My Brother in Law is a Genius

Really.

Or I'm at least willing to bestow him with that status, given how good I'm feeling.

I'm a complainer, I admit it.  But I like to complain about little things and keep mum about bigger things.  I can rhapsodize about my annoying hangnail for hours while leaving out the part about the migraine.  So I don't think I've mentioned on the blog my chronic back pain.

It started....well, actually, I've always had a little twinge in my low back as long as I can remember, but just a general ache.  Definitely easy to ignore in favour of the pain in the neck caused by playing the baritone saxophone for years.   The real problem started when I was pregnant with the Boy.  The ache grew and grew until it was sharp stabbing pain.  The pain grew and grew until movement was a trial and a sneeze would leave me breathless.  Eventually the Boy was born and I thought the worst of the pain was over.

(After 2 weeks of back labour.  I don't wish that on anyone.)

But the pain didn't go away.  It eased a bit, and I've had good days and bad, but it's something I had resigned myself to living with.   I talked to my doctor.  I had chiropractic adjustments.  I had massage.  Nothing touched that pain.  In fact, when I saw BIL for an adjustment this time and he asked about problem areas, I flipped it off.  "There's the pain in my low back, but don't worry too much about it.", I said.  "Nothing fixes it."

I may as well have waved a red flag in front of a bull. 

He was going to figure it out. 

So he fiddled and he popped and he asked how it felt.  I said it was fine and not to worry about it.

(Truth? It hurt more than it did before he started.)

He just smiled and said it was time to roll over. (Apparently you can't lie to an old friend.) 

And then. 

And then, well he pushed on a muscle in my leg that had me torn between the instantaneous desire to scream, leap sideways off the table, or deck my old friend.

"A-ha" he said.

(This is where I called him a jerk.  In my mind.  I think.)

And then it gets a little hazy, because he kept finding MORE spots.  More spots that he touched and it felt like he was jabbing me with red hot pokers.  My focus became all about breathing through the pain and wondering how to convince him I was FINE and he just just let me LEAVE. 

But he didn't let me leave.  Oh no!  Instead he seemed to think it was a marvelous idea to grab the Thumper and work on all those lovely spots.

{whimper}

Eventually he was done and he let me up.  And I tell you that if he didn't have one of those nifty tilt tables I might still be lying on it.  I took a hesitant step forward and then had to pause while the world tilted.  Apparently I didn't have my land legs yet.  I walked and sat gingerly for close to an hour before I started feeling a bit more confident in my balance, which is when I finally noticed it.

No pain.

I could have kissed him.

All day, all night.  I felt like dancing a jig (if only I knew how).  I woke up the next morning and began to ease out of bed as I usually do...but I didn't have to!  NO PAIN!!! Take that!  More happy dancing.  I'm pretty sure I bragged about it to everyone who so much as looked at me. 

So.  Cured?  Not perfectly.  The pain did eventually come back (on the third day it rose....), but he fixed me again.  The CAUSE and the cure have both been discovered.  The cause?  Tight pelvic/leg muscles.  He could tell you which ones but anatomy and I aren't pals.  He explained it like those big power towers.  When you check them, you don't just check the structure, you check the guide wires.  And the guide wires aren't just on one side.  We'd only been checking one side.  Meanwhile, the other side has WAY too much tension.  So, we ease the tension, and the pain is gone. 

Genius.

If I lived closer this would be an easy adjustment.  Visit the office at least once a week for a couple of months until the muscles learn to ease off and then back off to regular monthly visits.  But....different provinces.  So I have a new percussion massager and I'm trying to work it out on my own.  If that doesn't work, well, I know who to call.  And I know what to tell any other professional I see.  The pain is MUCH less these days and I'm a happy girl.

That would be enough.  This post is certainly long enough.

BUT

While I was there, I also complained about my depression.  I decided to lay it at his feet.  He's Mr. Healthy Choices, take your vitamins, blah, blah, blah.  So, having taken Vitamin D faithfully all last year and STILL suffering from a nasty year of depression, I decided to educate him and let him know that Vitamins don't work.  And maybe ask him if he recommended anything ELSE I could try before winter (when I was resigned to seeing the actual medical doctor about some heavy duty drugs).

So, after thumping and before standing there was some testing.  Some testing that started out great (Hmmm...you don't need this.  Wow, you don't need that.  My body, it is AWESOME.) And then the Vitamin D. 

"Cole, you need 9 a day.  Now.  In the summer.  You'll probably test higher in the winter."

Oh.  Ha Ha.  I guess my one-a-day was less than effectual.

What's that quaint expression my Dad likes to use? Something about forest fires?

Apparently I cannot rail at him about the ineffectiveness of Vitamin D.

But there's more.

Vitamin B.

Did you know that it's important? 

Did you also know that if your body should fail to absorb it properly, bad things happen?

Bad things including depression, lack of energy, dizziness, shortness of breath, etc., etc.

Bad things that basically describe my state of being for about the last 4 years or so.

I'm now taking 5000 units a day. 

AND--every day is a great day.  Every day has me laughing at something.  Every day has me going around with a smile on my face.  Every day has me surprised when it's bedtime, because I'm not even tired!  Every day is a miracle again.

Every day except yesterday, since I started wondering if this was a placebo effect or psychosomatic or some such.  So I didn't take my vitamins for 2 days.  And I was right back into exhaustion, depression, anger, lack of patience, loss of appetite....it was bad.

So today? Today I'm taking my vitamins.  Because WOW.

Vitamin B.  Genius Brother in Law.

I have no idea what the proper thank you gift is, but he deserves 10 of them.

If you live in Ontario, I'd be happy to pass his name on to you.  And you will thank me.

Comments

[mil]

Congratulations, Nicole !! You are one of the few humans alive who are actually willing to change your direction with new information. Welcome to a new way of life. A mind once expanded by a new idea (or experience) never returns to its original shape. YAY !!!

[evalyn]

Good for you, Nicole!! I'm glad you found something that works for you and that it's making all difference in the world in how you feel everyday. Isn't that wonderful?

[Janine]

So happy for you! BTW, I've been taking Vitamin B for years, but found that Amazon Trade Company has a liquid Vit B that is amazing! It is easily absorbed, and I notice the same changes you did, more energy, happier. Right now I have to take their children's version, cause nursing and too much Vit. B don't mix (baby would be awake..all...the...time!) but it's still fantastic. I'm running on an average of 1 1/2 hours of sleep a night and still able to function.
Anyway, super happy to hear about your back. Now, if you wanted to come on out here, I'd be more than willing to teach you that jig...

[Cari]

Congratulations! I could tell your weren't feeling well at times, but didn't know what the deal was and certainly didn't want to pry. SO I"m so glad that things are better. May you have happy, productive and pain free days full of lasting memories form here on out.