Another hurdle passed....

Passed a major hurdle a week ago. Ever since my wreck my body simply just has not been the same. Still isn't the same as there are some things that I still can't do to the degree that I was able to prior to the wreck. There are also some aches and pains (and numbness in the arm) that persist even now, almost 19 months from the day it happened. But, for the first time since my wreck, I passed the APFT (aka PT test). At one point I was beginning to wonder if I was physically capable of passing it. But the other NCOs in my unit kept on encouraging me and helped me to keep my head up. It finally paid off.

It's been a long road since the wreck. A lot of ups and downs. My body is certainly not the same either, and nor will it ever be. The Army saw fit to put me on a permanent profile where I don't do the two mile run. Instead I do the 2 1/2 mile walk and I have 34 minutes to complete that task. I was pissed beyond belief when I found out about it. It limited my career options and it prevents me from ever being a tanker again. However, after taking an APFT since then I realize that once again, God knows best. Due to my previous knee injury from basic training and my knee now deteriorating, simply doing a PT test was putting me in nearly unbearable pain. It was far easier to deal with my broken ankle than it was the knee. But now I can do a PT test and be in minimal pain, instead of barely being able to operate the clutch on the way home and barely being able to walk up the stairs. Yeah, it's sore but I can get up the next morning and still get around easily.

It's just amazing sometimes what you can do when you have the right kind of support. The senior NCOs in my unit would have had every right to just berate me every time I failed and leave it at that. But they didn't do that. They helped me come up with a plan of action and put it in place and they also continually encouraged me. That encouragement and support is a big reason why I was able to finally get to where I needed to be. You can set all the goals you want but if you don't have anyone behind you it makes it 100 times harder to accomplish that goal...