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Stef
Peer Supporter, Female, from Helotes, TX
Just posting my pic so you know who you are talking to Jul 30, 2015
- Stef was last seen:
- Nov 30, 2016
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My Story
I had what I thought was just a tight hip flexor that started in 2009-2010. I did a lot of spin classes at the gym (among other things) so I thought that was it. I just kept stretching it.
In 2011 it gradually got muchworse. I went to a chiropractor in early 2012 & was told I had mild scoliosis. My hip kept feeling uneven (for example, when walking) so I took the scoliosis diagnosis as the cause. I proceeded to have many chiro adjustments (not sure the count) but it was only better for maybe a couple of hours after, if at all.
In April 2012 I decided to try AIRROSTI treatments (fascial work). I had 3 visits of the provider releasing my tight hip flexor & glute. With that & the exercises she gave me for my weak glutes (she said the left glute wasn't firing) & the foam rolling exercises, my hip felt about 90% better. I had eased up on the workouts because I was afraid. I didn't understand why I had weak glutes when I did bootcamps & a class called Body Pump regularly. I felt so much better that within a few months I was doing bootcamps at the gym again.
THEN in Sept 2012 I woke up one morning with low back pain as well & left shoulder blade/ left rib cage pain. It was excruciating. I figured it was the boot camp at the gym I did where I flipped a huge tire (something I had been doing in bootcamps regularly) a day or two prior. At this time my hip pain got even worse IN ADDITION to this new low back/left side pain. I went back to the chiro. When I wasn't getting better the chiro suggested we may look at MRI soon if this key up.
I went ahead on my own to a spinal clinic to have my situation checked out by an NP since I was having some numbness/tingling. I was sent for many x-rays & a couple of MRI's. They said a 13 degree scoliosis & a bulging disc in c6-c7 (i didn't have neck pain), t8-t9, L4-L5 & L5-S1. My pain in my left leg was at the front though. The low back disc bulges I had would actually cause pain in the BACK of my leg (which I did not have). I figured he just didn't figure out the cause of my hip pain. I had never had an MRI before so I thought it would check my hip too. So I still had a hip problem to figure out. They sent me to PT for my back but I wasn't getting better with PT at the time.
At this point I couldn't even sit for 5 minutes. I had to stop exercising & got a standing desk at work. I found a hip Dr. who diagnosed me with a labral tear/impingement in my left hip joint. I had hip arthroscopy in March 2013 to fix that. It would be a 8 month time to get to total recovery. I was in PT for 9 weeks to recover after the surgery. My hip feeling much better once it started to heal but my right hip was feeling a little tight from the compensation I thought since I was on crutches for 2 weeks. In addition, my left groin was now REALLY tight (I didn't have pain there before) & I thought that was from the surgery somehow.
With all this I still had back and left upper back/shoulder blade/rib pain & some low back pain. So it was time to deal with that finally (you know, since a whole person can't be treated at once...we have to be broken down into parts). I purchased an inversion table which didn't help but felt kinda cool. I have since sold that inversion table. So I went ahead & had spinal decompression for my low back (20 sessions on the table plus manipulations). At this time I was getting at least monthly massages.
But in April 2014 my left hip started hurting AGAIN, but in a slightly different way but it did hurt to sit too long again...it was just so tight. I was exercising & stretching this whole time...it isn't like I became sedentary to cause my hips to be weak. So I went BACK to PT for my hip in March 2014. Again, they told m my left glute was not firing. I was there for 8 weeks & was about 90-95% better (i just still had tightness in my hip flexors & left quad) but immediately went in for PT for my shoulder blades that were bothering me. I was there 5 weeks I think & started to feel a lot better (maybe 80%). I was just weak & needed to work on postural muscles they said. So in Summer 2014 I was out of PT.
I continued massages. chiro adjustments time to time had acupuncture (about 6 or 7 sessions) to work on the rest of my shoulder blade pain (it didn't work).
In the fall I did Rolfing for the upper back & because the hips still were tight, the left glute was still pretty weak & my inner thighs were really tight & knotted up. I had 13 rolfing sessions. That finally made my hips feel more aligned but I still don't think it did a whole lot for me. The roller told me he had never had someone not really show much improvement.
