06/14/2021
Week Four. After spending 3 weeks in a cast and 1.5 weeks in a splint, I graduated to a boot, which feels like a torture device. But, the boot means more freedom to move. Toe wiggling has become less scary, but the nerve damage is becoming more painful as it heals.
I had my first Physical Therapy appointment at VCU Sports Medicine, where I had the good fortune to be assigned to Katie, who is thorough, professional, and supportive. I have a tenuous relationship with physical therapy as it is practiced in the United States, as you will see unfold over my rehabilitation journey. This is in no way a reflection on Katie - I have watched her with her patients and she is excellent.
Katie’s list of exercises for me includes the leg extension exercise I’ve been doing since Week Two, “gas pedal,” “windshield wiper,” and “heel slides.”
Gas pedal: With your leg extended, reach through your foot as though you are pressing on a gas pedal.
Windshield wipers: With your leg extended, move your foot from side to side without moving the rest of your leg.
Heel slides: Sitting upright, place your foot on a towel on the floor. Slide your foot away from you, then draw it toward you (my range of motion was about and inch and a half). If you practice Gyrotonic, you know this exercise as a preparation for Level 1 Seated Leg Work.
In my experience, Physical Therapy tends to focus on the injury, rather than addressing the needs of the body as a system. As any will tell you, it’s important to maintain correct posture and alignment while moving. Don’t confuse strength and tension. For example, if you do planks and your shoulders are shrugged, you are teaching your shoulders to rest forward naturally, which creates tension in your neck and upper back. The Gyrotonic principle of narrowing is a tool.l to access the even engagement of the musculature to support movement. In my case, narrowing enables me to put even weight in my pelvis, despite not be able to put even weight through my legs. Once I’m walking again, this will help me maintain proper alignment and avoid the pain and dysfunction that comes from tension and compensation.
