Re: Sedentary job doing damage

[Guest guest]

Sameer,

Some ideas: cut your work hours in half and take a break every 1/2

hour. Or find different work. Ask your doctor to recommend certified

pedorthorists to talk to about AFOs, etc. Ask your doctor for a referral

for the best orthopedic/spine doctor - then ask for physical therapy and

exercises for your back. Ask for a orthopedic foot doctor for referrals

too. Get at least 2 opinions. Surgery is major stress; do all you can to

avoid it. Surgery requires alot of grit on the recovery end. Weigh the

pros and cons of each. Aren't you part of Dr. Younger's support group?

Get referrals from there too.

Gretchen

[Guest guest]

Hello There,

Maybe a job change is in order. Learning to know what our limitations

are, is all cmters biggest challenge of all. I still miss being able to make the

money I could have being a preschool teacher. So instead I work from my home

running my own daycare business. Adjustments to one's life has positive affects

on one's body as long as you are happy. Our emotional and mental state of

beings affects our physical. However, I do understand that having physical

challenges is not always easy.

Heidi in NH

[Guest guest]

Sameer,

I can tell you that I was in a similar situation with my old job. I had a desk

job for the past

3 years and could not believe how much worse my CMT was due to sitting all day.

Prior to

that job I was on my feet for 8-9 hour a day at work and was doing extremely

well.

The best decision that I made was to leave the desk job in September and now

work part-

time but stand as much as possible there.

The weakness and numbness in my arms and legs was nearly unbearable toward the

end

of my previous job. My lower back was always in so much pain I had to come home

and

take pain meds and lie on the couch. It really sapped so much of my strength

that my

entire quality of life dimished due to the constant pain and weakness.

I try to maintain a regular schedule for riding my exercise bike now and make

sure to get

plenty of rest when I realize that I need it.

Listen to your body and listen well. Don't overdo it and try to eat properly

also. I've found

that recovering from the past 3 years of inactivity is proving to be a challenge

and it did

more damage to my system than I had thought. I think that it's harder to make

up for

more lost strength than it is to maintain what you have right now.

I'll be thinking of you and hoping you can find a solution that works for you!

~

[Guest guest]

ann, Gretchen and others who gave me valuable

inputs - Thanks a lot. I'll speak to someone in

company now, to cut down my working hours. I am

growing from weak to weaker, each passing day.

Thanks a lot friends. Now i know why people call this

group another home.

New Yorker,

Sameer

[Guest guest]

Sameer,

Yes, it is nice to talk with others whom truly understand what cmt is all

about. Specifically those of us who live in small towns and no one has even

heard of cmt and they move away from you like you got some kind of something

they could catch. However, we all have our challenges and must move through

each day slowly and pace ourselves accordingly. I am thankful for Gretchen and

all her hard work that she has done for this email list and the conversations we

have had. She is truly a blessing to me.

Thanks,

Heidi