I believe life is constantly testing us for our level of commitment, and life's greatest rewards are reserved for those who demonstrate a never-ending commitment to act until they achieve. This level of resolve can move mountains, but it must be constant and consistent. As simplistic as this may sound, it is still the common denominator separating those who live their dreams from those who live in regret.
Anthony Robbins
When I tried out for yell leader during my junior year of high school, I heard a crack that defied explanation. I cannot be certain that this movement caused a lumbar disk to slide forward, but it must have at least contributed to a condition called Spondololythesis that was diagnosed at age twenty-three. My L-5 disk had moved forward and to the right so that my lower back could not properly hold the weight of my spine. My chronic pain cycle had now begun and thus my commitment to be free of it.
I spent the next thirty years in a defensive posture against getting a dreaded spinal fusion. Among other methods I'm probably forgetting, I availed myself of chiropractic care, deep tissue massages, Rolfing, Hellerwork, flat shoes, a firm belly (sort of!), sensible exercising, cortisone shots, many rounds of physical therapy and therapeutic weight training, yoga, ultrasound, electric stimulation, reflexology, a heated acupressure bed, bee venom therapy, and Prolotherapy, (shots to strengthen ligaments). No matter the minor successes, I faced increasing pain. During those years, I blew out two knees from snow skiing, had my teeth rebuilt due to painful TMJ, wore a night brace to prevent new damage, had a surgery to allow a tendon become cartilage in my thumb joint, suffered minor arthritis in my fingers, and felt constant lower head, neck and scapular pain. I watched my mid-back cave forward and thus experienced rolls of belly fat formerly unknown to me.
Then my body started a more extreme disintegration that would fully assault me within four years. After taking a walk on my 55th birthday, I came back home to our German vacation spot with a strange need to limp. I suffered through Europe in a minimized fashion, and returned to the States with a condition that even chiropractors could not eliminate. I either felt a hitch in my gait or limped after a mere quarter mile walk or simple errand. My lower back felt like cement, and I could hardly feel a pain free muscle in my body. I joked that I did not want to live past eighty -- that my immune system was up to the task, but not my spine! I felt sorry for myself that my quality of life seemed relegated to a wheelchair until I would have to endure a questionable surgery. I watched my normally positive outlook fade into fear and sadness as each daily behavior was monitored for the steps I would have to take and length of time I would have to stand.
By age fifty-nine, I knew that my chiropractic heroes had done the maximum that they could do and I finally gave into a medical Spine Center appointment. Without understanding that the day's costs would total $9000, I spent a full day having tests and digital X-rays. A world-class doctor pronounced me as having the already known Spondololythesis, but that, shockingly, my faulty L-5disk had fused naturally with the one above it. That disk had herniated and the one above it had ruptured. From a quick verbal delivery, I learned that I could spend $40,000 to have an innovative band-aid surgery, one that might have to be redone someday. By the end of several more visits, all I was left with was my shock that I had already self-created the dreaded spinal fusion. Plus, I had to pay the large co-pay on X-rays that did not cure me, endure an outpatient surgery where the success lasted only as long as the anesthesia remained active, take pain pills that caused nausea, and face a future surgery that promised no permanent relief from pain.
Then I moved from California to Texas and was totally disconcerted. I now had to find new doctors and figure out a course of action. A procedure called Decompression was next up, costing $3200. Over three months, I trekked twice a week to the chiropractor for a subtle traction machine hookup, only to be told after each session that I was now "fired up."The problem was it was more like a nerve continued to be fired up, and the money spent became a total waste.
By now I had suffered chronic pain for nearly forty years. I'd easily spent $20,000 in co-pays and fees for almost every traditional and alternative treatment imaginable. I continued to share my woe with anyone who might be able to offer the next round of suggestions. A dear friend had one and sent me a book called Pain Free by Pete Egoscue. His book explains his idea that a cure is possible through postural correction of one's misaligned muscles and joints. The Internet allowed me to find my closest Egoscue Clinic, a nine-hour round trip drive from home. Because my husband, John, also suffered his own version of a painful hip and limp, we decided to take a leap of faith and drive from McKinney to Austin to explore this option.
To our blissful surprise, even after our first session with the Mathis team at their Egocsue Clinic, we felt less pain and inspired hope. I learned that my lumbar problem was causing the right femoral nerve to cause my limp and that my right hip, knee and ankle were in distorted alignment, which had caused a chain reaction up and across my entire body. I was told that muscle repositioning could apparently create correct muscle memories, and I could, with dedication, return to a pain free life! We were each given an individualized plan for precise movements, called an E-cise Menu, and did them every day that we could. We were so encouraged by our ability to stand and walk for longer periods of time that we made seven more trips to upgrade our menus for more progress. A year later I was not only walking and standing with ease, but also had watched other less important pain disappear. I was so inspired by the Egoscue Method providing me a total body cure, not being just one more unsatisfactory treatment, that I decided to become an Egoscue Provider. I am honored to be a vehicle to lead others out of their pain as I was led out of mine. I welcome you to see the genius in Pete Egoscue just as my husband and I have gratefully seen.
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