prepare to be gobsmacked.

Stepping into the water at the legendary Snapper Rocks surf break on the Gold Coast, it is easy to forget that the person I’m here to film has just turned six.

Quincy Symonds (aka The Flying Squirrel, we’ll get to the nickname later) is quite possibly the world’s best six-year-old surfer and skater. The Tweed Heads local only started surfing about 18 months ago and, in a very short time, has captured the attention of the surfing world, gained multiple sponsors and garnered a fanatical following on social media.

Her parents are right behind her, but they're not pushy "stage parents". Quincy’s dad Jake has been a surfer most of his life and his love for the ocean inspired her to get in the water. Her mum Kim says it was the most natural thing in the world.

“The very first time I saw her out in the ocean she changed, she became a complete person,” she explains. “To say that about a four or five-year-old might sound very strange, but I watched it happen.”

“It just doesn’t make sense to me, how she’s able to do what she does,” says Jake. “I’m amazed by it. I’m really proud of it but, to be honest, I can’t comprehend how she does it.”

“She has no fear,” offers Quincy’s coach Anthony Pope. “And she just doesn’t fall off. She has incredible balance and her ability to judge the conditions and adjust is at a level I’ve never seen in someone her age.”

While Quincy’s feats in the water are impressive on their own, they are even more inspiring given that she has battled a serious medical condition for her entire life.

Not long after she was born, she was rushed into the Intensive Care Unit suffering adrenal crisis. After extensive testing, Quincy was diagnosed with Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia, a genetic disorder that affects her body’s ability to create cortisone.

Quincy’s condition means she is steroid dependent. “Steroid dependency at this age requires medication three times a day,” Kim explains. “In times of sickness, Quincy needs intensive medical treatment.”

While you might think it dangerous for a five or six-year-old to be surfing at all, every possible measure has been put in place to ensure Quincy is safe in the water.

“We always assess the conditions and the skill level of the other surfers in the water before we paddle out”, says Jake. “When the waves are bigger, we have a custom-made life vest that she wears. It’s quite thin but it offers a little bit of support for her if she takes a wipeout on a bigger wave.”

And it’s not just Quincy’s buoyancy vest that is custom made. Quincy’s boards are custom-designed and shaped for her so she has a quiver of different boards to suit varying conditions and match her progress. There are very few boards in the world THIS small, basically miniature versions of the performance surfboards you see on the world tour.

When the waves were too big for her to surf, Quincy took up skateboarding. As you’d expect, she took to a board on land just as quickly as in the surf. Looking over the edge of the 12-foot skate bowl as I filmed one of Quincy’s skating sessions, I felt immediately uneasy. But there was Quincy with her back foot planted on her board ready to drop in, with a smile from ear to ear.

There is a constant stream of eager young skaters approaching Quincy asking how old she is. Some know her from her profile on Instagram, where (with the help of her Mum) Quincy uploads photos and videos of her boarding adventures.

So, what does she think of her social media fame?

“It gets annoying. People always ask, ‘Will you follow me?,’” she says, rolling her eyes.

Quincy says she wants to be a pro surfer and skater and, the way she’s going, I’m almost certain she’ll get there.

As for her nickname, it comes from the time Quincy was a toddler living in the US. A wild squirrel lived in a tree near her house and one day she jumped off the back of her dad’s ute to mimic her furry friend.

The “Flying Squirrel” stuck.

by Scott Gamble, Executive Producer ABC Open
abc.net.au/open

Read More…

Ultrarunning inspiration

Wickham Park 2014

I met Jim Schroeder back in December of 2012 at Ancient Oaks 100.  We didn't talk much again until Wickham Park this last May.  Jim has an incredible amount of energy and enthusiasm for running, he inspires me!  Jim is running his first Badwater 135 in July.

Here's a link to a story about Jim: Athletic Shorts:  Jim "Animal" Schroeder

Here's a link to his Badwater fundraising:  Challenged Athletes Foundation

He has written this book, Zen Track Rambling

I hope you all are as inspired and as in awe of Jim as I am!

Rant: Inspiration

If the following doesn't inspire you, I don't know what will.

Here's more...

Ed Whitlock Runs 3:41 Marathon at Age 82

You don't have to run, be inspired and MOVE.

More inspiration in three minutes, 24 seconds.

Rant: Run before you walk? Impossible!

I am not sure if this is just human nature or if we are a very entitled society.  Why would anyone want to run before they walk.   It's exhausting to see people constantly undermining themselves by wanting to run full throttle at the very beginning of an exercise program.  In the end, people who want to run before they walk get sicker or injured and then complain, complain, complain!!!!!!

