Guest guest Posted June 7, 2005 Report Share Posted June 7, 2005 In a message dated 6/7/2005 5:50:27 AM US Eastern Standard Time, billsgirl93@... writes: Hi ! Welcome!!! What's on your schedule for today?? Hi Stacey, Do we post our daily workouts here? I have planned this morning to do Imax 2 (blast only premix) and Pyramid Upper Body shoulders. ~~ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 7, 2005 Report Share Posted June 7, 2005 hi michelle, sometimes we do post our daily workouts and make some comments and reviews on the video we used for that day. it usually helps me to pick a better video as well as enable some of the group to get more then they really should get LOL. kassia Do we post our daily workouts here? I have planned this morning to do Imax 2 (blast only premix) and Pyramid Upper Body shoulders. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 7, 2005 Report Share Posted June 7, 2005 Hi ! Welcome!!! What's on your schedule for today?? Stacey > Hi everyone, > I just joined this group. My name is . I " m 36 and have been > working out at home since 1989. I workout 6 days a week at home with video's and > DVD's. I do yoga 3 days a week. I primarily use Cathe and The Firm. I usually > do monthly rotations and try to stick with them. I just recently bought a few > of the hardcore series from Cathe, low max, muscle max, and all the gym style > workouts. > I have a collection of 100+ workouts. I hope to hear about everyone > else's workouts and any reviews on the newest ones. > > > > ~~ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 7, 2005 Report Share Posted June 7, 2005 Hi Carolyn, Good to "see" you. Don't hear much from you on the Firmies list. You always give great reviews so I look forward to reading them all. So far I am enjoying this list ~~ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 7, 2005 Report Share Posted June 7, 2005 Hi , Nice to meet you! I would love to hear about your rotations. I've just become a big fan of Cathe's. I've just purchased all of her Hardcore Series (except Stretchmax....I do Pilates Reformer instead) and all of her Intensity Series (I'm still waiting impatiently for it in the mail). I'd love to hear some ideas for rotations. I'm 45 years old (I have a 22 year old daughter, ) and work out both at home (there is nothing like working out in your underwear when no one is around.....hehehe) and at the gym. :-) Robin > Hi everyone, > I just joined this group. My name is . I " m 36 and have been > working out at home since 1989. I workout 6 days a week at home with video's and > DVD's. I do yoga 3 days a week. I primarily use Cathe and The Firm. I usually > do monthly rotations and try to stick with them. I just recently bought a few > of the hardcore series from Cathe, low max, muscle max, and all the gym style > workouts. > I have a collection of 100+ workouts. I hope to hear about everyone > else's workouts and any reviews on the newest ones. > > > > ~~ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 7, 2005 Report Share Posted June 7, 2005 hi michelle!!!! it is great to see you here. i am still a member of 'firmies4life' and read all of your posts there. last night i saw a photo of you (you look fabulous!) and pics of your workout room and your new house!! they all look really great. im quite jealous of your workout room! anyway, we are all doing workouts and posting reviews here. if you want to know about a particular one, then please just ask or do a search on this groups message archives. welcome to the group! :*carolyn. -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus. Version: 7.0.300 / Virus Database: 267.5.1 - Release Date: 6/02/2005 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 7, 2005 Report Share Posted June 7, 2005 At 12:22 PM 6/07/2005, fitgrl222@... wrote: >Don't hear much from you on the Firmies list. im always so far behind there because im busy running my fingers over here...LOL but i do still read all of the posts on firmies4life. it is a great list and i like to read what everyone there has to say. > You always give great reviews so I look forward to reading them > all. So far I am enjoying this list yay! i am so glad that you joined so that i can talk to you more! :*carolyn. -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus. Version: 7.0.300 / Virus Database: 267.5.1 - Release Date: 6/02/2005 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 7, 2005 Report Share Posted June 7, 2005 Hmm..do I need to check out the firmies4life group? How many posts are there - I'm not sure I can keep up with more e-mail! Donna --- Carolyn or Visser - Festival City Concrete <pvisser@...