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Describe your surgery and why you needed it.
Basically I noticed after my last surgery that although the pain had subsided substantially, I started getting a kind of new pain in my lower back on the left side. What happened is that although my spine was fused, the discs below it were deteriorating, and it was causing me to kind of sink to my left. For the surgery, instead of going through the front or the back, as they normally would, they had to go in from my left side and put in some plates to keep me upright, basically.

What was this recuperation process like?
I find that after each surgery, I'm a bit stronger emotionally and therefore physically as well. I used to even think, "Oh no, my life is ruined. Everything's horrible, I might as well be dead and everything stinks and I can't believe this is happening to me." That would be my initial thought when I was much younger. And as I've gotten stronger, I'm thinking, you know, this could be a good thing. I learned from this. Hey, maybe I'm stronger than I thought. And I actually end up being a little impressed with myself.

It's actually an opportunity to sit and learn and grow in a way that was not something that I would have otherwise made the time to do. Because I'm a workaholic. I get up every morning, and my eyes are not fully open yet before I've thought of 25 things I need to do within the next hour and I don't have enough time to do it. It's the biggest curse. George or a number of my friends would say, "Jeanette, when do you turn your brain off?" I'd give anything if I could. Because I'm always thinking. I'm a driven person, but I also work a lot based on guilt, because I feel like I'm not a good enough mother, wife, friend, worker.

What did you discover about yourself?
I found out that it killed me not to be number one. And that it's not OK. I would rather quit than to sit there and say, "That's OK." I keep making excuses and going, "It's not a big deal. Hey, I've got responsibilities. I gotta pay my bills. I gotta be a mom to Cheyenne," and all this other stuff. And I'm still good enough to beat most of the women - and actually all the women at any given time. So you know, don't beat yourself up. I say this to myself because I do beat myself up. The problem is that I can't help it. It's in my heart, and so that's why this is a big problem. Why is it necessary for you to compete on the Classic Tour when you can make plenty of money through sponsorships, appearances and exhibitions?

I love it. I mean, that's first and foremost. I love to compete. Number two, it validates my standing. Then again, I don't know if that's even the case anymore. Years ago, I needed my ranking to be able to go out and do these exhibitions, but, honestly, I don't think that's the case anymore. I'm known well enough outside the market. I have a strong enough client base that I can probably go quite a while doing appearances. So I guess it would just go really back to the fact that I do love to compete. The WPBA does offer television coverage, but, again, I have probably gotten more television coverage from all the media I've done over the last 15 years.

What is the best scenario for you now, physically?
I'm in the best shape of my life, and I plan to continue to be. It's a work in process. I hired Rich Barretta, Jennifer's Barretta's husband, out of New York City as my trainer. … When they cut me from the left side, I lost a lot of the feeling in my left leg, in my waist and up to my ribs, and some of that feeling is coming back. Even now, it's not fully up to strength. But, right after surgery, I could barely lift my left leg, whereas I can now lift it at least a foot and a half up in the air, which I felt like I would never do again. And I started boxing. That's been great. Especially mentally. Every time I hit that boxing bag, I just picture Allison's face. Just kidding! … But I'll tell you, I hit that boxing bag pretty well.

Where does being a mom fit in?
Cheyenne has been traveling with me everywhere. I made it pretty clear to my husband that I waited 10 years for this baby and I am not going to be without her. So either I quit pool or she travels with me, and it wasn't a hard decision for my husband. So, Cheyenne's been traveling with me quite a bit. … I have a problem. And it's a real problem. Because I don't want to sacrifice my time with my child. And I don't really want to sacrifice my income, because not only have I gotten comfortable with my income but so have several people in my family.

Do you still feel pain when you play?
I have a lot of different pains. A lot of it has to do with arthritis as well, so my joints get very stiff, particularly my lower back and my knees. I was taking Vioxx, but it was taken off the market. … Now I'm taking Celebrex, and when I'm not taking Celebrex, it's really hard for me to get out of bed in the morning. I mean, just getting out of bed, getting out of a chair, it's very difficult for me. But again, you get up. You do what you've gotta do.

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