Tell me why people think they can be couch bound for a year and then think they should get up and run five miles?  Why?  What can they expect to gain?  What's so great about going far and fast and running the whole way?  I really want to know.  It's not a very good idea and NEVER has positive benefits.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU RUN BEFORE YOU WALK

• You have an under trained body that's not used to the old, physical stresses.   Muscles, bones and tendons are weak.  The endocrine system is not used to being pushed.  You are probably fat which makes the above problems worse.
• You set your mind to the glory of doing what you "used to do a decade ago".  Woohooo for you, you ran a 10k ten years ago.  Since then you've been ill, put on 20 pounds and had a kid or two.
• You are ready, you go out and RUN.  It feels great at first.  You start to feel ill but push through to five miles.  You drag your sorry ass home.
• You are unable to get off the couch for two days because you are so sore.  You complain that running is not fun.
• Perhaps you persist in this regime for two weeks?
• You end up with a stress fracture in your foot and a pulled hamstring.
• You determine exercise didn't work for you.  You complain more.

REALITY

• Too much, too far, too fast will ONLY get you hurt.  Look at David Goggins.  Even excellent athletes that do too much, too far, too fast will get hurt.
• You will get depressed that your exercise "didn't work".
• You will whine and complain that you get hurt from exercising.
• Even if you are determined to exercise again, you will have to take a break so that you can heal and whine about that too.
• Most likely you will go back to your couch life and affair with Pop-Tarts and the TV and get fatter.
• YOU HAVE GONE ABOUT GETTING EXERCISE ALL WRONG.

A WAY TO ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS

• Consult your doctor to see i f you are healthy enough to exercise.
• If your doctor says no, pin him/her down as to what WOULD make you healthy enough to exercise. Set health goals and reach them.  Go back and get the go ahead.
• If your doctor says no and you don't agree, find a new doctor who will support your goals.
• Hire a trainer who knows his ass from his elbow and can help you come up with a consistent, slow build program.  If you want someone who is currently uncertified but has half a brain, contact me, I can help you build a reasonable strength training and walking program and set goals for a fee.

• START OUT BY HAVING A GOOD WALKING ROUTINE.  WALKING IS GOOD, WALKING CAN BE HARD, WALKING STRENGTHENS BONES AND MUSCLES.  WALKING WILL BURN CALORIES.  (Why do people think walking is so uncool?  I don't get it.) IF YOU ARE GOOD AT WALKING, YOU CAN WALK FASTER AND FARTHER THAN PEOPLE RUN, THINK ABOUT IT.  READ THIS IF YOU WANT TO THINK WALKING IS COOL OR EVEN IF YOU DON'T.  This guy can kick your ass and he's in his mid 60s.
  Ultra Walking With The Master – Ulli Kamm

• Set long term goals, medium term goals and short term goals and don't be married to them.
• Be consistent.
• Be proud of your accomplishments no matter how large or small.
• Be more consistent. Be consistent, be consistent.
• Keep a detailed journal of your medications, exercise and how you feel.  You will see patterns on paper.  You will make up patterns if you try to remember things.
• Be more consistent. Be consistent, be consistent.
• Adjust medications as you progress or as needed.
• Know that you can achieve any goals you set.
• Be more consistent. Be consistent, be consistent.
• BE INSPIRED

That's it, rant over.  A rant along the same lines about Adrenal Insufficiency meds will follow...eventually.

Training and Inspiration

Wanted to give thanks to those who constantly support me and listen to me when I tell them I'm going to do something dumb...again.

• My husband, Paul, for everything and for putting up with me.  For not making me work so I could finish house projects and train for this (and Barkley) and for supporting me financially so I can eat and stay in a motel room while I'm doing this run.
• Kim and Wanda for worrying about me and wanting to follow me to make sure I'm OK.
• Bridget Lyons for having her yoga on line so I can keep doing yoga with her from 2,500 miles away and for getting me to love yoga in the first place.
• Colleen W for getting me started streaking 2.5 years ago.
• Steve Tursi for getting me to change my streak from walking a mile a day to running a mile a day.
• Ashley for helping me love handstands and giving me excellent instruction as well as being very helpful with AI stuff.
• Meara for her enthusiasm and for making me get my bikes in working order and for teaching me Turkish Get Ups.
• Heather for being my tiara pusher and cheerleader.
• Rich L for making me feel like a freaking Super Star.  Lora too.
• All the people on AS Forum who cheer me on and who get out and do because I've inspired them.
• A BIG THANK YOU to the gals at www.runningskirts.com for their generosity and fantastic fun skirts and running clothes.
• THANK YOU BOB at www.drymaxsocks.com for socks that have changed my life and have made my feet happy for the last four years.
• Jennifer and Jean, thanks for supporting me and letting me fund raise for AIU.