> wrote: > At 12:22 PM 6/07/2005, fitgrl222@... wrote: > >Don't hear much from you on the Firmies list. > > im always so far behind there because im busy > running my fingers over > here...LOL > but i do still read all of the posts on > firmies4life. it is a great list > and i like to read what everyone there has to say. > > > You always give great reviews so I look forward > to reading them > > all. So far I am enjoying this list > > yay! i am so glad that you joined so that i can > talk to you more! > > :*carolyn. > > > -- > No virus found in this outgoing message. > Checked by AVG Anti-Virus. > Version: 7.0.300 / Virus Database: 267.5.1 - Release > Date: 6/02/2005 > > > __________________________________________________ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 7, 2005 Report Share Posted June 7, 2005 Uh Oh! We are all going to be emailing each other a lot if you join that group too! ;-) It's a great group by the way. They are the reason I really got back into the Firm workouts. So far I have resistsed all the Cathe workouts they love to do! Kathy -------------- Original message -------------- Hmm..do I need to check out the firmies4life group? How many posts are there - I'm not sure I can keep upwith more e-mail!Donna--- Carolyn or Visser - Festival City Concrete<pvisser@...> wrote:> At 12:22 PM 6/07/2005, fitgrl222@... wrote:> >Don't hear much from you on the Firmies list.> > im always so far behind there because im busy> running my fingers over > here...LOL> but i do still read all of the posts on> firmies4life. it is a great list > and i like to read what everyone there has to say.> > > You always give great reviews so I look forward> to reading them > > all. So far I am enjoying this list> > yay! i am so glad that you joined so that i can> talk to you more!> > :*carolyn. > > > -- > No virus found in this outgoing message.> Checked by AVG Anti-Virus.> Version: 7.0.300 / Virus Database: 267.5.1 - Release> Date: 6/02/2005> > > __________________________________________________ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 7, 2005 Report Share Posted June 7, 2005 At 03:55 PM 6/07/2005, Donna M-P wrote: >Hmm..do I need to check out the firmies4life group? >How many posts are there - I'm not sure I can keep up >with more e-mail! just to give you an idea... firmies4life had 342 messages in the last 7 days... this group had 337 messages and fitfirmies had 186 messages. :*carolyn. -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus. Version: 7.0.300 / Virus Database: 267.5.1 - Release Date: 6/02/2005 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 21, 2005 Report Share Posted June 21, 2005 Welcome . What life style eating plan have you chosen? NH... Mom to Abby Liz 10/94 Anne 7/99 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 21, 2005 Report Share Posted June 21, 2005 ---Welcome ! You have come to the right place! Faye from Somerville, MA In 100-plus , " " <snowbear17@y...> wrote: > Hello! > I am a new member here and just getting started with changing my life > style to lose weight and feel better. I look forward to reading and > sharing with the group. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 22, 2005 Report Share Posted June 22, 2005 Welcome , Are you on any eating plan or exercise plan right now?? Keep us posted. <snowbear17@...> wrote: Hello!I am a new member here and just getting started with changing my life style to lose weight and feel better. I look forward to reading and sharing with the group. 100-Plus Files page 100-plus/files100-Plus Links page 100-plus/links Sports Rekindle the Rivalries. Sign up for Fantasy Football Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 23, 2005 Report Share Posted June 23, 2005 Hello and welcome to this group where you will find lots of support and friends willing to help Tema <snowbear17@...> wrote: Hello!I am a new member here and just getting started with changing my life style to lose weight and feel better. I look forward to reading and sharing with the group. 100-Plus Files page 100-plus/files100-Plus Links page 100-plus/links Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 10, 2005 Report Share Posted July 10, 2005 Welcome! D karen serrano <kserrano@...> wrote: Welcome aboard I live in league city texas FREE Dead Sea Salt with your Essential Oil purchase! See Site for details http://www.glenbrookfarm.com/store/essent_1.html Don't miss the weekly specials! http://glenbrookfarm.com/store/specialsseeds_1.html To unsub send an e-mail to : -unsubscribe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 18, 2005 Report Share Posted July 18, 2005 Welcome Jodi. I do WW. Great plan. Lately I have not been journaling like I should. Have to work on that. NH... Mom to Abby Liz 10/94 Anne 7/99 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 18, 2005 Report Share Posted July 18, 2005 Hello Jodi and welcome to the group this is a great place to be so just join right in Tema GlocksNGarters@... wrote: Hi everyone! I'm Jodi, and I've recently joined the group. I am doing WW from home and I have to lose about 116 more pounds to reach my goal. I joined this group because