The following is an interview I conducted with Wendy Booker while she was still on Mount Everest in mid-May, 2009. I emailed her questions and she wrote answers back to me.
Stewart—Guide to Climbing: What training did you do for climbing Mount Everest? Did you have a specific exercise and dietary regimen planned out or just winged it by running a lot of stairs?
Wendy Booker: As you can imagine, my training for climbing the Seven Summits has been quite vigorous. Climbing Mount Everest is incredibly challenging both mentally and physically, but I know the accomplishment of becoming the first woman with MS to climb the Seven Summits will make the struggle worthwhile. To train, I work out for several hours a day, six days per week. This includes strength training, agility and balance exercises, cardio and stretching. Overall, I want to show others that despite limitations, they can live younger for longer. It doesn't have to be by climbing mountains, but rather through little changes to their daily life. I am very fortunate to have such key partners as BP and BP gasoline with Invigorate, which helps cars run younger for longer. This partnership has allowed me to devote time to training and to share my younger for longer story.
Stewart: How does MS affect you while you're climbing? How do you overcome any symptoms you might experience while at altitude?
Wendy: My toes on my left foot are completely numb. I am also numb from my toes to the top of my rib cage on my left side. Three toes of my right foot are numb, and I get muscle spasms in the toes of both feet. In addition, I suffer from dizzy spells and fatigue, and occasionally have vision trouble. I have pursued all the things I've always wanted to do by continuing to be proactive and seeking medical help as soon as I feel it is necessary. Part of my mission in climbing the Seven Summits is to encourage newly diagnosed MS patients and those not currently on a prescribed therapy to get on therapy and stay compliant once on therapy. If I can inject at 20,000 feet on a glacier, it is no big deal to inject at home. My symptoms are more pronounced when I get too hot, therefore, I need to know when to say when. When I get too hot, I immediately drink something really cold. My MS and I actually do far better in the cold. I feel stronger and better when exercising in a cold environment.
Stewart: What's the most surprising effect of climbing at high altitude or what is something you didn't expect?
Wendy: I think the utter fatigue that you experience at high altitudes was surprising. You just feel like the life has been sucked out of you! I've climbed a lot of mountains, but Everest is the highest on earth and when you get into very thin air, even walking a few feet or moving a bag can be exhausting, leaving you huffing and puffing and recuperating in your tent.
Stewart: What are you doing to counteract the effects of time and boredom, which inevitably occurs, while you work through the process of acclimatization?
Wendy: Major mountain expeditions do include a lot of down time. It's not a non-stop climb up to the summit like people might imagine. In reality you have to wait to acclimatize...wait for the weather to clear...wait for camps to be prepped for you...wait on other climbers...wait, wait, wait. I tend to use the acclimatization process to rest, get my head on straight and hunker down deep in my sleeping bag with a book and a deck of cards.
Stewart: What are your climbing and mountaineering plans after you finish the Seven Summits?
Wendy: I don't have a new mission set in stone yet, but I am exploring several options. I know that I won't let the adventure end—and I believe that extreme challenges will probably be a part of my life forever. On a personal note, I am launching a non-profit called the Other Side of Everest Educational Foundation that will educate and provide for the children of Sherpas killed while climbing. We will also work hard to improve native communities at the feet of great mountains and connect underprivileged kids in the US with the children we are serving abroad.
