Hi, James!  Recently you wrote in a message to Ardith Hinton:

AH>  You can't walk well?  That's okay... neither can I.
AH>  It's a great social leveller....  :-)

JB>  I really understand the value of courtesy more so
JB>  than before.


          Yes... it takes on a new dimension, doesn't it?  :-)



JB>  I may have given you the clinical definitions to my
JB>  situation, but perhaps I skipped the affliction? They
JB>  either nicked my sciatic, or cut into a muscle.


          Okay.  I'm no doctor, but it seems to me both are probably
repairable with time & effort.  You know those cans of corned beef
which come with a key?? I sliced the large knuckle of my right thumb to the
bone with one of them years ago.  Needless to say, I don't use the key any
more... I use a can opener!  For a long time afterward I had prickling
sensations in my thumb.  Maybe the nerves didn't get joined up precisely. 
When I had about 90% of the normal sensation I figured that was as much as
could be expected & thought no more about it.  Then I re-examined it
when you reminded me & my right thumb apparently works as well as my
left does now.  I gather you've made quite a lot of progress too....  :-)



JB>  Because I had only the dirt where I wanted it, I was
JB>  perplexed why I was not at all enthusiastic to prep
JB>  the beds.


          The mind can play tricks on us sometimes.  When Nora was in
treatment for leukemia I didn't have much interest in reading books.  I got
involved with Fidonet.  And eventually, the thought occurred to me that
apart from the social interaction... which I really needed then... there
was the matter of print size & message length.  I needed new glasses
but I hadn't realized it... [wry grin].



JB>  Well, either the nerve was firing when it shouldn't
JB>  be, or the muscle would just complain every time I
JB>  used it.


          The same thing happens with people who have had strokes... the
nerves may be hypersensitive and/or transmit inaccurate signals.  My father
told me he experienced cold as pain, for example, and Nora's
"startle" reflex kicked in at the slightest provocation.  Then,
when the muscles in any given area started to function again, they hurt. 
Although the reasons may be different I imagine the healing process occurs
in a similar way.  The brain & the nerves re-establish a connection,
but the muscles which are weak... maybe in part because others were
overused in an attempt to compensate... need to be exercised as well.  The
body has amazing abilities to heal itself.  Tincture of time is very
effective.  And you can help speed up the process, I think, by doing as you
have been.  You may find it difficult & painful to work in the garden
but do it anyway, and you are able to apply some of the insights your
sister has gained from Pilates....  :-)



JB>  "Here, try some of these." Oh, GREAT! I can do laundry
JB>  again. "But what about the cause?" Here, try some more."


          I'm with you there... it's important to address the cause.  But
since nobody seems willing or able to tell you what the cause is, you're
more or less on your own.  I must say this is starting to sound very
familiar too... (sigh).



JB>  I'm just starting to get around with any expediency on
JB>  a cane.


          Good for you!  And now you'll probably find little old ladies
taking an interest in you who hadn't noticed you before... that's what I
found when I was using a cane for awhile.  Older men would stop me on the
street to ask for directions & whatnot.  I found it amusing, but rather
flattering... [chuckle].




--- timEd/386 1.10.y2k+