On January 30th 2016, the Daily Mail ran an article about the healing of the rift between Phil Collins and his ex-wife Orianne Cevey. In 2008, their divorce cost a record £25 million, but with time, their relationship has healed and they have now been back together for the last 6 months.
Unfortunately, the pair have both suffered with back problems in recent years. Rather than seeking non invasive treatment, they both accepted advice of their medical professionals to go under the knife and have paid a heavier price than their divorce for this decision. The picture below shown in the Daily Mail, says it all.
In 2009, Phil started to experience severe pain in his neck, which was diagnosed as a dislocated vertebrae by a ‘regular doctor’. It’s at this point that Phil should have sought the advice of someone with the skills to help him recover from this condition without surgical intervention. Unfortunately, Phil made the biggest mistake of his career and underwent surgery which has robbed him of his amazing talent. The surgeons mistakingly cut through the nerves to his hands, which means he is unlikely to drum again.
In an interview with Rolling Stone Magazine Phil said:
“My vertebrae has been crushing my spinal cord because of the position I drum in. It comes from years of playing. I can’t even hold the sticks properly without it being painful… The first time I picked up the drumsticks after my neck surgery, they flew across the room because I couldn’t grip them. When I play, I’ve had to tape the sticks to my hand… I’m having an operation soon and there’s a good chance of it improving over time.”
Time is a good healer, it worked for his relationship with Orianne, but cut nerves are not so forgiving. It is frustrating that doctors, one of the most trusted professions in our society today, give out such poor advice. They rarely make clear all the alternatives that can be explored before resorting to this type of devastating and permanent action. And this statement is reinforced by looking at a similar tragedy that has been affecting the life of his ex-wife Orianne herself.
In December 2014, Orianne elected to have surgery to resolve the persistent pains in her right shoulder and neck. She chose to have the surgery in her native Switzerland rather than her home in Miami because of the ‘Quality of care’ available there. She had received assurances by the unnamed hospital that the procedure was routine and she could expect to return home after 3 days. Unfortunately, things didn’t go so well and Orianne’s spinal chord was damaged during the surgery. Apparently, she was told that this was not a medical error but a ‘complication’. Consequently, Orianne has filed a legal complaint to discover the truth.
It must have been very scary for Orianne when she ‘woke up paralysed’, as she told one newspaper during an interview.
“I no longer had any feeling from the top of my body to the bottom of my feet”.
Fortunately, with extensive rehabilitation she is no longer in a wheelchair and can walk unaided, but she will never be the same again.
When complications as life changing as this are so likely, it’s amazing that medical practitioners are so keen to push people towards the operating table with such vigour. We can only be led to believe that lucrative financial rewards must be clouding their opinions.
If you know anyone who is suffering from neck, back or related pains, please encourage them to seek the advice of a trusted therapist with a reputation for success. Manipulating the spine, restoring alignment and allowing the body to heal itself, returns the lasting results they deserve without any of the terrifying risks associated with surgical procedures.
If you want to be pain free and are ready seek an alternative to the surgeon’s scalpel, call me on 07951 146778.