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[Vagabond6542]

Well to make a long story short, The "Jetsons" haven't been riding since 2011. Many situations had come into the mix of life. Now the latest situation has put a real crimp on the future of riding.  The George and Judy riding team will have to put riding on hold again. George, a 72 year old, was hit with a "pinched nerve" in the lower back region that sent him to the emergency room at the hospital. This was approximately mid June. After loosing control of the right leg, and many visits to a Spine Doctor, which hasn't been fruitful, George is muddling through pain pills and working with various doctors and a Chiropractor to release the nerves from the pressure. ETA of a whole body again? Only time will tell. It damn near killed me. Lost over 16 pounds of muscle and flesh in two weeks.

So if you see us on the road again, I beat it. But I don't think the right leg will be the same due to damaged nerves.

Ride Safe everyone, and I hope this never happens to you.

[ultrafxr]

Terribly sorry you are suffering so.  Best wishes for speedy improvement and a full recovery. 

[Vagabond6542]

Thanks ultrafxr. I will post any improvements as they occur.

[GregKhougaz]

Sorry to read this.       Hopeful for your recovery!   

[Chains]

Hope you get well.

[2k]

Horrible news. Keep your head up and a painfree life is more important than riding.

[1sharprdkg]

Praying that you heal quickly.   

[Jock]

George,

I will lift you and Judy up in prayer tonight and be thankful for the riding opportunities we shared in the past.  Keep us posted and God Speed in your recovery my friend.

Jock

[RayG]

Really sorry to hear that,  the older we get the easier it is to sustain an injury and our age slows down the healing process to a crawl.  I have been fighting a total left leg issue that originates from my low back.  Had fusions in my low back and had C-3-C-4 & C-4 fused in my neck.  Long story short is I get to ride on a limited basis but the next day is a pay back for the previous day's activity if I push it to far.   I don't have it any where as bad as you do but I have some understanding of what you are facing.  Is their any hope for a procedure that may decrease some pain and allow you some additional range of motion?   That is a lot of weight to loose in such a quick time.  I hesitate to offer any advice but if you wish to have the info on programs that I took to help mange my daily life while living with pain that robs us of our quality of life let me know.  I can PM some info that was helpful for me to manage my pain and not let the pain manage my life.  Prayers & good wishes sent from our family.

Don't give up

Ray G.

[Vagabond6542]

Really sorry to hear that,  the older we get the easier it is to sustain an injury and our age slows down the healing process to a crawl.  I have been fighting a total left leg issue that originates from my low back.  Had fusions in my low back and had C-3-C-4 & C-4 fused in my neck.  Long story short is I get to ride on a limited basis but the next day is a pay back for the previous day's activity if I push it to far.   I don't have it any where as bad as you do but I have some understanding of what you are facing.  Is their any hope for a procedure that may decrease some pain and allow you some additional range of motion?   That is a lot of weight to loose in such a quick time.  I hesitate to offer any advice but if you wish to have the info on programs that I took to help mange my daily life while living with pain that robs us of our quality of life let me know.  I can PM some info that was helpful for me to manage my pain and not let the pain manage my life.  Prayers & good wishes sent from our family.

Don't give up

Ray G.

Ray G.

Being a Retired Field Engineer, I'm treating this body as a piece of biological equipment. That is if I don't loose my mental mindset to pain. I appreciate any and all info to combat this, Ray. In giving up, I have a stubborn nature that has changed over the years. It is what keeps me from looking for my .40 cal. I've seen 30+++ pain levels that would make grown men cry and wish something would make it stop. I'm not dead yet.

I thank you for your encouragement.

George (Vagabond6542)

[Vagabond6542]

George,

I will lift you and Judy up in prayer tonight and be thankful for the riding opportunities we shared in the past.  Keep us posted and God Speed in your recovery my friend.

Jock

Jock,

It has been a pleasure to have the riding opportunities we shared. I appreciate your encouragement in my recovery.

Ride safe, my friend.

[Tbone]

George, I'm sorry to hear of your health issues, prayers going out for a full recovery that will allow you to get back out there.

