Dustin,
Thank you! Keep pushing. I hope the progress you've made continues!
Curt,
We have to be resilient! Someday, lightning will strike, and the Brew Crew will win it all. That's what I keep telling myself, anyway. Thank you for the kind words.
Brett,
Good luck with the changes you've made, too.
Rich,
Believe me, I will be there, and soon. I've been chomping at the bit to get out there for a while. Probably once I get back to work, which I am targeting for the start of summer. If I'm around old cards, I am going to want to buy.
Cashing a regular paycheck will make a lot of my collecting goals immediately attainable again.
Erik,
Yes, the progress, initially, was very slow (maddeningly so), but the last few months things have really picked up for me. So, I'm seeing the finish line, so to speak.
We did the trial for a dorsal column stimulator, where they do a temporary placements of the leads beneath the skin, but it didn't work for me. One, they couldn't get the tingling up high enough on my spine to cover the pain from T-12, and the stim unit also made my upper legs numb, even after meeting with the tech a few days after the procedure, and an adjustment to the device. I had real hopes for it, too. But I'm glad it's helped you. Thank you for the encouragement, and I hope you're able to continue enjoying the gains you've made. Getting off the Oxy is the best thing you could ever do for yourself. I can't wait to put Vicodin in my past for good!
Tom,
Yeah, I don't ever want to go under the knife unless it's absolutely necessary. I'm blessed to have a great, ultra-conservative surgeon who will not put me in the O.R. unless we've exhausted all the other possible options. I wish more doctors were like that. Sometimes, I think our society has led doctors to believe surgical intervention is the only cure, and that's so often not the case.
Keep working hard. Like you, my outlook has improved dramatically, and I have no doubt that my spirits being lifted like this is helping me to recover faster. Good luck, and thank you!
Keith,
I've been in pain for periods throughout my life because of the osteogenesis imperfecta I was born with. Some 25, or so, fractures by age 16. But this...what I've gone through, is completely different. If I broke an arm, I had to wait five weeks, and the pain would go away, and I'd be back to normal. This pain just dragged on and on, and it really got deflating. I've learned to have a whole new appreciation for others that go through this. Patience is the key. That, and understanding.
Justin,
Thank you so much for sharing what you've been through. Please, don't feel for a moment that you're "stealing my post" at all. This thread is meant to be an inspiration to others who are going through tough times of any origin, be it medical in nature, or having difficulty finding a job. And, what you've come back from is as inspiring as inspiration gets. Life is full of tests, and these bumps in the road (or, more accurately, in your case, mountains) can seem incredibly daunting, and almost impossible to overcome. I was at that stage. Being in chronic pain is the worst thing I've ever had to deal with, and there were times I wondered if my life was over. But those kinds of dim prospects for the future are often what challenges us, and helps us to find inner strength that we never knew existed. I had a quiet little talk with myself, one night as I was trying to fall asleep, and said that when I got up in the morning, I was going to start down a path to something better. I knew it would be slow, and tedious, but if anybody could fix where I was, it was me. I wanted to do it all in one day, but understood that progress had to come slowly. And now that I'm seeing myself stronger, and appearing like I've shaved ten years off my life, I'm inspired to keep going, and push myself even harder.
What you've been able to do is nothing short of remarkable. I'm so happy for you! Some people are given great things, and they take them for granted. I will never do that again, and I know that after all you've been through, againt seemingly insurmountable odds, you absolutely appreciate things more than you ever have. You deserve all the happiness you have in your life. And you're absolutely right. Without those dark days, I don't know how I could possibly notice, or fully appreciate the bright ones ahead. But rest assured, I will. This experience has completely changed my life. I feel as if I've always been a good, kind, decent human being, but it's made me better...inside, if that makes sense. I used to be reticent when it came to my personal life. And, I often kept my mouth shut instead of speaking my mind, and going after what I truly wanted. No more. I will never have a regret again. I won't be on my death bed (God willing, many, many decades from now. I'm not going quietly!!!!), and wonder 'what if'. If I want to do something, I'm doing it. When I find the right woman, 100 men won't be able to keep me from going to her. I might have already found her, time will tell. But life is a gift. Every day we are given is a gift. And, I will embrace every single one I am given, and live life to the fullest.
