ONE YEAR

Yup, it's a year today since I started physiotherapy/rehab for my hips/back/core. One year down, a few more to go I guess. Progress has been slow and painful. I'm still getting strains or pain through my groins, outer hips and lower back. I know I'd be feeling a whole lot more depressed about the lack of progress if it hadn't been for the reduction in hip and back pain after the last 3 hydrotherapy sessions. That has felt like a major milestone.

This morning, my left hip and lower back are achy/tight. *sigh*

At the moment, I keep experiencing overwhelming tiredness through the afternoon/evening and it's only relieved by sleep. I don't know really what's causing it - could be any number of things including the severe deconditioning/effects of rehab.

Too tired.

Shoulders

I had my 3rd physio session this morning. I mentioned that the shoulders and arms had been pretty tender and restricted since the last session and that I actually don't have the muscle strength to do as many assessment exercises as last time. The physio took all that on board and seemed to mostly do muscle and nerve mobilisation. At the time it didn't feel particularly painful or aggressive but since coming home my left shoulder and arm has ached/hurt badly and my right shoulder/arm hasn't been happy either.

I dosed up on painkillers and went to sleep for an hour this afternoon! I was completely wiped out. Not sure why - perhaps a combination of yesterday's pool work and this morning's physio. Who knows.

The physio mentioned that I have lost significant muscle definition on my left shoulder and arm and it'll take a while to rebuild. The deltoid muscles of both shoulders are still small and weak. Standard delt exercises are too advanced so I think I need to stick to pool assisted movements and perhaps some 'static deltoid contractions' as demonstrated by the chappy below (Link)

I picked up a mild RHS hamstring/back of the knee strain yesterday from the pool work. Iced it this morning and put on a support bandage. It shouldn't take too long to heal. Other minor injuries at the moment are trunk strains, mostly just below my rib cage on the sides/back. Again, no idea how I did them but they're there.

My mind is mostly preoccupied with how I'll get full range of movement and muscle function back in my shoulders and arms. It's the usual problem of there being so little muscle that it's hard to find exercises that don't cause strains or overuse but do promote growth. Scapula stabilisation is a key component but.....how....? Mmmm.....I'm sure it'll come with time and perseverance. But, it could take years before my shoulders and arms function healthily and strongly. *sigh*

....it's a long, hard slog. Just as I feel optimistic, I suddenly get a dose of reality and have to accept that the progress I envisage is a long way off.

Anyone else out there been through this rehab process....?

25 Minutes and No Pain!

It's been a beautiful, sunny October day. I headed out to go bird watching this morning and spent a few hours over at Amwell and Rye Meads Nature reserves. Walking felt ok - no sharp, left hip pain on foot strike and the LHS of my lower back wasn't too tight/painful.

This afternoon, I did the usual Sunday bike work. Today, I hit the 25 minutes mark AND I didn't experience any hip stabiliser aching or LHS lower back tightness and pain! It's the first time in the 8 months that I've been using the bike that I've not had any pain! I daren't celebrate too soon but I'm really hoping this is another sign of improving muscle/joint condition and a step towards real fitness.

On the downside, my shoulders/arms are aching and painful. I think the tendonitis in the left shoulder is playing up again but, hey, I can cope with that so long as it will eventually settle.

....25 minutes on the bike and no pain - hurrah!

Note added 07/10/09: Post-cycling, there was some aching/tightness in LHS lower back and mild groin strain/tiredness on RHS. However, relatively speaking, it's still significant progress.

Ongoing tiredness

Getting back to doing the daily physio exercises for my hips/core seems to be wearing me out big time. For the past 3-4 days I've either need to sleep in the afternoon or at least rest completely. My shoulders/arms have remained problematic/painful since the physio session last week.

...just tired out from all the rehab.

Physio session

Went for my second appointment for my shoulder today. The pain I get is mostly down the upper/back of the arm. The physio identified a number problems, all essentially relating to deconditioning: tight/deconditioned nerves, restricted acromioclavicular joint, and muscle knots at the back of the shoulder, just under the arm pit. She worked on each of them, mobilising the nerve, the joint and then trying to release the muscle. At one point I actually felt quite faint from the pain/manipulation but thankfully it passed. By the end of the session I knew I was going to be in pain this afternoon! And, once again, I'm aware of the general weakness of the whole structure. Just the assessment exercises of lifting the arms up in front and then out to the side are really hard work. They wore out my right shoulder/arm as much as they did the left!

....anyways....this afternoon I've dosed myself up on painkillers - the intense ache set in pretty quickly. A hot water bottle applied to the back of the shoulder is also helping. Strangely, I feel pretty wiped out by the whole thing. I hope it all feels better tomorrow....

Hydrotherapy - improvement

....just back from the weekly hydrotherapy session. It felt good today. My muscles worked smoothly and apart from the slight twinge on the LHS of my back, there was no pain. And, when I came out of the changing rooms, I could actually walk without pain! That is a first. Normally, my left glutes/hips muscles give off sharp pain on foot strike and the LHS of my lower back is tight and painful. But, today, there was a significant improvement.

Over the past couple of weeks I've returned to doing the original daily physio exercises to strengthen/stabilise my core muscles and recondition the hips. My hope was that this would relieve the chronic back and hip pain. And, it seems to be working. It's annoying though that the only way to get my core muscles working is to keep up the physio routines. I wonder how long I'll have to stick at this before my core just does what it's supposed to do!?!

My left shoulder/arm is having a painful week, lol. I'm seeing my physio again tomorrow. Hopefully she'll help ease things up again.

Edited 20:11: I've not felt tired/sleepy at all this afternoon/evening which is another real improvement.

Aching hip

The last couple of weeks have been dogged by chronic left hip/glute and lower back pain. I've kept up with the exercise routines, tried to massage out any knots, applied heat and rested when necessary. However, I'm now having to take painkillers to be able to sleep at night as the pain stops me from dropping off.

The bike work in particular seems to aggravate the ache. And, then, I can't sit for long periods because the pain intensifies. So, it eases when I move but as soon as I stop and sit or lie down, it becomes this gnawing ache through from my lower back, through my left hip, into my groin and even down my leg. I wish I knew what was causing the pain and how it might be stopped! I can't believe it's a lack of muscle strength any longer. Surely, by now, the glutes are strong enough.

I've started work with a private physiotherapist locally for my shoulder. But, I think I really need some help with my hip now....*sigh*.....

The pool work today felt good (aside from the annoying left hip/back twinges).