Little issue, not sure which way to go with it.
My physio has been making great strides, overall ive been very pleased with the results, however, my normal therapist has been away for a month and ive been handed over to this young chap who, well to put it bluntly, he made it worse.
I have quite restricted movement in my neck and my normal physio has been working each time on this trying to ease the symptoms. Until a week ago it was working.
Id been getting awful headaches and my normal lady took this on board and did some work at the very top of my neck which after id recovered about an hour later, I was literally headache free having had almost a constant pain for several weeks beforehand, likely a trappe nerve she said and also gave me an exercise to help with that.
Great I thought. Unfortunatly, new guy also had a go in teh same area but im actually now in worse pain than before, but it feels like someone is digging an elbow in the back of my neck, he was very rough.
Ive been given this exercise to strengthen my lower neck but when I now do it, my neck crunches horribly each time which is new aswell.
So do I tell him? He was quite arrogant and I didnt like him at all, he didnt seem all that interested in what I was saying, his main aim seemed to be to bump me to a different department.
Should I just wait until my next appointment with my normal physio which is in about 4 weeks time, or risk the 'your not good at this' conversation? He seems like the type who would take it personally so Im certainly reluctant, Im also just not keen in downing codeine for a month either, but the pain is terrible, it makes me dizzy.
On the plus side, my lower back is far better, not perfect, but not dominating what I can and cant do now, the exercises for that are certainly helping.
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Backs are like computers - neither the sufferer nor the person called to help fully understand them.
Seriously, I wouldn't offer medical advice to anyone, even someone with enough common sense to ignore it.
But as a general point, if you are not 'clicking' with one medic, try another.
So I would quietly drop the new guy, and go back to the previous one.
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Havent got a choice, this is NHS, mine has been away for 4 weeks, meaning I get two sessions with this guy, one more with him now then back to the usual person.
So Im guessing I should just go through the motions with my next appointment and hope he doesnt cause more problems.
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I think you should wait until your normal physio is back, especially if you're paying for this treatment. If it's causing more pain, you need to stop what he gave you to do, as this could be making it worse.
Can you not see a different physio entirely, just to see if you can reduce the pain? I wouldn't want to tell this new guy that he's no good, he should know how to go about the treatment, maybe he's not experienced enough, which is fair enough, but you don't want to be the guinea pig.
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"downing codeine"
You might get more of a kick if you "up them".
Get the wife to administer, then everybody's happy.
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See a scottish doctor,
two codeine and 4 can of tennets extra or special brew. NO pain - of any kind!
Tell your current guy you are going on holiday for two weeks, that way you will back when your regular one returns.
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My tuppence worth may not apply to you of course but here it is.
I've always been fairly active. Took part in and became fairly good at various activities which can lead and in some cases have led to physical damage. In my youth I was a keen rugby player, skier, windsurfer, horse rider, mountain biker and was an early adopter and long term practioner of martial arts of a couple of denominations.
I took most of these activities to a competitive level at one time or another. Never to a standard of being famous for any of them but enough to be credible in some cases at international level. ( well, it was in Scotland so you don't have to be all that good ! )
Anyway, the point of this preamble is to reassure you that I do know a thing or two about muscle and joint injuries ! Nothing more.
My worst setback was a compression fracture of the lowest three vertebrae of my back about 20 years ago. It involved an involuntary dismount from a jumping horse.
My life was in tatters. Couldn't move effectively for months. Fitness levels dropped dramatically, gained weight. Lost heart frankly.
Anyway, I was being treated by a sports physio at Heriot Watt university. The guy was brilliant but his treatments which included ultrasound only had a beneficial effect for a matter of hours and then I was back to square one.
Eventually I was advised to take up regular swmming. I could swim, in fact I held a diving licence but had never treated it as a hobby. Just something I did on holiday really.
It was suggested to me that I should knock the weight off and concurrently take up a regular swimming regime ( as in three half hour sessions a week initially ) Well at first it was agony. I wasn't enjoying it at all but gradually it started to have an effect. The non load bearing element of the excercise was the secret. Slowly but surely the injury started to heal and strengthen. Now I'm pretty much back to normal but there remains a weakness which is kept in check by regular swimming.
Eventually of course, because I was doing it so often, more or less 5 nights a week, I became reasonably competant at it andof course the old competitive spirit crept in. Now I get quite irritated if I can't set reasonably good lap times !
Point of all this Stu is to strongly advise you to watch your weight ( if that's an issue ) and take non load bearing excercise. Sack the physio, you can do it for yourself. He'll just tell you you're injured. You can tell yourself you are well.
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"It involved an involuntary dismount"
I know what you mean. You think her husband's walking in but it's just someone delivering junk mail.
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Friend of mine had to hide behind a sofa on his hands and knees starkers in the former circumstances. Didn't reckon with the bloke seeing his reflection in the french windows. Had to leg it down the garden without a stitch on. Got thumped though. Couldn't get over the fence in time.
