sweets Now I know why I climbed Kilimanjaro By Dr. Sharon Stills, NMD 10/04/2017 Climbing to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro was not on my bucket list. I mean I don t even have a bucket list! But summiting the roof of Africa, as Kilimanjaro is called, ended up becoming one of the fundamental benchmarks in my life. It s always been very important for me to mark key stages in my life with ceremony or celebration or by doing something amazing. It takes a lot of time and energy to achieve goals and I believe we should acknowledge and honor that commitment. I fell in love with hiking years ago when I was in medical school. But I accepted that doing longer climbs had to wait I didn t want to be away from my young children for too long. That s why turning into an empty-nester a few years ago was one of those major milestones for me. I finally had the time and space to plan a major climb with my best friend and climbing partner, Tim. And so we set out for Peru and hiked up the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. It was so wonderfully inspiring that while writing about it later, I ended with this: Thoughts of Kilimanjaro are swirling in my head. Confession: I didn t know exactly where Kilimanjaro was when I decided to climb it. I ve had a longtime desire to climb to Base Camp on Mt. Everest by the time I turned 50. So when it hit me that I was turning 49 in 2017, I knew I had better start training if I was ever going to turn my Everest fantasy into reality. That s when Mt. Kilimanjaro came into focus as a real goal. At 19,341 feet, it seemed a perfect way to prepare for Everest! I began to have faith that I would really do it. When Tim and I booked our trip (about 8 months in advance) the quest became real and we began planning in earnest. Dr. Sharon Stills, NMD arrives in Tanzania with her friend and climbing partner, Tim. Preparing for the trip and climb became a full-time job of researching, training, reading climbers blogs and shopping for gear. And finally, it was time to set off. The journey to Tanzania was daunting and took 30 hours of hard traveling but we made it. Then we spent some time getting oriented and preparing for the climb and descent: five days to get up, a few hours to summit, and then a little under two days to come down. When the day finally arrived to start the climb, I shuffled through my list of fears: I would be too cold I wouldn t be able to sleep at such a high altitude I would sprain my ankle I would be in too much pain to finish I was afraid of a steep part of the climb called the Barranco Wall, because, as ridiculous as it sounds, I am afraid of heights. And finally, I also worried that I might die on the mountain. But no matter how scared I felt, I knew in my heart that I was heading up that mountain. I had promised to do it and if I didn t go, I was 100% sure I would regret it for the rest of my days. So we set off with our brilliant support team who guided, fed and otherwise took care of us as we ascended further into the thin air. I became known for being an expert at going pole pole, which is Swahili for slowly, slowly. This is the recommended way to climb though I was often passed by other hikers during the day Most days I arrived at the next camp hours after the others. Being last is not something Americans typically enjoy, and it was a little hard on my ego. But I decided to embrace my pace, as unhurried as it was, because this was MY journey. And I kept plodding onward and upward. One more day finished. One more leg of the trail conquered. Daunting, exhilarating, magical, affirming, empowering My trip up Kilimanjaro had plenty of rough patches. Both the climb itself and the lack of oxygen at such high altitudes meant I was more exhausted than I had ever been in my life. I hated not being able to shower and seeing my naturally curly hair turn into dreadlocks. But even so, every day had magic in it and I felt lucky to be there. Dr. Sharon Stills, NMD at the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro We finally summited Kilimanjaro at about 8:00 AM of the sixth day of the climb. I had planned to do several specific things when I got to the top. I was going to unfurl banners, wear a special outfit and take my time enjoying my accomplishment. None of that happened because I could barely breathe. My exhaustion from the ascent was debilitating. Instead I had a few pictures taken and only stayed minutes before turning around to start the descent. It wasn t what I expected, but I wouldn t change a thing. Being up there at 19,341 feet changed my life. I found out that you can waste your imagination by worrying about things that will never happen. The climb affirmed that I am a fully-engaged, active participant who surrenders to the mysterious dance of life. You should always believe in yourself and your dreams. Let yourself ride the flow of your emotions and stop fretting about what others think of you. If you have a bucket list, promise yourself that what you put on it are things you re actually going to do. Make sure you are the one to make your life extraordinary. with courtesy
retaining Now I know why I climbed Kilimanjaro to blow up
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