Patricia’s Side Effects

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ContributorPatricia, 62Read Full Bio

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Patricia, 62, simply went to throw a tissue away and felt a pain so sharp she fell to her knees. She could not walk for two weeks. She had a herniated disc and numerous surgeries since. She also has severe osteoarthritis in her spine and rheumatoid arthritis.

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ContributorPatricia, 62Read Full Bio

Biography

Patricia, 62, simply went to throw a tissue away and felt a pain so sharp she fell to her knees. She could not walk for two weeks. She had a herniated disc and numerous surgeries since. She also has severe osteoarthritis in her spine and rheumatoid arthritis.

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“The recovery process is very humbling”, says Patricia. She had to wear a back brace for six months and needed to rely on people to help her if she dropped a bar of soap in the shower. Patricia loved to bake. By moving her baking equipment she was able to continue to do what she loved and have a sense of accomplishment during her lengthy post-surgical recovery.

Being a patient at home, I always find more difficult because there’s things I can do, or I think I can do. I wasn’t supposed to pick up anything heavier than a coffee cup for six months. Six months, I didn’t drive, I was in a big brace that not only went around my back and my abdomen, but also locked up one leg so I walked like Frankenstein. I left my ego behind a long time ago with those sort of things. You drop a bar of soap in the shower, you gotta scream for somebody to come get if for you because even with your grabbers, you can’t pick up the soap. So, it’s humbling. It’s very humbling.

And, when I was in that brace for six months, I had my husband move the mixer onto a certain part of the counter. As soon as I could, probably only about three weeks into recover, I would bake. And, I was baking an angel food cake so the batter’s light, the pan’s light, there was nothing that I couldn’t do. It gave me a sense of accomplishment. If all I could do is bake that cake that day, great, you know, it’s a good day. And, it helped me emotionally. If everything’s gonna be taken away, you know, gotta have something. And, I need to feel like I’m participating, that I’m learning, that I’m moving on. I’m not the sum of my back surgeries.

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