Shoulder Rehab 4 Months & Ready To Go?

I saw Dr. Carlini last week and he was very pleased at my progress.  He said see you in 6 weeks and said, go do what you want to do, within reason.  He told me I could start increasing my swimming with two arms, and try some butterfly in a few more weeks.  He liked that I have a swim coach that went through an even more severe shoulder surgery and rehab, so my swim recovery is pretty well monitored.  That is when I get there..now that I can use both arms it's a good idea to start swimming more consistently right?

The doctor feels I am 95%, Susan, my physical therapist puts me at about the same.  As I listed before, book normal and Trish normal are two different measurements.  That said, only my external rotation is less than 15% on my repaired side (121 degrees) compared to my left side, which is 138 degrees.

In 6 weeks we should be even better and I hope to be doing backstroke and butterfly.  Then Doctor Carlini should let me go for 3 months.  I still can't lay on my right side for long periods of time but it is all a healing process and it will happen.  I started TRX training last week as well and so far just sore muscles, which is good. 

I think my next blog update will be about travel! Thanks for all the support the past few months.  I look back now and think it was so long ago that I couldn't do anything. Now it seems natural again to move my arm up and down, stretch and even tuck my shirt in my pants and scratch my back.  Amazing.

Shoulder Rehab 3 months later...I swim

Something new happened on Tuesday at the swimming pool.  I swam freestyle with 2 arms.  It felt different and on video you will see it is different.  I didn't think the one arm swimming would make that much of a difference but it did.  My head staying in the water, for now...ha ha.  It was a huge break though and it felt great. I did maybe 200 meters total of freestyle and tried kicking on my stomach and back with my arms over my head too.  Coach Dominic said I don't have full extension yet, but I also have to learn to tuck my scapula in.  It is different when I am in the water without the floor under me. You can't feel the scapula tucking or the feeling of using all your small back muscles and your trapezoids, it requires a little more concentration.

Shoulder Rehab Week 12

I am at the 3 month point post surgery.  The past 2 weeks I have been on a steroid to push through the last bit of resistance and get the pinching to stop in my shoulder.  So far it has shown to be a success. Brad has wisely chosen the past two weeks to be on travel all but two nights.  Coincidence? I think so but he is darn lucky.  I haven't slept much, I can't workout enough and I am not losing any weight.  Just loving the holiday season this year!

Last Thursday and this Thursday I have done physical therapy in the Lorton office of Greater Metropolitan Orthopedics since that is where Susan, my therapist, is now working. I have been able to progress to 'swimming' on the ball, not a lot of strokes but it is a step forward. 

At first it seems easy but then I can still feel the pinching so I have had to think about my stroke.  Just like in all my stretching exercises I have to pull my scapula muscle in so there isn't any pinching when I reach.  I will also be putting those small underused muscles to work with each stroke.  I don't yet know how this will translate in the pool.  Last Thursday I pushed off the wall with both arms above my head and tried to kick a 25 with fins on and my arms out front.  The pressure of the water really surprised me and there is still pinching.  My anchors that hold the bicep and labrum feel solid and all is secure but we haven't done a stroke yet.  I am hopeful that I can try a freestyle stroke either this week or next.  Dr. Carlini saw me today, he is really pleased with the flexibility I have after two weeks of steroids.  Hopefully after I see him next month I will be good to go.  Here is a small comparison of where I am at and what is considered 'normal'.
All measurements in degrees  11/29        book normal        Trish normal              12/8
Internal Rotation                       80                 70                       100                          100
External Rotation                      91                 90                       130                          108
Flexion                                      175               180                     185+
Abduction                                 157               180                     185+

Internal Rotation means I am on my back and lift my arm over my head, the external rotation means I bring it up from the side as high as I can. The flexion and glenohumeral abduction are when I have my arm at shoulder height, elbow bent and I push my hand down towards the front and the abduction is pushing it to the back.  I like the progress. 

Shoulder Rehab Week 9-11

See how easily I can make bunny ears
 again over this pink lit flamingo
 at my folks house?

