Monday, June 10, 2013

Monday Makeover: Postpartum Physical therapy

I saw my physical therapist for the first time on Thursday and I have 4 weeks of physical therapy scheduled.  Here's what's going on:

1. My core muscles need to be tightened and strengthened due to being stretched out
2. I felt really weak when she was having me do exercises
3. I was instructed to wear my hip belt when my muscles are fatigued or when I'm out and about with the kids.   That is until I have more strength in my muscles.
4.  It's ok for me to swim or ride my bike.  I rode my bike 10 minutes 1 evening last week.  
My physical therapist said when I feel I can, add on minutes slowly and not overdo.
5.  If the problem isn't resolved in 4 weeks, I will see my doctor again and go from there.
But I'm hopeful that 2 pt appointments a week should bring good results.

This will be a slow recovery process as I know there's lots of strengthening that needs to be done.  For those of you out there who are recovering from pregnancy, I highly recommend physical therapy if you notice pain in your back, hips, or pelvic area.  Due to insurance not covering pt during my first pregnancy, I only went a few times and it was a short term fix since the issue was never resolved...it was improved, but still there.  

Bare with me as I continue on in the journey.  I have a long way to go, but I'm confident that I'm on the right path to get back to doing my normal workouts!

I've also had time to reflect on how I was feeling this time last year and where I am now.  One day when we were at the pool I was sitting with my son thinking about how sick I was last year.  Sometimes you don't realize how bad it was until you look back.  I tried so hard to make our life normal for my daughter even though I was so sick during my first trimester.  She has been a trooper through it all and is a great big sister!  She loves her brother!  As frustrating as my recovery is I'm so thankful for my kids and my health.  Below is a picture from this time last year when we were able to enjoy the beach...although we miss Pullman, we do love having the beach nearby.



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