pause

so what happens when the brakes are suddenly applied on a life apparently going full steam ahead? i guess one pauses and takes stock. that is what i am doing now.

six weeks ago i suddenly developed excruciating pain in my left arm with numbness, discovered i had a prolapsed cervical disc, and needed surgery. after three weeks of 'wait and see' that is the normal practice (many such pains resolve themselves with rest and pain killers), i was operated on at vellore last month, just over three weeks ago.
the pain is gone, and i am eternally grateful for that. my left arm is weak with numbness persisting, and i go for physiotherapy daily, and i am glad to say that the strength in my arm is returning gradually.
one of the complications of neck surgery is nerve damage - a small percentage, but i was one of them. now one of my vocal cords is paralysed. my speech is soft - i cannot talk loudly, my voice sounds different, i have difficulty in coughing. after talking for a short while the volume becomes much lower and i have difficulty making myself understood. i am also undergoing speech therapy, and my voice is stronger than before, but i am told it will take months to really improve.

so it is off bad and bumpy roads for me for some months at least, which rules out field visits for now. my other work - that of training - has also to be put on hold for some time, and when i do resume, it has to be with a microphone always.

why did the disc prolapse happen? no one knows for sure why some people get it. twenty years of traveling on bad roads or no roads may have contributed, said my surgeon.

time to take stock.