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| Barb Polan Barb's Recovery |
Last summer I met a woman at a friend's party; she was kind and friendly, and quite deaf, so we sat in chairs next to each other and had a very loud conversation. She told me about a nearby pool (that I didn't know existed) that has a wonderful aquatic physiotherapist. Every therapist I ever worked with plus my physiatrist and my husband have encouraged me to go to aquatic sessions because, they said, it would be easier for my weak muscles to bear my weight if I were buoyant; made sense to me. But my only opportunity (I thought) was at the Y, where the buoyancy theory did not work for me - in fact, none of them could even get me set up to keep me afloat. All through the fall, my torn meniscus kept me from looking up this newly recommended therapist because in the pool I tend to put more weight on my unaffected leg, which aggravates my knee (and me). I finally started sessions with her (twice a week) about a month ago. I LOVE the therapy; I LOVE the therapist. She was the very first to get me to keep my head out in water over my head - floats around my arms just under my armpits work. Even then, I had trouble controlling my leg, so instead of making my leg lighter to help my atrophied muscles, she put a 2-pound weight around my ankle. How counter-intuitive was that? It kept my leg extended down and gave me far more control over it. From the first session, I've been able to "run" in the deep end. I'm heading to one later this morning. Next post, I'll have to rant about bathing suits!
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