Ever win a bet.....

tonyb

.......and regret winning it ?

15 years ago, my Boss offers me a bet, one he knew I couldn't win but was designed to see what or how much I could do. Stupid as I was, I took a 100$ bet because I don't like when someone tells me I "can't" do something. You tell me I can't, I'll find a way. Just the way I am.....no matter how outrageous the task.

What was the bet ? In short, the bet was I couldn't do 2 days worth of work in one basically. He needed a job finished in one day that had 2, maybe 3 days worth of work left. This amounted to me, by myself, lifting approximately 40,000 lbs in one day, no help. Think about that for a second, the average car weighs what....3, maybe 3500 lbs. Do the math. Sounds impossible for 180 lb guy doesn't it. Also had to do it in 8 hours, no overtime. I did it in just over 7 hours. A record that still holds today within the industry....big frickin' deal.

That's the short version anyway, the real story is what happened the next day. I couldn't get up, raise an arm or leg. I felt like I broke my body in two. My back was fubared. Since then it's never really been the same. Fast forward to today. I go back to work a few weeks ago, my back is sore but then it's always sore. You learn to live with the pain, to a degree anyway. Go to work on a Thursday, off on Friday. I'm feeling fine, back seems ok, I cut the grass, no other heavy lifting all day. Saturday, I can't get out of bed. WTF....

Ever since that stupid bet, I knew I was on borrowed time with my back, just never thought that time would come so soon. Getting in to see a Doc, yeah right. They can see me in January. Had to call in my in-laws to get me an appointment with their Doc....Monday. He doesn't take new patients, but since we had met a few times before at the hospital due to my in-laws, he agreed to see me. I just want someone to x-ray my back and tell me wtf is going on. I kinda know wtf is going on, but I need options. Back surgery scares the crap out of me. Nobody wants to be that guy that looks like a statue the rest of their lives. I'll have to wait and see anyway what the options are.

Moral of the story ? To all you youngsters who think your Superman, don't be stupid like me. Stop and think, when tasked with the impossible or asked to do something beyond your means. It isn't worth the small monetary value, and certainly isn't worth your false sense of pride.

amulford

Yep, young dumb and full of...

Guaranteed that bastad had a big smile on his face when he gave you that Franklin, didn't he???

I've been there done that, too. Now I got two speeds. The one you see and FAAACK YOU!!!


The damage is done here, I am NOT aggravating it for ANY reasons other than to save a life...

drumminman

And you did all this manually, without a pallet jack or fork lift? Dang . . . . !

Sorry to hear about your back Tony. Back pain is one of those things that happens to all of us as we age, though yours sounds really bad.

Re: back surgery, think long and hard about that. Something like 50% of all back surgeries provide no relief or make matters worse. Glad you're getting in to see a doc, but get a 2nd opinion too before making your decision. In our medical model the specialist you see usually offers their specialty as the most effective therapy providing few alternatives. You know, if the only tool you have is a hammer you see every problem as a nail.

In the mean time, have you tried/thought about alternative forms of treatment such as acupuncture or chiropractic manipulation?

tonyb

Sure did Antny, saved him money in labor, he even got a bonus for bringing the job in on time to the tune of 5 g's. I got a paltry Franklin and a busted back.

Yeah, I thought about alternative measures, but I need an x-ray to see the extent of the damage first. Believe me, surgery will be the last option. I'm well aware of the risks involved and have many relatives that are living proof.

txcoastal1

I feel for ya Tony

When I was younger I was like a bull in a china closet, and crap catches up...you pay to play.

My mother has had 3 back surgeries due to working 30yrs in high heels and concrete floors along with moving heavy turn styles being a buyer for Sax 5th. Have they helped, in hind sight probably not...

There probably probably is no right answer.

I tell my guys daily...use a dolly, get some help, stop doing that etc etc...hard to instill what comes about in the future.

Best wishes for you

Phasewolf

I blew my back out when I was 16 I fell down the stairs at school. My legs felt like they were on fire and would fall out from under me at random. The nerve was being crushed so I went under the knife and lucky me it worked.

3 years later L4 blew out same pain so did the same thing and got lucky once again.

Now 20 years later my leg feels like it is on fire they are telling me this time it's L2 but I am doing physical therapy because I really don't want to risk being cut open. So far I have mixed results the pain is down somewhat went from a 9 to around a 5 maybe a 6 depending on the day. I have 2 more weeks left before I am done and then I will see what I can do I hope I can go back to work well see.

But trust me I know pain it sucks. You may want to try physical therapy before anything else it may help or do nothing for you but you most likely not end up worse for it.

tonyb

Thing is too, I wasn't young and dumb at the time. I was 40 years old. Ok, wasn't young, slightly dumb....LOL.

For those not in the construction business, every owner is somewhat of a Neanderthal. The business still relies heavily on manual labor....a lot of it, and nothing is light weight.

headrott

I'm sorry to hear of your back pain Tony. I'll be praying for your recovery and less pain.