• If I've forgotten anyone, I think of you often and thank you in my head.

Thanks to all for the support you've given me.

Dusty

Dick Loeppky

Dick passed away a couple of weeks ago.  He was a good, kind man.  Because of him, I was diagnosed with Addison's and given my life back.  Dick was even more fun in person than he was online.  Dick had 30+ years of experience with Addison's, knew the science of it and generously explained it to the rest of us.  From 2004...

Richard Loeppky, 1937-2012

Sunday, April 29, 2012

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Richard Norman Loeppky passed away on Saturday, April 21, 2012. He was cherished by his family and friends and appreciated by his colleagues and students.

Loeppky

Richard was born in Lewiston, Idaho, on Aug. 2, 1937, to Norman and Helen Loeppky. He received his Bachelor of Science in chemistry from the University of Idaho and his Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the University of Michigan. After finishing his post-graduate work at the University of Illinois, he spent his entire academic career as a researcher and organic chemistry instructor at the University of Missouri.

A very generous man, he dedicated most of his life to cancer research. His work led to several discoveries that identified cancer-causing chemicals in retail products.

For his excellence in cancer research he received international recognition, the Founders Award for Outstanding Scientific Achievement from the American Chemical Society and was inducted into the University of Idaho's Alumni Hall of Fame and College of Science Academy of Distinguished Alumni. Recently, he worked with the European Union on the construction and revision of regulations related to cancer-causing chemicals.

He also had a passion for teaching the next generation of scientists and received the Purple Chalk Teaching Award, which acknowledges teaching excellence of select faculty members, from the College of Arts and Science Student Council. This was the award of which he was most proud.

He loved to travel the world, meet new people and take photographs of his surroundings. He had a very inquiring mind and was a gifted individual in so many ways.

Richard is survived by his daughter, Ann Loeppky-Finn (Robert); son, Greg Loeppky (Nicole); granddaughters, Keira Finn and Emma Loeppky; sister, Marilyn French (Carter); niece, Katie (Joel) Yates; and nephew, Ryan French.

He was truly loved and will be deeply missed. A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday, May 5, at Central Lutheran Church in Everett, Wash. In lieu of flowers, please donate to the charity of your choice.

This article was published on page A11 of the Sunday, April 29, 2012 edition of The Columbia Daily Tribune.Click here to Subscribe.

Remembering Annie and recognizing undiagnosed adrenal insufficiency

Copied from http://annaleesullivan.blogspot.com/ with permission from Jean Sullivan.

Annie Sullivan

Annalee Grace Sullivan was born on April 7, 2003 and lived the life of a playful, spiritually sensitive, musical child until she was 3 1/2 years old. On January 21, 2007 she suffered an hypoxic brain injury from a seizure caused by undiagnosed Addison's Disease. In spite--or because--of her physical and cognitive limitations, Annie was a blessing to all who knew her. She died on March 25, 2011.

Remembering Annie on March 25th

I got a card in the mail a couple of days ago from my niece, Lorraine, reminding me that she remembers what's coming up next Sunday: Annie's first birthday in heaven. Hmm,first birthday in heaven sounds so much nicer than the first anniversary of her death. I'll stick with that one.

As I've been thinking about what our family should do that day, I came up with 8 ways to honor Annie's memory. Then I had another idea: if you knew Annie and felt inclined, youcan do one of these things, too!

1. Wear something pink.
2. Plant something pink.
3. Buy a pink balloon, write a message to Annie and let it go up to heaven where she can read it.
4. Make pink cupcakes.
5. Buy Heaven, God's Promise for Me, and donate it to the kid's ministry of your church.
6. Donate any Dr. Seuss book, or Brown Bear, Brown Bear to your local elementary school.
7. For you big spenders, donate an IPad to your local school's special ed program. Nonverbal kids like Annie need easy ways to communicate, and IPads make this happen.
8. Hug your kids and thank God every day you get to enjoy them this side of heaven.

And for those of you who have lost loved ones, post a comment about how you honor their memory on anniversary days. Then maybe we'll snag your idea, too.

Jean

Addison's Disease, a disease of the adrenal glands that when undiagnosed, can cause the following symptoms:

• fatigue
• darkening of the skin
• loss of appetite
• gradual weight loss
• nausea and vomiting
• salt cravings
• low blood pressure which leads to light headedness
• An ACTH stimulation test is needed to diagnose Addison's Disease (adrenal insufficiency)
• Undiagnosed and untreated adrenal insufficiency can lead to death in 10% of cases

• Adrenal Crisis in Emergency Medicine 

  • Author: Kevin M Klauer, DO, FACEP; Chief Editor: Erik D Schraga, MD   more...