A couple of months after that (winter 2014) I had some Airrosti treatments for my shoulder blade/rib/neck ( a different Dr. than the first time I went) but I could tell that Dr. was puzzled, in fact he told me so. This wasn't the first time I was told I puzzled someone. When I couldn't see my chiro a couple of times I saw his wife & she told me: "You puzzle me." Anyway, I didn't get much from that Airroist provider so I left.
I tried acupuncture (about 8 sessions) but didn't get better. Heck, I even did the cupping & something called "bleeding" (don't ask-I was desperate) but no help. The acupuncturist said he had never been able to NOT help someone before.
In December I went to see someone that does Muscle Activation Technique & he checked me out & said my left glute wasn't firing. He did something at my neck actually that made my glute work better that day. I went to see him for my upper back but he found nothing wrong with my muscles in my upper body. He just gave me more exercises, saying I needed to work on my glute strength (I had been working on my glutes now for what...a couple of years I think?!?!? Come on!)
I started nursing school in Jan 2015 & still struggled with upper back pain & neck pain sometimes. I went back to Airrosti (the doctor I saw the first time ever for my hip) for that & it helped a lot for my left shoulder blade. I thought this Dr. was better. I went about 5 times over about a month & was feeling about 90% better when I tried a class at the gym (Body Pump). I was careful to start with light weight, use proper form that I learned in PT (chin tuck, pelvic tilt, abs drawn in), & all that but my slight twinge of right shoulder blade tingling that I had been having recently (a new symptom) turned excruciating later that day.
So I went to a shoulder doctor & he sent me for 12 x-rays from every angle but standing on my head & didn't find anything. I was in PT for 8 weeks for the upper back/ribs from that. The PT told me he had only seen my rib problem in a handful of patients his entire time as a PT (4 years) & that it was rare...even rarer since I wasn't in an accident of any kind. Anyway, I felt quite a bit better as I ended PT but felt I needed Airrosti for the trigger points.
So since this past May (2015) I have had 5 more airrosti session for my upper back/left ribs & 6 or 7 for my hips ( a new dr. near my home that I really like). PS: the Airrosti provider told me my rib problem was very rare (shocker) since I hadn't had an accident or any blunt force trauma. He said there is a lot of fibrotic tissue in my left hip as well, probably from the surgery. I also have a thick scar on my right lower pelvis from a strep infection from one of my chicken pox scabs when I was 3. It was flesh eating & had to heal on it's own. The Airrosti Dr thinks that can be pulling on the fascia in my right hip too (since he treated both hips). I am done with that now. I didn't get much out of the upper back airrosti but he did help my ribs feel better. Each time I went for my upper back though, I could tell he was puzzled because the pain would move a bit. Left shoulder blade/ribs, then more along the back of the left arm, then the collar bone on the left side, back to the shoulder blade. Poor guy.
I read Healing Back Pain as I was ending my treatment there & I am on every page of that book practically (as everyone else says right?). I felt great by page 30 of the book & was so excited but now it comes & goes & moves around a lot. The fact that it goes away at all is proof because me not having any pain during waking hours for a whole day is unheard of. That hasn't happened in YEARS.
Oh & somewhere along the way I also grind my teeth at night & have to wear a night guard. Don't know what to do about that because I don't know I do it & I don't want to ruin my teeth so I still wear the guard. I didn't know I did that but had to go to the dentist for a little hole in one of my teeth. I thought it was a cavity but they said it was from grinding. I had a couple of other little holes too. They said it is caused by stress but I said I wasn't stressed. I guess my inner self was. Ugh
I have ceased all physical treatments though & am working thru the Structured Educational Program. - Loading...
- Loading...
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My Story
- Gender:
- Female
- Birthday:
- September 3
- Location:
- Helotes, TX
- Occupation:
- Nursing student
- Diagnoses:
-
Prior labral repair for a tear in my left hip joint (femoral impingement syndrome)
bulging discs in c6-c7, t8-t9, l4-l5, l5-s1
Weak glutes, weak postural muscles
Undaignosed mysterious upper back/ left shoulder blade/ left rib cage pain. Sometimes right shoulder blade too.
