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It's not me, it's you
Yeah, I'll stick it out another week, maybe two, but I may just say fuck it to PT and put together my own program. At least then I wouldn't have to dip into my workday to arrange it.
The regular physical therapist was my person today (get one day with her and one day with the aide) and she kept scolding I was rushing through things. Except that I wasn't. I wasn't doing them deliberately super slow or deliberately quickly. I was just doing what she gave me at a steady pace. The problem is that, again, she's doing three or four people all at the same time and so when I'm given an assignment like rolling the ball up the wall 10x and then doing 10 pushups against the ball and repeating these two times, it's not going to take me very long. Think about it, count to ten including those needed "Missisissippis" and is it really going to take all that time to carefully roll a rubber ball up the wall above your head and back down? Even less for the pushups. So if I'm taking my time, that's only six or seven minutes total while she's going around to the other people and assigning them things. So I'd do them another cycle or two and still get tsk tsked. She also didn't have the time to assign me non-lying down exercise though she agrees that I should be doing standing things. I'll have to make up my own homework, I suppose.
I don't object to the concept of PT. I object to this place's methods which really feel like they're milking insurance companies. Sure, I could go shopping around for another and start all over but the thing is, I know what I'm supposed to do. I just have to have the discipline to actually DO it.
Discouraging. I didn't have really high hopes but I thought it would be better than this.
The regular physical therapist was my person today (get one day with her and one day with the aide) and she kept scolding I was rushing through things. Except that I wasn't. I wasn't doing them deliberately super slow or deliberately quickly. I was just doing what she gave me at a steady pace. The problem is that, again, she's doing three or four people all at the same time and so when I'm given an assignment like rolling the ball up the wall 10x and then doing 10 pushups against the ball and repeating these two times, it's not going to take me very long. Think about it, count to ten including those needed "Missisissippis" and is it really going to take all that time to carefully roll a rubber ball up the wall above your head and back down? Even less for the pushups. So if I'm taking my time, that's only six or seven minutes total while she's going around to the other people and assigning them things. So I'd do them another cycle or two and still get tsk tsked. She also didn't have the time to assign me non-lying down exercise though she agrees that I should be doing standing things. I'll have to make up my own homework, I suppose.
I don't object to the concept of PT. I object to this place's methods which really feel like they're milking insurance companies. Sure, I could go shopping around for another and start all over but the thing is, I know what I'm supposed to do. I just have to have the discipline to actually DO it.
Discouraging. I didn't have really high hopes but I thought it would be better than this.
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Finding a better PT might be worth the trouble. The exercises should advance and change as you get stronger. I'd think there should be some muscle relaxation and stretching too.
It's too bad you can't have my therapists. They are much better than the ones I dealt with for previous issues. I don't remember getting as much hands-on manipulation before. (Then again, maybe it's just that they all have foot fetishes.)
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Monday's going to be where I make the final decision (though honestly, I think I've already made up my mind). I have the actual PT woman again and if it's the same old half-assed stuff, I'm dumping them. I've already been scouting around for yoga classes - there's one at a not so far YMCA where I know the instructor checks your form, and I'm going to research fitness activities that get progressively harder that I could do at the gym and make myself go before work.
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Gentle yoga taught by an instructor who knows what she/he is doing sounds good, but I wouldn't give up on finding a decent PT because a good one can be a lot of help. I'd be really careful about starting any kind of rigorous fitness classes until you get some consistent improvement with your back.
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The other issue - that's not really their fault - is aside from "back spasms" I have no other doctor's diagnosis of what is actually wrong with me. Right now aside from the stiffness that my back gets (possibly due to arthritis or weight or both), I don't have regular pain anymore. Since I don't currently have acute pain, PT and the docs don't seem to know what to do with me so they're going through the motions.
I'll be asking her tomorrow morning what the game plan going forward is and if there's no straight answer, I'm dropping out and will go more to the gym. I went to the gym today and did treadmill, bike, weight machines and stretching and am ok.
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If you can do all that at the gym and still move a finger to type the next day, you are a better woman than I am.
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Nice to meet you! :)
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It would also help to find some sort of activity that I like doing. I toy with trying bellydance again but I don't think that's going to happen.
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