Rocky Balboa Motivational Speech

Whirlwind

I haven't posted anything since the depressing Wasatch post because life has been a whirlwind.  I've traveled, met people, had a house guest, met lots of Addisonian's, lost some family and attended (unexpectedly!) the Caribbean Autoimmune Disease Summit in Trinidad (like Trinidad and Tobago, Trinidad!).  Pictures and some captions if you're interested in reading my blathering.  My life of the last 17 years is going to change radically.

September 21, 2011.  I fly off to our home in Florida to see the house for the first time, clean it and paint it.  Hoping like hell that I like Florida since we are moving there at the end of the week.

September 21, 2011 Heather greets me at the Tampa airport wearing a tiara and carrying a sign.  Heather has Addison's too and we've been corresponding since 2007.  This is our first face to face meeting!  Heather came to my house in Florida and helped me with painting, countertop refinishing, morale boosting and blind cleaning.  For two people with Addison's, we were a freaking force to be reckoned with.  We also like bacon and eggs for breakfast at an ungodly hour!

October 6 - 9, 2011  Allison flew to Florida from Boise, Idaho to help with the house.  She worked tirelessly to make improvements!!  She was amazing and selfless.  We didn't go anywhere or do anything, just painted and redid the cabinets!  She was hard at work while I was sleeping.  She's amazing and must have been completely exhausted when she got home.  Allison is the best kind of friend to have, generous, hard working and all around wonderful.

October 1 - 3, 2011 I unexpectedly got an invitation to the Caribbean Autoimmune Disease Summit in Trinidad (off the coast of Venezuela). It was amazing to be surrounded by people who know stuff.  My focus has also been very, very narrow.  This conference opened up my eyes to the wide world of autoimmunity.  I will do a separate post on the conference.  I was honored to be a special guest and be invited to the conference.  It was cool being "behind the scenes" with doctors and organizers!

October 2, 2011 Speakers and organizers of the Caribbean Autoimmune Disease Summit.

October 2, 2011 Addisonian's unite!!

Back at the Florida house after the conference, I was cleaning up something in the garage.    I found a dead tarantula.  My world is so crazy different.  I didn't know if I should be horrified or fascinated.  I decided fascinated would be the better option.

The water is the canal across the street.  Look closely you'll see an alligator!  I saw this out my front window.  Very cool!

October 12, 2011  The same day I few back from Florida, Katherine flew in from the UK to do a race here.  She did the 100 mile Running with the Buffaloes.  Katherine's raced through the Arctic, run through African deserts (we met at Marathon des Sables in Morocco) and been stung by a scorpion.  She makes me look utterly and completely sane and reasonable in my pursuits.  I was only going to crew her but peer pressure had me walking the 50 miler a couple of days later...

October 13, 2011 My sweet boy gets his driver's license and buys a "new" truck.  A 1981 Chevy LUV.  It can do 50 miles an hour.  We're not sure she'll make it over Teton Pass.  He's so proud of his truck and I'm proud of him.  Zane just lost his wonderful Grandma two days before this picture was taken.  I'm so sad for him and his Dad's whole family.  His Grandma was a wonderful, wonderful woman.  She will be missed by everyone who knew her.

October 15, 2011 Running with the Buffaloes 50 miler.  I got peer pressured into doing this race on little to no training at all.  I walked the vast majority of it.  It was dumb to do a 50 mile race right off the couch.  BUT I was not terribly sore the next day, nor did I feel bad.  As a matter of fact, I spent much of the next day helping out a few of the 100 mile racers.  I did not learn any lessons.  I finished the race more slowly than any other 50 I've done and I came in second to last.  It was a great way to say goodbye to Teton Valley.

Great view from the race course.

I accidentally went off course during the race and saw this sign.  Funny.  The race was nice and small, it was very much like a small, crazy family on a bizarre vacation.  It was great.

October 20, 2011 one of my last beautiful Teton sunrises.

My new view of the sun rising.

FURTHER UPDATE:
October 23, 2011 We got an offer on our Idaho house late last night.  It's much lower than we had hoped BUT we were not expecting to get one for a while.

Oh boy, my life's changing so radically.  My son will stay here with his dad, I will have no job, I don't know the area, I've got lots of house stuff to do.  Wow!  The only thing I do know is that I will be warm and I'm doing Ancient Oaks 100 on December 3-4, 2011 and Everglades Ultra 50 miler on January 21, 2011.  The rest of my life, come Saturday, October 29th, is a huge mystery.