My first real logs

[D._Frederick]

Jeff,

You have really been through a lot of not very nice problems with your arm. I guess I don't understand how repetitive motion could tear your rotator cuff. I  would think that a tear would come from exceeding the limits of what your body could stand, like lifting too heavy or being in a car wreck. Are you working against hydraulic force operating the mill controlls? I would think that the greater the force required to operate something repetitive the faster the body parts wear out. I know a couple of truck drives that have major neck problems from just turning there head all the time to look out of the mirrors, they were only dealing with the weight of there head!

Any way, sure am glad that you are seeing the "light at the end of the tunnel" for getting your shoulder back in shape. Glad you are having fun with your new mill, just take a extra cut or two to reduce the weight of the slaps so you don't screw up your back.

This makes 1000 for me.

[OneWithWood]

D. Fred,

Congratualations on post number 1000!  8) 8) 8)

If I was more computer literate I would figure out how to do moving fireworks.

Note to Jeff:

When you are not doing exercises or undoing your PT by playing with your toys, perhaps you could come up with a way to recognize an individuals milestone posts.  You know something like the cascading cards when you win a game of computer solitaire, or rockets red glare, or something similar.

[Jeff]

Well, sometimes you grow a tree...

[Jeff]

D_, my understanding of what happened was that the years of repetition had caused the joints to become misshapen, causing bone to rub and wear on soft tissue where it shouldn't be. Some places the tissue was "impinged' causing roughness, and eventual tearing, through what would be normal movements for most people. Continuing to work with the injured parts for several months caused even more damage, not only to my shoulder but to my "average income"  By trying to do my job when I couldn't, and even trying to advertise for my own replacement, My average hours at work declined every week to the point where when I did go in for the first surgery, the insurance company averaged my time at less then half of my healthy time, and then pay me on 80% of that.  so I get 80% of 50% of my pay until the dr. says I am better. Now, the "owner" says that "Hes not having "this" (meaning my shoulder, as he pointed emphtically at it) again". So, when I do get better, I dont have a job.  Nice reward for doing your job so well for 25 years that you wear your self out. :-\

[D._Frederick]

Jeff,

Good deeds never go un-punished.   Have you thought about going to the state insurance commission for help to get what you should be recieving or are they the problem?

[Gilman]

Jeff,
Glad to hear that your new Dr. finally got it figured out.  At least now you can progress towards improvement and stop damaging yourself.

A Dr's arrogance & ignorance can be a dangerous combination, not like you don't already know this.  Not only can it delay the healing but it can really harm a person, physically, mentally and financially. 

Your right about a good PT.  I got in a car wreck and ended up trying 4 PT's before I found a good one.  The first on tried to convince me to sign up for a pyramid vitamin scam.  I'm still mad at him 9 years later, what a jerk!

Great news you found a good PT to help you back.

Gilman

[Jeff]

Jeff,

Good deeds never go un-punished.   Have you thought about going to the state insurance commission for help to get what you should be recieving or are they the problem?

Our workmens comp is paid into a self insurance group fund through Timbermens. I have never argued the amount of money I am getting, because my focus was always just to ger er fixed and get back to it. Now, as it seems, I may not be able to do the latter.  At this point I am still mending and progressing. Financially, we get by, but the lost income aint pleasant.  I hope I dont have to seek some sort of help to make sure my medical needs are met. I still have apparent issues with my neck and the other shoulder. My hope is that these things will be taken care of and I am not just heaved into the dumpster like a worn out bearing.

[UNCLEBUCK]

Boy that would really smoke me if I give it all I had for 25 years and someone said that to me ! No wonder you enjoying your mill , satisfaction,peace of mind, pride !  I blew my neck out once and the nagging pain mentally and physically beat me down . 1000 milligrams of motrin a day until I got tired of experts and found that 2 bayer aspirin took all the pain away . Doctor told me find a pill that works . But even so I have to watch myself and lift smart .  If I had all your experience I would open up a 1 week school teaching people how to saw logs into lumber using a circle mill and a band mill. I would be the first on your list .  I dont know of any place in the country that would teach me and school me how to run a efficient circle mill from a professional .  Dats You !