I wanted to talk with people who understand what it's like to have to lose a large amount of weight. I look forward to getting to know everyone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 18, 2005 Report Share Posted July 18, 2005 Jodi, I have to say that I love your email address by the way. Welcome to the group! We are definately supportive here and I look forward to hearing from you. Blessings 420/411/140GlocksNGarters@... wrote: Hi everyone! I'm Jodi, and I've recently joined the group. I am doing WW from home and I have to lose about 116 more pounds to reach my goal. I joined this group because I wanted to talk with people who understand what it's like to have to lose a large amount of weight. I look forward to getting to know everyone! Start your day with - make it your home page Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 19, 2005 Report Share Posted July 19, 2005 Welcome, Jodi!! Debbie in MO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 12, 2005 Report Share Posted August 12, 2005 Ok, This is not a medical e-mail im after someone. Feck AKA, Stuart Halliday. Stuart, if you read this can you get in touch please mate its Mitch (Urgent) lisamitch50@... Cheers all Mitch --------------------------------- To help you stay safe and secure online, we've developed the all new Security Centre. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 30, 2005 Report Share Posted August 30, 2005 Welcome, Lori. Great to see you here! Kay New Member Hello all, I want to thank Kay from the TruthAboutVaccine list for informing me of this group.:-) I just want to send a quick note introducing myself. I'm an unschooling mom of 2 awesome kids. DD is 7 years and received about 2/3 of her baby vaccines and my DS is 19 months and completely vaccine free. When I got pregnant with my dd, I spent a lot of time doing research and felt that vaccines weren't necessary, but didn't know enough to argue my point very well. After an episode of Roseola (High fever and rash) just a couple of days after what was to be her last MMR vaccine, we said no more. I was sure that the " Roseola " was a bad reaction to the vaccine. Anyway, I am now much wiser and stronger and my husband and I choose not to vaccinate. I'm glad to have found this list so I can further my education and keep up to date on what's going on out there. Looking forward to meeting you all! Lori Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 3, 2005 Report Share Posted September 3, 2005 Hi , Welcome!!! I was thinking of going for another opinion myself, this would be my 4th opinion, or is it my 5th? My current doctor says that women often are the ones that get this injury and the pain peaks in our 30's and should start going away in our 40's due to fluid in our joints drying up or some crap like that (not sure he even knows what he is talking about). There are a few members here who use Mconnell taping and I am making an appt with a P.T. as soon as I can find one who is well versed in the mconnell taping method. From what I read if this taping method works for you, it may make your vacation more comfortable. As for cortizone shots, I also heard they are worse for you than they are good for you, doctors offer these to us when they have nothing more to offer (I am usually offered this when I am about to break down in tears from constant pain and a doctor standing there telling me I am screwed). I do think that on occassion cortizone for vacations or special events is very handy, I did get one just before my Wedding in Vegas. I have had gel injections to no avail, but the chances of these helping you are something like 50%. There are 2 members who are currently in the process of the series of gel injections and their updates may help you make your decision. Do you think that if you took your mri results to your next appt and never mentioned that you have been diagnosed with C.P. to them, they might examine you a little closer? I think this is what I am going to attempt with my next doctor. Seems like as soon as I mention C.P. I get a little poke here and there then I am told, yep thats what you got. Keep your chin up........ S. Webb starskyfan1 <starskyfan1@...