Worst day so far : (

I did my e-cises last night after work, went well, went out to the pub with my mates (No wasn't drinking I was driving) and everything was fine, my left hip flexor was a little bit sore, but nothing major. But when I was trying to get to sleep last night, it was crazy, my left leg was just aching, like a dull ache, I just couldn't get rid of the pain, I tried every position possible, nothing helped.....I ended up falling asleep about 2:30am....

Today my left QL and left hip flexor and left glute, is very sore and tender, I'm really p#ssed off with myself really, it just shows the reprocusions of the weekend, I have set myself back now, I'm hoping a night of rest will do the trick, and I will be fine tomorrow....

I will post tomorrow and let you know how I am doing, I believe this is just a temporary glitch, and I will be fine when I wake up in the morning :)

Hectic Weekend....

I had a very busy weekend, I did my e-cises, Friday and Saturday, but body was too achy yesterday, so thought it was best to leave the e-cises, recovery is better for my body.

I keep having problems when it comes to the weekends. I am now single, I am 23, and I like to go out and party at the weekends...What 23 single guy doesn't want to go out clubbing....Only dilemma is, I dont' want to drink as alcohol causes inflammation, and when you drink, it does get rid of the pain, but then you start move and you don't notice the pain you are causing, as Alcohol numbs the pain......

BUT...

If I go out and don't drink, then I can't have a good time, because my pain ruins it, so I end up having some beers to ease the pain, but then in the morning, my body aches.......It's like a catch 22 really.....I want to go out and have fun with my mates, I need to get out of the house, now that I have split with the girlfriend, I need to go out and be more social, hang with me mates, but how can I when I am in pain......GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

What do I do?? How do I resolve this?? Maybe sit down all night, but boy oh boy is that boring, and also if you don't drink, you get tired really quickly, and it makes the night boring.....I like going out and having a drink and a laugh with my mates, you only live once.....

Any suggestions???

Day 54:

I've had some tightness/tenderness in my left glute the last 2 days since I started the new exercises. I know the reason for this, one of the new e-cises I have is laying flat on the floor, one leg bent in the hooklying position, and the other leg, extended fully out. The tightening the whole of the straight leg, and pulling your toes towards your shin, throughout the whole e-cise, you rotate your leg from the hip inwards and then outwards for a total of 10 reps and repeat 3 times, alternating between legs.

I notice a major difference between the right and left leg, left leg has hardly any mobility in it, but its gradually getting easier to perform.

Today I have no tenderness, so it looks like it was just my muscles being worked where there not used to it, like DOMS - Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness. Have you ever started a new training program, and then 24-48hrs after, you can't move your legs or arms?? LOL...

It's pretty much the same feeling, the muscle fibres are slightly tearing from the movement, that they are just not used to...

I think this is one thing to look out for, when you start any exercises for back pain or scaitica, or postural issues, then prepare for some soreness and tenderness, it may feel like your doing wrong, but as long as at the time when your performing the exercises, that they do not cause pain, you may get some discomfort, but as long as it is not pain, then you may need to push past this, it's just your muscles screaming "What the h#ll, Who woke me up?!"... :)

Day 52:

I performed my new set of e-cises last night, caused a slight amount of pain, because the muscles are being targetted differently and also new muscles are starting to wake up again. I'm feeling more positive each day, and just trying to stay focused with my rehabiliatation, and live in the present moment, not dwelling on the past or the future too much, but about what is happening now, this very second......And guess what?! I have no pain right now.... : )

Onwards and upwards.....

4th Assessment

I had my 4th Assessment yesterday. I spoke to Matt and we spoke about my current situation, and he was great, he said it was natural to have a setback, after what has happened, but I need to start looking after Number 1, and a good friend of mine has said the same thing as well......Thanks Paul ;)

So I have some new e-cises to start doing now, and I WILL be doing these when I get home today, I will be getting back into my routine as of NOW! I will do the e-cises everyday, when I get in from work, before I think about anything else, I need to put my health first again, it's all about me from now on, I need to become more Independent, and my health is the number one thing I am concentrating on from now.

I have put together a list of daily things I will be doing to make me feel better each day and back on the road to recovery.

1. E-cises
2. Eat healthy and regularly
3. Read some form of Self Improvement material
4. Listen to uplifting, feel good music
5. Going to try meditation, or just simply sitting somewhere for 10mins a day, just relaxing, and breathing, reconnecting with myself....Silence basically.....
6. A gratitude diary, everyday write down 3 things I am grateful for
7. Post on the Blog.... :)
8. Start going to bed earlier
9. Laugh and joke everyday
10. Spend time with friends & family

Pain levels are much better today as well, after my session last night, the setback I had, was not major, it was just a slight step back, and I refuse to let this happen again now, I need to be 100% Pain Free, and I am going to make this happen for ME : )

Off track....

Hey

I've gone way off track the last week or so, haven't done my e-cises, broke up with girlfriend, and this has had a major impact on me mentally. I have been going out loads with my mates, haven't wanted to stay at home, and therefore have not been doing my e-cises, and as a result pain levels have gone back up, I'm really annoyed and angry with myself, because I've not being doing the e-cises, I'm usually so well motivated, and don't let anything get in my way, but this break up has knocked me for six, and thrown everything off course, I feel lost at the moment.

I'm seeing my Egoscue Therapist tonight, I will be completely honest with him, he knows of the situation I am in, and has told me to concentrate on myself, and I do try to, but it's really hard. Just need a good kick up the arse to get motivated again, and focus on the things I have control over at the moment, and I have control over my health now I have found Egoscue, no point in worrying about things I cannot change.....I say this but finding it really difficult to stick to this mental state....