[Bibbyman]

I've been passing over this topic for a while and didn't see it turn into a conversation about your shoulder injury and recovery.  Sounds like you're on a steady course of recovery – at least in some degree.

I sometimes marvel at what modern medicine can do and other times I get so frustrated at what can't be done.  Too,  many doctors and other heath care professionals have some degree of arrogance about them that blinds them into thinking they are right all the time and that they don't need to listen to what the patient is trying to tell them.

Mom just had a metal hip ball joint replaced after she broke her hip falling off a chair.  The operation itself only took about an hour.  They had her standing the next day and walking the day after – if only a couple of assisted steps.

A month later she's still recovering but her hip is apparently fine – it's the other injuries (broken wrist and twisted ankle) that is still mending.  Considering her age and general poor health conditions,  they have worked a miracle.

In the case of my poor Aunt Nellie – she had some problem with the disks in her neck.  Time and again over years they operated on her – grafting in new bone, etc.  Each time she become more paralyzed – first loosing the use of her arms,  then her whole body.  She spent the last years of her life a complete vegetable from the chin down.  I don't think medical science helped her and suspect they contributed to her medical problems.

I think anyone over 50 that's worked at the same job day after day knows the pain of repetitive motion.  I've set with my hands on a keyboard and mouse for 8-10 hours a day for the past 20 years – manual drafting board 15 years before that.  My old hands have about had it.  Once I was pretty good at pencil art and now I can't sign my name.

When Mary and I saw,  she wants me to run the mill.  People think that's odd seeing me do the "easy part" while she does all the lifting.  But standing at the control box for a couple of hours at a stretch starts to wear on your shoulders, arms, knees and feet. I'll offset this by doing some of the slab pulling or go run the Terex while she saws a log. As soon as I get back,  she says, "Here.. You saw." and turns it back over to me.

[Percy]

Now, the "owner" says that "Hes not having "this" (meaning my shoulder, as he pointed emphtically at it) again". So, when I do get better, I dont have a job.  Nice reward for doing your job so well for 25 years that you wear your self out. :-\

Just read this whole thread and Congrats on the mill Jeff.  Now the quote above has me  more than a little concerned. If infact this is the case(he may have just been shooting his mouth off), get it clearly written down from the jerk and make alot of waves with anyone with clout that will listen, At this point, you dont owe him anything(including respect).

The way you run this site tells me you arnt a slacker or a free loader or a whiner at all. He kept you for 25 years and if he doesnt realize your value to his botton line(even now that you cant operate  your machine) he's heading down a slippery slope. The rest of his people see whats going on and will react in a self preservation type manner that he is gonna regret some day.

ON THE POSITIVE.....your shoulder is getting better, you have a mill, and alot of people here willing to help. Some times these situations turn out to be blessings in disguise. They force you to make decisions that you wouldnt make otherwise. With the resources you have created through building this website, you could start your own milling business that could support you quite nicely. Id go for it...... ;D ;D ;D

[Part_Timer]

Jeff I'm with Uncle Buck. 
      With all of your experiance and now you have a mill you might think about offering a class on sawing.  How many mill owners would send people to a class to learn what you know.   At least if they sent them to a school the learning curve would not be so steep. 
     Where I work we send our electricians to a PLC class or two then start them out on stand alone equipment for awhile before they program on a 25 million dollar machine.
     If you do decide to offer some kind of class let me know.  I would not be able to get away for a week but if you had a 2 day class to start on the basice let me know I'll sign up.

Tom

[UNCLEBUCK]

I am really good at squaring up a log and sawing 1 or 2 inch boards for siding , you want all 2x material well did I tell ya I am really good at sawing siding !  :D :D When does class begin ! ;D

[D._Frederick]

CK-,

I agree with you a 100%, the insurance companies generally ownly offer you 50% or less than you have coming with the hopes that you will settle for that amount. If you want more, you have to fight them for it and it means hiring an attorney. The only problem is the attorneys are just as crooked as the insurance companies, they will take a 1/3 of the total to increase your take by a 1/2.

[Ernie]

Sounds like a job for our own Lawyer-Sawyer  smiley_contract_point smiley_contract_point smiley_contract_point

[sigidi]

Jeff,

on the rehab side - TERRIFIC, keep with the good PT's

Chronic injusries have all the possiblity to 'tear' as when one thinks about it it, it is an overload to the system concerned which causes eventual breakdown, except in most peoples case, the breakdown presents much earlier than in our Jeff ( :-\ ) as most will not push themselves the way Jeff described it.

