Monday, August 19, 2013

Two years later....my Prologue

Yea I know...prologue is a beginning...not the ending....but really it is just that...the beginning of the rest of my life...a complete life with no regrets...at least not about back surgery.

First of all I want to say thanks to all the people who have read this blog (8,764 "page views" as of this writing) and contacted me. It was always my hope that I could help others facing the same predicament as me...and from the volume of emails I received I think I have done that.  I am so happy I could relieve some of your anxiety pre- and post-surgery.

My TLIF was on July 11, 2011. I know in this blog I said I would continue to post entries every month and that just has not happened...and I apologize...but there is a very good reason for it....my life has pretty much returned to normal...and I have resumed most of my normal activities.

I bike, I hike, I lift weights, I go on vacation, I have sex...and it doesn't hurt (yea!!)....my life is full and it is because of this surgery. There are still some things I cannot do (like running....although I have thought about it) but for the most part I have resumed my life pretty much pain free.

I often speak of my back in percentages (as a percentage of 100% normal). My best days are 95%+ and my worst are about 85%. But most of my days are over 90% and about three quarters of those days hover around 95%. I still have a little back pain occasionally...from the segment that did not get fused...and a bit of leg numbness right above my right knee from that....but a little ibuprofen (maybe once a week) and I am happily on my way. I consider myself fortunate...but I also feel I made my own fortune. I worked at returning to normal and it has paid off for me and it can for you too.

I offer this as proof...



On July 24th, 2013 I was in Africa on vacation with a group of eight other people (including my two amazing sons, my ex-wife, her husband, and his two kids)...and in the wee hours of that day...about 6:30 a.m...I summited Mt Kilimanjaro, the highest peak in Africa at 19,341 feet (that is me third from the left on the top row...in the orange and brown jacket). It was the most physically challenging thing I have ever done in my life...and that is no small feat. In the past I have run a marathon, ridden well over 100 miles a day on my bike (sometimes over 450 miles in a week), hiked for over a week in a wilderness area in less than hospitable conditions....but this topped them all. It took nearly every ounce of strength I had to get up (and back down) that mountain....but I did it!

And you can too. Maybe you won't climb Kilimanjaro....but you can resume your life....and you can accomplish amazing feats...and reach personal goals. As I said at the start of this blog...there are many tales of failure about this type of surgery...but I wanted my legacy to be one of success. This will be my last post to this blog...it is time to move on with the rest of my life. You can still reach me at craig.goudy@gmail.com and I am happy to answer your questions...but I really have nothing left to tell you about my story.

I did it...now go do it for yourself too.

All my best....Craig