Recap

The day of surgery is rapidly approaching (Jan 26^th) and I couldn't be happier. The surgery will be exploratory at vertebrae L5 and S1 and then, if everything is okay he will perform a Foraminotomy at L5. The intent of all this is to remove the pain. That was also the intent of the first surgery, six months ago. When the pain did not go away after that surgery, an MRI was done and it was determined that there was still an impingement on the nerve, something that couldn't be seen during that surgery. Then we had a five month wait until the bone grafts were strong enough for the second surgery. A CT Scan a few weeks ago confirmed that my grafts were strong enough to withstand the pressure of the operation. But…there's always a 'but' isn't there? The chances of failure have now gone up because it is the second surgery. Even so, I am eager; it's been two years of mind numbing pain and two years of having my mind numbed even further by the drugs that are supposed to ease that pain. Norco and Dilaudid have become more than mere acquaintances, they are now my best friends and that's a bummer! And the pain? It never went away. And after a month or so, the Norco and Dilaudid were losing their effectiveness. Another bummer! Or, as a friend once said; a stone bummer!

The plan, my recovery plan, starts with the third day after surgery and I should be home by then. The doctor says a one or two day stay after he has reamed out the foramen. Ouch! But…the nerve will be free after that and he said that as soon as I wake up I should feel the difference. Viva la difference! Back to the plan; it starts with walking at the park and doing a half mile. I want to increase that by a quarter mile every two days. I will do five or six days at the park and then a day of rest which allows the body time to rebuild. By the middle of spring I want to be doing 5k distances and at speed. I also want to make sure I can return to my race walking form; that's the only way I can get back to the 11 minute miles I do for a 5k race. Or, I used to do…

Marathons are out for this year and iffy for the next. I need to be in great shape before I go for my sixth medal and the all important t-shirt. At that point, I just want to be among the other athletes, enjoying the marathon vibes, I'm not going to be trying to set a personal record, I'm waiting till I'm seventy five for that.