Personally, I have found a great deal of enjoyment in exploring these limits, the sky being one of them.
June is National Scoliosis Month. So here's an obligatory "don't let your scoliosis stop you from doing what you love" post. Correction. Scoliosis really shouldn't stop you from anything, unless it's crazy severe, which is very rare. Spinal fusions, on the other hand, should stop you from a few things. But don't live in fear!
I was extremely nervous weeks before the date I signed my life away. (There have been many occasions where I have found myself signing my life away, including my spinal fusion.) The tension only heightened after our scheduled jumping date was canceled due to weather. But eventually it was time. I sent texts of love to my family and tried to silence the sound of everyone's voice in my head saying, "I told you not to" if something were actually to go wrong.
My friends and I geared up and loaded the plane. We traveled over 14,000 feet into the air, and I watched with terror as the instructors in front of me disappeared from the plane door. Of course, out of the three of us, I had to go first. It was definitely too late (and too expensive) to back out now.
The instructor and I waddled up to the open door and I stepped out of the plane onto the black step of doom. I guess my instructor counted to three and we fell out, but it all happened so quickly that it's just a blur to me. The free-fall is the part I remember most, because it was amazing. After a second of a dropping feeling, I felt as if we were floating on air (with tons of face-numbing, cold air rushing at us).
People warned me that deploying the parachute would be hard on my back. I hardly remember it. Once the parachute came out, I became aware of our vast distance from the ground, so I was scared, cold, and sick of my popping ears. That part was less enjoyable for me, but the view was still so cool.
And then came the landing-- the part I was slightly nervous about regarding my back. My instructor told me to lift my legs straight out, and we glided smoothly into the grass. I've tripped over my own feet more forcefully than that.
Seeing that I'm afraid of heights, I never imagined myself sky diving, much less after having a spinal fusion. I may not be able to do somersaults or sit-ups, but I can jump out of a perfectly good airplane. Don't let your limitations stop you from trying new and amazing things!
*Disclaimer: Not all jumps are identical, so the fact that I survived mine doesn't mean I am endorsing yours. (But if you're considering, you should totally look on Groupon.)
