A Year ago I was laying in a hospital bed overseas having just come out of surgery that resulted in some stainless steel in my back with 4 wicked screws, and a severely damaged vertebrae. This would be the start of 13 days in the hospital, being fit with a full body cast, then graduating to a clam shell device that cost my insurance company 7k, and a heavily medicated patient for 8 weeks following the surgery.

The day I quit my pain meds I went cold turkey on a Friday, told my Doctor on Tuesday after having a very agonizing 3 days, and nights. I obviously needed the pain meds early on, and having remembered laying on a hospital emergency room bed screaming for about the first 9 hours because the morphin they gave me didn’t really help I was reluctant to go down that road again.

I returned to work after 8 weeks off and within a week, was back in a Airplane on a 6 week business trip. My Doctor lost his mind but hey when it was time to get back to work you have to dive back in. The hardest part for the 3 months was the clam shell was not being able to pick my kid up.

Finally in Feb of this year, I was given the green light to start light exercising. I podcasted my hospital experience and you can find the audio clip on this post you can take a look at the hardware I carry around here.

I am not complaining, as I am very blessed to be walking, and even though I live in a constant state of low level pain life is good. The wife had expected me to be rolled off the airplane as the initial prognosis was really bad and instead I walked off.

One thing though because I flew back from the middle east only 15 days after being injured, I had to lay flat as much as possible so I enjoyed 1st class on 3 consecutive flights and enjoyed the food but had to decline the liquor, as the Roxicet and the Oxycodone I was prescribed was enough bad stuff in my blood stream.

Thus having spent my 40th birthday in that hospital bed contemplating life, and having really looked forward to 2004 being in my rear view mirror the road ahead is a bright one and I am happy to be have faired as well as I have. So their may be times when I get excited about stuff and jump in with both feet but the reason for that is simple I was given a second chance to make profound changes in my families and people I come in contact withs life.

My Wife, and Kids were champions and my extended family and friends prayed and took care of my wife when I was half a world away. Thank you for being here during the past year also it has been and amazing ride.

Todd..