Surgery Day

Hello all. I expected to be able to send iMessages using wifi but we are having some technical difficulties with the iphone. So I'll try this instead. Hopefully this reaches everyone who wanted to know how the operation goes. If you know anyone else who knows me and would like to hear more about this experience, please share this with them. Thanks! The boring details are for anyone searching the internet to learn more about artificial intervertebral disc replacement surgery, in particular the M6 disc. As this is a relatively new procedure, there is a limited amount of information available to people who are at their wits end with chronic severe back pain and/or nerve impingement resulting from damage to discs, the squishy things that occupy the space between the vertebrae of the spine.

I will provide my background story in a later posting. For now, here's the important stuff. I am laying in a bed in my room at a hospital in Barcelona, Spain. Any minute now, nurses will come and take me to an operating room where Dr. Pablo Clavel, a world renowned neurosurgeon, will make an incision near my belly button to access my spine and remove what remains of my ruptured, dessicated, black L5/S1 disc. The space between the vertebrae will then be spread open to its original height and the beautiful shiny new artificial disc will be hammered into place. Earlier today, I got to play with a working model of an M6 installed between two transparent vertebrae. What an impressive little device. I'll try to post a video later. The clear vertebrae allows you to see how the spiked keels on the top and bottom endplates will bite into the bone to secure it in place. I imagine this will be the source of the post surgical pain that the staff keeps telling me about. They said the worst of it should be gone in 24 hours. I'm no stranger to pain, so I'm not too concerned about that part. Smooth seas do not make skillful sailors. Severe pain helps me achieve a very calming meditative state, which in turn helps me "turn off" the pain from within, and sometimes it even takes me to an entirely opposite place altogether. But that's a story for another day. I know a lot of people at home are worried about me, but please know that today is a very good day and there is nothing to fear. The past two and a half years have been challenging for me. I have been called a quiet fighter and a bit of a hermit during tough times...meaning that only one other person has had to witness how bad this has been, and she is laying on a sofa bed right by my side. Everybody seems to compare me to someone they know who has back trouble, but I must say that there is something very different about a disc that has slowly degenerated over time due to age, and one that was still big and cushy that was suddenly burst upon a violent impact. Much more material to smash into the surrounding nerves. Today is the day that I will be liberated from this burden. So don't worry, be happy. If there's anything you can learn from me it's that we all have the potential ability to confront any challenge and conquer it with a big grin. Put faith in yourself and the people around you, and there is nothing you can't do. A strong person doesn't put people down, he lifts them up. If you're going through tough times in your own life, just take a step back and look at the big picture. Look as far into the future as you must to be able to see the part of your life where the problem no longer exists, and steer your ship in that direction. Identify the root cause of the problem and repair or eliminate it. Simply treating or masking the symptoms of an issue in any aspect of life is ultimately a waste of time. Time is a gift that should not be wasted. We have the ability to exist not just in one single moment as an object in history, but as the captain of a miraculous ship that is steadily accelerating into the future. You get to decide where it's going. As long as you don't make too many waves that send other ships off course, you can take that ship anywhere you please. When you realize this, you can achieve total freedom. A free mind, a strong healthy body, and an adventurous spirit are the tools of the trade. Remove the ego from any situation and you can see all problems for what they truly are: opportunities for positive change. Once I wake up as a new mechanical man, I will work on getting the news out to everyone who wanted to be updated. I'll apologize now in case I miss anyone. Thank you all for all of the faith, support, and love. I love, support, and have faith in each and every one of you. "knock-knock, hola!" My chariot awaits.