[RayG]

We are all going to reach a point in our lives where we will have to make some tough decisions.  Not long ago a well know couple on this site decide that the amount of pain medications among other obstacles led them to make the tough choice of hanging it up.  He still will post once in a while but he is missed by many on this forum.  I'm sure there are many others that have made similar decisions.  While I don't have it as bad as some I'll be 61 this year and due to a freak accident in 1986 I now take 4 (20Mg.) of Oxycodone with 1000 Mg of Ibuprofen.  Numerous surgeries for my neck, shoulders & overall spine conditions led me to believe that I would never ride again.  I took about 10 years off and was really depressed thinking it couldn't get much worse.  Then we lost a son when he was 21 and I have never recovered from that, just learned to take it day by day.  My wife strongly suggested that I take a course for depression, and another for just how much pain I was going to allow to take control of my life.  Since I was forced to retire in 2003 and with my wife working the idle time was not a good thing to have.  A man has to be busy, it cures all kinds of problems.   I was spiraling deeper & deeper and was very close to ending my misery when my wife said why don't you just go out and buy a Harley, you & my Dad loved to ride together.  She also mentioned if I remember right you & my dad were either riding or fixing something on your bikes.  I purchased the 08 SERK and now have 80,000 miles on it.  We all have limits in our lives that we have to bend to or we just break, no exceptions.  Now I'm blessed with Grandchildren that I would have never known if I continued with my poor life choices.  When it's physically or mentally impossible to ride I will call or visit the grandchildren.  An outlet is needed!

The course that I would recommend is "Managing PAIN before it Manages You"  by Dr. Margaret A. Caudill.  It can be found at many places and I'm sure there are many other programs.  It will help you understand the pain process.  Recognize factors that increase or decrease pain.  Reduce stress.  Learn effective problem solving, Learn about medications and their effects.  This was the big one for me, develop relaxation & exercise techniques.  Communicate effectively about your pain.  Set realistic goals, etc. 

This was difficult for me to write as I have a very difficult time expressing myself as words don't seem to find the same meaning from my brain once I type them.  You took the time to dig deep and open up so it made it easier to travel down this road.  We all have our crosses to bear,  wish you the very best and hopefully you can take steps even if they are baby steps to get you to a point where you are comfortable with your progress.  It's not how tuff we are it's how flexible can we be,  exhaust all means to get you in a positive frame of mind. 

God Bless

Ray G.     

[doublerunner]

Thank you for taking the time to post this very insightful reply. Glad you're still here and I bet the grandkids are too. Seems like you have a very special wife

And to the original poster I hope you are able to recover fully and get off those damn meds and ride again. Best wishes

We are all going to reach a point in our lives where we will have to make some tough decisions.  Not long ago a well know couple on this site decide that the amount of pain medications among other obstacles led them to make the tough choice of hanging it up.  He still will post once in a while but he is missed by many on this forum.  I'm sure there are many others that have made similar decisions.  While I don't have it as bad as some I'll be 61 this year and due to a freak accident in 1986 I now take 4 (20Mg.) of Oxycodone with 1000 Mg of Ibuprofen.  Numerous surgeries for my neck, shoulders & overall spine conditions led me to believe that I would never ride again.  I took about 10 years off and was really depressed thinking it couldn't get much worse.  Then we lost a son when he was 21 and I have never recovered from that, just learned to take it day by day.  My wife strongly suggested that I take a course for depression, and another for just how much pain I was going to allow to take control of my life.  Since I was forced to retire in 2003 and with my wife working the idle time was not a good thing to have.  A man has to be busy, it cures all kinds of problems.   I was spiraling deeper & deeper and was very close to ending my misery when my wife said why don't you just go out and buy a Harley, you & my Dad loved to ride together.  She also mentioned if I remember right you & my dad were either riding or fixing something on your bikes.  I purchased the 08 SERK and now have 80,000 miles on it.  We all have limits in our lives that we have to bend to or we just break, no exceptions.  Now I'm blessed with Grandchildren that I would have never known if I continued with my poor life choices.  When it's physically or mentally impossible to ride I will call or visit the grandchildren.  An outlet is needed!

The course that I would recommend is "Managing PAIN before it Manages You"  by Dr. Margaret A. Caudill.  It can be found at many places and I'm sure there are many other programs.  It will help you understand the pain process.  Recognize factors that increase or decrease pain.  Reduce stress.  Learn effective problem solving, Learn about medications and their effects.  This was the big one for me, develop relaxation & exercise techniques.  Communicate effectively about your pain.  Set realistic goals, etc. 

This was difficult for me to write as I have a very difficult time expressing myself as words don't seem to find the same meaning from my brain once I type them.  You took the time to dig deep and open up so it made it easier to travel down this road.  We all have our crosses to bear,  wish you the very best and hopefully you can take steps even if they are baby steps to get you to a point where you are comfortable with your progress.  It's not how tuff we are it's how flexible can we be,  exhaust all means to get you in a positive frame of mind. 

God Bless

Ray G.   

[kiro]

Indeed Vagabond6542 - wishing you less pain and a complete & speedy recovery. Nothing is more therapeutic than some two-wheel therapy I've found. No matter how tough it gets you can always fire up the bike as long as one's health allows it. Makes me disdain winter more and more as I age...