>>8095963My dad would take me backpacking as a kid and I would go out on my own until, at 22 I pinched my sciatic nerve on the return part of the notoriously rough Hermit/Boucher trail in the Grand Canyon. If you're unfamiliar a sciatic pinch is unbelievably painful and you loose strength in the leg. I had to crawl/drag myself about 15 miles out. That was the last hiking trip I went on.
I wouldn't say I "had the money to do it". I'd borrow equipment, scrounge military surplus, and purchased necessities tactically. People have been living outdoors for tens of thousands of years before civilization, you don't have to be wearing a $150 shirt high tech wicking shirt or using a $50 camp fold out camp stove to enjoy a couple days on a trail.
I loved it but I sure got injured a lot.
I was homeless twice. The first time was due to combo of a mental health crash out and a shit head trust fund frat boy boss I had that was paying me half minimum wage and, I later found out, was actively trying to prevent me from getting another job. The second time was due to that abusive relationship. Me and my then girlfriend had moved to a new state. The plan was to live with a family member of mine for a while while I got a job and we look for a place. She had been a perfect girlfriend the six months prior but something about moving flipped some hidden psycho bitch switch inside her and she got drunk and literally attacked my family member at 3AM. Needless to say, we got kicked out. I didn't even have a car so it was pretty rough.
Both times I got out of it the same way I got out of the Grand Canyon with my back injury, just powered forward because there's no other option. When you're stuck in a do-or-die situation you just "do" you know?
I'm 38 now.
I feel alive now, not because of the above things but more because my wife is the most loving and understanding person I've ever met and I've finally started to get my mental health under control.