> wrote: Hello everyone, My name is and I'm new to your group. I've read through quite a few posts already and think I will probably learn much more from you than I have from my doctors. I was diagnosed with chondromalacia nearly 9 years ago and I am only 40 now. It was a military doctor and they did take xrays and sent me to physical therapy. I've had problems over the years and had suffered a couple of really bad pains that felt like the tendons were all twisted on the inside, but it always got better and I kept up faithfully with my exercises. There has always been some pain, and of course I avoid hills or any activity that I know will cause discomfort. Last September my father got sick and that's when my exercising stopped so I am sure I contributed to my own problem. I have learned NOT to stop the exercises that's for sure! What happened this time was different though. In March I had to go home again to help care for my father and I think the strain of being on my feet a lot and tugging at him contributed to the weakness in my knee, and then when he was admitted to the hospital I stood on concrete floors in the emergency room for I don't know how many hours and could feel I was hurting but I wasn't really concerned with myself at the time. A couple days later I have no clue if I had one bad pain or not, but I was limping around and my family noticed my knee was swollen. It was so bad they could tell through my jeans. It was about twice the normal size! I've never had that happen before. There wasn't much I could do at that point. My father died the day after and I had to deal with other things and help my mom out for a while. It was nearly a month before I got back home and saw my doctor. I'm one of these people that won't go to the doctor's until I feel there is no other option and I assumed it would go away on it's own. Well, the swelling did go down considerably, but the pain and limping didn't go away. I seem to have a good family doctor and she sent me for an MRI and Xrays and referred me to a specialist. Problem is he didn't fill me with much confidence. Aside from chondromalacia and arthritis setting in, he said I had a defect on one of my bones. Actually, what he said was " they say you have a defect " but he's looking at the picture and HE can't see it. I don't think that has anything to do with my pain though it's just that he wasn't very helpful. Of course he said we'll try physical therapy, and then if that doesn't work we can try cortisone, and then if that doesn't work, go with some lubrication gel. I went to physical therapy for a while and it took several weeks to get my leg back straight. It was very crooked. But once that was done I got bored with going because I wasn't doing much I couldn't do at home so I started going once a month just for evaluation. I was making very good progress until my therapist put me through a pretty rigorous testing (said I was at 70% of my strength) and gave me a couple more strenuous exercises to try at home. My knee was too weak ater that testing so I didn't bother to try it. But a couple days later I stood up and had one of those bad shooting pains that crippled me for the day. By the end of the day I was able to bend it but it really set me back a lot. I've had one similar pain since then only not quite as crippling. I've seen my therapist one more time since then and she said it's possible I may never be ready for the more strenous stuff but to just do what I can that doesn't hurt and work my way back up. It's just frustrating that I had gotten to the point where I could even take a few stairs, and now I am back to hurting constantly. The pain is not unbearable, but it's definitely uncomfortable and if I spend one day out doing anything I am totally exhausted and suffering. We took a 3 day getaway trip that nearly killed me and we have a 2 week vacation coming up in October. So anyway, I knew I didn't want to go back to the same doctor so I am trying someone else. I probably won't have much luck with him either, but I have an appt. Sept. 13th. I figure that even if there is nothing they can do to help me right now, I need to find someone I am comfortable with. There are days I have been willing to try anything, but mostly I am not interested in getting any shots unless I feel confident that it's the right thing to do. My mother has a bad ankle and has those cotisone shots. She saw a surgeon the other day and he told her that those damage the bones and not to get anymore. That's something for me to think about. I think (hope) I can get back to feeling pretty good on my own, but if I have to constantly worry about that really bad pain, then there isn't much I can do. It can strike at any time and it really set me back this time. I still want to go back and read more of your posts, but if anyone can give me any advice or opinions on the cortisone shots I'd appreciate it. So far I've only noticed your discussing the lubrication shots and it sounds like there are 2 different ones. I need to read more closely. I will have a month before my vacation so if I want to go with any shot I should probably have him do it right then and there to give it time to work. I'm so sorry for the long post but thanks for listening and thanks for having this group! One common thread I've noticed in posts I've read is that most of us are totally frustrated and have had troubles finding doctor's we can work with. If I get lucky on my second try it will be a miracle. If not, well it will probably be a while before I get up the nerve to try someone else. Take care everyone and I hope you are all having