While extreme pain could slow a person down, it can also cause him to fall upon his knees in order to seek help from the Lord...
And this is what has happened to me.
In my journal entry "Known by God" I briefly mentioned the lower back and sciatic nerve problem I recently developed. I awoke one morning in September and found myself barely able to walk. A visit to the prison's Infirmary, however, amounted to my being given a handful of Tylenol pills. The nurse thought, and so did I, that I had probably kicked my right leg against the wall in my sleep and subsequently injured it. Wrong!
As the days went by the pain continued. So I returned to the Infirmary. More Tylenol was administered, but this time with instructions to "Take it easy." Nothing! While still another return to the nurse's office days later caused her to redirect me to see the facility's doctor. The doctor, after looking over my condition, promptly ordered x-rays.
The results of my x-rays, which came back a couple of weeks later because they were sent to an outside hospital to be reviewed, revealed a diagnosis of "osteoarthritis" and the loss of bone density and cartilage (Degenerative Joint Disease) around the hip socket and the "lumbar" area of my lower spine. In other words, aside from the fancy medical terminology, I'm getting older and various body parts have begun to wear out.
Now, unfortunately for me, I'm in constant pain. Walking, sitting, sleeping, it makes no difference. The area involving my lower back and right hip, in addition to almost my entire right leg from the hip to just above the ankle, is on fire.
Nevertheless, despite my situation, I still have to work full-time cleaning the showers and stalls. I'm also busy with the chapel services and Bible studies. No work restrictions have been placed on me, and I want to stay active. My only reprieve, though, is to lie on my side whenever I can get to my bunk. This way the pain eases a little, but not by much.
The worst drawback to my medical condition, however, is that I can no longer "walk by faith," as the Bible says to do (II Corinthians 5:7). Instead I must limp by faith, at least for now.
D.B.
In my journal entry "Known by God" I briefly mentioned the lower back and sciatic nerve problem I recently developed. I awoke one morning in September and found myself barely able to walk. A visit to the prison's Infirmary, however, amounted to my being given a handful of Tylenol pills. The nurse thought, and so did I, that I had probably kicked my right leg against the wall in my sleep and subsequently injured it. Wrong!
As the days went by the pain continued. So I returned to the Infirmary. More Tylenol was administered, but this time with instructions to "Take it easy." Nothing! While still another return to the nurse's office days later caused her to redirect me to see the facility's doctor. The doctor, after looking over my condition, promptly ordered x-rays.
The results of my x-rays, which came back a couple of weeks later because they were sent to an outside hospital to be reviewed, revealed a diagnosis of "osteoarthritis" and the loss of bone density and cartilage (Degenerative Joint Disease) around the hip socket and the "lumbar" area of my lower spine. In other words, aside from the fancy medical terminology, I'm getting older and various body parts have begun to wear out.
Now, unfortunately for me, I'm in constant pain. Walking, sitting, sleeping, it makes no difference. The area involving my lower back and right hip, in addition to almost my entire right leg from the hip to just above the ankle, is on fire.
Nevertheless, despite my situation, I still have to work full-time cleaning the showers and stalls. I'm also busy with the chapel services and Bible studies. No work restrictions have been placed on me, and I want to stay active. My only reprieve, though, is to lie on my side whenever I can get to my bunk. This way the pain eases a little, but not by much.
The worst drawback to my medical condition, however, is that I can no longer "walk by faith," as the Bible says to do (II Corinthians 5:7). Instead I must limp by faith, at least for now.
D.B.
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