A quick silly image to try and make light of this “Pain in my Back”!

Only a couple of people out there are aware of the problems I’ve had with my back especially over the past year. I didn’t want to say anything for several reasons. I wanted to be sure I had exhausted all options before I announced taking this step. It’s been a long road. My back problems started at a very young age and I’ve dodged back problems most of my life. Over the past year, I went through hell with the VA system trying to get some relief. Note: See my friend and fellow Navy Veteran, Rock Cowels facebook page “Dead Veterans Don’t Need Benefits“. Harsh but true. After a full year of runaround as the VA system was clearing 10 city blocks in New Orleans to build an obnoxious 1 billion dollar plus hospital that is still not fully functional today since the flooding of the last one in 2005, I finally got out of the VA system and found a real doctor. My issues are far more serious than the VA said even though they wanted to get me hooked on opioids with no resolution to the problem. I now have a surgeon who has done all he can shy of surgery to get me some relief. I’ve finished a round of cortisone injections which gave me some temporary pain relief but I’m at a point now where I can hardly sit behind my computer anymore. So,  I saw my doctor this morning and surgery is scheduled for the 7th of November. I have 2 ruptured discs at L4-L5 and L-5 S-1, 4 fractures as well as a severe misalignment due to a Spondylolisthesis which I was diagnosed with as a teen… (All of which were missed by the VA system with numerous x-rays and MRIs). He will be doing a fusion of L-4 L-5 and L-5 S-1 with two rods. I’ve avoided this all of my life and it has now apparently caught up with me. I’m hoping for a quick recovery as I have been in the gym every day for years now and have strengthened my core. I’m not totally out of the game though. I will be posting a few images I’ve been working on over the next three weeks. After that, I’ll be down for a while but when I recover, I’ll finally be able to put in the kind of hours I’ve wanted since launching my new web site and will be able to promote it more with fresh new content. Wish me luck!!