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Rubicon95
Skeptic Friend
USA
220 Posts |
Posted - 09/18/2007 : 09:37:14 [Permalink]
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| I'm suing OOO-A-uhga, the first of the simians to walk upright. HE STARTED THAT DAMN CRAZE and it just.....evolved. |
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moakley
SFN Regular
USA
1888 Posts |
Posted - 09/18/2007 : 13:12:57 [Permalink]
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About 23 years ago I spent a couple of months not being able to walk without lower back pain that extended down my left leg. Went to the doctor and he pointed to my stomach and insisted that I begin exercising. He gave me a list of exercises to strengthen the abdominal muscles. My back was soon better and exercise became a lifetime commitment. Outside of when I had ear surgery I have rarely missed more than a day doing some form of cardio workout.
Even though I was doing plenty of cardio gravity and age was giving me the shape of a Bartlett pear. So about 8 years ago I started lifting weights. I was satisfied with mostly cardio and lifting twice a week, maybe 3 times.
Then it happened, just over 3 years ago, I woke up one morning with this incredible pain that started at the neck, through my left shoulder, elbow, wrist, and index finger. The muscles between these points would twitch, uncontrollably, causing further pain and weakness. Even on pain meds and Ambien getting 3 hours of sleep was difficult. An X-Ray revealed nothing. The MRI and CT Scan showed that I had a narrow C7 opening on the left side. I started using a cervical traction unit to relieve the pressure. Eventually, the pain meds, traction, and sleeping in a collar started working.
Throughout this time I kept up the cardio workout, and 3.5 months later I began lifting again. At this time my only sensation from this is that it feels like someone is constantly poking me in the neck with a stick and a little numbness in my left index finger. If it gets too bad I use the cervical traction until and go lighter on the weights. I still sleep in a collar on most nights.
I believe I am fortunate to have made the changes that I did 23 years ago.
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Life is good
Philosophy is questions that may never be answered. Religion is answers that may never be questioned. -Anonymous |
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Zebra
Skeptic Friend
USA
354 Posts |
 Posted - 09/18/2007 : 21:16:04 [Permalink]
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HalfMooner, glad you've regained function after your stroke. Must have been pretty scary. And filthy, glad you've been able to get out and around more lately.
Major thing for me was 6 abdominal surgeries in 7 years, for scar tissue (adhesions) after I apparently had a ruptured appendix & didn't know it. Luckily, things have been pretty stable in the intestinal zone for the past 4 years, since the last surgery.
I'm a physician and see alot of people with awful problems, both chronic and acute. Noone deserves it.
Let's sue the manufacturer... |
I think, you know, freedom means freedom for everyone* -Dick Cheney
*some restrictions may apply |
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Dave W.
Info Junkie
USA
26022 Posts |
Posted - 09/18/2007 : 21:18:10 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by Zebra
Let's sue the manufacturer... |
Well, my mother has been dead for some time. Besides, she never had very deep pockets. |
- Dave W. (Private Msg, EMail)
Evidently, I rock!
Why not question something for a change?
Visit Dave's Psoriasis Info, too. |
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The Rat
SFN Regular
Canada
1370 Posts |
Posted - 09/18/2007 : 22:02:17 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by pleco
In my humble opinion, someone didn't design the human body well at all, and should be fired.
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Too true! I always think of our bodies whenever an idiot tries the 'intelligent design' angle. |
Bailey's second law; There is no relationship between the three virtues of intelligence, education, and wisdom.
You fiend! Never have I encountered such corrupt and foul-minded perversity! Have you ever considered a career in the Church? - The Bishop of Bath and Wells, Blackadder II
Baculum's page: http://www.bebo.com/Profile.jsp?MemberId=3947338590 |
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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 09/18/2007 : 22:22:25 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by Zebra
HalfMooner, glad you've regained function after your stroke. Must have been pretty scary. |
And I'm glad you got that abdominal problem fixed, Zebra!
The stroke and its aftermath were bloody terrifying.
In the Spring of 2003, my wife and I bought a house in Aberdeen, WA. After packing for the move from CA, my wife declared that she wanted to stay with her employer for the remainder of the year. Counting on the promise she'd rejoin me, I moved north. She never joined me, later even telling me she's never promised to.
When I had my stroke, my wife refused to visit me, telling my family that she needed to take care of her dog, instead. (My wonderful daughter was at my bedside the next morning.) When I completed my physical therapy a few months later and got back to the Bay Area, my wife divorced me. The divorce papers were very embarrassing to me: They alleged that I'd kept numerous girlfriends on the side, even bringing them into our CA home.
