Baby got back, back

It's been exactly 2 weeks since I had back surgery for an L4/5 disc herniation. And I think it's now ok to say that it's probably working.

No longer will I be washing a vicodin down with half a beer & bolt onto the congested beltway in order to go climb at the gym. BTW, according to one study mentioned in the NYT, this was not exactly an entirely dangerous practice. Still, I no longer have to worry about losing scripts & looking like a big fat loser (or skinny loser) poppin' that hillbilly heroin.

Silly talk aside, here's a synopsis of the story for the few fellow sufferers & others that might be interested.

-distant memories of:

• getting an X-ray at an ortho's in high school for back pain.
• being out for days in my 20's after tweaking my back from picking up a baby.
• being out for days in my 30's after tweaking my back from putting myself in a weird avoid-getting-hit-by-60mph-cars position after breaking down on I-270.

-recent memories of:

• constant intense lumbar pain & leg numbness before, but especially after, Tetons 07.
• not being able to stand up quickly enough to catch the good waves on my 1st ever attempt at surfing.
• having Bill Dudley play porter on Tetons 08 trip.

First I saw a family practice physician this past spring who ordered an x-ray w/ unremarkable results. I was told "you're just gonna have to say 'no' to some things". Incidentally, he is an osteopath & I did do one session of the touchy feely osteopath stuff. My low expectations did not budge. My thoughts on DO school for the future crept toward 'not-an-option'. MRI's aren't always what they're cracked up to be, but given the history & symptoms, I can't see why the family practice guy didn't order one.

After feeling that I missed out on making the most of surfing on Waikiki due to back pain (I didn't take any opioids b/c I didn't think it'd be wise to swim 'high'), I finally saw a spine based ortho in November. He is a mellow guy, not a rainmaker surgeon, as he's booked well into 2009. So I was taken aback at the words spoken upon his review of the MRI: "you're probably going to come begging for surgery w/in the next few months". After several days of contemplation and a surprisingly nerve-wracking epidural steroid injection that yielded zero relief, surgery was booked.

I climbed 5 days straight right up to the day of surgery. Surgery was 10am Tues 12/23. Got the heck out of the hospital by 6pm (the PACU people at Fairfax Innova were *great*). Had Christmas dinner w/ Charlotte & her family on 12/25. By 12/28 I felt good enough to discontinue all opioids & had zero numbness. Hiked the scrambly Billy Goat Trail on New Years' Day, sticking to the no bend-lift-twist rule by keeping my shoulders square w/ my hips.

I keep anticipating pain & still find myself bracing for pain before sneezing or coughing but I'm sure that sort of gating behavior will fade with time. Only the offending piece of disc was removed and that the remaining disc was left alone. Prior to surgery I asked if there was any way to sure up the remaining disc to prevent further reherniation. The ortho replied that he has not seen any difference in outcomes for discs left treated or untreated prioir to closure. In general, discectomies are more successful for relieving leg numbness/pain and less so for back pain. I was told there's a reasonable chance for more back surgery (disc replacement) in the *distant* future. Time will tell. Sooo thankful for decent health insurance.

One of the most reassuring & inspiring stories to me is that of Ed. He had an L5S1 laminectomy/discectomy in March 01, leaving him sad that he might have missed his chance at big mountains. Five years later he summited (& *dramatically* descended) Denali.

Here's to 2009 & beyond!!

So I am not a total slacker after all! (Thalassemia Minor)

I have always been slower when it comes to endurance activities... I doubt that I've ever run a mile in under 10 minutes in my life. I gave up trying to do that by middle school. Everyone, myself included, has always chalked it up to lack of training & preparation... in other words, being a slackass.

So I finally just came across this: article about Pete Sampras, who, like me, has thalassemia minor. Rumor has it he did not admit to this until after retirement, so that opponents could not stretch out matches to strategically tire him out. (Another athlete with thal minor is the midfield footballer Zinedine Zidane).

In a way the Sampras article makes me feel better because it explains why I am slower than most of the people I climb with, especially on the approaches. But it's a bit of a bummer in the grand scheme of things: it means that there will definitely be limitations when extreme endurance is required. It's like driving up a steep grade but your car has a smaller engine & only four cylinders... you have to shift into a lower gear sooner. It means I should look towards sport climbing or bouldering... as opposed to long alpine routes. Too bad I dislike bouldering & can only see sport climbing as a means to an end for building strength.

I also came across a study in the where it was decided to be legitimate medical practice to give epo to a Division I NCAA football player with beta-thalassemia minor. Since when was American football an endurance sport requiring genuine endurance?

I wonder if I'll ever want a climb so bad that I'd resort to epo injections & risk stroking out. At least I now have a legitimate reason to hire a porter for a long approach. But that still feels like cheating. Or can I call it aid climbing?

the crimson tide is optional...

... unless you have gyn/endocrine issues.

I normally wouldn't post anything this personal on a blog... but am doing so in response to various messages.

Google this topic (keep in mind there will be naysayers, like that silly person on NPR several weeks ago).

or check out NoPeriod.com and this video (it's a bit long & IMHO only gets interesting when she starts talking about the bears).

I've used Yasmin to dodge the inconvenience for years.

The same results can be accomplished with most monophasics BCP's like generic lo-ovral.

short SLAP repair video

this is a concise narrated video of a SLAP repair

I have a torn WHAT?

The issue that has kinda taken up my time lately has been this



in my right shoulder... damned gym climbing!!

After a month of physical therapy doing exercises similar to the ones found on this Climbing Shoulder Health article, my shoulder is still clicking... and I don't trust it. I wish I had been doing these exercises all along- perhaps it would have prevented it.

This animated presentation entitled SLAP Tears in Climbers describes it pretty well.
This other animated presentation has video footage of the repair procedure.

This collection, Anybody heard of a "labral tear"? has some laymen's anecdotes & comments about labral tears from people who have dealt with it.



149 days til MCATs



edit July 10 2007:
-I had a SLAP repair done on Jan 29, 2007
-Went to PT three times a week for 3 months
-Started back climbing during SUSHIFEST in UT on April 21st belayed by none other than Mal Daly who, without all 10 fingers & missing a foot, climbs 5.awholelotharderthanmostfolks.
-It's pretty much as good as new.