st year without a wheelchair. I want to go this year without a cane or a walker.

Once I got corrected my workouts and therapy got easier and started helping more. I am to the point where I can run and my calves are starting to get bigger and stronger. Now the Maryville basketball coach wants me to play with them next fall once I get my degree from Rankin Technical University.

University professor

ssure through my fingers like to plug in something into an electrical socket, I would get a pulsating pain for several minutes. At times my hand strength would not allow me to open a regular peanut butter jar.

My back spasms had improved at night since taking Elavil to improve sleep, but were typically felt throughout the day. I still experienced an immediate change in blood pressure, energy, blood sugar, and cognitive functioning when I lifted or did strenuous activity.

I was unable to exercise more than a couple minutes at a time because of my fatigue and was experiencing an enormous amount of muscle pain. At times I felt that I would not be able to remain sitting upright when driving or walk into a store and back out because of the fatigue. Not only was I not seeing improvements, but my symptom's seemed to be getting worse.

When I came to Dr. Friedman's office for the first time, I was extremely anxious and desperate. I talked nearly non-stop during the evaluation because I was very concerned that there may be some small detail that the other professionals had missed that would make this venture successful unlike the last unsuccessful ventures.

It is very interesting and probably difficulty for most people to believe, but it is such an enormous risk to allow yourself to try something new. While you are desperate, sometimes it is just too painful to become that vulnerable-to believe that you may have a better life. If you commit to something, you have to believe that it will work. And when you begin to believe, you start dreaming of a different life.

When time after time, it doesn't work, you get to the point emotionally of just feeling more comfortable with the status quo - because that doesn't involve a big disappointment.

I was young and prior to the gymnastic fall, was used to pushing myself with intense physical activities like jump-rope competitions, gymnastics events, backpacking adventures, and other activities. I just couldn't accept that I was unable to impact my he

-Jay McPherson