I feel that maybe on some level I am not wanting to perform my e-cises, to cause me some pain, some physical pain, to hurt myself, self hurting in some way.......

I know I will be fine, but right now just feel like shit, hate feeling like this, I always am positive, and always see the good things in a negative situation, but this is really testing me, but I guess life throws things at us, knocks us down, and then it is a test of our strength and character to overcome this, and become a stronger person, and life is about taking risks and risking rejection, and fear, but we must work through this fear, doubt, sadness, negativity, and when we make it through the otherside we are stronger....

It's amazing how love is the best thing in the world, but when it is removed it is one of the worst feelings ever, and makes you sometimes wish you never had it, but as I said if we don't take risks, and lets face it, love is taking a risk, we are then living, we are experiencing life to the full.....

Sorry to stray off of Egoscue sometimes, but I feel to be healthy we have to be both physically and mentally stronger, and this is why I am posting my feelings as well as what I feel....

Great quote on change....

"The more things change, the more they stay the same. I’m not sure who the first person was that said that- probably Shakespeare or maybe Sting. But at the moment, it’s the sentence that best explains my tragic flaw, my inability to change. I don’t think that I’m alone in this. The more I get to know other people, the more I get to realize it’s kind of everyone’s flaw. Staying exactly the same, for as long as possible, standing perfectly still. It feels better somehow; and if you are suffering, at least the pain is familiar. Because if you took that leap of faith, went outside the box, did something unexpected, who knows what other pain might be waiting out there? Chances are, it could be even worse. So you maintain the status quo, choose the road already travelled and it doesn’t seem that bad- not as far as flaws go. You’re not a drug addict; you’re not killing anyone, except maybe yourself a little. When we finally do change, I don’t think it happens like an earthquake or an explosion where all of a sudden we’re like this different person. I think it’s smaller than that. The kind of thing that most people wouldn’t even notice unless they look really, really close, which thank god, they never do. But you notice it. Inside you that change feels like a world of difference, and you hope that it is, that this is the person you’ll get to be forever, that you’ll never have to change again."

Day 37: I have a cold : (

I've had a cold since Sunday, so feel really rough, but one thing I have noticed, usually if I get a cold, my sciatica plays up, and my back spasms, due to all the sneezing and tensing up of muscles when you sneeze....BUT.....Not this time, I have had hardly any pain, apart from the feeling of fatigue, and my sinuses blocked up, I feel great in regards to my back and leg pain : )

I've also been having issues with the girlfriend the last 3 weeks, I won't go into detail, but I've been under alot of stress due to this, and usually stress increases my symptoms, yet it hasn't affected me!!

Please if anyone is reading this blog, and your in pain, then please get hold of a copy of "Pain Free" by Pete Egoscue, it will be the best investment you have ever made, I guarantee you, if it is helping me become pain free, then I guarantee it can help anyone, I still have loads of postural differences but my pain is dropping dramatically, the posture will come in time!!

I'm thinking of buying the book "The Power of NOW!" by Eckhart Tolle's, meant to be a very thought provoking book, it's all about being in the now, living in the moment, appreciating things.

Anyone read it???

Day 33: Over a month gone now..... : )

Hi

It's been just over a month now, and things have improved greatly. I still get pain when walking or standing for too long, but I now am able to go though my day at work, and not experience pain, and this has helped greatly in the quality of my work. I am able to move much better, function better, bend, twist, turn, lift legs, sit, so many little things, that maybe you or anyone would not notice from looking at me, but personally I notice these things on a day-to-day basis.

I am able to wake up in the morning, and now the only thing I think about is "I wanna go back to sleep :("....LOL....I do not wake up with pain now, I get up, take a shower, get dressed for work, and do not experience any pain, it just makes great start to the day now, nothing worse than waking up and before you have got out of bed, you have to overcome pain, I do not get that now, it's an amazing feeling, and every morning I wake up and am so thankful to Pete Egoscue, and my Egoscue Therapist Matt Waters, and also to myself and my motivation and dedication, I am the one that is making time each day to perform my e-cises, I have the option of doing them or not, but I take the right option , no matter how late or how tired I am, my e-cises come before anything now!!!

On a day-to-day basis I have a pain rating of about 2, maybe a 3 somedays, the one thing that is still taking time to improve is walking, but because my posture is still out of alignment, and I still have a side shift, then it will be impossible to be pain free until these are addressed, but I am getting closer, I am not doing too much in the way of walking yet, but I keep parking my car, further from my office each day, so I have to walk further to and from the office, which is a gradual increase per day.

I do not have to see Matt until 22nd September, that is a 3 week gap now between appointments, he gave me almost a completely new set of e-cises on Monday, and I will post these up tomorrow, they are alot harder and are challenging me alot more now, but this is great news, it means that my muscles will now need to overcome this new challenge, which means they will become stronger and more flexible.

I feel a completely different person now, my life isn't always plagued by pain, don't get me wrong, I have got a long way to go, the side shift will be the last thing to change, but Matt has noticed that my left hip is starting come back down now, it was high before, but is starting to drop, and he said that in order for the side shift to change, other changes need to happen first....I've noticed I am getting a bit of discomfort on my right side of my back, just above the right hip bone, but I believe this is just a sign of changes happening in my body, I need to keep looking at the smaller improvements, and keep an eye on these, I obviously have the main goal to become completely pain free, and get rid of my side shift that I have, but in order to reach that goal, I have to set many other goals on my way, otherwise the long term goal will become more difficult to reach, you will lose sight of it, you need to set new goals each week or month to reach, and then before you know it, you will be at your final destination.....PAIN FREE :)