In an earlier post, I mentioned that I have some similarities in my history to Pan's story and experiences. Late yesterday afternoon, I fully listened for the first time to your interviews with Pan and his wife. Thanks all for those gifts.

Over forty years ago, I was hit from behind while stopped waiting to make a left hand turn in a 45MPH zone, driving a little Chev Corvair (Their rear-engined "unsafe at any speed" vehicle that made Ralph Nader's career) by a huge late 1950s Pontiac Bonneville doing at least 50 MPH! When I came to, I was crumpled up in the rear seat footwell, with the driver's bucket seat that I had been sitting in seconds before, ripped out of its moorings and on top of me back there.

After extensive treatments for very severe whiplash, including significant months in a rigid metal and leather back/chest/head/chin brace and lashings of anti-inflammatory drugs, eighteen months later, the day before going into court on that first accident, I was a passenger instructing my brother during his driver-training period in the little lightweight Chevy II which replaced the totalled Corvair, when we were waiting to make the same left turn into our family home property and WHAM!!! another admittedly distracted driver ploughed into us full bore in his big Buick. Many were confused when I appeared in court the next day back in the rigid brace. All the still healing ripped muscles and other tissues were ripped just as badly or more so again.

Nerve damage to eye muscle control nerves and other body functions have caused eye muscle surgery and career ending problems. Tremors in my arms have developed and I now have bone vanes that have grown in the spinal column gap of my cervical vertebrae heading right into the spinal cord itself where they have been pushing in for the last five years. The neurologist says, that although they absolutely hate to operate to deal with this, when the pain gets too great for me they will have to operate and take chances then.

This and arthritis in the hips for the last 15 years has been some distraction from sexual satisfaction... and yet we carry on in joy!!!

Pan your story is wonderful to hear and a great encouragement. Thanks again. Any comments you have or areas of similar detailed experience will be much appreciated.