Recovery & Beyond

43 years old. Father of two. Semi-capable partner in a loving relationship. That’s now.

Six months ago I was a different version. 42, fit, able, and steering a ship head-on into a storm. Work had been going well — new clinic up and running, multiple therapists on board, edging toward the fabled dreamstate of self-sustaining.

They say it comes in threes.

I was packed and ready for a boys’ weekend wild camping trip at Lake Eildon. Fishing, beer, boats, mosquitos. We got there, fought our way over the water, and found the lake had lost close to 50 metres in depth. What should have been a straight ride to shore became a total warrior obstacle course — slippery mud banks, steep inclines, and ridiculously heavy camping gear carried from water to hilltop.

One week later, my life flipped upside down in a way I could not have imagined.

This is that chronicle — an honest log of the load, the limits, and occasionally the progress. Lord grant me the serenity.