:-))
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I think the physio is useful in the first stages of an injury, but working out a good exercise regime, remaining flexible and watching your posture should look after you for the rest of your life.
Should be plenty of material in this thread for BBD to work on.
Last edited by: corax on Mon 1 Aug 11 at 19:58
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"My worst setback was a compression fracture of the lowest three vertebrae of my back about 20 years ago. It involved an involuntary dismount from a jumping horse."
Me too - probably the same three Vertebrae and same issue - fell ofF a horse. I have been very lucky in the 50 years since it happened and no problems so long as I am cautious. I had one serious relapse 20 years ago and finished up in great pain and on a zimmer frame! Miracle treatment with industrial strength Brufen sorted it so it must have been some sort of muscular thing. Forget the Ibuprofen - these were Smartie sized/coloured horse pills!
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Dangerous things horses, they should be fitted with air bags and seat belts.
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>> Dangerous things horses, they should be fitted with air bags and seat belts.
And nappies.
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www.amazon.co.uk/Anatomy-Stretching-Illustrated-Flexibility-Rehabilitation/dp/1905367295/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1312224989&sr=8-1
You should get a copy of the above book. It is excellent. There's also a point where your neck and skull meet which if massaged gently can really help with headaches. It is not for the ham fisted to attempt though!
I found another good online resource which showed other massage points which helped with all sorts of headache related pains and a few other things. saveyourself.ca/articles/perfect-spots/spot-01-suboccipitals.php
I'd tell him not to bother visiting again and wait for your normal person. Not worth risking being in worse pain or at least tell him what he's done has made the pain much worse so you expect him to sort it out.
If the pain is bad get some tiger balm and slather it on all over your neck and upper shoulders. I've found it the best thing going for any kind of aches and pains. Stinks to high heaven so if you have a bit of a cough it'll probably clear that too :)
Swimming is an excellent exercise to take up. Weak stomach muscles can make back problems worse as the abdominals provide a lot of support.
Last edited by: teabelly on Mon 1 Aug 11 at 20:07
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>>Swimming is an excellent exercise
I can't agree. Breast stroke caused no end of problems for my knackered knees. Front crawl/sidestroke made my neck and shoulder problems worse. Backstroke gave me headache at the end of each length. ;>0
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For back problems swimming is excellent. It is fact. Maybe back problems are exaggerated when you drive like you do? Not what I'd do with a back problem?
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>> >> Backstroke gave me headache at the end
>> of each length.
>>
Bathtub too short - try a swimming pool. :)
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Reading the original post I would walk away from the new guy.
If you don't like his attitude you are not going to be cured and crucnchin sounds are not the best.It is your body you know it.
Lower back problem is very common. I 've had it for years did't help for the last years of my working life doing very heavy labour.
I swim regulary take it steady good for all kinds of pains.
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My body won't float!
Never has done, even when I was young. In a pool, or the sea, If I stop paddling I just sink. This makes swimming very tiring and frankly no fun, as a huge proportion of my effort goes to keeping me above water.
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>> My body won't float!
Why not? Everyone else's does.
You may have misinformed yourself Roger.
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>> >> My body won't float!
>>
>> Why not? Everyone else's does.
Mine doesn't if I breathe out, and muscle is denser than fat. So if Roger is a Charles Atlas type and/or isn't filling his lungs then that might explain it.
Last edited by: Focus on Tue 2 Aug 11 at 11:18
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>> >> My body won't float!
>>
>> Why not? Everyone else's does.
Nicoles doesn't. Insufficient mass and surface area, sinks like a stone.
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Talking about bodys, picked up a few donkeys years ago whilst on the Pilot Launches.
They did float not a nice experience.Sorry to go off track.
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>> They did float
Isn't that decomposition releasing gasses leading to reduced density?
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I've seen a human body winched from the sea.
It had swelled to resemble a Michelin man, which presumably aids buoyancy.
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I used to work on a Thames lock during my summer holidays, and we had a stiff rock up in the lock
The keeper warned me to treat it gently with the gaff, apparently they can split and the smell is awful!
Last edited by: Zero on Tue 2 Aug 11 at 14:18
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I understood that human bodies sink soon after death in water, but decomposition creates gasses that causes bloating and float them back to the surface.
It explains why drowning victims are not often discovered until several days after drowning.
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>>The keeper warned me to treat it gently with the gaff, apparently they can split and the smell is awful!
A colleague started work in a morgue shortly after leaving school. The first time he was told to wash a body, he was warned not to use too much pressure. He didn't heed the warning and pressed too hard on the abdomen. The 'victim' partially sat up and emitted a most foul smelling belch.
He didn't stop running, and never went back!
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>> My body won't float!
>> Never has done, even when I was young. In a pool, or the sea, If
>> I stop paddling I just sink. This makes swimming very tiring and frankly no fun,
>> as a huge proportion of my effort goes to keeping me above water.
