Joe: Sleepless Nights

I spent 36 years as an electrician, most of it in transit, which is the subway. In transit, everything is heavy, the conduit, the tools, all of it, and it takes a toll on your body. I had neck pain on and off for many years, but it was in 2017 that it started to become unbearable. I had splitting headaches that wrapped around my temple, and I could barely put my hard hat on because of the pressure and pain on my neck. Worst of all was how it affected my sleep. I wasn’t able to stay asleep for more than an hour or so, then I’d be up, walking the floors. My wife is a saint for going through this with me. It’s hard to explain how hard it is when you can’t sleep. You’re always tired, always run down, and there was nothing that was helping. I had tried medications but they came with side effects, and always left me feeling worse off than when I started.