Human Rehab
Horse Rehab is killer to get through, but it turns out that Human Rehab can be just as difficult. While I’ve tried to have an unending supply of patience with Harriet and her struggles, it seems that I struggle to produce that same level of patience toward my own physical disabilities.
My car accident in February was easily the worst of the Undisclosed Amount of accidents that I’ve been in so far. While my physical therapy treatments have been immensely helping my headaches and range of motion, battling these disabilities while also dealing with my Springtime Autoimmune Cycle has been quite the challenge. Twice a week, I cycle through a wide variety of physical therapy treatments, the most recent of which included dry needling, a type of acupuncture where electrodes are attached to the needles after being inserted into the trigger points of a muscle, and electrical currents are then pulsed by the TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) unit through the needles for 20-30 minutes. This works to release tension from deeper within the muscle than the external surface “stim pads” on a regular TENS unit can typically reach. This has been surprisingly helpful, and although it leaves me feeling very beat up the following day, we have seen almost immediate results directly following the few treatments we have done so far. My back and neck have undergone some intense beatings since my first major car accident in 2014, and now seems to only respond to very heavy stimulus! In a later post, I will explain the Graston tools/technique that we’ve used previously on my back and neck; basically the deepest-tissue massage you could ever get.
Dry needling at physical therapy today:
Honestly, the worst part is having to keep my face in the table hole for half an hour.
My rheumatologist is currently on maternity leave, so my usual 6-month check (or “spring exam” as I like to call it, like I’m a horse who needs her vaccines, Coggins, and dewormer) has been pushed out a few months. My symptoms have been progressively worsening lately; while not quite as bad as the transition from fall to winter, the transition from winter to spring is still quite difficult on my body. My flares can be easily triggered by rapid changes in temperature, and with the seasonal transitions here in the mountain desert of Utah come 40 degree mornings with 75 degree afternoons. Sunlight and UV exposure is the biggest trigger, which means more frequent flares as I fail to readjust my routines around the daylight, as well as emotional and physical stress, which seem to come with the territory after an accident.
I have spent the last decade working to adopt a very relaxed and calm mindset to combat my anxiety and help lessen the affects of my health disorders. After many years of bio-feedback therapy and various meditation and grounding exercises, I now work daily to accept that the past is past and changes can only be made to the future. What’s done is done; anger, disappointment, and mistakes must be let go, and I must simply move forward with a new mindset, learning from the past without holding on to it.
This “Zen” mindset not only prevents irrational anger and frustration, but has allowed me a control over my emotions and stress levels that I used to immensely struggle with. By letting things be as they are, I have been able to not only combat my anxiety, but also avoid a lot of emotional stress that would have otherwise hindered my physical health management.
While I can’t forever avoid the sun, exhaustion, or the flu, I do have control over what I will allow to stress me out and what I can choose to let go. My mental and emotional rehabilitation is just as important as my physical rehabilitation.