>>
Snap - but nobody ever believes me. Does not help that SWMBO floats like a decomposing whale - swimming for her is less effort than walking.
Paddling at a super speed just about allows me to aquaplane, but is so knackering that I can only make about a length.
I suppose that I should try again, increasing girth with age, I may just have tipped the density balance. But the alcohol intake may help as well :)
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I'm just the same - sink straight away unless thrashing about. Very very hard work, swimming, and always gives me a dreadful headache too. Nasty activity with no redeeming features whatsoever.
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It often depends how your are build.Tall people tend to be good swimmers.No hard and fast rule but most champions are tall.
I swam from a early age in rivers used to come home covered in oil from shipping in the river Maas.
Decomposing whale? I hope your missus doesn't read this.:) Just having my second glass of cheap wine ready for a hr. kip.:)
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>> It often depends how your are build.Tall people tend to be good swimmers.No hard and
>> fast rule but most champions are tall.
Suspect it's limb (mainly arm) length rather than pure height.
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>> >> It often depends how your are build.Tall people tend to be good swimmers.No hard
>> and fast rule but most champions are tall.
>>
>> Suspect it's limb (mainly arm) length rather than pure height.
I'm the best part of 6ft tall, and swim like a brick.
Even with buoyancy aids there is no way I will float.
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No hard and fast rule but most champions are tall.
That is because they have a foot start and therefore less distance to swim!
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I'm five foot eleven. Yesterday I was walking through a crowd in the grounds where I work and pushed past the tallest person I've ever seen.
As I was right next to him I discovered his elbow was level with my nose. I've not done the sums but crikey.
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Perhaps taller people have larger feet which can act like flippers, however rumour has it they may have a drag disadvantage. ;>)
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Long arms would give greater hand speed through the water.
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>> Long arms would give greater hand speed through the water.
Probably better leverage in mechanical terms.
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Long arms long legs little willy.;) Less friction.
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I don't know which of hands or feet give greater propulsion through the water, but I guess it's hands.
Like one of those clever 4wd drive systems which put more power through the front wheels.
A fish by the same analogy is rear wheel drive.
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>> I don't know which of hands or feet give greater propulsion through the water, but
>> I guess it's hands.
I think that's one of the main differences between a 'proper' swimmer and the rest of us. I used to do early morning swimming (after my run) at the pool in Bracknell, where the club would also be training. Sharon Davies used to live near by, and one morning for a short time it was just me and her in the warmer shallower pool while the club were training in the deeper cooler pool.
I was doing front crawl, not flat-out but making progress, in fact nearly going as fast as her. Then she started using her arms... :)
(Have I told this one before? My wife's sick of it :)
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To save BBD a post:
Lots of men would like to get wet with Sharon Davies.
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"My body won't float!"
Looks like you must be African Roger.
"Is Everyone a Natural Floater?
No, a small proportion of people have negative buoyancy. As a general rule, women are more buoyant than men and we all tend to become more buoyant as we get older. All white people have some positive buoyancy but, in a sample of young African American males, 30% had negative buoyancy.
The tests were done in a fresh water pool. It is almost certain that everyone can float in sea water.''
From "Drownproofing'
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My experience has shown that most women have built in flotation devices
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>> Looks like you must be African Roger.
You may have got it CGN. Roger prides himself on his reactionary views too. There are lots of Africans like that.
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Anyone can learn to swim and swim well if they are determined enough. My current wife ( heh heh ! ) was terrified of water when I first met her. Swam like a brick. She'd never been taught properly and panicked in water. Couldn't stand her head being below the surface or not being able to put her feet down on the bottom. Real fear. Cut a long story short she can now ( and enjoys it ) snorkel in deep open sea water with me and loves to dive off boats and rocks etc when we're on holiday. Swimming pools are a doddle to her.
Just needed a bit of patience and encouragement.
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>> Just needed a bit of patience and encouragement.
Well done Humph. She must appreciate it.
Swimming, like riding a bicycle, is best and most easily learned as a child when physical things still 'come naturally', without habit or calculation or neurotic panic interfering. Preferably in clear, warm, limpid, deep seawater off a boat, with an adult strong swimmer near at hand - hardly needed when it comes to it.
Worked for me anyway (although I was never a fish like my mother, whose lawyer father taught her to swim by throwing her off the end of a pier when she was about six... she had a huge scar on one foot from the broken bottle she hit when she plummeted to the bottom, but adored swimming for the rest of her days).
Last edited by: Armel Coussine on Tue 2 Aug 11 at 19:52
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Never tried riding a bike underwater AC. Might be a gas though...
:-)
Last edited by: Humph D'Bout on Tue 2 Aug 11 at 19:57
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Most Africans we had on board came from the Cape Verdi islands.
Good boksers we had a middle weight champion with us handy when we went ashore.
Not a swimmer do:)
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Physio going backwards - Iffy
