Rhabdo. Or, Not?

I had to decide to leave the trail again. Yes, again. Third time. I'm not happy about it, but it was something that I had to do. I was getting very sick and took a three week break while we were in NH/MA to see Sherry's friends and family. I was hoping to finish a short segment in Vermont but did a one-day, 14 mile slack pack Sunday (the 3rd) to evaluate my recovery and it didn't go well. All of the symptoms I had been experiencing were back by the end of the day and I had a hard time finishing. And, that was without a backpack. So, we've decided it's time to go home and get well. The trail will still be there and I can come back a fourth time (fourth!) to finish it.

 

I've been doing a lot of research trying to figure out what the problem is and believe I had rhabdomyolysis, rhabdo for short. This is a particularly nasty disease where the muscles break down and are essentially being digested by the body. It's very painful and can lead to kidney damage/failure, and even death. I was in bad shape and in a lot of pain when I reached Kent, CT and decided I needed to take a break. When I researched it I found out my symptoms matched the description of rhabdo. But, accounts I've read and videos I've watched showed people in much worse condition than I was in. People were even waking their hiking buddies up in the night with their screams of pain and being hospitalized for treatment. Not everyone has the same symptoms, though. People's reactions can range from severe to nothing at all. Just because my symptoms were not as severe as these other cases does not mean anything one way, or another. This makes me wonder if I really had it. The symptoms fit but I understand the dangers of self-diagnosis based on what you find on the web. 

It takes medical tests to determine for sure if you have it and I didn't get them done. I might've had it, or maybe just something else. As it turns out, I did exactly the same thing they would've done in the hospital - I drank lots of electrolytes and rested. I quickly began to feel better and was looking forward to returning to the trail. 

Looking back, I realize I started having these symptoms when I was in Shenandoah National Park and that was at the beginning of May. That would mean I've been hiking with this condition, what ever it is, for three months. I'm lucky I'm not in worse shape than I am. Things have been getting worse since then and I gave serious thought to leaving the trail a couple times. 

The most cited cause of rhabdo is over exertion, which I probably was guilty of although I felt like I was being careful on that point. But, while doing my homework I found out that statins (cholesterol treatment) can also cause rhabdo. About 12 years ago my VA doctor wanted me to start taking a statin (specifically, simvastatin) when there was a little spike in my cholesterol level. The dosage she recommended was very small and I relented. I was taking half a pill three times a week and I've heard of people taking five or six pills a day so I didn't think there would be any issues. When I go in for my annual physical the doctors rave about my cholesterol level and tell me I have the level of a twenty-year old. Cool. But, after reading about the side effect I quit taking it. Amazingly, a leg-cramp problem I've developed in recent years has gone away! Turns out, that was another side effect of the statin. Maybe my cholesterol level will go up but I'll deal with the problem when it happens.

This effort wasn't a complete loss. In fact, it was pretty good. I managed to do 1071 miles this trip, bringing me to 1737 miles and my AT total mileage to about 2039  miles (I did Maine twice). I've spent 254 days on the trail (including zeros) between the three attempts. It has been an amazing adventure and we have both had a great time. I still have 40 miles to do in Vermont and 420 miles in NC/TN/VA. I think the 420 will be fairly easy but getting back to VT to do just 40 miles may take some doing. We're heading west from Vermont on Thursday and hope to reach Kansas City about Monday evening (give or take) for a few days and hope to be able to visit with  family there before heading south and home. We'll have been on the road nearly six months by then.

No, I'm not happy about it, but I view it as an excuse to get back to the trail again for another attempt at finishing this adventure. 

One last trail view before entering North Adams, MA.