Three months ago I was told that I could not run a marathon.

Today I raced my first 26.2 miles.

I signed up for the marathon with Distance 4 Dreams, an organization on campus that works with A Special Wish Foundation to raise money for children with life-threatening illnesses to travel to Disney World. In addition, we participate in the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend.

A year ago I ran a half marathon with the group, making it the farthest distance I have ever gone. Right after, my knee started bothering me. Having sustained an immeasurable amount of pain throughout my running career, I wrote this off as insufficient training.

I was wrong.

It took me until September to get to a doctor. By the end of the month I was diagnosed with a nasty case of runner's knee and in physical therapy; by October my dreams of marathon glory were crushed.

I was told that there was no way my leg muscles would be strong enough to sustain a marathon, let alone the training it requires. Attempting the marathon would be risky and jeopardized any chances I had of running in the future.

I had two options: don't run the marathon and prolong my running career or run the race and end it all. I chose to run.

I have picked up a lot of advice on my journey to mile 26, but think the lesson I most learned was that I shouldn't let anyone discourage me from reaching my goals. Any distance runner will tell you that racing is mental; it is as much about mindset as it is about physical preparation.

I wasn't able to train to my fullest-something I do not by any means recommend-so it wasn't my rocking body that got me to that finish line. It was the 365 days of mental preparation, the little girl I was honoring with my run, the support from my fellow runners that urged me to push on for six hours.

Although my body is aching in places I never knew could hurt,and I am completely exhausted, I am also in disbelief. Having run on and off for 10 years, a marathon was always a "wishful thinking" kind of life goal. It was in the back of my mind, but never a possibility. Furthermore, my knee, public enemy number one as far as my running is concerned, is the only part of my body that is not hurting.

My mantra for running is a fairly common quote, "When you want something you have never had you must do what you have never done." Completing a marathon means pushing yourself harder than you ever thought possible, but knowing all the while that all of the suffering will be so worth it. I never would have known this had I let myself believe I couldn't complete the race.

One of the highlights of my run was making it to mile 21, only to have a stranger come up to me and tell me that I was her pace-setter for the past six miles. She told me I had inspired her to keep running, that as long as I continued, she knew she could, too.

We ran together for a few miles before she continued on ahead without me. At mile 26, however, I caught up to her, and we crossed the finish line together. I will most likely never see her again, but sharing that rare moment of first marathon completion with a stranger is something I will never forget.

It may be the endorphins talking-and trust me, they are working overtime right now-but I am already thinking about my goals for next year. If I can make it to the finish line with a hurt knee, then I can train and conquer even more in the future.

This year I completed 26.2 miles by running a marathon. Next year? Add a half on to make it 39.3.

And I refuse to let anyone tell me that I can't do it.