Enter blogging as therapy…I kid. But, do I?
I have had a few major injuries in my life. One was in college – an ankle injury that plagues me to this day not with pain (sheesh at least not yet) but with chronic ankle instability. Another was a few years ago when I was hit by a car through the wall as I was working in my office. True story. My back has never been the same and I have had to make serious changes in function in my life to manage said pain.
The latest – this dang broken foot. Did I do it wrestling a bear? Yes! Did I do it saving orphans from a burning building? Yes! Did I do it traversing the Himalayas on a vision quest? Yes! Did I do it stepping off the hearth of a fireplace, subsequently folding my foot on the stone in front of the fireplace, on vacation at 11:30pm at night before bed? Yes! Yes, by golly, I did.
But it wasn’t the “annoying – look at this stupid boot” kind of fracture. It was the “what in the world did I do, what is wrong with my bones…will my foot ever be the same” kind of injury. Life altering to the point that my mode of ascending and descending stairs involves crawling, and I don’t dare get around without a rubber soled slipper or sneaker on my good foot for fear of murdering my good foot and ankle.
I can take pain. I don’t like opioids but I will manage. I can take some minor inconvenience, a different shoe or boot, even some change in function is manageable. But non-weightbearing for months? Oy.
Enter – empathy for my patients. All the years of people unable to drive, unable to care for themselves, unable to live their lives unencumbered. Did I feel for them at the time? OF COURSE. But you never fully know what it is like until you are in those shoes, erm boot or splint. Depending on the stage of healing.
I am sure many past patients may relish in the image of me suffering as a form of retribution for the pain I bestowed upon them during rehab…but maybe not. Just know that I truly feel for the limitations and I sincerely hope the time flies by as fast as I told my patients. This, too, shall pass and I will survive.
Heal today, transform tomorrow. Unlock your potential to heal, learn and grow. – Dr. Barb Wally, LLC
Note: These blog articles are not in exchange for a one on one Physical Therapy visit. Please contact me if you are interested in receiving a Physical Therapy visit!
*This content is original and copyright Dr Barb Wally, LLC*
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