781. Helping Others Destroy Back Pain

My back problems started in my late 20’s. I would always play basketball, flag football, golf and softball, and my back would get tight from time to time. I went to see an expert, got some X-rays and MRIs and was told I had degenerative discs at two levels. The doctor told me not to worry about it, that I could do whatever I wanted. I wish he had not told me that, because I really did do whatever I wanted, which led to greatly worsening my back condition and herniating my disc. Seven or so years later I went on to have four different surgeries.

I think everyone has, at some point in their lives, high expectations of doing something great or becoming someone great. But I think the challenge is that at a certain point either they didn’t put themselves in the right position or they faced too much adversity and reset their expectations. Now their reset expectations are their new normal. I think people need to surround themselves with experts, connections and knowledge to inspire and guide you. They need to clearly define what they are looking to achieve regardless of whether they are 10 years old or 90.