Dubious Quality

C put my socks and shoes on for three days last week because I couldn't. She did everything involving the house and cooking because it was all I could do to get from one room to the other. My back was so locked up I could barely breathe. Basic movements became complex calculations.

I have more empathy now for people who are in so much pain they quit trying. It's very difficult to feel like the tiny incremental improvements from day to day are worth the effort to produce them. The pain makes you dread moving, too. My back muscles were going into spasm about a dozen times a day. The rest of the time, they were on a hair trigger. 

I'm better now. Still far from normal, but better. I walked over three miles yesterday (which was more difficult than normally walking ten), and now that I can walk again, I should be able to make more steady progress.

Still, though. Damn.