Nicole Castrale couldn’t read through her retirement letter these past couple days without crying. She’s known for months that this day was coming, but that didn’t make it any easier. In September, Castrale’s longtime doctor told her the best chance of avoiding a fusion in her back was to retire.
“The level that they needed to fuse me at, I have a bulging disc above and below,” said Castrale. “If he fuses me at one level, he’d have to do it at three levels.”
With 4-year-old Eleni to chase around, that kind of debilitating procedure wasn’t an option.