a nice Labor Day weekend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 3, 2005 Report Share Posted September 3, 2005 Thanks for your reply. It helps just knowing I'm not alone out there! My physical therapist did try taping me a couple of times and it didn't seem to help at all, and at times hurt worse. I guess I'm not surprised because I bought a knee brace that I was unable to wear because it seemed to grind my knee. That was awful. I do want to experiment with it again now that my knee isn't so swollen though and see if it offers any support. I bought one years ago too and couldn't wear it, so I don't hold out much hope of that. I'm looking at some others on the internet that look like they might be more comfortable but it's hard to chose when you're not sure. I'm going to take some of the photos with me and ask the doctor if any of his patients have any luck with those if they can't use the normal ones. I have no idea what I'm going to say to my doctor, and I will likely be so nervous I won't be able to say much:) I suppose I should start making a list. My husband will come with me to be a second set of ears. My MRI is so old though that I'm sure he'll know I've been elsewhere in the meantime. This particular doctor is a surgeon, and I have no idea if my other one was or not. If this doesn't go well, I will wait until I see my regular doctor in October and get her opinion as to where to go from here. She's easy to talk to and seems to have a " better safe than sorry " attitude which is unusual for an HMO. ly she drives me crazy with all the precautionary things she's put me through this past year (not related to the knee) but I know I shouldn't complain about that. I feel like I can live with a certain amount of pain, so long as I can still walk without a limp and continue somewhat normal activities. But, this crippling pain I occasionally get is not acceptable and renders me unable to walk or put pressure on the leg at all. I did buy a cane to bring with me on our trip, but I'm not comfortable using that just yet either but I am practicing. With all the walking and waiting in lines we will be doing any support will be welcome. I thought part of our problem was the fact that fluids were drying up inside, so it doesn't make sense that the pain would go away in our 40's becasue of less fluid. I thought the gel shots were to replace fluids?? I know doctor's aren't miracle workers, but you would think it wouldn't be so hard to find a decent one. I never went back after my military doctor until I virtually had no choice. I'm sorry the gel shots haven't been very helpful for you. I'll keep my fingers crossed that the taping will at least be helpful. Thanks again for your reply. Re: New Member Hi , Welcome!!! I was thinking of going for another opinion myself, this would be my 4th opinion, or is it my 5th? My current doctor says that women often are the ones that get this injury and the pain peaks in our 30's and should start going away in our 40's due to fluid in our joints drying up or some crap like that (not sure he even knows what he is talking about). There are a few members here who use Mconnell taping and I am making an appt with a P.T. as soon as I can find one who is well versed in the mconnell taping method. From what I read if this taping method works for you, it may make your vacation more comfortable. As for cortizone shots, I also heard they are worse for you than they are good for you, doctors offer these to us when they have nothing more to offer (I am usually offered this when I am about to break down in tears from constant pain and a doctor standing there telling me I am screwed). I do think that on occassion cortizone for vacations or special events is very handy, I did get one just before my Wedding in Vegas. I have had gel injections to no avail, but the chances of these helping you are something like 50%. There are 2 members who are currently in the process of the series of gel injections and their updates may help you make your decision. Do you think that if you took your mri results to your next appt and never mentioned that you have been diagnosed with C.P. to them, they might examine you a little closer? I think this is what I am going to attempt with my next doctor. Seems like as soon as I mention C.P. I get a little poke here and there then I am told, yep thats what you got. Keep your chin up........ S. Webb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 3, 2005 Report Share Posted September 3, 2005 To what extent does your knee pain limit your activities? I had the same problem standing on a hard floor that you did. Also there was one time I was driving around looking at properties, so did a lot of braking, and my knee was swollen for over a week. Nothing else I've ever done has caused my knee to swell (that I could see). Have you had a CT scan of your knee? If you get a 3-D CT scan, it should show bone abnormalities better than MRI. MRI is better for soft tissue (cartilage, tendons). I've encountered a problem recently with MRI's not being very clear. I remember MRI's I had taken in the mid-80's were really clear with good contrast, but was looking yesterday at one of my MRI's (I keep my films -- can't trust labs or doctors to not lose them) and it was so dark I don't see how anyone could read it. Also, you might try to find out who the team OS is for a professional basketball, football, soccer, etc. team near you. Those docs have to do a good job or they get fired. Or, lacking that, find one who specializes in knees. When my knee first went bad, the first doc I went to couldn't see anything wrong & sort of lackadaisically said " Well, I guess I could go in & look " . Yeah, sure. Might as well get my next door neighbor to go in and look. You might, though, end up having to let someone (who does know what s/he's doing) go in and look. There are a couple of problems with that -- wherever they poke a hole through your muscles, it'll scar (I haven't had any problems from mine, though), and wherever the camera is, it can't see behind itself. I hope you can find a good doc -- don't trust any old OS -- some are way better than others. Have you seen my posts on kneecap taping (McConnell taping)? It's a good test of whether your problem is just CP or not. Ann New Member Hello everyone, My name is and I'm new to your group. I've read through quite a few posts already and think I will probably learn much more from you than I have from my doctors. I was diagnosed with chondromalacia nearly 9 years ago and I am only 40 now. It was a military doctor and they did take xrays and sent me to physical therapy. I've had problems over the years and had suffered a couple of really bad pains that felt like the tendons were all twisted on the inside, but it always got better and I kept up faithfully with my exercises. There has always been some pain, and of course I avoid hills or any activity that I know will cause discomfort. Last September my father got sick and that's when my exercising stopped so I am sure I contributed to my own problem. I have learned NOT to stop the exercises that's for sure! What happened this time was different though. In March I had to go home again to help care for my father and I think the strain of being on my feet a lot and tugging at him contributed to the weakness in my knee, and then when he was admitted to the hospital I stood on concrete floors in the emergency room for I don't know how many hours and could feel I was hurting but I wasn't really concerned with myself at the time. A couple days later I have no clue if I had one bad pain or not, but I was limping around and my family noticed my knee was swollen. It was so bad they could tell through my jeans. It was about twice the normal size! I've never had that happen before. There wasn't much I could do at that point. My father died the day after and I had to deal with other things and help my mom out for a while. It was nearly a month before I got back home and saw my doctor. I'm one of these people that won't go to the doctor's until I feel there is no other option and I assumed it would go away on it's own. Well, the swelling did go down considerably, but the pain and limping didn't go away. I seem to have a good family doctor and she sent me for an MRI and Xrays and referred me to a specialist. Problem is he didn't fill me with much confidence. Aside from chondromalacia and arthritis setting in, he said I had a defect on one of my bones. Actually, what he said was " they say you have a defect " but he's looking at the picture and HE can't see it. I don't think that has anything to do with my pain though it's just that he wasn't very helpful. Of course he said we'll try physical therapy, and then if that doesn't work we can try cortisone, and then if that doesn't work, go with some lubrication gel. I went to physical therapy for a while and it took several weeks to get my leg back straight. It was very crooked. But once that was done I got bored with going because I wasn't doing much I couldn't do at home so I started going once a month just for evaluation. I was making very good progress until my therapist put me through a pretty rigorous testing (said I was at 70% of my strength) and gave me a couple more strenuous exercises to try at home. My knee was too weak ater that testing so I didn't bother to try it. But a couple days later I stood up and had one of those bad shooting pains that crippled me for the day. By the end of the day I was able to bend it but it really set me back a lot. I've had one similar pain since then only not quite as crippling. I've seen my therapist one more time since then and she said it's possible I may never be ready for the more strenous stuff but to just do what I can that doesn't hurt and work my way