When you cant do what you used to do.

[Musket Man]

Ever since I was sent to Iraq I have had alot of physical problems I never had before. Joint pain, hands and arms going numb, ect. I just cant work like I used to anymore without feeling like I got run over by a bus. I have always got things done at work although it has been difficult at times and I have taken time off when I could when I was pushing too hard. We started harvest right after 4th of July and I have been going 12-14 hour days ever since. Its been tough but I have hung in there until now when we started corn silage a few days ago. My main job is to haul it to a dairy about a 1/2 hour away. Its not that hard except you have to get in the trailer and level the load out with a pitchfork so it doesnt jam up when you unload it. Last night I got home pretty sore and tired, at 2am I woke up with my neck and shoulders hurting so bad I couldnt lay down anymore. We are stopped for a few days now because the silage bagger broke down. I decided when we get going again I am going to tell him I can drive the truck but I cant get up on the loads and level them anymore. My boss is aware of my problems and I know he will be understanding, but it is still hard for me to say I cant do something. I have never liked the word cant and I am the first one there, last one to leave type and admitting I cant do something is difficult. Yet its not going to do any good to work until I cant move the next day and not be there at all. Is anyone else going through this?

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

MM,

I don't know how old you are, but I'm sure you are younger than me, as I will be 74 in a couple of months. As I have aged I have realized that there are lots of things I can't do any more. I don't backpack, climb mountains, box, wrestle, etc, etc....the list is long and gets longer every day. They things I can do is lots shorter. But.......just realize that what you can do, you probably do better than lots of people. Take heart my man......do what you can and have fun doing it. You may live long enough that technology will advance far enough so you can get a total body transplant. That's what keeps me going!!!LOL

Take care my friend.....................

 

[tdcour]

Man I feel your pain MM. Mat be I should say I understand your pain. I played baseball from a kid all the way through college and a couple years after that as a catcher. There are definitely days now that my shoulders, arms, and knees remind me of the surgeries and poundings they were put through. I realize this is nothing to your sacrifice for our country, but I will say that I don't think it matters what your background is... Moving silage hurts at the end of the day. We are coming up on corn and soybean harvest so I'll be following right behind you. The good news is that you still probubly work harder than most of the other guys anyway and you boss knows this. I'm pretty much the same. I work my tail off until I wear out the. Take a break and hit it again. It is noticed so don't worry, a good boss will see how much you bring to the table either way. Best of luck putting up the rest of the silage! May you break down when you are tired and need a rain

 

[Vikingload]

MM,

I feel your pain also. I was retired from the military due to injuries incurred and it is a large piece of humble pie to admit you just can't operate at the level you once could. Even after surgery, my limitations are humbling, where I was running 9+ miles a day and kicking ass now hopping into the back of a truck bed takes some time. It's tough to accept and I'm glad your taking the steps to not push it to the point you are laid up for a while. I am still learning when to suck up my pride and just not push it. Feel free to PM if you ever want to vent!! Oh what part of Iraq did you go to?

 

[Ikeepitcold]

Like CC said. You probably work harder then most and you have to know that it will catch up to you at some point. I've had knees surgeries to repair torn ligaments and I still have no feeling in the left one and it's been quite a few years.
Your body needs to repair it's self and it does it while you sleep. Make sure you are getting 6-8 hrs of good quality sleep every night. Don't get stuck on the Ibuprofen diet either to help with the pain. Look into some natural supplements and vitamins to help your body repair itself, watch what you eat and drink a ton of water (not Keystone water) oh and did I mention SLEEP?

Good luck friend and you will get through this

 

[sneakypete]

MM, first off thank you for your service to this Great Country! At almost 56 there are something's we all can't or won't do or do slightly different. The training we do just to do the things we love, the outdoors! Is amazing. Not knowing your injuries, does stretching help? Or something like wilderness athletes joint mix? Joint juice?

 

[Musket Man]

CC Im 36, just a few years behind you. lol. We dont do alot of silage. My boss has a contract with the dairy at the collage here. We went for 4 days before the bagger broke (luckily it belongs to someone else) and I think we have 4 days left when we get going again. We have a kid to help level loads. He is a good kid but not the hardest worker you will ever find. The hardest thing for me is to sit back and wait while someone else is working so I end up getting up there and doing about 3/4 of it. We have 3 trucks running and 2 could almost keep up so I dont have to be in a real big hurry to get it moving and I could atleast slow down a bit but I dont seem to be very good at that either. Thanks for your support guys!

