Re: Learned Something Interesting Today at PT

[Guest guest]

I am glad to learn that you are enjoying your physical therapy so

far. Did you decide not to go to Austin?

I called around to the local orthopedic doctors here in OKC last

week to find an in-network doctor who would refer me out of state so

I could see someone who deals with flatback on a regular basis.

Several receptionists referred me to a local doctor who sdoesn't

take my insurance. He had told me that he couldn't help me even

when I had insurance he would take. So, I really had no

expectations of finding a local doctor that would have a clue and be

on my insurance plan.

To my surprise, the PA I saw yesterday thinks his doctor can take

care of me. Call me skeptical, but I am going to insist on going

out of town if I finally decide to have surgery. But in the

meantime, I can get an MRI and at least listen to his opinion.

Life has been full of surprises lately!

>

> Just had to share with you something I learned today at physical

therapy.

> Maybe this topic has been discussed before here, I don't know

since I am new.

>

> But I decided to mention to my therapist that I sometimes have

trouble

> breathing. I hesitated to bring it up, because I have mentioned it

to some of my

> other doctors, and they have listened to my lungs and then acted

like I must be

> making it up or something. But after reading somewhere about

another woman

> complaining of breathing problems, and relating it to her

scoliosis, I decided

> to mention it today.

>

> What happens with me is that sometimes I feel like my lungs are

very weak.

> So I have found that if I take a deep breath and hold it for about

ten seconds,

> it seems to strengthen my lungs a little bit, at least for a

while.

>

> So after explaining this to my therapist today, she asked me to

lay down and

> take a deep breath and hold it for a few seconds. Then she

announced, " Aha!

> I see where the problem is! " She says that I am breathing from my

stomach,

> instead of from my diaphragm. I have never really understood the

diaphragm or

> anything about it. I thought it was the muscle underneath the

breastbone. But

> she showed me on a skeleton how the diaphragm muscles run

underneath the rib

> cage on both sides, and then she slowly and gently ran her fingers

along my

> diaphragm, and oh man, was it sensitive!

>

> And even though I seem to be the first person with a Harrington

rod/spinal

> fusion that she has seen, she seems to be pretty good at helping

me. She says

> that because of my rods (I have two) and my fusion, it is

difficult for me

> to expand and contract the rib cage like I should, so I end up

breathing from

> my belly, which is not what I should be doing.

>

> I am still so amazed that she helped me discover this problem and

the

> solution (hopefully!) for it. She is going to be working with me

on it, and we are

> going to be working on it in the warm water pool, since that seems

to be more

> effective than the gym for helping me with pain relief in general.

>

> I still can't find a sngle medical professional here in San

that

> knows anything about fixed sagittal inbalance, but for now at

least, I am

> getting some pain relief, and strengthening my spine, so that I

can do more walking

> and other exericise.

>

> Just wanted to share that with all of you!

>

> ~Carolyn

>

[Guest guest]

gee, I can't imagine trying to live on that little bit of money.

>

> Bahadreama - To answer your question about me going to Austin - I

haven't

> ruled that out as a possibility, it's just that it is very

difficult to go

> anywhere out of town these days. That is due to the fact that I no

longer have a

> car, and it is pretty difficult to travel anywhere on the $600 a

month

> disability income that I live on. But I don't mean to complain. I

am very grateful

> that Medicare and Medicaid pay for all kinds of medical

treatments. But they

> don't pay for transportation.

>

> Anyway, like I said, I am grateful for my physical therapy right

now. Thanks

> for your concern.

>

> ~Carolyn

>