Laura's Comeback

After nearly three months of hard work, my wife Laura did it. She got back on her bike today for her first outdoor ride since her accident. And just as I expected, she did more than just gingerly spin around the block, she rode 20 miles -- and loved it!

I have to admit I was relieved to see her pedal back home safely, and not because she made it back without incident. Rather, she returned on her road bike, clipped into her pedals, with an enormous smile on her face.

You see, she headed out on her hybrid, thinking she'd be nervous about clipping in to her much more responsive road bike. I left to take the kids to their swimming lessons and didn't notice when I got back that she'd switched bikes. She told me her hybrid just didn't feel right -- her feet kept sliding off the pedals and the bike felt sluggish. So, after riding around Lake Calhoun she headed back to change bikes (and shoes).

We both love the look of her blue and black carbon Fuji road bike. Even after her accident she was thrilled to have it back in the house. As soon as she was able she was back up on it on the bike trainer. But I was probably more fearful than she that taking the bike back outside would bring back memories of her accident.

I really do have visions of us riding off into the sunset on our road bikes together. Sunsets here in the Twin Cities (like those we watched last year coming home from our "bike dates"). Sunsets after long full-day rides together. Sunsets while riding across Europe when the kids are grown.

So I was relieved to see her riding confidently again. And so happy for her. Cycling had quickly become such a positive thing in her life, and it still is.

And being positive is what has most amazed me about Laura during this entire experience. I've been around a lot of people recovering from sports injuries, and I've experienced some pretty serious ones myself. I have honestly never seen someone so focused on the positive every day.

When she could get up and down the stairs by herself, sitting and resting on every step, she didn't complain about how long it took. She was simply happy to be able to get out of the bedroom and downstairs. When she found a rolling cart at Target she could push around the kitchen so she could make herself lunch (with one hand) and push it to the table, she felt so independent!

Just about every night she'd show me the incremental progress she'd made. One or two more degrees in the range of motion in her wrist was cause for celebration. Being able to go from two crutches to one, or one crutch to her cane, produced true jubilation.

I, on the other hand, would have been insufferable. Actually, I'm sure I was insufferable during my last major sports injury. I broke my leg a little over five years ago playing soccer and it took over a year to fully heal. Fortunately the experience led me to take up cycling, which has really changed my life for the better in so many ways. At the time, though, I'm sure I was a real downer.

Ultimately I have to think Laura's positive attitude sped up her recovery considerably. Sure, she was also a model patient with her physical therapy, and this may be the largest single factor (aside from her general health and fitness level before the accident). But I do believe, unprovable though it may be, that a positive attitude can create a positive feedback loop that literally speeds up healing.

Regardless what made it possible, though, I'm just thrilled Laura is back on her bike, enjoying something she has come to love as much as I do, just 11 weeks after an enormous setback. We're even planning a "bike date" for tomorrow night to celebrate. (Ain't love grand?)