Prior to my chronic back pain, I had a very successful career with the University of Iowa Police Department. I started my law enforcement career in 2002 with the University of Iowa Police, and in just a few months I was assigned to the Johnson County Metro Bomb Squad. A couple of years later I was approached by a supervisor regarding a special project - involving acquiring an explosive detecting K9 Unit. Since I had been on the bomb squad, they thought it would be right up my alley. Eighteen months later I was sent to meet my K9 partner, Aro (a long hair German shepherd born in the Czech Republic). Aro and I served proudly together, both on the street and on the Bomb Squad - working with multiple local and Federal agencies. In 2007, I was promoted to the Commander of the Bomb Squad, and in 2008 I was promoted to Lieutenant.

The course of my successful career changed in May of 2008, when I was working on a patio behind my house. I noticed that I was pretty sore, but I figured that after a couple of days of heavy labor I would be sore. The pain continued to get worse, and on the fifth day I went to see my doctor. She believed that I had pulled a muscle in my back and prescribed some muscle relaxers and a few days off work. The pain continued to get worse, until I had to go to the Emergency room. The ER doctor sent me to see a specialist, who started me in physical therapy, but weeks went by and the rehab didn’t seem to help. My next referral was to Nero-surgery at UIHC, but they too could not find a cause of this intense pain. I tried to return to work. After a few days of work, I got up one morning and tried to get ready for shift but when I bent over to tie my boots, the next thing I knew I was in the ER again getting shots of morphine. I went back to my Nero-surgery doctor and he referred me to the UI Spine Center for an evaluation.

By this time I was starting to feel hopeless. Before my chronic back pain, I worked hard and played hard. But after months of chronic pain, and no answers on how to get my life back – the spine pain had really taken a toll on my life. I couldn’t work or do the things I enjoyed and I started to lose my motivation and drive. I was on several pain medications and sleep aids. It got to the point where I woke up in the morning, took my medications and sat in front of the TV, just watching the clock waiting until I could take more medication. I stopped contacting my friends and family. My marriage really started to suffer. Looking back, I think Aro could sense that things were getting really bad too, as he fell ill with pneumonia and almost died. Luckily, with the help of some great vets, he is still with us.

Somehow I found the motivation to attend my one-day evaluation at the UI Spine Center. During the evaluation I held nothing back – I spilled it all, my depression, my meds, my alcohol use and my failing marriage. After a few tears and a lot of tissue, I really felt understood by the staff and began to see some hope again. During my first day at Spine Rehab, I held back a bit in the group and was not overly interactive. I feel I can come off a bit intense at times so I didn’t want to jump right in, but once I got comfortable with the others in the group - I don’t think anyone could have had a better group of people to go through the Spine Rehab program with them.

The Spine Rehab staff was incredible. They seem to know just where and when to push you, physically, mentally, and emotionally. The physical therapy is paced based on your personal level of fitness, so no one in the group is left behind or held up by the pace of others. The psychology portion of the program was probably the area that I struggled with most at first. I have been to many schools (both military and law enforcement) and mastered many areas, but I never cared to learn how to relax. I have a much better understanding of relaxation now. The area that was overall most difficult for me was the vocational part. The vocational staff was beyond helpful and caring. I was faced at the end of my second week with the hardest choice of my life. I had spent the majority of my adult life active duty in the US Army or as a police officer. It became obvious to me that I would not be able to continue as a bomb tech or a K9 handler, based on the physical demands of those jobs. It appeared that the field of law enforcement was no longer a physical match for me as well. So, after a soul seeking lunch with my wife, we decided it was time for me to resign from my position and begin in a new career direction. The University of Iowa Police Department was beyond helpful and understanding regarding my decision. I was thrilled to find out that the department had decided to retire Aro and let my wife and I keep him (as he had lost about 30% of his lung capacity when he had pneumonia). What a bonus to get to have Aro remain part of our family!

I came out of UI Spine Rehab in great spirits, in much better shape physically and stronger emotionally. I was able to reduce my medications significantly, and today I only take Tylenol and an occasional a muscle relaxer. The combination of all that I gained at Spine Rehab has made a huge improvement in the quality of my life. In closing, I want to stress to you that it is important to remember that you are not going to be cured over night – that is not a reasonable expectation for any medical treatment, especially for chronic spine pain. However, with hard work and dedication you can learn how to manage your pain and enjoy your life again – I did!

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