A Pain in the Neck

First off, I can't stress enough that this was an accident. DW wasn't looking to take me out.

Almost three weeks ago, as we were putting our kayaks away and cleaning out the car, after a lovely paddle along Jones Creek, just off the St. Lawrence Seaway, DW was closing the rear hatch of our Nero, not realizing that I was still in the path of that hatch door. We usually give the hatch a good tug to ensure that is closes securely, and DW put some effort into it.

It came down on the left side of my neck, near the base, where the muscles connect to those that stretch over the top of my shoulder. Fortunately, the door didn't come down on my head, or this would be an entirely different story.

Ever since this incident, I've felt pins and needles from just below my left ear, radiating out to my left rotator cuff. Sometimes, the tingling is strong but it has been constant. I've also found it difficult to get into a comfortable position when I go to bed, and I am continuously tossing and turning.

Luckily, I have full range of motion in my arms and the injury has not affected my ability to get in my kayak, though sometimes my neck has felt stiff when I try turning my head.

Last weekend, DW and I decided to go to Bonnechere Provincial Park to paddle the river and possibly Round Lake. And it was convenient, too, as Kid 2 was in town but needed to make her way to a friend's cottage, which is on Golden Lake.

We dropped her off without the need of a detour and were in Bonnechere Park 20 minutes later.

But when I got out of the car at the provincial park, I noticed that the left side of my neck was particularly stiff and I was experiencing pain. It was all I could do to avoid screaming as we set up our campsite.

Our campsite.

Yes, our outing involved overnight camping.

With our campsite set up, I found some Advil and Tylenol in our medicine kit in the car, and I took a couple of each. We had our lunch while I waited for the pain drugs to kick in but they didn't. With our camp site set up, I already wanted to go home.

DW suggested that we soak in Round Lake. Perhaps the cool water would help ease the pain. And, it actually did. We waded out past the beach buoys, which marked out a shallow swimming area, and it wasn't until we were a couple of hundred metres from the shore that we were up to our shoulders. I bobbed in the water and let the cool water and my buoyancy help with the pain.

Unfortunately, once we were out of the water, the pain returned. I suggested that we returned to our site and that I lay down for a bit to rest my neck, which was aching even more.

While I rested, DW drove to Barry's Bay to find a pharmacy. When she returned, she had muscle relaxants, ointments, and heating pads. I slathered on the ointment, popped a couple of the muscle relaxants, and washed them down with a strong margarita.

I then had a second margarita.

I told DW that I was afraid that I wasn't going to be able to kayak, that we had made this trip for naught. I was also a bit depressed, thinking that the injury might prevent me from kayaking until the damaged muscles healed.

When the drugs and alcohol took effect, I called it a night, even though the sun hadn't yet set. I remained knocked out until just after 7 the next morning.

And thankfully, the pain in my neck was gone. The pins and needles were still raging but the debilitating pain had subsided.

I popped two more muscle relaxants and we got in our kayaks while the going was good. (I'll have a video of that paddle on Monday.) I was able to paddle 12 kilometres without any problem—we even played in some small rapids.

Pain free... for the moment.

But when we got back to our campsite, I could feel the pain in my neck returning. Before it got too bad, DW and I tore down our campsite and loaded up the car. And not wanting to be doped up for the drive back to Ottawa, I placed one of the heat pads over the affected areas.

By the end of the weekend, the pain had once again subsided but the tingling numbness continued. I made an appointment with my doctor and was able to get a referral for physiotherapy yesterday. Now, I just wait for my physio appointment.

As we head into this weekend, DW expressed an interest in going camping again but I said no. First, I don't enjoy camping anymore but most importantly, I don't want to risk finding myself in the same predicament as last weekend.

While the pins and needles is troubling, it's not as bad as the pain in my neck. I really want to get out and paddle, this weekend, but I think we'll stay closer to home.

This injury has also put me in a foul mood, keeping me from posting much on social media. If you follow me on Bluesky, you may have noticed that I haven't been online for most of the week: I've neglected my morning greetings, my random photos of the day, and my evening signoffs.

