Doc Ernie's Blog : Doc Ernie's Blog : Ernie Franz M.D. : Spinal Cord Injury, Disability, and Rehabilitation

What follows are a variety of quotations and comments from various sources which have inspired me and helped me in the recovery process.  My intent is to keep adding verses and quotes to this section as I come across new material that in turn my inspire you in your own personal journey. 

"Faith does not operate in the realm of the possible.  There is no glory for God in that which is humanly possible.  Faith begins where man's power ends."   -   George Muller

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Three videos have recently been uploaded to YouTube which tell various parts of this ongoing story.  The first two are due to the wonderful work of Kevin Lynch, who in 2005 put together a movie for our local Bainbridge Film Festival featuring my recovery and my "finishing the ride home" on the one year anniversary of being struck.  Bicycling past the spot of injury, this time with a police escort, 20 or so close friends, 3 other ER docs, and a US Congressman - among others.  The movie is entitled Bicycle Blues in the key of E.  Part I via this link, and Part II here.  Be sure to enable the "watch in high quality" or HD setting below the screen to your right.  Kevin Lynch is a master spin class instructor on Bainbridge Island when he is not flying about the globe competing in and/or filming professional triathlons.

The other video was done for the Kitsap Sun newspaper group with support from MADD; it chronicles the effects of alcohol and driving and the lives of those impacted in our community.  There are three parts to this video, with my interview taking place here in Part II.

I believe these videos will give you a deeper sense of what I have gone through, and also will help you understand a bit more of my character and the key supportive roles so many have played in my recovery process.  Enjoy, and thanks for watching....

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First, an apology…..
I am sorry that it has been so long since my last update. I am obviously not a blogger who is into bringing you each tidbit of news or accomplishment achieved in my life.
Yet there are a few very important physical goals that have been able to achieve since my last update in June.

During the dry season here I was able to average 100 to 120 miles per week bicycling on the road. Total miles on my Moots titanium hybrid are now 2500 in the past 15 months. Now that the rainy season is upon us, I am back indoors in group spinning classes 3 to 4 days per week. Dry roads and temps above 43 degrees F keep me outdoors and on the road.
 

Now to the reporting of two fantastic goals accomplished this cycling season....

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Time to bring you up to speed with my latest cycling adventures since riding Chilly Hilly in late February 2008.  Basically it has been a very very wet end to winter and splash into spring.  No signs yet of global warming here in the Pacific NW.  Thank goodness too for spinning classes, which I have been able to attend 2-3 times/week.  Basically, if it is dry and above 45 degrees F, I hope to be out on my bike; especially now that I am finished at the University of Washington medical school until next January.

I have been able now to log a total of over 1100 miles on my Moots since I received it around August 2007, not too bad considering the weather, and that I hardly rode outside from October till late February.  I am most often out on my own, cell phone in pocket, flashing tail light, helmet mirror - praying for no flat tires.  Given the hilly nature of Bainbridge Island I am slowly adding post-SCI previously unconquered hills to my list of those I have now scaled.  Not checking them off with quite the significance of Bainbridge resident Ed Viesturs, the first American to climb the 14 mountains in the world higher than 8,000 meters, but nonetheless rewarding, and too involving risk - not knowing if I may stall and topple in the midst of a climb.  While I am gradually increasing the degree of difficulty, I think Toe Jam Hill with its 22 - 24 percent gradient is forever safe from my aspirations.

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This section is really intended for those with spinal cord injuries.  "Constitutional truths" in this case has absolutely nothing to do with what our forefathers generated over 200 years ago, nor anything pertaining to our countries politically misguided adventures or upcoming election.

Instead it speaks to catheters, suppositories, and how to best avoid UTI's.  These are a part of routine life those of us with SCI deal with, and others perhaps are inquisitive about.  The content that follows is really meant for those who have some dysfunction in elimation processes in hopes you may find a helpful hint or two.

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I ended up with enough entries in my first write, so decided to split them into two sections of more readable snippets.  Enjoy (or at least you will see, as many have noted before, I do have a warped sense of humor)....

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In this section, hopefully you may find a few good laughs from my experiences.  As said in Proverbs - a good word brings health to the bones.  Beyond even a good word, laughter just deeply feels so right. Continue Reading...

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“Life is pleasant. Death is peaceful. It’s the transition that’s troublesome.”     Isaac Asimov

Shaking your head?  Here are my honest unvarnished impressions.  Although I nearly suffered a traumatic death, which in the ER we all have imagined as a horrible way to die, I can say from experience when you don't see it coming, and it strikes in an instant as John Donne remarked - it may not be all that bad a way to pass from this world.  Yet as a survivor of a sudden change, an alteration to worse, I have found it is the transition that is indeed most troublesome.  In my case, thankfully, it was a transition back to finding life, a life that is again (mostly) pleasant!

To follow this are quotes from all sources, on a variety of topics, presented hereafter without any additional comments...

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In the late fall of 2007 the Harborview Rehab floor hosted an Adaptive Cycling Seminar.  Through a donation made in my name, I was able to help fund the seminar.  There were recumbent four wheeled tandems, various makes of three wheeled bikes, and options of foot or hand driven mechanisms.  Although this was primarily set up for those who might be riding hand cycles, I did also bring my Moots and seized the opportunity to bicycle down the halls of Harborview.  The very halls where I had pulled myself around in a wheelchair using my feet in 2004.

Being a C5 incomplete quad, in addition to my bilateral radial nerve injuries, I do not have the arm/hand strength to either pilot a wheelchair, or a hand cycle; whether on 2, 3 or 4 wheels.  So in my particular case strangely, the only option for me is to ride an upright bicycle and pedal with my feet.

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