As I previously indicated, this will be my second last update. I really only have three things for this update, but they’re all fairly major.
Return to Work
After hemming and hawing repeatedly as to whether I’d be returning to work, I’ve decided to give it a go. As I also indicated previously, there are a few reasons for this:
- The final stage of recovery – there’s something important to me in knowing that I can return to productive work and earn a living. I’m not likely to work for more than a couple years, but this has become more important to me than I thought it would be months ago. The reason I said above if it goes, is that there are still a couple potential hurdles to overcome in returning to work. My employer could push back on 100% remote accommodation (we have an entirely arbitrary requirement to be in the office at least 50% of the time, even if we can work fully remotely), and of course I could always crash and burn …
- Economic uncertainty – I won’t get into my opinions on the issue here, but the tariff garbage from south of the border has prompted me to consider the need to continue working to contribute more to my RSPs before retiring. We’re in pretty good shape, but it’s difficult to say how our investments will fare.
- Mortgage – We will ultimately require a mortgage to buy again, and I’m not planning to depend on market rentals in retirement. There’s too much greed in the system and our governments at all levels have mostly failed on housing. Working full-time will simplify the qualification process immensely.
Cognitive / Speech Therapy Done
A couple weeks ago, my speech therapist and I agreed to end my therapy. This is actually a pretty big development, and the key element of being able to return to work. Neither of us felt further therapy would be beneficial, as memory and recall seem to be on par with where I was pre-crash, and I rocked most return-to-work simulation exercises. I continue to be very thankful for my recovery progress, and both Kathy (SLP) and Lorraine (OT). I did suggest she check in with my wife, as I felt she may have insight that I don’t, and my wife concurred that I seem to be pretty fully recovered cognitively. There was a time when I found the issues associated with dealing with three different insurers to be overwhelming and kind of rage-inducing, but thankfully that’s not really an issue any more.
New Bike
Last Friday I finally bought a new road (gravel) bike 11.5 months after the crash. I chose a Giant Revolt Advanced Pro 0. The relaxed geometry is a pleasure to ride and the 43-30 chain rings are much kinder to my ageing legs. I was already sold on electronic shifting with the Caledonia I had until the crash. This bike actually reminds me of the Caledonia a lot. I’ve completely let go of the need to ride faster and really only ride for pleasure and exercise now. Still considering my options for a club.
Of course I managed to take a bit of a tumble on my maiden voyage yesterday. I’m fine and the bike is still pristine. I’m missing a nickel sized patch of knee skin, and my Garmin took a little scrape, but thankfully it was almost entirely my ego (and hip) that was bruised. There’s nothing like mis-negotiating a curb going 5km per hour, to demonstrate your riding skills. As far as I’m concerned, as long as a car isn’t involved again, I should be fine.
In Closing
I know I closed off my December update three months ago, with my 2024 fitness totals and a summary of where I was at in my recovery then, but I think it’s worth a little update still as I begin planning for a graduated return to work about a month from now. Physically, I feel as close to fully recovered as I’m likely going to get. While I have minor balance issues when upright, I can sustain running and cycling for pretty lengthy periods (two hours plus) and hit reasonably good paces. I am always a bit more sensitive to light and brain fog first thing in the morning than later in the day.
When seated, perhaps unsurprisingly, I don’t experience any vestibular symptoms. I’m doing several hours of strength and yoga per month. I still have an abdominal incisional hernia from the splenectomy that needs surgical repair, and have some loss of sensation in my pectorals and ribs resulting from the broken ribs. I also have several scars that should net some kind of additional payment from ICBC (though I don’t expect much based on what I already got for life-altering injuries.
As far as things that are likely to affect my ability to work, my cognitive domain seems pretty solid, with the only thing left to do being to actually test it for real. I still have some light sensitivity and a bit of lingering brain fog, but they really don’t affect my monitor use, and the mental / visual fatigue that plagued the early days of my recovery is a distant memory now.