Life begins at 40... Apparently...

It's been 4 weeks since the accident and 3 since the cage was fitted so I thought I'd fill in the blanks since my last update.

Out and about
I've managed to get out for a few short-ish trips, mostly accompanied but once on my own.  Leisurely strolls around the park and trips to the pictures to watch the new Bond film have been fine, but I'm less keen on busy areas.  I had the pleasure of turning 40 yesterday so managed to lure a few mates to the local for a few drinkies.
It's been good to get out, but I'm quickly finding my limits; I become tired quickly, so I'll be OK for a while and then suddenly feel the need to be home again.  I also find I'm quite achy after trips out too, I suspect I'm attempting turn my neck more (which obviously I can't do) which is slightly aggravating things.

Entertainment

Lots of friends have visited and kept in touch over the internet, which has been great.  There haven't been many days where I've not had contact of some form with the outside world.

I'm ploughing through the Sopranos box-set (I'm typing all this with an American-Italian gangster twang) and have more than enough Netflix and DVDs to keep me occupied.  I've also rediscovered the neglected-of-late Xbox 360, with Diablo 3, Fifa 2012 and Driver: San Franciso helping to pass a few hours.

Recovery

The pain in my head has largely gone now; the screws are still tender but I suspect that's how it will be until they're removed.  At the time of the accident I was focussed on the pain in my neck and hadn't noticed other injuries that have now become apparent.  My left arm/shoulder has been painful when stretching out to extremities which I initially thought was just a bruise/sprain, however it's now a month down the line and it doesn't appear to have improved.

More concerningly I noticed a lump about half-way down my spine last night.  After a bit of light stretching it became much smaller however that specific vertebra still feels sore.  I have my 2 weekly screw tightening session in a couple of days so will get both of these developments checked out there.  Fingers crossed it's nothing major and the lump is just related to poor posture caused by the halo...
I think I had convinced myself that I'd be able to do more than I can.  I'd envisaged servicing my bikes and tidying the garden, however both of these jobs feel out of reach at the moment and it appears my recovery will be slower than I'd originally expected.

The world of disability

I've been quite surprised at the number of total strangers who are happy to approach you and ask for the details of what's happened to you.  Most are friendly and harmless and I've been happy to pass the time of day with them.  But personally I'd be incredibly British about such things and go to great lengths not to mention someone's obvious ailment.

On the plus side I've twice received what I'd call exceptional and unexpected service from businesses.  The Ipswich Regent upgraded our seats to a box (show booked before the injury, this was my first trip out of the house and put me off going out again for another week!) and Cineworld offered to find me the most appropriate seat possible if needed, in a very busy screen.

Me, me, me...

Up until recently I'd been fairly upbeat about my situation; the first week with the halo had been fairly unpleasant but the following 2 weeks passed fairly quickly and having some time to rest without the pressure of training or the stresses of work was actually quite nice.  It's fair to say, though, that the novelty has now well and truly worn off and the uncertainty around the new symptoms coupled with not knowing how well I'll heal or if I'll be able to swim/bike/run to the same level again is starting to get me down.

The realisation that I've another 9 weeks before the halo is removed, and that there's an additional unknown length of time after that before I'm recovered (if at all) is disheartening.

I'm well aware that things could be a lot worse, but at this moment in time I'm also aware of how much better they could be too.