Spinal surgery — those are two words I never thought would describe a chapter of my life.

First I should explain the reason long-time Kent Patch freelancer Kasha Legeza spent the past few weeks filling in for me. I had to go under the knife to address some serious leg pain. I tried everything — from chiropractic medicine to intense physical therapy and more invasive medical measures — before realizing surgery was the last option on the table.

I could barely stand up. Walking proved almost impossible. It turns out, a microdiscectomy on the disc beneath my L5 vertebrae proved a herniated disc was the culprit. Thankfully, the surgery was minimally invasive, which means I was out of the hospital in two days with just a minor incision and a prescription for rest and lots of walking.

Most of our readers here at Kent Patch know what I've been struggling with for almost 10 years now. Some of you have experienced much worse pain than I was enduring. And many of you were wonderful enough to share suggestions, personal remedies, professional contacts or just kind words — all of which were greatly appreciated — as I sought relief.

Now I can once again enjoy the simple things many of us take for granted: walking, sitting and standing.

I have to give a heartfelt thanks to the folks at University Hospitals, who were absolutely wonderful throughout the whole process from pre-admission to the follow-up I had with my surgeon just last week. And to Kentite Kasha Legeza, who did a great job keeping all of you informed and intrigued over the past six weeks.

It definitely feels good to be back, and I look forward to a flood of your news tips, photos, letters to the editor and blogger applications at Matt.Fredmonsky@Patch.com.