by Melanie Wood

Created on: December 08, 2008

It seems like yesterday when I was a high energy 60 year old, working full time, playing tennis weekends and evenings. I was a National Tennis Champion at 56, and I loved to to on hikes up Mt. Tamalpais, down to the Pacific Ocean then back, several hours of extreme walking. I toured Wine Country roads on my bike . I could garden all day and dance all night and do housework whenever I needed to! Life was good.

Due to one of lifes double whammy plays, I was debilitated by an accident. The resulting X-rays and MRI revealed I had painful bulging disks, and pinched nerves from the accident. I had age related degenerative disk disease of the spine; arthritis of the spine from neck to pelvis, then from the pelvis down through my hips, and for a final touch, in my right ankle.

After I read the reports, I asked my doctor what scoliosis was. It had been listed amongst the other issues of stenosis and such. He said I've lived with the condition from birth, a 24 degree spinal curvature on my left left side, making my left leg shorter, throwing my weight and balance all off. He believes that this scoliosis is the root of most of my skeletal issues and says I should have been in a body cast as a child. Well, I've lived very well with this unknown handicap so this may be simply a case for positive attitude.

I found I can't function with prescription pain killers, but epidurals were very beneficial. Yoga helps grease up my arthritic joints so I can then do some gentle exercise. I turned to magnets, which I had foo-fooed for years, when relatives started trying to sell them to me. I bought a magnetic bracelet on line, and immediately felt like I could cut down considerably on doses of the OTC pain reliever. I started taking longer walks, then sometimes go for hours then "good" days without any medication. I have begun an acupuncture series on the advice of my Doctor and so far so good.

The fact is, I am now much better, although I now have to plan my activities carefully or else I will pay dearly. No more tennis or hiking, but I'm getting ready to get back on my bike. Gardening is done on a catastrophy basis, and housework is a lousy series of choices: do I load/unload dishwasher OR do I try to vacuum; shall I do laundry, OR cook. I'm down some on my weight again, and my stamina is coming back. Most of my core muscles are gone, but my legs remain strong so I'm working on upper body weight training. I want to get back to where I left off for cardio purposes.

I've had a heck of a ride with this beat-up body and feel like I want to give it the benefit of everything I can do, after all, my Grandpa lived independently until he was 106. Placebo effects are scientifically proven to work. Yoga, acupuncture and magnets all claim to move and/or disperse energy; Quantum Physics? sorry, it's way too big for me to understand, energy, vibrations and all that. Voo Doo? I suppose I'd have to read up on that theory and find out who stuck pins into my image. Meantime, I'll continue to use magnets,yoga, acupuncture and exercise, and will explore any alternative treatments because I simply prefer not to hurt.

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