starting to like PT a lil more..

Well, PT is going better.. sessions still take about 2 hours, but they seem to be listening to me when certain things don't go very well for me. I'm not allowed to do any IT band stretching anymore, but that means they want me to use the evil bad foam roller thing more...ugh. i hate that thing. lol it hurts.

I have 3 colors of tubing and one band now im working with. I need to get an exercise ball and 2lb weights too so i can do the other ones Im suppose to be doing. I'm sore from it but not as "OH MY GOSH I'M GOING TO DIE" sore as I was, (ok so that may be a tad melodramatic but u get the idea =) its more...muscle soreness which I'm okay with. He said he is going to teach me how to put my SI back in place which is cool, cuz thats one acute 'injury' that happens somewhat frequently and seriously interferes with...well, functioning. i hate that horrid muscle spasm and sciatic pain. He said i'll have to be careful with it cuz i dont want to flip it the other way, and that he wont have me do what he usually would..cuz "I don't make a habit of making already hypermobile joints more mobile' lol I also told him about what the PT lady back in the day did before i knew about EDS (i was like.. 18 or something) and i was having sciatic nerve pain when I walked, she taught me this lil trick to put my SI back in place (tho this doesn't help when the muscle is spasmsing cuz the muscle is interfering) and he said its called..er. something, but basically most PT ppl don't use those techniques (and that he was impressed she did). He said he'll focus more on the "muscle energy" techniques to get my muscles to put it back, so hopefully it'll stay. He also seemed rather floored that 3 yrs ago when I initially had the spasm issues, I had to wait 4 weeks for my PT appt, and the doc in the meantime gave me 90 muscle relaxers and a bottle of pain pills.... he said their policy is within 24 to 48 hours for the initial appt, "cuz usually ppl are here because of an injury or surgery and its best to get the ball rolling!"

I'll be working with the other PT guy this week so that should be interesting. I like him better, tho my main PT guy isn't bad, hes listening to me more than I thought he was.

I should probably ask about what shoulder/arm stretches are okay to do cuz those muscles, esp my tricep will get quite sore and I'm not sure if my usual way of stretching things is okay or not...

I just finished my PT stuff.. I'm getting better at standing on one leg but I still can't get thru any one set of exercises without taking a break (the one legged ones).. He said tho that the fact that I can get thru some of them and have noticed that I can do more reps before it becomes a problem is a good sign, and things will just keep getting stronger so I can tolerate more... *crosses fingers* (if i stand on one leg for very long, i get a spasm-cramp-type-burning pain at the front of my hips).

Its gotten to where i really look forward to the end.. with the ice for my shoulders, and the ice and tens unit for both my hips. Though this last time i asked for the heating pack the chick mentioned before, and HOLY CRAP thats nice heh otherwise i sit there freezing for 15min, but having a nice hot pack across my tummy while everything else is frozen is quite nice =) And she gave me a blanket heh I was pretty much nodding off/falling asleep when the timer went off.

Okay, should probably go on.. suppose to go home for the weekend but i procrastinated a bit and decided to chillax (read: Curl up with my Snuggie and do absolutely nothing productive...ie, finish "the girl who kicked the hornets nest" and catch up on "Lie to me" and Fringe" and fall asleep on the couch a lot hehe) cuz this last work week or two have been a bit much.

Now i getta drive 3 1/2 hours and hang out with my best friend and her kiddos the next 2 days before i gotta come back for more work and PT. wee... (bringing my little bands/tubing cuz i gotta keep up with my PT like a good girl lol). When my Boyfriend saw all my new rubber toys (lol), he asked if i'd taken up IV-drug use cuz they look like that kinda tourniquets. Lol

Hope everyones joints are staying mostly in place =)

I think my physical therapist is trying to kill me...

Holy crap.. so i had my first actual day of PT, not just the meet-n-greet one i had on monday.
I worked 8 hours, then drove an hour to where i live, and to my appt (which i am very happy is less than an a mile from my house now)..

