My adventures with my back began with a sneeze. In 2006 I was mowing my parent's yard when I felt a giant sneeze coming on. I bent over and let it blow...and blew out my back. I remember crippling pain that sent me to the ground. Back spasming, I had to crawl to the house. No one was home and after laying on the floor for an hour, I managed to write a note to my parents explaining a partially mowed yard before painfully (and probably dangerously) driving myself 45 minutes to my apartment. Several visits to the doctor, some misdiagnoses, three shots in my spine and some physical therapy later, I thought I was all better.
In November, 2010, I felt a dull pain in my lower back. Ignoring it, I managed to make it through Christmas before crippling pain became my life. During my time at home I used the internet in desperation. I was desperate with questions, seeking solutions and stories. Unfortunately, this was a lesson: the internet was not my friend. There is so much information, scams and ill advice out there. Mostly I had been looking for other people's stories. I wanted to connect and sympathize, I wanted to read about successes and I needed some hope.
A friend suggested I put my story out there. No advice, because everyone's stories are different. No preaching, because gods know that doesn't help when every hour seems the bleakest. Just my experiences as I remember them and how this experience has fundamentally changed my relationship with my body and how I hope to move forward.
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