There weren't any girlfriends, though. That accusation was especially galling to me, because I'd not only been monogamous with her since we first met in 1990, I also lived without any but canine companionship the whole time I was in WA, and have been (first by choice, and later by circumstance) completely abstinent since the Spring of 2003.
Good riddance. At least I found out whom I can count upon, and whom I can't, before it was too late.
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“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
| Edited by - HalfMooner on 09/18/2007 22:25:51 |
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filthy
SFN Die Hard
USA
14408 Posts |
Posted - 09/19/2007 : 00:39:51 [Permalink]
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I've got something of a pus-gut problem, too. It comes from age (68) and being so seditary, but I've finally imposed a diet upon myself that is gradually working. I need to lose about 30 pounds.
My daughters and their families are very supportive and leave me pretty much alone except during my occasional bouts with the VA hospital. Then I might end up living with one or the other for a while.
The human body is not evidence of God's love and certainly not an example of evolutionary efficency; rather it is something of a practical joke; a mish-mosh of slapped together, poorly designed bits & pieces; a bipedal lily that not even a used car salesman could gild. Our spines work just fine for quadrapeds, but not for anything that puts upright pressure on it. I have become one of those geezers who can be found at Wal-Mart pushing an empty shopping cart around for 1/2 hour or so a day.
You spasm guys: when one hits, you can take a good bit of the fire out of it by using a walker set a little shorter than normal, just an inch of so. This allows some of the upper body weight to be carried by itself, taking some pressure off the spine.
It's been said that any third year engineering student could design a better knee. They are wrong; any competent welding & fabrication man could do it on his lunch break.
We are born with a potential time bomb happily roosting on the tag end of our large intestines, our eyes are wired up wrong, and really, who's bright idea was the coccyx, that tail reminant that serves no purpose except to torture those who break it?
And so forth; is it any wonder that we get so many ailments that are really not necessary? We were put together by an idiot on a tight scedual, and it's a wonderment that we functuion as well as we do.
But enough; I've got to go open up my penis, now. I've had so many foley catheters that there is scar tissue in there and it tends to close things up. Once in awhile, I have to lube up a little conical device, numb the end of Old Sparky with some of that toothache stuff, and streach the scars. Otherwise, pissing gets to be something of an extended process.
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"What luck for rulers that men do not think." -- Adolf Hitler (1889 - 1945)
"If only we could impeach on the basis of criminal stupidity, 90% of the Rethuglicans and half of the Democrats would be thrown out of office." ~~ P.Z. Myres
"The default position of human nature is to punch the other guy in the face and take his stuff." ~~ Dude
Brother Boot Knife of Warm Humanitarianism,
and Crypto-Communist! 
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Siberia
SFN Addict
Brazil
2322 Posts |
Posted - 09/19/2007 : 11:12:58 [Permalink]
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My turn!
I was born perfectly healthy then at age eight months I started getting pretty high fevers and my body suddenly decided it hates itself and tried to reconfigure, so my tendons atrophied and started bending me in quite interesting, if impractical, angles. I also lost weight. A lot of weight. Enough to see all the ribs.
Oh, and I felt pain. Lots of it.
Took awhile until I was diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, the Still's disease variety (back then it was just JRA, though, so I'm just guessing I fit under Still's), apparently, which is seemingly very rare here in Brazil. Or was, in any case (that was 22 years ago). It was pretty hard to find doctors who knew it, let alone how to treat it. It hit every single joint in my body. It also stinted my growth, so I'm pretty short.
Fortunately, it did not affect my eyes (though I have myopia) or internal organs, as arthritis sometimes does. I still have a drifting anemia, easily fixed by food alone. I developed ostheoporosis, but that's fixed, too. And I'm fat. But mreh.
Thankfully, juvenile arthritis vanishes after awhile, leaving only, oh, the damage. I no longer have fever.
But I am wheelchair-bound and have always been (I've been able to walk without aid before, but a case of malpractice by my physical therapist ended that), I can't type with all my fingers (I use only two - quite ironic for a programmer), my muscles are quite weak, the joints are limited in motion, my wrists were permanently damaged and the arthritic pain's my old buddy (the so-called flu pain) so I don't care about it anymore. There are a lot of trivial minor consequences, too, but whatever. Like Fil, I need to get my hip replaced, but I don't want to. It stopped trying to madden me awhile ago, so whatever.
I've returned to physical therapy after my second surgery (a couple years ago, some may remember), and I'm practicing the whole "standing up" deal again, so I may walk again at some point of the near future. Standing up hurts a lot, so that is going slowly but steadly.
It made me into an Internet zombie. Damnit. |
"Why are you afraid of something you're not even sure exists?"
