Lemonade out of Lemons

I went to my first physical therapy appointment on Friday.  I have a nice, young, female therapist (Nicole) who went over my MRI report with me.  After hearing about all the issues I have going on with my back it's a wonder I can walk!  Up until the beginning of January when the sciatica pain began, I didn't have a clue I had any back problems whatsoever!  I have scoliosis (curvature of the spine) in my lower back, a herniated disc in the lower lumbar area and also signs of (Annie!?) spinal stenosis (narrowing of the open spaces within the spine which can put pressure on the spinal cord and the nerves that travel through one's spine.)  OY!  It's so surprising to me because I've always been able to work hard, lift heavy things, do strenuous exercises and activities,,, so maybe that's the problem... me doing all those things like I think I'm still a teenager.  Well, despite all that, I still feel like a teenager.

Here's what my first physical therapy was like:  after we went through the report and she had me do a few things to show her my strength and flexibility, I spent 15 minutes on "the rack!"  That's what I call it anyway... it's actually called "traction."  You put two corset like things on:  one below your bustline and one on your lower hips.  You lay on your back on a table with a warm pad underneath your hip area and the machine alternates with 15 seconds of stretching you (like the Medieval rack) and 15 seconds where it releases the tension.  This is to help your spine decompress, I guess.  The I spent about 10 minutes on my stomach while a PT aide gooped my back with a warm gel and used a ultrasound wand-like device.  That was rather pleasant.  Then Nicole took me to their exercise room and showed me a few exercises on some of the equipment.  She was way "babying" me and it almost made me laugh... if she only knew the exercises I'm used to doing with weights, etc... Oh well, I guess it's good to go slow.

So I have to go to Physical Therapy (I will use PT from now on) 3 times a week:  every M, W, & F at 9 AM.  Caligurl (if she still reads my blog) will appreciate this... I'm looking at this as if I now have my own personal trainer so what do I need?  Outfits!  So I went shopping on Saturday and bought some cute exercise clothes and some new shoes.  Since I won't be running I thought these would be perfect.  They are Skecher's Go Walk.  My outfits have hot pink trim so I thought the black shoes with pink trim would be best.  They are very comfy and you can wash them in the washing machine.