I am Bill Arnold from Germantown, Ohio where I reside with my wife Denise.  Together, we have three boys, all married and living in the area. I’ve enjoyed typical sports in my life, but I’ve loved one particular sport far greater than the others: Arm Wrestling.  In October 1981, I competed in an arm wrestling tournament and was immediately hooked.  I have competed professionally for the past 40 years, meeting amazing people from all over the country and traveling to nearly every state.  One of our boys also competes professionally and we have had some tremendous memories over the years.  

I have been a patient at Orthopedic Associates of SW Ohio a number of times over the years for various arm and hand injuries.  Orthopedic Associates of SW Ohio has always been the place to go, and many of my armwrestling friends have been helped here. I suffered an elbow injury 2 years ago that wouldn’t heal.  The years of stress put on my elbow and wrist had caused some issues that were very painful and making it hard to train properly.  With the recent acute injuries, I was in no shape to compete.  Without time to do surgery to resolve the problem, the physicians at Orthopedic Associates were able to inject cortisone in both areas, alleviating the swelling and removing the pain so I could compete at the Worlds. This June, I added an injury to my wrist during the National Championship in Dallas.  With the World Championship quickly approaching in September in Orlando, I was unable to use the full strength of my hand and arm and sought out the help of Orthopedic Associates once again.

I know that many physicians go into medicine to help people.  They know when they’ve helped someone physically – but they don’t know how significant they really are to some of us in certain situations.  You see, I have armwrestled competitively on and off for 40 years.  I have accomplished great things in the sport, but I lost motivation due to injuries and just normal life – career, family, etc.  I had “retired” from arm wrestling about 10 years ago, but still enjoyed watching my son compete.  In July of 2018, I was diagnosed with stage 4 throat cancer.  The treatment was brutal and I lost 60 pounds over the horrible 7 weeks of treatment, eating my meals through a tube in my stomach.  My wife and the incredible, selfless job she did for me every minute of every day got me through the most trying time of my life.  What many people don’t understand is that chemo makes you sick throughout the treatment, but radiation continues to cause damage long beyond the last treatment.  Your life changes – you change physically and mentally.  I was physically defeated in every way and knew that I had 12 more weeks post-radiation until my feeding tube was removed and I started to truly recover.  The emotional part of my recovery was just beginning.  

My son came over many times a week to train for armwrestling and asked me to come out to our home gym and supervise.  I would on occasion, but most days I could only hang out with him for five minutes.  He slowly encouraged me to try lifting 20 pounds – then 25.  Over several months, I started to get stronger.  Within a few months, I was talked into competing.  I felt motivated once again – and I truly believe this new motivation from my son helped me recover, and I knew that armwrestling was going to be an avenue to push me back to health and prove to myself that I could recover from this stupid disease.  So, with my son’s help, we embarked on a mission – to become national champion again and place in the top 8 in the world in the same year.  Everything was going perfectly – I was winning most tournaments, getting stronger – then, one month before the Nationals, I injured my wrist at a tournament in Michigan.  Fingers were numb, tingling, weak.  I did nothing with that hand for a month and flew to Dallas at the end of June for the National Championship.  I don’t know how, but I won - barely, and my wrist was a disaster and in constant pain.  With my first goal reached, I had only 3 months to recover so I could represent the United States at the World Championships in Florida on September 17.  My son would be competing as well in his own weight class.  My wrist made training impossible.  Exercises that were normally done with 150 pounds were now a struggle for me using 30 pounds.  After two months of no progress, a neighbor recommended I go to Orthopedic Associates of SW Ohio. 

The physician's grasp of the problem and his willingness to find a way for me to overcome this hurdle gave me hope of completing the final step toward the goals I had set 2 years earlier. Dr. Bamberger asked me what I felt my chances were when I left his office the day I flew to Orlando for the Worlds.  I said that when I first came to him, I had a zero percent chance of being in the top 8 – but with his help, I felt 75% likely of attaining that goal.  So, on September 17 in one of the most competitive classes I have ever entered, with nearly every competitor being a current or former world or national champion, my wrist held up like new.  I earned a bronze medal that day, far exceeding my goals, and putting an end to the emotional journey that started in 2018.  My son, in a much younger, more competitive division, placed in the top 10 – something few fathers get to witness.  It was a double victory for me.

Dr. Bamberger did not know this history that I’m sharing, and he also didn't know why this was so important to me.  I had to prove to myself that I could recover from cancer, work hard, and compete at the highest level just one more time.  It may sound foolish to chase dreams, but it’s an internal thing that you only understand when you’ve been sick.  Dr. Bamberger and Orthopedic Associates of SW Ohio didn’t just get me ready to compete in another tournament, they enabled me to finally win my battle.  Without them, I would have had an unfinished story.  Doctors think they help people physically.  They likely overlook the back story and the emotional, life-changing difference they make as they treat their patients. Dr. Bamberger took an interest, and I am forever grateful.  I will no longer compete at that level – I’ve accomplished what I set out to do.  Without the help of Orthopedic Associates, my journey would have ended prematurely. They enabled me to finish my story and close the book.