I have had some back pain, but nowhere near what it sounds like you guys have experienced. I have dislocated both of my shoulders (both at the same time twice). My left I dislocated 13 times and my right I have 11 times. I have done it while backpacking twice. I had to hike back about 11 miles (both times) and then my brother and our friend drove me to the hospital to "reduce" it. That is pretty damn painful!

Take care guys, and I pray your pain is lessened.

tonyb

Maybe Keiko can fly over one of those Asian girls to walk on my back. Selling that to the wife may be an uphill battle however.
Doctors orders ?

Keiko....you own a white robe ?

polrbehr

A-hole bosses aren't worth the powder it would take to blow them to He77, IMO. At least he paid you in cash. Imagine if he offered you "spiritual currency" once you were finished???
You might be typing from Joliet right now...

EndersShadow

tonyb wrote: »

Maybe Keiko can fly over one of those Asian girls to walk on my back. Selling that to the wife may be an uphill battle however.
Doctors orders ?

Keiko....you own a white robe ?

Tony, Rick88 is stateside and might be able to provide a similar service :biggrin:

tonyb

polrbehr wrote: »

A-hole bosses aren't worth the powder it would take to blow them to He77, IMO. At least he paid you in cash. Imagine if he offered you "spiritual currency" once you were finished???
You might be typing from Joliet right now...

LOL....I hear ya, but it takes 2 to tango and I only blame myself. I could have said no...can't do it. My boss knew I liked challenges though, so did he play to that ? Of course he did, but in the end the decision was mine to make. Stupid things we do, even as adults, but I take the responsibility for my decisions, I won't pass blame.

The whole point of even bringing this up is to hopefully educate some younger than me of the perils of making stupid decisions. Granted, we all make them regardless of age, but the ones that can put your health and well being in jeopardy are the ones to be cautious with.

tonyb

EndersShadow wrote: »

Tony, Rick88 is stateside and might be able to provide a similar service :biggrin:

Yeah but Rick likes them a tad more......fuller ? Last thing I need is Rosie O'Donnell walking on my back. LOL

Just kidding Rick, I know you post some lookers.

EndersShadow

tonyb wrote: »

Yeah but Rick likes them a tad more......fuller ? Last thing I need is Rosie O'Donnell walking on my back.

She's reserved for the "deep, deep tissue" massages

tonyb

EndersShadow wrote: »

She's reserved for the "deep, deep tissue" massages

That's a PC way of putting it. Me, I'm not so PC.

She's simply reserved for making pancakes out of people.

Oldfatdogs

Hey Tony,now you guys lay off the big girls.They are my favorite type and can do amazing things for a back,just tellem to cowboy up.You will be better in no time.
Seriously I think most of us who have been blue collar workers have the same problems as we get older.I'm in the alternative meds crowd,acupuncture has helped me some followed by some Medical Marijuana Coma Cookies does the trick.Be sure to check the laws in your state.
Hope you feel better soon.
Dan

steveinaz

I did 28,000lbs in one day--about 8 yrs ago. had to process 400 Dell servers at 70lbs each---NOT PALLETIZED. Had to stack each and every one on pallets. I hurt for months.

40,000 is CRAZY, you old ****.

cnh

Best thing for your back is building core strength. I wake up stiff everyday, but once I loosen up I can lift whatever I want without ripping my back up, and I assume we're close in age! Also, some chiropractic adjustment might be in order. We had my father-in-law looked at by the guy, who I believe is the Chiro-guy for the Bears (so not too far from you, drop me a PM and I'll ask my brother-in-law if he still has the info?).

Back surgeries are scary, but I know a number of people who have survived them for the better. Depends on the Doctor and staff! That said, I would try EVERYTHING else before going under the knife. I see surgery as a last resort. I had my Achilles sewn together about 18 months ago and I still don't have a FULL calf muscle on that side. Looks like I need 6-9 months of intensive weight training to bulk up those very difficult to bulk up muscles!

But I do know what you're talking about. I remember being in my late 20s and helping a friend who had so much crap you wouldn't believe it, MOVE. There were three of us and a giant Uhaul. It took us 18 hours of non-stop loading and unloading to complete the move to a one story walk up. The next day I could not lift my left arm more than 1/2 way to perpendicular. The shoulder was all torn up and pained me incredibly. I couldn't even do ONE push up without extreme pain. This went on for two or three months. After a few weeks of that I began FORCING myself to do one push up a day, then two, then three, etc. No matter how much pain I was in. Fortunately I was young enough that whatever was torn healed and I eventually got back up to normal strength and movement. But I still favor that shoulder some until I warm up! After the warm up it's quite functional without much of a problem.

When you're young you do really believe you are indestructible but look at how many ATHLETES have had surgeries?

Get yourself some consultation, stretch and do as many sit ups of all kinds as you can. But NO full extensions on those!

