Many people suffer silently with severe back pains that prevent them from performing simple, everyday activities like going for walks, climbing stairs or as in the case of Luke (not his real name), from indulging in his hobbies of painting, calligraphy and gardening.

Two years ago, Luke was unable to enjoy his hobbies without feeling bouts of back pain. Now, at age 80 and after making the right decisions, he is enjoying life once again.

When he first walked into the Orthopaedic surgeon’s clinic, Luke had no social life due to the constant stabbing pains he was enduring. It even got to a point that his neck and shoulders started to bother him.

In fact, he also felt his hand muscles were weakening and he was having difficulty walking. At that stage, he knew something was amiss, considering how he was a healthy and active person in his youth.

Following initial CT Scans, MRIs and an X-Ray, he was required to go through a surgical evaluation. There, he learned the severity of the problem; his C3 and C5 vertebrae discs were pressing against his spinal cord.

He was told that without spine surgery, his condition would worsen and that he could lose the use of his arms and legs. This prompted him to go through with the surgery immediately.

In Luke’s case, he felt numbness and tingling in his arms that travelled down to his fingers, causing problems for his overall fine motor skills. He also experienced shock-like sensations running down his body to his legs, making it painful to walk for more than 15 minutes.

Nonetheless, Luke was determined to find a way to deal with any pain after the surgery and to heal quickly. For him, it was important to prepare his body and mind.

With that, Luke focused on what he would gain, instead of fearing the surgery itself. To his surprise, his positive outlook was rewarded, when he experienced zero pain, even after surgery.

Over time, Luke began gentle exercises as prescribed by his physiotherapists, something he credits as a crucial part of his post-op recovery.

Although he didn’t feel like performing the exercises, he was encouraged by the progress he made through physiotherapy and walking, both key activities that made him stronger and heal quickly.

Over the course of his post-op recovery, he sat no longer than 40 minutes at a time and performed the exercises as instructed by the physiotherapists several times a day.

By the second week, Luke was able to walk off his stiffness and started to regain his muscle strength which was lost due to a lack of use when he was suffering from back pain.

Another key component to his recovery was that he attended massage therapy sessions three days a week, a final step towards regaining his normal life again. In his heart, Luke knew he had made the right decision to seek out treatment for his back pain.

From his determination to work on his recovery with his physiotherapists, to his positive outlook on the whole issue, Luke had the right attitude to recover from his nagging back problems.

Thanks to that attitude, he has now regained his hand function and is happily back to his painting, calligraphy and gardening.

TELEME Healing Life Stories is a collection of inspirational stories of how ordinary people triumph over their health conditions and recover to lead a healthier life after that. Feel free to email [email protected] to share your story.

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