The Lasagna Incident has taken a toll on my back. The day was June 1st, and I was making lasagna. I was a bit sore from the previous day, when we visited the Royal Botanical Garden to view the flowers and tiny Bonsai trees. I had also dramatically increased my exercise in the previous weeks in preparation for our summer vacation, which included a lot of hiking. I bent over to put a lasagna in the oven when something happened; an odd sensation that foretold doom.
A quiet snap.
I felt it.
It was no big deal.
I was able to continue making a second lasagna, this one much bigger and included pizza ingredients. I love my pizza lasagna – I think it has much more flavour than a regular lasagna. I did notice I was getting stiffer and stiffer.
Still, I continued.
Lasagna made. Lasagna placed in the oven. Clecked many times. Removed lasagna from the oven. Dealt with the leftovers. Loaded dishwasher.
Getting more and more stiff in the back.
It was starting to get uncomfortable.
I have always had back issues. It is not unusual to have some sort of back pain or stiffness. I could go for a long hike, and then trying to get into the car is incredibly difficult (and funny) because I cannot bend and have to fold myself into the seat.
But this was very different.
I go to bed with no issues.
Sleep.
Sleeping.
Screaming.
SCREAMING AT THE TOP OF MY LUNGS!
I was in so much pain that I was crying out for help. I clearly scared Charlene out of her mind.
A doctor’s appointment and a physiotherapy session both concluded that I hurt my back.
Duh. I know that.
More specifically, I tore the muscles that attach to the spine and are used to lift my legs up. Torn muscles hurt like hell when trying to use them.
I struggled with this uncomfortable and inconvenient back injury. Another person suggested that maybe it was getting ready to snap, and it was only the lasagna that was the final push. Whatever the cause, I was hurting.
I had to skip out on a couple of days of work and was now doing these exercises to help heal and strengthen the back. It helped, but I struggled. I had to use a cane when walking. Going for a walk was comforting and accelerated the healing process. Sitting and lying were not fun in any way.
I had made plans to take Mom to Algonquin. Thankfully, I had three weeks to prepare for this challenge. I was walking daily. I was exercising hourly. I was able to continue working. I was planning how to complete the task of hiking and camping with a back that did not allow me to bend or get onto the ground. My biggest fear was falling since it would be excruciating to get up. Even bumping into a tree or stumbling over a root caused considerable pain.
But I had to do it. I had to do this camping trip because it was a week before our Summer Trip to Utah. I needed to figure out how to plan this weekend trip with Mom, so I knew how to plan this trip with Charlene.
I would have to say the Mom trip was a success. I was able to set up the campsite with only moderate difficulty and was able to do a lot of the hiking, but I was eagle-eyed on every step I took. I felt confident about undergoing the epic 11,000-kilometre, three-week journey through Canada and the USA.
That being said, confidence did not come easily.
Sitting is very uncomfortable when the back is injured. Any sudden, unexpected movement could and would cause pain. Not a little, annoying pain, but pain loud enough to cry out.
I purchased a back brace, which helped a lot in the car. Still, very uncomfortable, but it provided support. I needed to get up and walk around every couple of hours. I was surprised that all I needed was a minute or two of walking to settle things in my back, and I was ready to drive again for another couple of hours.
Getting in the car was a constant struggle. It took many minutes to position myself to get in. I had to bend my back and slide into the seat carefully. My left leg lacked the strength to lift itself, so I had to grab onto it and lift and pull it into the car.
Getting out was a situation that would cause pain. I had to pivot after opening the door. Slowly move my left leg out, while pivoting my entire body towards the door. If I messed this up, I would be in pain. I could not twist my back, not even in the slightest. The hardest part was standing. I would grab the frame of the car and pull myself up to a standing position. Once standing, my back would loudly protest, and I had to find a position that eased the strain on it, allowing me to stand.
It hurt.
But very slowly, it was getting better. If this were a marathon, it felt like I was one millimetre closer to the finish line each day. Although there wasn’t a lot of progress, I still celebrated this small achievement.
I discovered that my back brace was getting in the way while driving. Progress! I no longer needed it and felt great not wearing it. Until someone went through a stop sign, I had to stop hard. The pain was intense. I had to put on the back brace again for a few days to recover. It was devastating. I felt like that one incident did so much to reverse the progress I made. I felt as bad as I did weeks ago.
However, to return to the level of movement, it did not take weeks, but only days. I was happy that I was once again slowly, ever so slowly getting better.
We were hiking. Some of the hikes were a challenge. I had my cane to help my leg get over some of the bigger steps. I liked having this extra support.
I was starting to feel really good about hiking that I booked a challenging ranger-guided hike in Arches National Park. A cane would be a hindrance, and we had to confirm that we were both physically capable of completing the various challenges required. I decided to go cane-free while exploring Arches the day before our scheduled hike. My confidence was elevated to great heights when we explored the park without the cane. I could do almost everything almost as well as before my injury. Charlene and I both agreed that there would be no issues on our epic, yet difficult, hike that was scheduled for the next day.
Then my second back disaster of the trip.
I slept well.
Each night, I would position myself in bed. If I needed to get up or roll over, it required careful planning and execution. That night, all I did was roll over. That action tore through my back, and I was screaming once again in pain. It was so defeating to have gone so far in my recovery and abilities just to ruin it by sleeping well.
I had to cancel our hike.
That hurt more than the back pain.
It would be days of re-recovery to get me back to where I was. But each day, a tiny bit better. A tiny bit closer to healing and healed.
I would ditch the cane and back brace during the last week of the trip. Still, every time I got in or out of the car, it required slow and steady planning. Every walk required me to be very aware of the ground beneath my feet. Sleeping needed to be done carefully to avoid ruining my progress.
Then a miracle.
A minuscule moment in time, much like the original moment when I was making lasagna, but this time it indicated healing.
A snap.
A small bit of relief.
Something changed.
But it changed at the most offensive spot.
Right at the Canadian border, when we were just hours away from home.
Why did my back do this at this time, when all is said and done at the finale of our summer vacation and not weeks earlier? I really was offended.
It has been a week since we have been home. I am still uncomfortable. The pain has been replaced by a constant soreness. I can now roll over in bed almost freely, except for one position where I need to ease myself into it. I can stretch my legs without the urge to scream as I am doing it. I can get out of bed without a long and awkward method of kneeling, standing and resting before moving. I can now get in and out of the car so much better. Things dramatically improved when the situation at the border finally came into place last week.
Travelling with an injured back was exhausting, but I was able to do all but one of the destinations I had planned for us. I am thankful I had Charlene there to help me along the way and was able to enjoy our time together as we explored this fantastic, beautiful planet we live on.
