Stories of Transformation - James

Summary

A complete novice who was dragged to the retreat kicking and screaming by his wife, a 16-year-old at heart born during Harry Truman's administration who normally played ice hockey 2-3 times a week, walked 10,000 steps daily, and had climbed 40 of Colorado's 54 14ers, fell flat on his back from about waist height off a slippery airplane tip tank onto hard concrete on February 13, 2021 while trying to pull down a fueling strut in the rain. He injured his lower back, both hips, and both elbows so severely that one elbow had to be drained 3 times, with pain the next morning at 10 out of 10 that left him unable to walk, though nothing was broken (severe contusion) and he thought he was forever injured and would never do what he used to do. For 4 months his pain remained at 8 out of 10 despite trying NSAIDs, ibuprofen, Naprosyn, all sorts of legal drugs, massage, hot tubs, chiropractor, and all sorts of things with no relief until coming to the June retreat. On Monday night during the breathing exercise, his pain suddenly dropped from 8 out of 10 to 2, and after the first day's morning meditation the pain went from 2 to zero, making him shake inside with gratefulness at being able to walk, run, jump, and do everything he used to do. When his wife warned him the next day not to do too much or he'd have a relapse, that thought put the idea in his head and the pain went back to a 2 (nocebo effect), but he kept concentrating on being nowhere, no one, no time, no body, nothing, and the pain returned to zero again, making this very skeptical man extremely grateful as this stuff actually worked despite him thinking it would be flat out impossible.