I am writing today, not dictating. Although dictating is a lot easier, but I feel the need to use both hands.

Earlier this week I saw the surgeon, Dr P. He was very pleased with the progress and indicated that more physio was in order and the sling could come off today.

You see, just like Agent Smith in The Matrix: Reloaded, “I’m unplugged, I’m a new man!”. The sling is off, it’s been on for 41 days and it came off a few minutes ago. I did some physio, stretching and weirdly named exercises like rockets and elephants. All pain free, although my overall movement and range of motion is still only about 60%.

This week I start lifting weights again – but let’s temper that. The maximum weight I can lift is 2kgs. Nothing spectacular and certainly no deadlifts, squats or bench presses. That won’t happen until March or April next year. For the next six weeks or so I will continue to do rockets and elephants and an assorted of other exercises designed to increase my range of motion and get the shoulder back to full strength before stressing it under serious weight.

Me at work, making do with one arm.

The timing is pretty good as we go away in a week for five weeks overseas. Sadly Mardi will be the one standing at the baggage carousal lugging bags off and hefting bags into overhead bins while I stand looking a little helpless. I might don the sling again to avoid the accusatory glances as I let Mardi do the hard work!

It’s been a long six weeks wearing a sling with a support pillow attached 24 hours a day and I am so glad to be free of it. Although every week I found myself improving my adaptation and I became more adept using one arm for most things. Research suggests that it takes 21 days to form a habit, well I had double that, and yes, I formed some very good one arm habits. Humans are so able to adjust, maybe not as well as animals do, but our resilience certainly comes through when our circumstances change.

I remember eleven years ago, almost to the day, I suffered a massive detached retina in New York.

It was a massive setback with my useful eyesight. My left retina detached itself. When I say detached, it resembled a spinnaker in the Sydney to Hobart yacht race that has been shredded and torn from all points except one. It was a deeply harrowing and depressing experience. Here we were in the city that never sleeps, and we are first holed up in an eye surgery, then hospital, then I’m told to take it easy for 12 days and look at the pavement. In New York, you look up, the skyscrapers, the sights, the shops, the shows.

My wounds, all heeled. Scars remain

The good news was that I was in New York. My eye surgeon has said to me, on many occasions since that day, had I been anywhere else I would have lost the sight in my left eye. The New York-based surgeon was one of the best, if not the best, retinal surgeon in the world. I am forever grateful for what he did for me.

I also remember from that time my resilience. I just kept going. I started using more accessibility features on my phone, I bought a camera that allowed me to keep looking down, but by using the screen on the camera I could see what was ahead. I took some of my favourite and best shots in New York that year. Check them out here.

Yesterday I played a round of disc (frisbee) golf. Left handed. It was a bit awkward and I didn’t hit all of the fairways, but I competed. I adapted.

Sometimes we lament changes in our life, from broken limbs, detached retinas, changes in lifestyle as a result of career changes or family situations. But mostly we rebound, we learn new habits and over time what was once our normal becomes our normal again. We just need to lean in and get through the times where things are different, times where we feel uncomfortable. If the last six weeks have reinforced in me anything, aside from buttering toast one handed, is that human capacity to overcome knows no bounds.

Thats the end of this little saga. Stay tuned for our travel blog as we cruise North America.

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