I even lacked the energy to write a couple of blog posts this week. I just haven't been in the mood.

Hopefully, when I meet my physiotherapist and we get to the root of the problem, and we can make my neck better, so that I'll sleep better and be able to get back to my regular activities.

Wish me luck.

Wet Sponges and Suction Cups

It's not as kinky as you would think. But it sucks, it tingles, and it makes me feel good.

At seven weeks, it's been the longest period that I have gone with a bad back. Six weeks of physiotherapy, two massage-therapy sessions, and one bad experience with acupuncture. Overall, I know I'm getting better, but there are some days where I feel a setback.

It's usually my fault, something that I did to aggravate my back: I lift something too heavy; I attend a spin class before my body is ready; I sit funny; I walk far too long, usually with my camera bag strapped on my back.

That's the hardest one. I take my camera bag almost everywhere. I've participated in a photo walk through an icy mine; I've walked on the Rideau Canal; I wandered all over Québec City, for Carnaval, have ridden a rickety toboggan run and bounced down a snow slide in an inflated tube.

All with my camera equipment slung over my shoulder, pushing against my lower back.

I need to be smarter, need to be more selective of the equipment I carry. I don't always need to carry both flashes—sometimes, not even one. I need to think about where I'm going, what I plan to shoot. At Carnaval, I didn't need my telephoto lens, didn't need my micro lens. I only used my 50mm prime and my 10-20mm wide-angle lenses.

I could have cut the weight of my camera bag in half.

I need to be smarter. When I head to New York City, in a couple of weeks, I need to think about what I need and leave everything else behind.

Because as much as electrotherapy vacuum units feel good, as the current penetrates deeply into my muscles, as much as I like how I feel when I walk out of the physiotherapy clinic, wet sponges and suction cups are not what turn me on.

I want my pain-free back... back.

Prickly Situation

For a couple of weeks, I have been receiving physiotherapy for my lower-back pain. With this treatment, I am gradually returning to normal—I think.

I love the TENS unit: the electric current numbs the pain and relaxes the muscles.

The ultrasound further eases the tension, and apart from the smooth device moving over my skin and the cool gel, I feel nothing during the treatment.

There are doughnut-sized suction cups that are filled with damp sponges, connected to a machine that, like the TENS, sends an electric current over my back. I can control the intensity, and I turn it up until it is almost painful, but when it's done, I feel great.

My physiotherapist has provided exercises to move the slipped disk back into place and to strengthen my core muscles. He massages the muscles and gently manipulates my vertebrae, ensuring that everything is where it's supposed to be.

But yesterday, he tried something that, in a nutshell, I just didn't like: acupuncture.

DD11 made me remove my moles and smooth my skin. I drew the line at removing the hair. The red is from a heat pad.

I have friends that swear by this ancient form of pain treatment, and I'm truly happy for them. But here's why it's not for me.

I don't like needles: I can get a shot and I can give blood, but I don't like the prick and I cannot, under any circumstances, watch somebody stick one in me. But I had 12 needles placed into my back, at the same time, and they were left there for more than 15 minutes. I could feel them the entire time, and I did not like the sensation.

I tensed up with the first needle, and by the time the twelfth one was in me, my back was one firm piece of meat, and it never settled down. I felt as though I had flexed my back and it had become stuck: even after my physiotherapist had removed the needles, my back remained tense.

When the TENS unit and other devices are used, my muscles may spasm through the treatment, but I experience no pain and when the device is removed, my back feels good. With the acupuncture needles out, my back was sore. It remained sore through the rest of my visit. It remained sore on the drive home. It remained sore through dinner, Dragon's Den, and The Book of Negroes.

Writing this post, my back hurts.

My next visit to the physiotherapist is tomorrow (Friday). I look forward to the TENS unit, the ultrasound, the suction cups. I happily anticipate the massage and spinal manipulation.

Acupuncture, not so much.