 

[badgerbob]

MM,

I don't know how old you are, but I'm sure you are younger than me, as I will be 74 in a couple of months. As I have aged I have realized that there are lots of things I can't do any more. I don't backpack, climb mountains, box, wrestle, etc, etc....the list is long and gets longer every day. They things I can do is lots shorter. But.......just realize that what you can do, you probably do better than lots of people. Take heart my man......do what you can and have fun doing it. You may live long enough that technology will advance far enough so you can get a total body transplant. That's what keeps me going!!!LOL

Take care my friend.....................

Guys like you inspire me. I'll be 65 next month and am starting to see the slowing process. I still do most of what I used to only a little slower. I think I heard a song that said "I'm not as good as I once was, but am as good once as I ever was." True words.

 

[sneakypete]

X2 ^^^Badger Bob

 

[Gr8bawana]

As I've gotten older, I'm 53 now I have noticed that while I can still climb the same mountains as when I was in my 20's, it just takes me a little longer. Maybe take a more circuitous route instead of straight up. As we get older we all find ways of doing things a little smarter when before we used to do them by brute force.

 

[Timberstalker]

Pain is part of life for me too MM, mainly back. I am now 45 and have to tell myself there are things a just don't do anymore. One thing I realize is I have to keep moving, sitting around is the worst thing for me. A couple days rest is good, but too much is not. I think we just need to get tougher the older we get. I can still out work most men, especially the younger ones, the older guys still seem to get it done! Take care of yourself, you'll be ready go in no time.

 

[marcusvdk]

hard working people have physical limits they need to remember. Unfortunately those of us that are hard workers dont find those limits till after we have pushed them to far. Ive dealt with back pain for a few years now and the first thing i learned was my limits at work when do i need to pass a certain task off and when. My biggest problem was working in the cooler un stacking pallets of meat boxes ranging from 50-100 lbs and sloting them on shelves at different heights. I learned the cold didnt help my back muscles loosen and cause the tension and then the heavy lifting was straining it. So i started either trading off with someone/ taking a break from that task to get out of the cold and work spot that was warmer for a bit.

Take pride in what you can do MM and don't worry so much about what you can't do.

 

[Timberstalker]

Put in an 18 hr day today, man I'm whooped. Little sharp pains in my neck and legs, tomorrow will be interesting.

 

[xtreme]

I am 73 now. Ankles are my limiting physical factors. My scouting trip to unit 67 in july surprised me with my shortness of breath. I know I am not in shape and never will be. I know what it is to be in shape and at one point I was totally in shape and conditioned to the heat. Lots of work to get there but I took my motorcycling racing serious, racing cross country on a national level. I also got to race the Baja 1000. Now its mostly cars, GTO, Corvette, and Miata. Fast, junk and fun.
Last year I climbed the mountain at my house, not an easy climb for anyone. This year, I will be looking for an elk in what I call a niche. Sometimes they are overlooked and are a lot easier to hunt, plus I go a lot slower. I did find a shooter mule deer, too.

 

[Timberstalker]

I hope I can still function when I'm in my 70's. You guys that are impress me!

 

[CrossCreeks]

Guys I am 56 and in addition to my regular job, I have a cattle farm and on weekends and evening after work I put in a lot of hours. I still do about as much as I did 20 years ago but I pay for it as night with my joints and back pains. 15 mins. on the couch or in my chair and I never make it to the late night news or the end of a movie. Like the rest of you it is hard to limit yourself when you have grown up doing it all your life. Hunting has become the same way, really physical hunts take its toll on me. One of these days I will have to say time to slow down, I cant do all this anymore, I just won't say it very loud. I hope in 20 years I am still around and in shape of enough to complain about over doing it.

 

[tim]

bummer dude, but 36 is way to young to be feeling the way you are. If you don't use it, you lose it. maybe look into physical therapy or rehab to get back to where you where.

 

[Musket Man]

I went back to work today and told him I can drive the truck but I cant level loads out. He said no problem dont even worry about it. That went fine until the 2nd load and this kid was moving slow as molasses in winter leveling the first 1/2 of it and I had to move the truck to load the rest of it and he clearly wasnt going to be done in time so next thing I know Im up there getting it finished. I just cant stand there when something needs to get done. This situation is different then most Im in because i have to wait for it to get done before i can take the truck and waiting while someone else does what I should be doing just doesnt sit well with me. I can deal with the physical part, its the part in my head Im trying to figure out.

 

[Musket Man]

Put in an 18 hr day today, man I'm whooped. Little sharp pains in my neck and legs, tomorrow will be interesting.

You would probably feel better if you would slow down to 14-15 hour days like me. haha!

 

[RICMIC]

I think I found part of the problem MM. Making posts at 1:05am instead of sleeping. Sorry MM, but I feel your pain. My hunting partner just canceled out on this years trip due to a required hip operation, and I must be suffering from sympathy pain and am scheduled for therapy starting this week. I still find the hunts are manageable...at least until you shoot something.