Those of us on tis road have already become some of the strongest that are so asking some questions and searching for answers,advocating our abilities versus our disabilities is a walk in the park (no pun intended) ? Look at some of these folks diagnosis,meds,past surgeries, they are profound to say the least and yet here they are,seeking answers,help,support, and yes even giving of themselves when I have to wonder some days where they have anything left over to give. Strength,fight,the will to make it against the odds and even on those days when giving up is easier they keep at it.
It is difficult to admit to all that we endure and more difficult to have others no of our weaknesses for those are the things folks remember about us. When I got past the complex feelings of inadequacey and trained myself to advocate for those things that was possible for me I stopped dwelling on all the things that I couldnt do anymore. It was excess bagage I couldnt afford to haul around.
I have had to change many things in my life and most all the ways in which I did them but new isnt always bad. For lots of years I gave up my number one favorite past time of camping,couldnt see getting onto the ground much less getting off of it,darn sure knew I couldnt put wrestle a tent to standing position and make it stay! And Heaven forbid I didnt even want to venture thinking about the late night coolness nor the early morning frost!
After feeling like I was useless to life if I couldnt even have that simple pleasure someone on another forum many many years back says to me,"why dont you just redo the way you camp?" NOw I had to give this one alot of thought as I couldnt see how to redo it,camping is camping right? Wrong, I now spend 90% of the summer and spring and fall months doing just that! I can even choose the way I am going to camp.
I either check into the KOA with my gold card and rent a cabin with heat,real beds,air and electtric for any equipment I might need,plenty of room for my baggage and a porch swing that with a few pillows added on is a trip to Heaven with a good book. Or I simply invested in a 60 second put up tent and yes it really is, a bed size air mattress with a memory foam topper,a tent heater for those cold mornings or frosty nights,a few other camping add ons, a piece of carpet on the cold floor, a kind of expensive chaise lounge that is ortho positioning and really comfy,have even used it in my house a few times I couldnt make the bed work for me! Not wanting to go on and on here just wanted to show how once I changed my way of thinking about my cans and cant's I could just about find a way to do most anything I did before I got hurt.
Last year we rented a pontoon boat,plenty of room and I took along my ortho chaise lounge and when I got tired of fishing slept for hours! 1st time I had been boating since I got hurt! Hiking except in small doses is about the only thing I can think of that I dont do as much as I did pre-cp.
I guess all I am really trying to say here is dont give up on life before life gives up on you. Again I cant say this enough it all comes down to proper pain management for me becuase until I got the pain in some kind of livable and workable place nothing else can be done. Please any of you that feel as though life is passing by outside your window as you watch keep searching for better treatment for your pain. Once you have that everything changes.
Peace and pain free days ahead for all of you is wished for.