Six months ago my son was complaining about persistent back pain. He ended up being diagnosed with two small fractures in his lower back at the L-3 vertabrae. The pain and startling realization finally set in that his spring and summer sports activities would not happen. I remember standing in a hospital hallway feeling like a riptide had swept over me. I could not breathe. I could not think. I was consumed with how and why this injury had occurred. My son was beside himself with grief and a fear of the unknown: would he be ready to go in the fall for his beloved sport of football?   

First, a thank you

In my last blog I wrote about my son's back injury and the start of physical therapy, but before I report on his progress, I want to extend a special thank you to everyone who contacted me after reading my blog post. My intuition told me that the fractured spine he suffered is an injury that has affected many other youth athletes and families. I was completely overwhelmed by the number of people who called, emailed, IM'd, commented on the blog site, or ran me down (figuratively, at least) in the grocery store to ask about my son. Thank you all so much.