Let's start out by saying I was right, it is better to travel with a Sherpa, even if he likes to be called your husband.  It was SO much easier traveling with Brad helping the entire time.  In fact I came back from Thanksgiving with MORE flexibility and movement in my shoulder.  In the past three weeks I have been able to put a sports bra back on, which makes me happy when I go to the gym.  What I have really noticed is I can do more normal every day things with my right shoulder and arm than I have been able, to not just since surgery but before then as well.  I have had to learn to 'tuck' my scapula in and in turn my little muscles in my back are all getting stronger and used more. Apparently that is also improving my posture and one can hope my core too. 

Piper took this one, she also took one of our butts. It's pretty
good but Lynn would kill me if I published it.

We all had a great trip to Washington for Thanksgiving and enjoyed seeing Grandpa and Grandma Seubert, Auntie Meg and a lot of friends.  I was able to help my friend, Lynn Sullivan, with her booth at the Holiday Bazaar for Moments to Remember and watch the Washington Huskies win the Apple Cup in Seattle. 

This past week, since we've been back from Washington,  I swam with one arm still, had a great spin class too. I am finally able to add 2 pound weights to my exercises and workouts in my right hand.  I had a really positive appointment with Dr. Carlini on Wednesday, November 30 and in an effort to get that last bit of 'Trish Normal' flexibility back I am now on a 2 plus week steroid series.  Brad had some reserves of getting out of the house this weekend unharmed but he managed to stay on my good side and is fine.  That might also be because I didn't exactly do the first few days dosage correctly...when Brad realized that he had the gall to actually say, "...that is hilarious, you can't even take performance enhancing drugs right." Boy is he lucky I didn't or he would have been in so much trouble!

Hopefully with these steroids the last pinching where my arm gets a numb feeling, almost like my circulation is cut off, when it's over my head will go away and it will open up.  Then in another few weeks I will be able to take a swim stroke.  I have been able to do a wide arm stroke on land, every day a little more flexibility comes back.  Next post will be my measurements and more movement pictures.

Shoulder Rehab Week 8- Travel with a Sherpa

I said the week before that travel could be hard...and it was.  The wedding this past weekend was fabulous, Dominique was a beautiful bride and Piper had a fun time being a flower girl. All was okay, I mean I wasn't able to do any of my physical therapy exercises or ice but I wasn't carrying too much or lifting.  That was until life just happens, and you take your husband to the airport because he is due in Colorado, and you are on your own with a 6 year old and traveling alone.  Sometimes you just have to do things, even though you know you shouldn't, like holding umbrellas in both hands in the rain, and a back pack and your keys.  Like I said, life...daughter dressed in flower girl outfit, I'm dressed for the wedding and it's raining, can't ruin the hair right?
Anyhow, that was the least of my issues.  The next day I had to load the suitcases in the trunk, unload them then do it again once we arrived back in DC.  It's not like the suitcases and bags you do carry through the airport get walk there on their own.

Thus, it is my personal advice to anyone who has any type of surgery and must travel up to 12 weeks post-op, get a Sherpa and have them carry ALL the bags! I leave again next week and plan to have my best Sherpa (and husband) carrying and helping more than ever.  It will be just like the old days, when he would carry my swim bags at meets so my shoulders and arms wouldn't get sore.  The problem with this trip is I thought I could do it and then I had to do it and it hurt.  I hate the healing process, even though I know it always takes longer than you think and you have to be patient. 
On Monday, November 14, I had my re-evaluation with Vanessa, and despite my pain and soreness there is a lot of improvement and progress.  My flexibility is gradually coming back.  I can move my arm up from the side 20 degrees more than 3 weeks ago and on Tuesday I was able to touch my arm to my ear laying down and raising my arm up.  I have had to learn to really use my scapula and while Susan was stretching my arm and moving it I was totally focused on keeping my scapula tucked in.  It literally takes all my concentration and I think I am flexing every core and back muscle I have to do it.  But, HUGE flexiblity difference.  So, despite the pain I am currently in this week,  from inflaming the tendons and anchor,s when real life got in the way, I have had good progress and am still on the right track.  I even had a good swim/kick on Tuesday with my swim pals Alicia and Kirsten, who coached.

