I injured my neck a number of years ago,
see
Thoughts.com Blogs - family vacation...part one...the bates motel

as you can see, I do not know how to copy paste links,

if any of my buddies out there,
like
wayne or scotslad?
anyone?
would like to help me by adding a link to my bates motel story, in the comments,
I would really appreciate it

that story will explain how I happened to injure my neck a number of years ago
which led to 4 herniated discs that had to be fused with the bones of a dead body.

long story short
big operation, long recovery period
another story

that being said

recently a very heavy bin, hit me right on the top of my head
how that happened is another story
but I had been going to physical therapy for a few weeks when this occurred


my neck

up until the bin head bashing incident, which set me back a tad, 
had been improving
leaps and bounds
because of the dedicated efforts of my physical therapist
Caleb
my man, my guy!
at Athletico

before going for treatment
the pain level had been climbing
and my range of motion was growing smaller
in order to carry on a conversation with someone sitting next to me,
I had to turn my upper body!
Backing out of the driveway, made me cringe
watching any sporting event from the bleachers was slow torture
and asking me to turn around and look at something without moving my entire body
was almost impossible
my shoulder muscles were so tight from holding my neck in place
they were one giant knot
I could hardly move when I woke up in the morning
ice and heat were not helping

now I must admit, I have a very high tolerance for pain
and my neck has been a pain in the neck for quite awhile now
 I have learned to live with it
nevertheless,
the last few months things were going from bad to worse
my doc ordered physical therapy
oh
why didn't I speak up sooner

I love it there
it's so cool
the facility is full of
 dedicated people
and may I proudly add, my buddy Caleb has gotten me back to the good place I was in before the bin dropped
I've increased my range of motion
strengthened some muscles
relaxed a few others
and reached some of the goals Caleb set for me

I feel much better


The very kind, patient and intelligent people at Athletico
REALY know their anatomy

Physical therapy is a health care specialty concerned with evaluating, diagnosing, and treating disorders of
the musculoskeletal system and it's interaction with physical movement.
The Physical therapists are licensed professionals who hold a master’s or doctorate degree in physical therapy. They work in a wide variety of settings including hospitals, rehabilitation clinics, out-patient facilities, schools, and nursing homes.

The ultimate goal of physical therapy is to restore maximal functional independence to each individual patient. To achieve this goal, exercise, heat, cold, electricity, and massage are utilized.

Did I just say massage,

you do not know what a massage is
until you have had Cirt work his magic on you.
The first time he laid his hands on me was for only ten minutes
yet,
when I walked out of his little room, I felt like I had died and gone to heaven.

He is the official massage therapist for the Chicago Fire.
Do those soccer players know just how lucky they are having scored this big guy to work on them whenever their little hearts desire?


If only we could find him a wife
he is so cute, and has great muscles gals!
and Kevin the manager is pretty easy on the eyes too
so sorry, I think he is married a big ball

another individual is in another corner playing with a little ball
a senior citizen is being tied up with a giant rubber band
some people are riding stationary bikes
others are having massages
some are in traction
my personal favorite
second only to heating pads and massages


each and ever person who walks in the place has there own story
its like the old tv show
the naked city
only no one is naked here
thank God


one guy fell off a roof another was in a car accident
someone else might have fallen down
and couldn't get up
like that commercial
whatever
regardless of the circumstances that led them to this place
like cheers and Ive said this before
everyone knows your name
and they are always glad you came
and didnt cancel
or just not show up
another story

everything sort of looks like its being done in slow motion
quite different from a health club
but the patients and the trainers are working twice as hard if not harder to achieve little baby steps
that are valued just as much as someone who is able to run a marathon
the positive reinforcemnt and encouragement does wonders to your motivation to improve

if my kids could see the energy and effort it takes some people to do a simple leg lift
I'm sure they wouldn't snicker

 these are strong people who don't give up
and hang in there and do the work required for recovery
and people
take my word for it
it's not as
 easy as it looks!

everyone involved IS exceptionally hard working
and occasionally undervalued


so lets give a big cheer
CHEER
for everyone working hard to gain back some lost mobility and to the therapist who help them reach their goals