Good luck to you too, my friend. I hope you and your wife have a long, happy life together, Justin. God Bless, and thank you again!
Thank you, Irv. Just remember a big part of your son's expression of frustration is his age. When I was 15, I knew it all, and used to do the same when my parents tried to impart wisdom. It's amazing, to me, how much wiser they have become as I've gotten older.
Merry Christmas to you, too!!
Paul,
Ha! Now that I'm starting to really feel better, you'll have to traipse through even more statistical analyses!
I have yet begun to...um, analyze. In all seriousness, though, I will try to make my points more perfunctory in nature! Thank you for the well wishes!! Have a great Christmas!
Brian,
Thank you for the kind words, and congratulations on making the changes needed to get your diabetes more manageable. 3 miles might not sound like a lot to some, but to somebody who's been pretty much stuck in bed for five years, trust me, I know that's one hell of a trek. You're doing what you need for you. Your body has responded, and that's all that matters. When I'm at the gym, I have to constantly remind myself I'm there to make myself better, and it's not a competition. There are plenty of balloon chests walking around that can bench a million pounds, and, sometimes I wish I could do that. But I keep myself grounded. Slow and steady wins the race, for me (and does so safely!)
I will pm you, because your book does interest me, tremendously, actually. Thank you for the kind offer. I think so many of the medical issues people in our country face are because of misinformation, and just laziness when it comes to eating right. Even twenty years ago, we didn't face the obesity epidemic that we do now. We've become a fast food nation, and when I was first dealing with these back issue, I admit that I was part of that group. Standing up to cook was incredibly painful, so I had dinner delivered, or I grabbed fast food. Part was out of necessity, but also part due to my own laziness. There were more healthful options available, but I didn't look into them because I was in denial. I looked at myself one day in the mirror, and was horrified. "What have I done to myself?" That was the beginning of the changes. Dropping soda from my diet completely was one of the smartest things I've ever done, and when I started to see pounds dropping (and felt better), it all kind of snowballed in a good way. Sometimes, it's just that simple, too.
I had a sip of Coke a few weeks ago, and I almost threw up. It's amazing how our body adjusts to things like sweetness, saltiness, etc, when removed from our diet. It was overpowering, like drinking sugar syrup. I thought to myself, "I used to drink 5-6 cans....of THIS...every night?"
Arnie,
First of all, I, too, am so sorry to hear about your wife's cancer. Some day, hopefully soon, that terrible disease will be eradicated. I can't even imagine what you are going through in trying to care for her, and take care of yourself at the same time. If my story provides even the smallest bit of inspiration, then I am very happy. That means a lot to me.
I've found that the best way to make changes that will continue benefiting you for years to come is to make those changes slowly. As I mentioned earlier, it's easy to want to "take on the world", so to speak, and do everything at once. But too much at once becomes exhausting, and there's no way you, I, or anybody could keep those changes up over time. You've got a special situation because of your wife's cancer. That adds a level of stress I can't understand. Take it one day at a time, and keep focused on where you want to get to (and stay). You've done this once before with losing the weight. You can do it again. Talk with your doctor, and make sure they clear everything you do. Very important. Good luck to you. I am pulling for you, and hope that they're able to keep your wife as comfortable as possible.
To anybody I didn't respond to directly, I thank you, all, for your encouragement. Net 54 is a special place. We might bicker with one another when it comes to things going on within our hobby, but there are a lot of great people here. It's like a big family, to me, and why I keep coming here long after I've quite other forums.
I look forward to getting to some of your shows, Rich. Lots of you guys I want to meet and know in person. That's a goal for 2017, and one I will make.
Best wishes for a wonderful Christmas, everybody!