Finally, because it was a fun trip, here we are on the top of the Space Needle in Seattle.  Thursday last week was one of those beautiful fall days in the Northwest. It reminds me how much I love and miss Seattle and Washington State.  Then it rained and now it's snowing and I am reminded it is not yet cold out here.  I would be willing to lay at least even money that 20 years from now I am a snowbird, ha ha!

Shoulder Rehab Week 7

This week our big adventure is airplane travel! I only hope not to say "ouch" too many times while boarding, flying and getting off the plane.  Luckily I have Brad and Piper with me to help but coming home it's just McB and me so we will be checking those suitcases!

PT was fun this week, my friend, Kirsten who also had should surgery on the same day and the same arm was at Greater Metropolitan doing her therapy too.  Here I am on the stem machine with ice over it and Kirsten is walking her arm up the bench to stretch it out.  I feel like I made a lot of progress over the past week.  I can get my arm up straight above my head and it is starting to go up past 90 degrees from my side without pinching.  I haven't felt that since sometime last winter!

Susan did a lot of extra stretching of my arm when I was on my back and as long as I drop my shoulders to work my scapula I can really move it around, without a pinching feeling.  I have been doing a lot of scapula work in my back and that will help.  It is forcing me to develop and retrain all those little muscles that I didn't use before.  If you keep your shoulders down and use those muscles then in the end your shoulders are better off.  Finally, after 7 weeks I finally got to hold a 'real' weight in my right hand.  I say 'real' because lets face it, I am a mom and I have a dog, and go full speed ahead, a lot.  I am guessing that once in a while I have put more than 2 pounds in my right hand.  But...on Tuesday I got to lay on my back and do shoulder presses up with 5 pounds in my left hand and 2 pounds in my right.  It was kind of nice, maybe I can start rebuilding not only the scapula, back and shoulder muscles but also my floppy triceps muscle (aka my bat wing!). 

Stand by for the update next week when I recap travel, a wedding and sightseeing with a still tender and healing shoulder!

Shoulder Rehab Week 6

Had to add this it was just too funny.
Kaitlyn was totally asleep.

Things had been going well and although I was a little unsure about the whole Great Wolf Lodge and water park last weekend I thought I could handle it.  Well, let me tell you, I did handle it! Kaitlyn and I killed it going down the two person intertube slide.  We went so fast when we shot off the slide we went all the way up to the top step where you get out of the water! It was awesome, fun for all...but I overdid it, just a little, I guess.  Oh and the Howlin' Tornado was so fun, I rode that with Brad. I did my best to not grip but I may have tensed the bicep a bit because by Sunday I was hurting a little.  That did not make for a fun PT appointment on Tuesday. 

Turns out my tendon was a little inflamed from maybe doing too much.  Susan went easy on me but that might have been because my friend, Kirsten, was there doing PT too.  We were hanging out doing our exercises and chatting about our shoulder surgeries and recovery.  Fun and yet painful. 

This is me on the 'stem' machine, it does not sound fun and it isn't that great either.  It stimulates your muscles to make them work.  Afterwards my arm is actually tired, but on Tuesday it was more tired than before.  On Tuesday that 1 hour of PT was enough for my arm and I pretty much let it rest the remainder of the day.  Wednesday was about the same, I let it rest and today PT went better. Not as sore as Tuesday and a little looser.  So after my hour with Susan I went swimming. 

Here is a video Dominic made of me swimming with 1 arm and not that fast.  Do you know that I finally rotate my shoulders and yet I think I look so awkward.  The key is to make my body like a board, just kick and turn my head to the side to breath.  By the time I have two arms (sometime after Christmas) I hope my arms rotate and my body stays straight, like a board.  For now, good to know I can see this video and maybe finally fix my stoke while my arm heals.