STORY: Wouldn’t change it for the world
Cats: Heart of the Holidays, Stories|Have you ever felt that your life was over?
The life you loved, cherished, and had dreamt about–just blasted into a million fragments and scattered in the wind?
It happened to me one winter’s day. I was divorced with a nine year old son. We had been through some challenging times, emotionally and financially. But everything, finally, was coming up roses. I had landed a job at a Fortune 500 up and coming small company. Not only had I landed the job, but the company was so thrilled with my interview, to make sure that I was happy and would stay on, they were wining and dining me. A few weeks before I landed the job, as a hobby, I had signed up for a computer repair course. It, too, was going wonderfully and was a super outlet. Without the financial stress hanging over me, my son and my relationship began to flourish.
We experienced one of the best Christmases that we had ever had together in 1997. But just a few weeks later, my life took a disastrous turn. Walking out of my computer class one night, one of my fellow classmates, a 300 plus pound rugby player, unthinkingly picked me up (as rugby players do to fellow teammates), and before I could holler from the pain caused by his two powerful fists being thrust into my spine, he knocked the wind completely out of me. I was left with a spinal cord contusion and spent the next year in bed. It felt as though 150 volts of electric current were being shot down my legs–the pain of childbirth paled in comparison. Because of the excruciating pain, for the first two weeks I wasn’t able to eat and lost approximately 12 pounds. After that, each day was a sickening blur of pain and tears. My father, thankfully, stepped in and took over the care of my son. (My mom had passed away five years before.)
The days endlessly dragged, one meshing into the next. And, with every passing moment, I grew into deeper despair and depression. Suicidal thoughts crossed my mind. I didn’t want to die; I loved my son and had loved my life, but I so desperately wanted a reprieve from the pain, I was considering all my options.
At times, I could venture out of bed for brief periods. It was excruciating to move, but I did manage to get out and see doctors. At 33 years old, I was told that mine would be a life of endless, relentless pain.
Yet after about six months of lying in bed crying, something in me shifted. My dark, ominous depression grew into anger. I knew I wasn’t the only one suffering with chronic pain. One out of three Americans live in constant pain. And, before this injury, I had spent 20 years, on and off, with back pain. I made a pledge to find an answer. And, I made a covenant that if I did find a solution, I’d come back and help others. I literally went on a crusade reading close to 200 books and articles on the back, joints, arthritis, and on health in general. I also picked up the phone and interviewed over 300 physicians, chiropractors, physical therapists and other healthcare practitioners.
One day it hit me; I had a major epiphany! I realized that the majority of the medical community was missing the real cause and, for that reason, the simple cure of almost every single musculoskeletal ailment (back pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, tendinitis, arthritis, etc.).
It‚s been nine years since my injury. I‚m now a therapist and a self-published author. And although I’ve only sold a few hundred books (my marketing has been pretty much nil), I’ve had people come for treatment from as far away as Florida (I’m in Los Angeles). Presently I share an office, but I’m contemplating opening up my own. If I do, I’ll offer my clients money back guarantees for everything from back pain, to arthritis, to carpal tunnel syndrome, to foot problems (like hammer toes and plantar fasciitis), and for many other ailments. During that year in bed, I was blessed and fortunate enough to literally find the cause and solution to many ailments that plague our society–and I want to tell the world. My goal is Oprah!
This past Christmas, as my boyfriend (Steve), my son (John), and I hiked through Zion National Park, I stopped at a waterfall. I told Steve and John to go on ahead, and that I‚d catch up with them. I watched the crystal water cascading over the majestic cliff and land like feathers on rocks laden with ice and snow. I marveled at the similarities of the water free flowing over the cliff with no difficulty, just as my body now climbed the mountain trails with amazing ease–a body completely free of pain. On this marvelous Christmas day, it dawned on me that I’d never want to go through that nightmarish year in bed again–but I wouldn’t change it for the world.
I had and continue to touch lives in ways that make my heart sing. People come to see me, some sobbing and depressed, some even suicidal, because of their relentless pain. Some people have serious ailments like severe disk herniations and arthritic knees that doctors say need replacing. Yet I have an unbelievable success rate.
Little did I know that cold wintry day, nine years ago, when I thought my life was over, it was merely in a metamorphic state. Out of a cocoon of unimaginable pain, I am able to painlessly spread my wings, embracing others–helping them lead pain free lives.
–Sue Crossen, CMT/injury & Rehabilitation Therapist
Author: Back Pain Breakthrough and Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Breakthrough
www.healingresults.com
