If there’s one thing Laura Santurri never does, it’s shy away from a challenge. The 36-year-old from Franklin, Indiana, was diagnosed with a chronic bladder disease called interstitial cystitis (IC) 19 years ago, but that hasn’t stopped her from doing anything she wants to do—including ultramarathons.



Santurri began running in 1999 as a way to connect with her dad, but a year later she was diagnosed with IC and also went off to college, so the activity fell to the wayside.



“Life kind of just got in the way,” she told Runner’s World over the phone. “But then I found myself overweight, smoking half a pack of cigarettes a day, and experiencing chronic pain, so I thought, ‘enough is enough.’ I remember I enjoyed running, so I went back to it.”

She’d lost most of her fitness in the six years she hadn’t run and could barely even walk a mile. But she found that the more she moved, the less she noticed her symptoms—namely pelvic pain and the urge to go to the bathroom frequently.

“People always ask, ‘Doesn’t it jostle your bladder? Don’t you always have to pee?’ Maybe it’s the distraction or the endorphins, but there’s something about the feeling of running that kind of turns [my symptoms] off. But of course I still choose routes and courses with porta-potties—just in case.”

Santurri knew that if she eased into it and gave herself the time, she could run farther than she could as a teenager.

“The key thing was being patient with myself, but also challenging myself,” she said.

That same year—in 2006—she finished her first 5K since she started running again and knew she was going to continue making it part of her life.

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Her mileage increased over the years, and after completing a number of marathons, she decided in 2017 that it was time to push herself even more—she was going to run an ultra.

“I thought, ‘What the heck, I can do a 50K—it’s only five more miles than a marathon.’ So I just signed up for one.”

So she hired a coach who gave her a structured routine with strength training added into the mix. After completing her ultra in October of that year, she was hooked not only on the longer distances themselves, but also on the sense of camaraderie and support out on the trails. Next up? A 40-miler six months later. The most recent ultra Santurri tackled was the 50-mile portion of the Indiana Trail 100 on October 13 of this year.

“If things get too painful, I just remind myself of everything I’ve gone through to get here.”

“There were moments where I just wanted to quit, but what really got me through it was constantly thinking, ‘This is why I’m here—to push myself and persevere.’ That’s really the ultimate metaphor for my life, living with interstitial cystitis. If things get too painful, I just remind myself of everything I’ve gone through to get here.”

Santurri crossed the finish line in 13:17:50 with a smile on her face.

She also raised $1,055 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society for this race, because her husband was diagnosed with chronic myelogenous leukemia in 2013.

“It was coming up on the five-year anniversary of his diagnosis, so I wanted this race to have some additional meaning,” she said. “If I can give back in some way to a community or organization that I care about, I will.”

The same goes for the Interstitial Cystitis Association, which she is on the board of directors of. “It has a profound impact on people’s lives, so I definitely am going to continue raising money and awareness [on its behalf].”

Among her other future plans? A 100K in 2019 and a 100-miler in 2020.



“I want people with this condition to know that there is hope. You don’t have to run ultras—it doesn’t even need to be related to running. But if you’re patient with yourself and open to challenging yourself, you can do anything.”

Danielle Zickl Associate Health & Fitness Editor Danielle specializes in interpreting and reporting the latest health research and also writes and edits in-depth service pieces about fitness, training, and nutrition.

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