Lawyer-sawyer and similar options

Sometimes you also have to take into account how this will effect your life at the time, it may not have been right for the fella to do what he has to Jeff, (and in no means am I saying he is right!!!) but also after everything Jeff has gone through, I can totally empathise with an overwhelmed feeling which brings about a decision to "just get it over with" and not pursue anything. I too have been in Jeff's boat (more of an acute massive injury- rather than a chronic re-injury cyccle) although I was only working for my employer 3 months, so maybe that is where I ended up being able to say "I just want it over with" where with you Jeff after the 25yrs you gave the place you would be perfectly understandably "madder than a wet hen" and nail the ';.'p2[p23. to the wall!!!

Good to hear you are maintaining your seesions - at the time of my rehab (with me being so pedantic and doing exactly what was prescibed - if they said 30 sec I got my stopwatch out, if they said 40 reps I kept a tally chart) my progress continually outstripped exprectations by months, which I put down to doing what I was told and not what most folkes end up doing.  A Physio I once worked for in my early days, let me know she used to prescribe 20 reps when she wanted 15 and so on, as she knew people didn't do what they where told to do, but what they ended up doing was close to what she truly wanted them to do in the first place!

Just stick with it Jeff and keep us up to date, you'll find the healing will be good from here on in, now the joint is repaired properly. Just remember though your personality-type (from what you have already mentioned) is where you may come undone, there is a HUGE tendency for us (folkes who push and push) to outstrip/outwork the repair functioning of our bodies and set ourselves back a while. I'd say by the sounds your PT's are good and would have explained concepts like "progressive overload" and "momentary muscular failure" amongst others in such a way that you can work with them to produce enough stimulus to strengthen yourself without hurting yourself from over-stimulus.

[woodsyowl]

   I have experienced on several occasions,how employers treat you when you get injured,
they try to find a vet who says your fine.you return and get worse and maybe give up and quit ..I got a hernia that was never fixed "they couldn't get by with out me" could i just hold off  and blah blah get it fixed later when things slow down....lor lifting things  and your ribs pull loose from spine first muscles tear then tendons.....you play the pt game but still go to work......then spine knees hips neck etc mess up...you continue working to help them..... they chum you into working less hours so in the future when your off work their insurance won't go up as much cause you draw less if any...in my case it finally led to vets saying i would never return to work on an issue that you couldn't prove happened at work and because you will never return they cancel your insurance. and then you have the option of getting cobra.(you pay).and when your inthe hospital you get flowers from work then the shaft from then on.......debts you cannot pay etc.

but it teaches ya whom your employer is lookin out for It ain't you!
I am a bit negative in this area.. ;D

lord knows some times things turn out for the best even though at the time you cannot see how
as for myself I noticed my wife and I actually started talking to one another,just sitting on deck watching birds drinking coffee ,checking out trees sitting watching the river before it was rush rush in everythingcause it was when your not at work your thinking about or talking about it stressing
i could go on.this is long enough

[Jeff]

Woodsyowl, you have just told a good portion of my story.  I  just recently washed my hands of this employer and the insurance companies. My story seems to be much as yours. The stress over the last 3 years had become more then I could endure.  I have a story to tell at some point that will tell how where the almighty dollar is involved, trust and faith in the people you tried to do your very best for can be dashed and destroyed. Just like a worn out bearing, they will chuck you in a dumpster. Luckily I had the resources to drag myself out, and crawl to my feet where many in my shoes would not be able to, and I feel for those folks in a big way.  I'm very bitter about what has happened to me but refrain from saying to much right now until I'm a little more rational and can state what I have learned from fact without the mix of emotion.

[Corley5]

I've got a firewood customer who is going through the same thing with comp and he doesn't have the resources.  He's been through several back surgeries and is crippled for life.  He just ordered what he figures is his last load of wood as the bank is foreclosing on his home because he can't make the payments.  He's going to move into senior citizen housing.  Added to this insult is his wife died suddenly and unexpectedly before his first surgery :( :(