Pain And Productivity

Last week was a pain in the ass.  More accurately, it was a pain about two inches above my ass.

I have recurring back issues thanks to my scholiosis and an injury that happened twenty years ago.  At least once a year, I experience constant stabbing pain in my lower back whenever I move.  When I felt them on Sunday, I spent most of the day on the couch on mild painkillers.  Monday I stupidly attempted to go to work.  I lasted a total of an hour and a half before I came home in tears.  I took more pain killers and retired to the couch.  Thankfully, the couch is a recliner, so I was able to find a semi-comfortable position with my feet up and laptop propped on my stomach.  I was forced to stay in that position for three days.

It is amazing what not being able to move from my chair does for my productivity.  I wrote over 2,000 words in those three days.  I finished a short, short story.  I have been working on my editing my novel.  It may not sound like much, but compared to what I have been doing, that is more than my combined output for the prior two weeks.  Those days I wasn’t focusing on being productive. I couldn’t do anything other than watch daytime TV or write.  So I chose to write.

The pain finally resolved itself on Wednesday night and I was back at work on Thursday.  There has been an occasional twinge since then, but nothing that requires me to take time off.  It seems to have helped break a block and get me back into the habit of writing some each day.  I hope to have my novel’s edits done in the next two weeks so I’m not thinking about it when I’m at DragonCon.  I’d like to keep up that level of productivity, but without the pain.

2 Replies to “Pain And Productivity

  1. Not good! Take care of that back. I got laid up a few times by neck and upper upper back stuff. Took strong muscle relaxants. Man that made productivity plummet. Hate those things. Swore them off! How’s a gal like me supposed to get my novel done if I’m in La La Land and not in Indirian? Glad your meds left your brain in tact because getting stuff done on your story is so exciting and fulfilling! But glad to hear you are feeling better.

  2. I lucked out that the pain pills didn’t knock me out, although there were several points where I wish it had. But yeah, neck and back issues are horrible. Fortunately, or is that unfortunately, I’ve become an expert on handling the pain issues that come up.

    Thanks for the well wishing. 🙂

Comments are closed.