A little Advil also helps!

cnh

brgman

Get an MRI to see what's up in there.Lucky for you it's much better these days.
Had my first lower back surgery in 85.Spent 4 days in the hospital and 6 months off work.
Second time in 2000 i went in at 6:30 AM and was home at 4PM.Out for 4 weeks.
Some days are good and then you go for a while with the pain and numbness.You learn to deal with it.
Next one they say will be the worst and told me to go as long as i can stand to go before i get it done.
Worst part is how limiting it can be.
I want to rearrange my gear and i keep putting it off because i know the day i spend doing it will take a week or more to recover.
Get the MRI before you see a chiropractor cux depending on what it is he can make it worse.
They won't touch me once they see the 2 eight inch scars.
Don't rule out surgery.It's come a long way.Just don't go fused discs until it's unbearable.It can kick open a whole new level of hurt by messing up discs that are good right now by putting too much load on them.
Hey,have a nice day!

tonyb

I'll update my situation next week after I hear what the Doc says and what the x-rays say. My guess is a herniated disc coupled with a few deteriorating ones. I've lived with it this long, but I'm not expecting it to get any better in the future either. In the back of my mind I know they will recommend surgery so then it becomes take the risk or put up with the pain as long as possible. Funny thing about constant pain, your brain blocks it out when your busy. When your not busy, it taps you on the shoulder and says "remember me ?".

nooshinjohn

tonyb wrote: »

Thing is too, I wasn't young and dumb at the time. I was 40 years old. Ok, wasn't young, slightly dumb....LOL.

For those not in the construction business, every owner is somewhat of a Neanderthal. The business still relies heavily on manual labor....a lot of it, and nothing is light weight.

I know the feeling bro... I ain't as good as I once was, but I am as good once as I ever was. Two years on the line at Subaru messed me up pretty good as well.

EndersShadow

nooshinjohn wrote: »

I know the feeling bro... I ain't as good as I once was, but I am as good once as I ever was. Two years on the line at Subaru messed me up pretty good as well.

So when you hauling dpowells 2.3's between rooms

nooshinjohn

EndersShadow wrote: »

So when you hauling dpowells 2.3's between rooms

That led to surgery to repair a bi-lateral inguinal hernia, and 6 weeks of the worst pain I ever went through to recover from it. during that time however, I was able to complete my amps and drive them up to Bob's place. I guess the end result was worth all the "labor" pains.

steveinaz

"I ain't as good as I once was....." LOL!

nooshinjohn

steveinaz wrote: »

"I ain't as good as I once was....." LOL!

....
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brgman

nooshinjohn wrote: »

That led to surgery to repair a bi-lateral inguinal hernia, and 6 weeks of the worst pain I ever went through to recover from it. during that time however, I was able to complete my amps and drive them up to Bob's place. I guess the end result was worth all the "labor" pains.

I smell a lawsuit!!!

Face

An x-ray isn't going to tell you much, an MRI is needed to fully investigate any back or neck issues.

heartystatue

Exactly what face said^^^^^^. I was in my early 20's when I hurt my back and I Knew I hurt it. I had an x-ray and they said they didn't see anything wrong. They wanted me to stay off my feet for a week and take pain pills. I was popping demoral like scooby snacks and finally had a mylogram done. No fun there. As soon as the dye was put in they said holly crap you have 2 herniated discs. They went back to look at the x-ray and said it didnt show up. I had surgery 2 days later. Was 100 percent better in 90 days. I wished they had MRI's back then. I feel for you. I think you can go to your regular doctor and he can order an MRI for you and see if your insurance will pay for it. I wouldnt wait too long either. Just get er done. Good luck to you and please let us know how it turns out.

Jhayman

I really feel foolish then, my first job out of high school was working for a bakery supply company and I routinely lifted 30,000-40,000 lbs of product and delivered it into the bakeries most were hand bombed in i.e. Manual labour now I had a partner but if he did not show up it was all me as it was the driver..
That included building the skids and loading them into the trucks after your daily deliveries...
The owner used to treat us guys to beer and dinner almost every night, I guess that was cheaper than a $100 bet every day for 8 years, lol
Yes I stayed there for 8 years doing that job, now in retrospect I think it was because my father new them and got me the job in the first place I guess I did not want yo let him down..
Now roll ahead to today's date and all the issues I have with my knees and back and shoulders are all because of that place..
Every 2 months I get an ablation done on my thigh because of nerve damage ..
Something dumb we used to do was jump off the back of the truck with a 100lb bag of flour on our shoulder or pick up 2 bags at a time to bring into the bakery..I was such a DUMBASS
Anyway Sorry Tonyb for all your pain your having again it just never seems to go away..

westmassguy

Tonyb, I hope all work out for you, and you get some relief. My back has been a problem since I was 16. I foolishly decided to be a good Samaritan, and help my neighbor with her stuck garage door. Since then, it goes out performing some of the most mundane tasks. What I find most interesting, is that people who've never had chronic back pain, don't understand how debilitating it can be.

tonyb

Jhayman wrote: »

.......it just never seems to go away..

Yes Sir, you have that right. You learn to live with it. Seems a lot of us have this in common. More than I thought anyway. Maybe that explains why we men as we age get cranky.