Dear Friends,
With all the special events around, most people know that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. What most people are unaware of, is that October is also Physical Therapy Month. Although it encompasses much more, one of the foundations of physical therapy is exercise. Many of us hear the word, “exercise” and have a feeling of dread. We may get psychologically stressed at the thought of a weekly exercise program. However hard life can be, study after study tells us, we will feel better physically and emotionally with exercise. It empowers us!
A patient came to us many years ago after having surgery for breast cancer. She was close to 50 years of age and having pain and limitation of the arm on the side of her surgery. She had tried a number of alternative treatments with little success. Someone had mentioned our clinic, and she came in hesitantly with a friend. The pain when moving her arm and trying to sleep was more than she could take, and it had been lingering for over 9 months. Her specialist had mentioned that they might need to do another surgery to find out why she was in so much pain. After we helped slowly break up some of the scar tissue in her left shoulder capsule and lymph nodes, her pain totally disappeared. She has been pain-free for over 15 years.
Since then, she has been loyal to her exercises. She had begun exercising during and following her treatment with us. Previously, she had never been one to exercise or believe in the importance of exercise. That said, we were able to convince her, showing her a few published studies, that exercise is crucial to staying healthier as we age.
Last October, my dad (who was 92 at the time) fell in a mall parking lot, trying to put too many things in his car. As a result of this fall, he was hospitalized. He had a few broken ribs and a concussion. Since none of my 9 brothers and sisters lived in the area, this created a big problem. He was placed in a rehabilitation center and given, what we felt, were too many medications. After talking with him on the phone, and hearing his confusion, many of my family members thought he was getting dementia. We began to wonder if his life was heading into a sudden, degenerative situation.
As a physical therapist, I have heard and seen too many people in their later years be over medicated. As a result, we flew down to Florida where he lives, and asked his family physician to take control of his medication in the rehabilitation center. My dad’s condition began to improve. He was less lethargic and clearer minded. As a result, I called in a physical therapist to work with my dad. Her exercise plan was not as aggressive as mine, so I explained my plan, mapped it out, and she agreed to follow it. I also followed up with the physical therapist on the phone weekly. Over time, my dad regained 20 of the 40 pounds he had lost in the rehabilitation centers and hospitals. This loss of weight had occurred over a 4-month period. (In December, he had actually had gotten Covid-19 and pneumonia and had been again sent back to a rehabilitation center again.)
Long story short, we got his head clear of extra medications, got him back to exercising, and he is now walking (with a walker) 20-30 minutes a day. He is 93 and looking forward to coming up to visit us in Indiana. The key to getting back to his cheerful, positive self was getting control of his medication, getting him up, and improving his strength and endurance for walking.
Try to realize, in order to enjoy our children, grandchildren and life as a whole, we need to have our health. We need to be able to walk without struggling; we need our strength in the everyday things that come our way. This will not happen without practice and work.
This letter is for every one of us who hopes to stay as healthy as possible in order to live the kind of life we hope to live.
In this letter, I would like to challenge everyone to get up daily and walk with a purpose in mind. If you start with only 5 minutes, try to build up to 10 and then 15 and then shoot for 30. Most activities can be accomplished in 30 minutes. Take your time. If you can only walk for 5 minutes, do it three times, every other day before you increase to 10. Continue the process, taking your time and building up your stamina. Some resistive training would help a great deal, as well.
Life is so much more enjoyable when we have the ability to get up out of a chair! Life is so much more enjoyable when we can stand and walk with a loved one! Think about it, believe it, and you will have a much better chance of making it happen and enjoying many years to come!
Enjoy, and know we are here to help you get stronger every day!
Fran McDonald, PT,DPT,OCS