back up. It's just frustrating that I had gotten to the point where I could even take a few stairs, and now I am back to hurting constantly. The pain is not unbearable, but it's definitely uncomfortable and if I spend one day out doing anything I am totally exhausted and suffering. We took a 3 day getaway trip that nearly killed me and we have a 2 week vacation coming up in October. So anyway, I knew I didn't want to go back to the same doctor so I am trying someone else. I probably won't have much luck with him either, but I have an appt. Sept. 13th. I figure that even if there is nothing they can do to help me right now, I need to find someone I am comfortable with. There are days I have been willing to try anything, but mostly I am not interested in getting any shots unless I feel confident that it's the right thing to do. My mother has a bad ankle and has those cotisone shots. She saw a surgeon the other day and he told her that those damage the bones and not to get anymore. That's something for me to think about. I think (hope) I can get back to feeling pretty good on my own, but if I have to constantly worry about that really bad pain, then there isn't much I can do. It can strike at any time and it really set me back this time. I still want to go back and read more of your posts, but if anyone can give me any advice or opinions on the cortisone shots I'd appreciate it. So far I've only noticed your discussing the lubrication shots and it sounds like there are 2 different ones. I need to read more closely. I will have a month before my vacation so if I want to go with any shot I should probably have him do it right then and there to give it time to work. I'm so sorry for the long post but thanks for listening and thanks for having this group! One common thread I've noticed in posts I've read is that most of us are totally frustrated and have had troubles finding doctor's we can work with. If I get lucky on my second try it will be a miracle. If not, well it will probably be a while before I get up the nerve to try someone else. Take care everyone and I hope you are all having a nice Labor Day weekend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 3, 2005 Report Share Posted September 3, 2005 I agree. If a new doc knows what an old doc diagnosed, you're pretty well stuck with that diagnosis. Ann Re: New Member Hi , Welcome!!! I was thinking of going for another opinion myself, this would be my 4th opinion, or is it my 5th? My current doctor says that women often are the ones that get this injury and the pain peaks in our 30's and should start going away in our 40's due to fluid in our joints drying up or some crap like that (not sure he even knows what he is talking about). There are a few members here who use Mconnell taping and I am making an appt with a P.T. as soon as I can find one who is well versed in the mconnell taping method. From what I read if this taping method works for you, it may make your vacation more comfortable. As for cortizone shots, I also heard they are worse for you than they are good for you, doctors offer these to us when they have nothing more to offer (I am usually offered this when I am about to break down in tears from constant pain and a doctor standing there telling me I am screwed). I do think that on occassion cortizone for vacations or special events is very handy, I did get one just before my Wedding in Vegas. I have had gel injections to no avail, but the chances of these helping you are something like 50%. There are 2 members who are currently in the process of the series of gel injections and their updates may help you make your decision. Do you think that if you took your mri results to your next appt and never mentioned that you have been diagnosed with C.P. to them, they might examine you a little closer? I think this is what I am going to attempt with my next doctor. Seems like as soon as I mention C.P. I get a little poke here and there then I am told, yep thats what you got. Keep your chin up........ S. Webb starskyfan1 <starskyfan1@...> wrote: Hello everyone, My name is and I'm new to your group. I've read through quite a few posts already and think I will probably learn much more from you than I have from my doctors. I was diagnosed with chondromalacia nearly 9 years ago and I am only 40 now. It was a military doctor and they did take xrays and sent me to physical therapy. I've had problems over the years and had suffered a couple of really bad pains that felt like the tendons were all twisted on the inside, but it always got better and I kept up faithfully with my exercises. There has always been some pain, and of course I avoid hills or any activity that I know will cause discomfort. Last September my father got sick and that's when my exercising stopped so I am sure I contributed to my own problem. I have learned NOT to stop the exercises that's for sure! What happened