Ross T. Yingling, the quick version:
What: Male 47 yrs old (as of 12/27)
Where: Benton, Arkansas ( a HUGE Razorback)…also lived in Florida, Maryland, Virginia, & Ohio
Ancestry: I’m Half Swedish, then some German, Oklahoma Cherokee Indian, & other European parts. Name is German!
Marriage: Over 22yrs to the same wonderful woman (Carol)
Fathorhood: 2 children (boy 18, and girl 17) and Son was married on Dec 18th, so I’m now a father-in-law!
Education: BBA, 1985 and MBA, 1988
Life with Pain (Surgeries):
- Surgery 1 – L4/L5 laminectomy (no fusion) – June 2003
- Surgery 2 – L4/L5 laminectomy (with fusion) – January 2004;
- Surgery 3 – C5/C6 bone spur removal/diskectomy with fusion – August 2008
Life with Pain (Disease): Fibromyalgia onset occurred mid-2004, classified as moderate/severe…Lost of pain meds!
Life with Pain (Unclassified): Fell and broke my left arm on Nov 18th…Not just any break…the proximal portion (where rotator cuff attaches) of the humerus bone at the shoulder
Military Service: Served in US Navy, Medical Service Corps, during first Gulf War (when we should have gotten him), discharged as a mid-grade Lieutenant (O-3), 1989-1995. Started my project management & operational management career here!!
Professional Life: Taught in the School of Business at Southern Arkansas University, been a Project Management consultant for Big 6 Accounting Firm and other operational/management positions for15+yrs, and worked at various online opportunities for 3+yrs
Authoring: Written numerous articles, blogs, and been interviewed on various Internet and teleconference shows
Other things of little or no interest: LEFT handed (refer of above bullet), insomniac, sleep apnea (with CPAP)
Maybe later I’ll post a more verbose version for those who would enjoy reading more specifics about who I am and why I felt compelled to write about this stuff….
Thank you Ross for telling your story. So many times in life we think we have taken so much abuse. We feel that no one else feels the pain that we have. We feel so unlucky if you will. Personally I try to feel for all people. This life is not easy for anyone but there are those who truly know pain. I am a christian and one of my strongest beliefs is that those who suffer the most will have the greatest rewards. You have more courage and strength than many who feel nothing. You do not give up or sit and expect someone else to take care of you. Stay strong and continue to not let what life has dealt you bring you down or take the power that you have inside away.
Your Friend from SWOM,
James
James,
I REALLY appreciate your comments! Just the acknowledgment from others can in itself be encouraging. Thank you. I run into people all the time who are living with chronic pain and it saddens me to hear their stories. CP leads to so many different and non-productive states of the mind, body, spirit, and emotion. I have only the strength that God has blessed me with. My pain my be bad or severe or whatever, but it pales in comparison to the pain Jesus suffered willingly and in full knowledge of what he was doing. At any point he could have called on the angels of heaven to deliver him and it would have happened…but he didn’t.
Regards,
Ross