My appt took 2 freaking hours. and moving hurts. a lot. hell even not moving hurts right now. I have 3 very tight muscles in my lower body, so i have a couple stretches im spose to do, one of which they kept modifying cuz it was causing my lower back pain when i stood upright again as things tried to shift back in place. And an insane amount of strengthening crap for everything from my legs, hips, low back, abs, and both shoulders. I saw many people come and go during my 2 hr appt.. I sorta like the 2nd PT guy better than I like my primary one... he seems to like, listen to me a lot more, esp about the EDS stuff. The first guy kinda well.. was nice enough but wasnt cluing in when i'd mention something as being a concern or causing me problems. (the office has 2 primary PT doods and then a couple assistants).

The best part was at the very end, when they put tens unit pads on my hips, 4 on each side, then wrapped my whole midsection in ice it seemed (two big ice packs in pillow cases, which were then tied across my stomach lol) and then 2 more ice packs for my shoulders. (i need to get me some of these... ive never felt very inclined to seriously ice my hips until now but holy smeg, they hurt).

except during the icing, i started having SI pain and sciatic pain throbbing down my right leg.. and when i stood up, i could feel the muscle in my lower back start to slowly spasm and get pissed off (like it does when i sit in a car too long) - so i got dressed (cuz i no one told me i'd need to wear shorts.....im a redhead with the whitest legs possible, I dont wear shorts) so i had to wear their shorts.. - anyway, so I mentioned it to the tech, who then alerted the cool PT guy "hey, shes starting to have some severe SI pain" - which the guy was all "Oh I was worried about that! here sit up here and lay down" - and he checked leg length and felt my hips and then had me do this push/pull thing against his hands all isometric style with my knees up on this big foam thing - then it started to stop hurting.. and when he was done, he rechecked things and was all "there, that should be better." - apparently the right SI side got anteriorly rotated.. (i need to ask how to fix it myself cuz once it starts, I'll usually be VERY gimpy for a week or two)
He then changed one of the exercises AGAIN for stretching my IT band (which apparently is very tight and likely causing some of my bursitis issues) which hopefully wont interfere with my SI anymore, if that was the culprit.

I'm suppose to do my exercises once a day (thank god) however i am currently too sore to do them I think.. my hips HURT and are throbbing. I had a hard time falling asleep despite being insanely tired. then i slept an insane amount (about 14hrs off and on) and cant find a position to lay in that doesnt cause a fair amount of pain.. and everything feels just.. unstable. The only part that doesnt hurt that bad and id feel okay doing my stuff for are my shoulders.

I have 2 rubber rope things and a band they sent me home with. and im suppose to get an exercise ball for a couple things.

Im suppose to work the next few nights, not looking forward to that at all since the whole, laying still and moving thing hurts.

I've never felt like my ass has been kicked this hard by PT before.. =( I need to get a 3 ring binder too to organize all my exercise handouts. theres a lot..

i need those big ice packs they have. the only ice pack i have is one that worked great for my foot, but my shoulders and hips are a lot bigger than my foot...wonder if i can get them online for cheaper?? hmm...

i just want to go back to sleep.. im so freaking tired.

as Achmed the Dead Terrorist says... "I NEED SOME LIGAMENTS!"



(you can skip to 2:40min to get to the ligament part =) I love achmed..heh

K.. im gunna like.. um.. continue to sit here or something. maybe read. or fall back asleep. blah. =(

yay insurance!

I was tossing and turning and unable to get comfy...between the stupid bursitis, my shoulders sliding too far out when im on my side and the SI joint pain acting up from spending too much time tryin to sleep on my back.. i was tired of it.
So i got up early (ugh i want more sleep) and called my insurance peoples..

My former script for PT will work just fine, YAY! So monday i can call around to the PT places and make an appt. Oh and I don't actually have to have a referall to see a specialist.. which is sorta cool. Also means that my sleep doc apt in Feb wont be a hassle.

then i called to make an apt with the ortho doc, and see if i can convince him to give me cortisone shots in both hips (at the very least one of them so I can sleep on at least one freaking side) so that my PT will be more effective cuz i wont be fighting the inflammation so bad.... - what blows is i took the earliest appt, which was a cancelation.. monday afternoon. Meaning i'll get at the most 4 1/2 hrs of sleep if i goto bed RIGHT AFTER WORK and run to the apt (30min from where i live) only to try to come back here and sleep again before work.. ugh. But, if he agrees to do it, then thatd be awesome. I just want the maximize the PT as much as possible.

so yeah. yay =)

Gotta go make food now.. boyfriend is gunna be up to goto work soon and id like to have dinner ready.. then maybe i can nap before work again?