this time was different though. In March I had to go home again to help care for my father and I think the strain of being on my feet a lot and tugging at him contributed to the weakness in my knee, and then when he was admitted to the hospital I stood on concrete floors in the emergency room for I don't know how many hours and could feel I was hurting but I wasn't really concerned with myself at the time. A couple days later I have no clue if I had one bad pain or not, but I was limping around and my family noticed my knee was swollen. It was so bad they could tell through my jeans. It was about twice the normal size! I've never had that happen before. There wasn't much I could do at that point. My father died the day after and I had to deal with other things and help my mom out for a while. It was nearly a month before I got back home and saw my doctor. I'm one of these people that won't go to the doctor's until I feel there is no other option and I assumed it would go away on it's own. Well, the swelling did go down considerably, but the pain and limping didn't go away. I seem to have a good family doctor and she sent me for an MRI and Xrays and referred me to a specialist. Problem is he didn't fill me with much confidence. Aside from chondromalacia and arthritis setting in, he said I had a defect on one of my bones. Actually, what he said was " they say you have a defect " but he's looking at the picture and HE can't see it. I don't think that has anything to do with my pain though it's just that he wasn't very helpful. Of course he said we'll try physical therapy, and then if that doesn't work we can try cortisone, and then if that doesn't work, go with some lubrication gel. I went to physical therapy for a while and it took several weeks to get my leg back straight. It was very crooked. But once that was done I got bored with going because I wasn't doing much I couldn't do at home so I started going once a month just for evaluation. I was making very good progress until my therapist put me through a pretty rigorous testing (said I was at 70% of my strength) and gave me a couple more strenuous exercises to try at home. My knee was too weak ater that testing so I didn't bother to try it. But a couple days later I stood up and had one of those bad shooting pains that crippled me for the day. By the end of the day I was able to bend it but it really set me back a lot. I've had one similar pain since then only not quite as crippling. I've seen my therapist one more time since then and she said it's possible I may never be ready for the more strenous stuff but to just do what I can that doesn't hurt and work my way back up. It's just frustrating that I had gotten to the point where I could even take a few stairs, and now I am back to hurting constantly. The pain is not unbearable, but it's definitely uncomfortable and if I spend one day out doing anything I am totally exhausted and suffering. We took a 3 day getaway trip that nearly killed me and we have a 2 week vacation coming up in October. So anyway, I knew I didn't want to go back to the same doctor so I am trying someone else. I probably won't have much luck with him either, but I have an appt. Sept. 13th. I figure that even if there is nothing they can do to help me right now, I need to find someone I am comfortable with. There are days I have been willing to try anything, but mostly I am not interested in getting any shots unless I feel confident that it's the right thing to do. My mother has a bad ankle and has those cotisone shots. She saw a surgeon the other day and he told her that those damage the bones and not to get anymore. That's something for me to think about. I think (hope) I can get back to feeling pretty good on my own, but if I have to constantly worry about that really bad pain, then there isn't much I can do. It can strike at any time and it really set me back this time. I still want to go back and read more of your posts, but if anyone can give me any advice or opinions on the cortisone shots I'd appreciate it. So far I've only noticed your discussing the lubrication shots and it sounds like there are 2 different ones. I need to read more closely. I will have a month before my vacation so if I want to go with any shot I should probably have him do it right then and there to give it time to work. I'm so sorry for the long post but thanks for listening and thanks for having this group! One common thread I've noticed in posts I've read is that most of us are totally frustrated and have had troubles finding doctor's we can work with. If I get lucky on my second try it will be a miracle. If not, well it will probably be a while before I get up the nerve to try someone else. Take care everyone and I hope you are all having a nice Labor Day weekend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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