My First Herniation

Over the past month, I've experienced an increasing numbness in my right foot. At first I thought it was a circulation problem. That thought then metamorphed into a support problem. I tried any number of things to relieve this problem: loosening shoes, buying new ones (which I needed anyway) and easing up a bit on exercise.

On Friday I consulted the local physician. I was apprehensive about this; no doubt my visit to the doctor would result in a lot of gesticulation. I wasn't sure if I could get the problem across to him properly, but thanks to some consultation, it went smoother than I anticipated.

I learned that it wasn't a foot problem, but a back problem.

Lumbar disc herniation.

Understand, I'm not in any pain. My particular type of herniation has resulted in foot numbness and a small amount of motor control loss. However, it does put me out of condition for a couple weeks, which puts a damper on the already limited exercise I was doing when the problem started to escalate.

The trip to the doctor wasn't without it's little needles: the doctor informed me I "need to lose weight and exercise", which is how the problem came about in the first place. When the problem first appeared, my workouts were approaching the two-hour mark.

I have a certain amount of bitterness concerning my weight which I didn't have before I came to Japan. Americans pretty much ignore what you weigh, prefering to talk about it behind your back and what-not or keep what they think to themselves. The Japanese, however, view weight as a conversation opener, as a chance to get to know someone. But I don't particularly want to talk to you after you've introduced yourself, poked my stomach and said "Looking a little fat, aren't you?"

That happens on a daily basis. Of course, the infuriation that comes is good for either spurring me on or pushing me into little bouts of depression. The upside to this predilection is that everyone knows when you have lost weight. This has been gratifying. Progress is being made.

But not for awhile. For the next two weeks at least, I'm exempt from any exercise.

I was overcome with a combination of anger and resignation as I left the doctor. I wonder if Ryan felt this way every time he visited the hospital. He seems a lot stronger now than I thought he was, and he was always a spunky one.