Interlude with back manipulations – part trois

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July 3rd through the 18th

( Update: We’ve got motel reservations for Wednesday & Thursday nights; no need for Jeff’s camper. But there are firm plans now to ease back in.)

July 15th: As my second week at home winds down, I am itching to get my feet back on the path. The back is slowly stabilizing; key word here is “slowly”. 

Under the advice of my chiropractor, I went out on Thursday morning to Noon Hill Reservation with a 20+ lb pack to get a sense of how I’m progressing. To begin with, everything felt pretty good (with a 20 lb. pack, how could it not feel pretty good?). Debbie went out with me, and brought Ernie for his walk. We got up to the overlook on Noon Hill, then she took Ernie home while I continued on the peripheral path around the reservation. Things were good for about 45 minutes, then the shoulder started to ratchet up. After another 40 minutes or so, by the time I got back to the car, I was ready to finish up. It never got to back stabbing pain, but it was pretty uncomfortable by the end. I saw the chiropractor later in the day, and he expressed concern that progress was slower than our hopes and expectations. Progress has been made, though. And, during the latest visit, he was able to get a fairly major shift, so we’re both hopeful that we’ll see continued significant improvement. I’ll be out on the local trails this weekend with the weighted pack again. 

I’m also out with the dog this week, taking him for his daily walk most days. 

And I met up with my sister, Lindy, to pick blueberries up at the Blue Hills Reservation. So I’m getting outside, just not the kind of “getting outside” I’m used to!

Debbie and I are talking about getting me back up to Vermont sometime in the middle of next week. We’re exploring whether she can stay up there with me for a few days and support me by using my son’s camper, giving me a place to sleep at night, and helping with breakfast and dinner, so I can slack-pack. We’ll see if that is practicable.

More to come when I know more…