I'm in sympathy with the quote, but after many years of living in Japan, I've come away with some views about aging, injury and healing that are not the usual point of view in North America. I'll be brief, and I hope it will be worth something to you.

The first thing to do is to find out what if any orthopedic problems exist — X-ray, various scanning techniques. An orthopedic sturgeon can usually be pretty damn conclusive in that department. Next comes nerve problems. Then ligament and muscle problems. My approach in such cases has been to enlist the services of the entire line-up of trained profesinals until I am satisfied that the condition or injury is healling, or is resolving itself in some way. Here in Japan, this can mean going to orthopedic surgeons, massage therapists, chiropractors, accupture, shiatsu, and seitai (an astonishing Japanese art of moving the skeleton alignment). You may be able to access only a portion of these in your location, but my point is that whereas all these are in someway connected, they are usually not all available, and they are often thought of as being exclusionary of each other. Asia is much more acceptable of a wholistic form of treatment for many ailments. Thus, it is easier to gain access to two or even three of these treatments — often by way of the universal national health insurance scheme — which by the way is not cheap but virtually mandatory. If I were you, I would not necessarily volunteer to tell one practitioner type about what the other may or may not being doing for you. In the West, all too often, the various branches of medicine are at war with each other.

While riding my bike one night, about two years ago, I made a silly mistake on a rain-slicked rail trestle. And, being 58-59 at the time, I shortly thereafter began to think — oh hell, this is the sort of thing that an old fart like me may take months or years to get over! A combination of wet, shiny-worn timber, a polished steel railroad track and a burst of power on the cranks threw me directly into the ground and right onto my shoulder. I thought that I had broken something. I could not get up for nearly five minutes. I just lay on the tracks of a busy commuter line, unable to move! The next morning I was totally knackered, and moving my arm more than a fraction of an inch was excrutiating. After an agonizing day at work, I struggled to the orthopedic guy who took an X-ray and declared no damage to bone or ligament. With some anti-inflammatory medicine in hand I went next to a clinic where there is is massage, electric treatment, accupuncture and chiropractic — all the the same clinic! I told them that I had been cleared by the bone guy, and they took good care of me.

Healing takes time, but today I have NO lingering problems as a result of this injury. I slowly, but steadily recovered. This clinic bandaged and taped me up. I was put in a sling and given adhesive heat pads that are popular here. I was given massage, electric impulse treament and a some sort of ray emitting thingy-puffer I'm not familiar with — and was in too much pain to inquire.

Get all the help that you can access and afford. Don't rely on painkillers and time. Sometimes injuries just heal over a problem that remains lurking and waiting for re-injury of some kind. There really are people out there who can help you. And, sometimes you need the help of more than one specialist. Each of these people hold something helpful and important at their disposal.

I sincerely hope that you feel better soon.