Living Life With Certain Exceptions: Being Disabled

One of the areas of my life I have referred or alluded to quite frequently but really have not elaborated on here is my physical situation...my disabilities. I am legally disabled with spinal and lower/upper back and shoulder damage, degenerative left hip damage and neuropathy of both feet/lower legs that more then likely was initially caused by a severe auto-accident I was in 33 years ago. 


For 25 years I worked with unimaginable pain and disadvantage...I just figured I had a bad back and did a very physically demanding job.  Over the years it really got bad and was obvious something was very wrong. I have had more surgeries on my back and feet then I care to EVER know...it would be too disheartening! I had worked my way from the factory floor at Herman Miller Furniture Co. into  various Production Management jobs before retiring officially in 2010 but retro back to 2005.


Today thanks to medication and therapy treatment I can carry on a fairly normal life though i live in considerable pain most every day. But I can walk and be fairly active as long as I am in a position to IMMEDIATELY shut things down when my body rebels!


Folks are often surprised to learn that I play golf and play frequently but that can be somewhat deceiving. I call it "Crippled Golf or CG for short because I modify the rules and the game toward my disabilities as I go. The Island I live on has a small (short) 9 Hole Course (Iyopawa Island Golf Course) so I live right on a lake AND a golf course.


I am a member and have my own electric cart so I will often go out but only play a hole or two. Sometimes I can't hit long shots so I place the ball and just play a wedge game, either way it is something I enjoy, I get exercise and some social time. I play most every day when I am not having an long period of difficulty. There are times I wake up and feel great but by 9 am I cannot really walk without a cane or sometimes at all. It is just a fact of my life that I have learned to live with.


I was used to living a very isolated life so getting out on the course has been healthy for me in several different ways. So that is my physical circumstance..there are days I can live like a fairly normal person (as long as I go through a lengthy stretching, yoga type routine that takes an hour every day and Other days I can't walk or function without a chair and a cane.


I've accepted the life but you never get used to it so I will admit there have been some psychological set-backs and I will elaborate on that part of what I call: "Living life with certain exceptions..." Until then....