The Spanish Inquisition

PT Visit #2

The therapy evaluation I had Monday put me in a world of hurt Tuesday.  It didn't help that I had a 14 hour day of work counting travel on Tuesday, and that I drove myself, and that I stood for almost nine hours.  The last half hour of the drive home I was actually in so much pain I didn't know if I could make it home.  After getting home I took a Soma and benedryl, and then curled up around a pillow and cried silently for a couple of hours until the pain started to dissipate a bit.  About as bad as it can get so it must be uphill from here!  I know my face must have reflected the pain at the client as I was asked two or three times if I was OK.  I try very hard not to show it, but I can't help the "hollow eye" look I get.

The therapy visit I had today hopefully won't leave me in as much pain.  I hurt quite a bit this evening, but it is basically what I started with this morning, so far no additional pain.  Whew!

The therapists had researched radiation induced lumbosacral plexopathy to see how to treat me.  Bless their hearts!  They told me what I already knew - there is not a lot of research or literature out there on this condition.  They did find some tips in therapy websites on what has worked and what has not worked for this type of problem.  Unfortunately there wasn't a lot that had worked.

They decided to try a technique called myofascial release which involves pressure and stretching of connective tissue (fascia) that has become restricted by the therapy and the body's reaction to pain.  I am sure my inability to exercise much in the last three years has not helped any either.  They said their research said that they would need to work in a band from my ribs down to my knees, and will work from the outer edges inward to "trick" the nerves out of their hypersensitivity.  I felt some scar tissue release today in the radiation field, so am hoping this might actually help.  They are trying very hard not to hurt me too much.  They said this works really well with fibromyalgia too.  I have a niece with this condition, so thought of her.

I was put in traction for a while to allow my lower back to relax.  I have more exercises to add to my list and will practice until my next appointment next week.   I feel as if I have been tortured with soft cushions and made to sit in a comfy chair for a while today, much better than the bed of nails and the rack I was tortured with on Monday.  Hoping the next session will go well.  The therapists said I will need at least hour long sessions or more for a while, so I will have long days at work making up the time the next couple of weeks.  They have some techniques to work on the pudendal nerve issues also, but said we need to wait for some of the pain to subside before trying these.  Yeah!

My therapist said she teaches a class on pain and how the body perceives pain.  The next session is in July and I would love to attend if my travel schedule permits.  Understanding the mechanism takes some of the mystery out of the "why me" part of my whiney brain.  She said if I can't attend she will try and include it in my therapy sessions.

Go to see the new headache specialist tomorrow.  Have hopefully gotten all my records sent to them already, and have faxed them all the evaluations they asked me to fill out.  Good news for all of us "scent sensitive" people out there - they specifically say not to wear perfume or strongly scented powders deodorants or soaps.  They said the first visit might take a couple of hours.  Not sure if it will for me, since I already have a diagnosis.  Hoping they are not weird, or flakey, or rude, or incompetent.  I have a friend who went there and now has control over devastating migraines that haunted her for years, so I hope this practice will work for me too!