Some people run for health.
Some people run for the fun of it.
Xochitl Rodrigue started running because she needed a substitute for the medication to treat her bipolar disease. The one she had been using created toxic effects in her body, but going without it created toxic effects in her life. Rodrigue found that running helped calm the tide of chaos that would swell within her and helped her control her emotions, thoughts, and actions.
So she kept running. This summer, she’ll run across America to raise awareness about bipolar disease, to raise money for a cause, and just because she needs to keep running.
Rodrigue, a photographer who splits her time living in Lompoc and Los Angeles, discovered she had bipolar disease shortly after the birth of her third child. Friends and family members dismissed her health problems as a case of postpartum depression. But when she decided to get fit, she noticed something: She had an outlet for her manic bursts of energy and a way to lift her spirits when she needed.
She began training with Wesley Wilson in Lompoc—one of two trainers she credits with changing her life. Her goal was to run the Bull Canyon Run 5K race.
“I remember asking him, ‘Do you think I can do it?’” Rodrigue said.
In a matter of two and a half months of training with Wilson, she lost nearly 30 pounds. But when Wilson moved to Santa Barbara, Rodrigue was on her own, tasked with keeping herself motivated to run. One particularly bad day, she decided to vent her frustrations with a run.
“I ran and ran and ran,” she said. “I ran 15 miles. This from someone who just two months before was wondering if she could run a 5K.”
Once she realized she could run as long as she put her mind to it, she did just that.
“I started saying, ‘Oh, I’m going to run to Santa Maria today, or I’m going to Buellton,’ and I’d just do it,” Rodrigue said.
She later began training with Christopher Herrera and accepted that running would be a part of her maintenance—not only for her body, but for her mind as well. With Herrera’s help, she began running longer distances. She even ran a marathon during her fourth pregnancy; just three days after giving birth, she was back in training.
“People couldn’t believe it, but I’d say, ‘You don’t understand; I have to,’” she said.
Rodrigue may have found a way to control her bipolar disorder, but she faced other obstacles. In some cultures—like Rodrigue’s Latino culture—it’s believed that during the postpartum period, a woman must rest for 40 days with no exercise, housework, or chores. If she doesn’t, the belief goes, she’ll risk her health.
“I had to hide the fact I was exercising from my family,” she said. “They didn’t understand the benefits to being fit and continuing with an exercise regimen.”
With her run across America, Rodrigue hopes to raise awareness about the seriousness of bipolar disorder, as well as the importance of exercise in battling bipolar and other disorders. She’s taking her trek a step farther, however, and using it as a way to raise money for another cause dear to her heart. The Trans America Race 2011 run goes from Los Angeles to New York in just more than 70 days. During days when she will run fewer miles, Rodrigue will set up photo shoots, with the money going toward the BOSO Foundation, which provides safe drinking water in rural communities in developing countries. Rodrigue hopes to raise enough money for four water pumps, one representing each of her own children.
She’s also doing it for her own health.
“It keeps me focused, gives me direction, and gives me a goal to work toward,” she said.
Contact Arts Editor Shelly Cone at scone@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Apr 28 – May 5, 2011.
