I would give credit to the IVIG and Alans persistence. This is good news.

On nerves regenerating....I think some do and some dont...I think small fibers are the most likely to do so.

If you are squeamish----stop here!!!

I cut off the tip of my finger to the bone....every thing got cut, but the tendon on my index finger above the top joint. Right index finger...I was looking at bone and the tip of my finger hanging off that bone...that is called de-gloving. It is a very 'revealing' injury.

If I tell you how I did this promise not to laugh??? Do not attempt this.....professional stunt dummy trick.....

I did it kite skiing on a frozen lake....I know now, there are somethings we truly get too old to do with a reasonable margin of safety.

I was fine until I saw the huge open spot of water in the ice....I downed my kite (which is the size of a parachute). Because I was a bit scared to be that close to the edge of ice...l took off my ski's backed up and gathered the kite by the strings...DUMB MOVE. I knew it was a dumb move...but it was a pricey kite....I wanted to keep it.

On gust of wind and bye bye finger....and bye bye kite.

To the ER via EMS....they just stictched it back together and said the nerves will grow back...at least the tendon is fine....they knew me by then...I had a few other adventures previously. This was my last one...by then I figured if I came in with another injury of adventurous etiology they would send me to the psych ward.

Anyway....the nerves did grow back, totally intact. You can not even see where the injury was, let alone feel it....
Oh and I got my kite back....it found a way to the marina....and we fished it out....now I fly it on dry land...oh and I bought one with a BRAKE.

I have settled down now to a more sedentary life....by necessity. I can't take that kind of excitement anymore.

My spinal nerve roots from my MVA...that is a whole other story....I wish it was the story of my finger...but it isn't.

Congratualtions Alan...I am glad your feet have "feelings...nothing more than feelings....I forget the rest of the lyrics to the song.....I will hummmm for you.

Cyclelops:

I have two questions for you.

Is this what you were doing:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZUQd...eature=related

and if so, YOU ARE NUTS!!!! lol

And how did you cut off the finger?? I'm trying to picture this.

mel

I just hope it doesn't turn into too much feeling.

These past two days I've had way too much feeling myself! OUCH!
Like others here the weather changes are KILLING ME.

I know what you mean by too much feeling because that's what the crazy weather does to me.

He has the pain between the toes. That hasn't changed in years.

But the whole foot has been numb during every single test he ever took by anybody. For over 10 years.

And yesterday, when she touched the tip of some of his toes, HE FELT SOMETHING.

Now whether or not the antibodies are kicking in, well, I have no idea. But something is afoot here!!! NO PUN INTENDED!!!!

We shall see.

mel

Yes Mel...that was what I was doing....could have been me!!! I was pretty good at it....only problem was that the darn ice ended....the lake I was on is very deep and usually we know where the holes are....the ice fisher guys were well past where I was....they must have gotten there some other way.....or that hole was new. The hole was a lot worse than the alternative....with those kites...you never ever, ever, get near the strings....they take off at 80 mph. slice like thru butter. I flew many many times and had no problem...I got freaked by the prospect of going in the drink...and yes...I did have ice fisher picks to get myself out....but luckily I avoided the dunk. Now I stay off frozen lakes....global warming has made ice very unreliable....

Lesson learned. I can't do the kite anymore, unless the wind is very very light...it pulls too hard on my arms....my kite fastens to the fore arms...it would pull your hands off. I even have one with a harness.

I bought better ones after my accident...one was a sail, which is much better, the other one is like the one you see on the video, but has a 'brake', which turns the baffels on the airfoil down so they don't 'catch air'....so you slow and stop. However in Spring 2004, my health really took a dive.

I was not kidding when I said I was athletic. I injured my finger in Jan or Feb of 2004!!! Prior to that I could complete a hilly sprint triathlon in an hour and 50 minutes....this was a 500m swim, 18 mile hilly bike and 3.2 mile hilly run.

I can not walk 3.2 miles in an hour anymore....gosh, I am not sure I can walk 3.2 miles...I think I can.....(I think I can, I think I can......)

This is how fast this disease came on ...it is thru my entire body....

I was sick and in pain back then but man, when you are doing that with a kite and skis....you forget you hurt. I was so hyped on adrenaline...it didn't even hurt when my finger got sliced. Yeehaw. God how I wish I could feel that again.

BTW I owned 3 kites like on the video...mine is a rainbow color...beautiful...I can still fly it on not real windy days....and I can make it do sommersaults and dives...I have a long line on it to do tricks.

My sons have the other 2 of my huge airfoils...one kid has the sail which can be used with a boogy board...skate board kind of thing as well as skis or snowboard. Snowboards are better than skis...you gotta know what you are doing on skis with those things... Ironically I do not downhill ski.

I still have a few other kites....I like to put lights on them and fly them at night....stops traffic...people think it is a UFO....that is a riot.

I can put a 150 foot line on those suckers and they will carry up to 4 lights...they are that strong. Heck, they will lift the likes of me on a windy day...which is why one does not fly those on a windy day unless one is on a moving object or likes to be dragged...

I would die flying like that now.

(I had a few friends trying to talk me into skydiving....my brother in law did it....I passed---I do not have good luck. Now I can not take an exciting movie...this stinks.)

Just so folks know...it doesnt matter who you are, what kind of shape you are in, were in, doesn't matter what you did, PN can hit you....once it does, there is no going back. This is not a Lance Armstrong story....I tried, but there is no going back.

BTW my skate-skis went to Colorado with my daughter....the speed skates that also clicked onto that boot system are under my bed....she has the sense not to use them....and my dopey son is trying to untangle the sail...(it was never tangled....that is how the knots are supposed to be tied-but it has kept him out of trouble for a few weeks...)

I got my daughters good Gary Fischer mountain bike in trade...and it has shock absorbers....she got some fancy $10K bike from her team.

now if I can just feel my hands long enough to make it worth getting into all that gear to ride....when it gets warm of course.

Did you know ice is 7 times harder than concrete? It is. I have learned that the hard way too.

I wanted to die at the age of 87 on my mountain bike in the Himalayas.....that aint gonna happen, and I hear there is a travel advisory for that area right now..

How the heck can ice be harder than concrete?
It's frozen water!!!!

mel

I have problems with the concept of hard...either something is hard or soft...

However, they do grade hardness...think of gemstones.

Yes, ice is 7 times harder than concrete.

Ok....I tried to upload the pic....where is it?

There ya go Mel....kinda far away, but I think if I get it too close...I will pixilate it.