- The Kovenant, Via Negativa
"People who don't like their beliefs being laughed at shouldn't have such funny beliefs."
-- unknown
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| Edited by - Siberia on 09/19/2007 11:20:10 |
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furshur
SFN Regular
USA
1536 Posts |
Posted - 09/19/2007 : 11:31:46 [Permalink]
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| I've returned to physical therapy after my second surgery (a couple years ago, some may remember), and I'm practicing the whole "standing up" deal again, so I may walk again at some point of the near future. Standing up hurts a lot, so that is going slowly but steadly. |
Good luck Siberia!
I assume that walking will result in benifits to your health.
Sorry that you have to put up with the pain.
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If I knew then what I know now then I would know more now than I know. |
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Siberia
SFN Addict
Brazil
2322 Posts |
Posted - 09/19/2007 : 11:46:35 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by furshur
| I've returned to physical therapy after my second surgery (a couple years ago, some may remember), and I'm practicing the whole "standing up" deal again, so I may walk again at some point of the near future. Standing up hurts a lot, so that is going slowly but steadly. |
Good luck Siberia!
I assume that walking will result in benifits to your health.
Sorry that you have to put up with the pain.
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Thanks!
Walking will certainly improve things, at least liberty-wise, I'll be able to do stuff on my own, even if not all. At least simple things, like going to the bathroom without help and such. |
"Why are you afraid of something you're not even sure exists?"
- The Kovenant, Via Negativa
"People who don't like their beliefs being laughed at shouldn't have such funny beliefs."
-- unknown
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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 09/19/2007 : 21:36:42 [Permalink]
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Yes, all the best to you, Siberia! I imagine that the walking, difficult as it may be, will improve your cardiovascular condition, and make you generally healthier. Good luck!
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“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
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Ricky
SFN Die Hard
USA
4907 Posts |
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JEROME DA GNOME
BANNED
2418 Posts |
 Posted - 09/22/2007 : 19:54:31 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by Ricky
My arm hurts when I do this.
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Do not do that.  |
What a man believes upon grossly insufficient evidence is an index into his desires -- desires of which he himself is often unconscious. If a man is offered a fact which goes against his instincts, he will scrutinize it closely, and unless the evidence is overwhelming, he will refuse to believe it. If, on the other hand, he is offered something which affords a reason for acting in accordance to his instincts, he will accept it even on the slightest evidence. The origin of myths is explained in this way. - Bertrand Russell |
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Dave W.
Info Junkie
USA
26022 Posts |
Posted - 09/22/2007 : 21:12:18 [Permalink]
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Patient: Doctor, doctor! Will I be able to play the piano after this?
Doctor: Sure!
Patient: That's fantastic! I couldn't play the piano before. |
- Dave W. (Private Msg, EMail)
Evidently, I rock!
Why not question something for a change?
Visit Dave's Psoriasis Info, too. |
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Valiant Dancer
Forum Goalie
USA
4826 Posts |
Posted - 09/23/2007 : 21:53:26 [Permalink]
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I'm sure some of you have some opinions of what the Dancer's main problem is, but you're only partially right.
Through a quirk of genetics and poor luck, I may not see the high side of 50. Hardening of the arteries and cardiovascular disease run rampant through my father's side of the family. The men in my father's family were lucky to see their late 50's. Usually due to stokes and a nice myocardial infarc just for kicks. The strokes start off as a nosebleed that goes for a couple of days.
My father had quad-bypass surgery when he was 48 and has had to have an average of 2-4 stents put in every 2 years afterwards like clockwork.
I may have suffered a small stroke about two years ago. Yes, I've seen a doctor about it. He asked me to take a physical. I haven't gotten around to it yet. The signs I have noticed are slower mental acuity and I have to concentrate on my elocution otherwise I slur my words. Breifly treated when I was 23 for high blood pressure. But the guy I was working for was a real sonnadabeach.
I am a bit out of shape. But I have started walking more to work on the problem.
My second marriage is breaking up. In April of 2009 when we can sell the house, I'll be going one way, the wife will be going another and we will get a divorce. Sex life is non-existant for obvious reasons. This makes me a bit cranky at times.
My 15 and one half year old Austrialian Shepard mix has a tumor between her liver and spleen. Her age precludes surgery. She isn't in any discomfort or pain, so we are monitoring the tumor's growth to find out if it has to be dealt with or if she will likely pass from old age before it becomes a problem.
The 5 year old son is starting kindergarten. He's doing great but I worry about the relationship I'll have with him after the divorce.
So, that's my problem. |
Cthulhu/Asmodeus when you're tired of voting for the lesser of two evils
Brother Cutlass of Reasoned Discussion |
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What's your major malfunction?
