Reinforcing Intuition

Had a good session at physical therapy last night. I was expressing my frustration at the rate of healing that I am experiencing, so my therapist and I went through a lot of things to try to see where we can improve and get my recovery back on progress.

One of the first things identified was a need to shorten my range of motion. Given my very good level of flexibility, I may be over-extending in a lot of my movements thereby inadvertently putting strain on my ligaments, particularly at the end of my ranges of motion. (As Sonnon describes in Intu-Flow, "shave off the tightness, move to the tightness, not through it".)

We also added a outside hip wall stretch to my routine which proved to make an immediate impact the range of twisting I could perform without pain. (Ironically, this was almost the identical movement I just began practicing in Intu-Flow! Sonnon includes in in the Lumbar section where you go from side to side, pushing out the hip in the opposite direction from your movement.)

I will also be purchasing a full-body pillow to use when sleeping. The past two nights included the experiment of holding a pillow between my knees. This definitely helped my stay on my side while sleeping. As soon as the pillow slipped and I ended up on my stomach, I was awoken with back discomfort. But the last two mornings were a definite improvement. Amazing the things you take for granted.

My therapist also did not rule out seeing a chiropractor. But suggested I not go that route at the same time as PT. I now have about another 3 weeks left of PT. When that time is up, I'll have to decide the best path forward. In the meantime, it's killing me that I still cannot restart training. I miss the bells!!