I'm on the DL
According to WebMD, " four of five adults experience significant back or neck pain during their lives". Considering I'm 24 and I eat healthy and exercise and stretch regularly, one would think I'd not be too susceptible to that pain. Well, back in 7th grade basketball when some kid intentionally shoved me in the back as I went up for a layup on a break away, I should have known that I would most definitely be one of those four adults. That was the first time I threw my back out, and it's continued to happen regularly for years.
It happens less now (I'd like to think that all of those things I do to take care of myself play a large part in that), but Sunday night I felt a stabbing pain in my back and I knew I was done. I've gone to the doctors several times, and read a ton on the topic, so I know how to take care of myself...and unless something is extremely wrong I understand that there isn't much a trip to the doctors office will do to me (other than more damage from sitting in the waiting room for two hours).
So I've spent the past two days working from my bed. One of the things about back pain is that too much rest is bad for it - one of the best cures and preventions is regular activity and exercise. That said, I know my back needs a few days off. I'll be up and active by the end of the week, but for the meantime the farthest I'm going is the five foot walk to my bathroom.
It's always interesting when I throw my back out - I start to think about all the 70 year olds out there who are outside exercising while I'm stuck in bed. I couldn't run or jump if my life depended on it - hell I couldn't sit in a chair for 2 hours and watch a movie or a basketball game. I start thinking about how much fun it will be just to get on an exercise bike and do some light exercise. It always makes me grateful for everything I have and realize that it all can be taken away at any time.
I guess you could say that my back pain grounds me. I start to remember that the amount of revenue that SportsLizard makes in April is NOT the only important thing in my life. I work hard and I always will, but I want to be sure that I'm not working as long as I do now. I want to make sure that my body and my bank account are both healthy enough to allow me to enjoy life when I'm 30 or 40, but if I had the choice I'd much rather have a healthy back than a ton of money. All the money in the world is worthless if I can't actively enjoy it with the people that are important to me.
It happens less now (I'd like to think that all of those things I do to take care of myself play a large part in that), but Sunday night I felt a stabbing pain in my back and I knew I was done. I've gone to the doctors several times, and read a ton on the topic, so I know how to take care of myself...and unless something is extremely wrong I understand that there isn't much a trip to the doctors office will do to me (other than more damage from sitting in the waiting room for two hours).
So I've spent the past two days working from my bed. One of the things about back pain is that too much rest is bad for it - one of the best cures and preventions is regular activity and exercise. That said, I know my back needs a few days off. I'll be up and active by the end of the week, but for the meantime the farthest I'm going is the five foot walk to my bathroom.
It's always interesting when I throw my back out - I start to think about all the 70 year olds out there who are outside exercising while I'm stuck in bed. I couldn't run or jump if my life depended on it - hell I couldn't sit in a chair for 2 hours and watch a movie or a basketball game. I start thinking about how much fun it will be just to get on an exercise bike and do some light exercise. It always makes me grateful for everything I have and realize that it all can be taken away at any time.
I guess you could say that my back pain grounds me. I start to remember that the amount of revenue that SportsLizard makes in April is NOT the only important thing in my life. I work hard and I always will, but I want to be sure that I'm not working as long as I do now. I want to make sure that my body and my bank account are both healthy enough to allow me to enjoy life when I'm 30 or 40, but if I had the choice I'd much rather have a healthy back than a ton of money. All the money in the world is worthless if I can't actively enjoy it with the people that are important to me.
posted by Adam McFarland at
4/03/2007 05:11:00 PM
Links to this post:
Create a Link
<< Home