A Little Quieter than Usual

Despite the rather serene appearance of my web page this week, this has personally been a rather hectic week. Following the earlier advice of a number of visitors to my page, I had been trying to avoid too many hours at the computer in an attempt to relieve the stress on my back.

Apparently such efforts failed, because after suffering a violent coughing attack Tuesday morning I had to leave work early because my back began to spasm. By the time I finally got home, I had to crawl up the stairs and into bed. The pain pills I had from earlier did nothing for the excruciating pain, and Leslie was greeted by a screaming idiot after she came home early.

I made a doctor’s appointment the next day and had to have Leslie drive me to the appointment because my right leg was totally useless. I managed to get into the car by having her push me on my office chair. Once at the clinic, we got a wheelchair, a new adventure for me.

Obviously fearing cancer because of last year’s cancerous tumor, the doctor ordered an MRI. While such a test might have been easy if I had a more effective pain killer, I found it unbearably painful to lie “still” for a half hour while spasms of pain racked my right leg. Resorting to some nearly-forgotten meditation techniques, though, I was able to get through the procedure, all the time thinking that the narrow tube resembled a casket far too much for my taste.

I was relieved, yet somewhat apprehensive, when my doctor called Thursday morning to inform me that the leg problem was due to a “slipped disk” pinching the nerve in my leg rather than any kind of cancer. My doctor referred me to a neurosurgeon. I was relieved to hear it wasn’t cancer, but I haven’t heard too many good things about back surgery. It’s Sunday, and I’m still waiting for the clinic to call me back about an appointment.

Luckily despite the ineffectiveness of the painkillers my body seems to be healing itself, though slowly. It’s Sunday, and I can now limp around the house with my hiking staff if I don’t stay on my feet longer than ten minutes. Unfortunately, it still hurts whether I’m sitting, standing, or lying in bed. At least that gives me an excuse to get back on the computer for awhile.

If the page is a little quieter than usual, at least you’ll know why.

4 thoughts on “A Little Quieter than Usual”

  1. *creak* *creak* *CREAK* ow *creak*

    *creak* *CREAK* *creak* ow ow

    *creak* *creak* *creak* ow

    ow

    (Burningbird does imitation of Loren)

    Seriously, I’m sorry to hear about the disc, though glad it’s not cancer. I hope you don’t have to have surgery, but if you do, that it’s overwhelmingly successful and your recovery is amazingly quick.

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