Apparently I have some hyper mobility
I had what I thought was just a tight hip flexor that started in 2009-2010. I did a lot of spin classes at the gym (among other things) so I thought that was it. I just kept stretching it.
In 2011 it gradually got muchworse. I went to a chiropractor in early 2012 & was told I had mild scoliosis. My hip kept feeling uneven (for example, when walking) so I took the scoliosis diagnosis as the cause. I proceeded to have many chiro adjustments (not sure the count) but it was only better for maybe a couple of hours after, if at all.
In April 2012 I decided to try AIRROSTI treatments (fascial work). I had 3 visits of the provider releasing my tight hip flexor & glute. With that & the exercises she gave me for my weak glutes (she said the left glute wasn't firing) & the foam rolling exercises, my hip felt about 90% better. I had eased up on the workouts because I was afraid. I didn't understand why I had weak glutes when I did bootcamps & a class called Body Pump regularly. I felt so much better that within a few months I was doing bootcamps at the gym again.
THEN in Sept 2012 I woke up one morning with low back pain as well & left shoulder blade/ left rib cage pain. It was excruciating. I figured it was the boot camp at the gym I did where I flipped a huge tire (something I had been doing in bootcamps regularly) a day or two prior. At this time my hip pain got even worse IN ADDITION to this new low back/left side pain. I went back to the chiro. When I wasn't getting better the chiro suggested we may look at MRI soon if this key up.
I went ahead on my own to a spinal clinic to have my situation checked out by an NP since I was having some numbness/tingling. I was sent for many x-rays & a couple of MRI's. They said a 13 degree scoliosis & a bulging disc in c6-c7 (i didn't have neck pain), t8-t9, L4-L5 & L5-S1. My pain in my left leg was at the front though. The low back disc bulges I had would actually cause pain in the BACK of my leg (which I did not have). I figured he just didn't figure out the cause of my hip pain. I had never had an MRI before so I thought it would check my hip too. So I still had a hip problem to figure out. They sent me to PT for my back but I wasn't getting better with PT at the time.
At this point I couldn't even sit for 5 minutes. I had to stop exercising & got a standing desk at work. I found a hip Dr. who diagnosed me with a labral tear/impingement in my left hip joint. I had hip arthroscopy in March 2013 to fix that. It would be a 8 month time to get to total recovery. I was in PT for 9 weeks to recover after the surgery. My hip feeling much better once it started to heal but my right hip was feeling a little tight from the compensation I thought since I was on crutches for 2 weeks. In addition, my left groin was now REALLY tight (I didn't have pain there before) & I thought that was from the surgery somehow.
With all this I still had back and left upper back/shoulder blade/rib pain & some low back pain. So it was time to deal with that finally (you know, since a whole person can't be treated at once...we have to be broken down into parts). I purchased an inversion table which didn't help but felt kinda cool. I have since sold that inversion table. So I went ahead & had spinal decompression for my low back (20 sessions on the table plus manipulations). At this time I was getting at least monthly massages.
But in April 2014 my left hip started hurting AGAIN, but in a slightly different way but it did hurt to sit too long again...it was just so tight. I was exercising & stretching this whole time...it isn't like I became sedentary to cause my hips to be weak. So I went BACK to PT for my hip in March 2014. Again, they told m my left glute was not firing. I was there for 8 weeks & was about 90-95% better (i just still had tightness in my hip flexors & left quad) but immediately went in for PT for my shoulder blades that were bothering me. I was there 5 weeks I think & started to feel a lot better (maybe 80%). I was just weak & needed to work on postural muscles they said. So in Summer 2014 I was out of PT.
I continued massages. chiro adjustments time to time had acupuncture (about 6 or 7 sessions) to work on the rest of my shoulder blade pain (it didn't work).
In the fall I did Rolfing for the upper back & because the hips still were tight, the left glute was still pretty weak & my inner thighs were really tight & knotted up. I had 13 rolfing sessions. That finally made my hips feel more aligned but I still don't think it did a whole lot for me. The roller told me he had never had someone not really show much improvement.
A couple of months after that (winter 2014) I had some Airrosti treatments for my shoulder blade/rib/neck ( a different Dr. than the first time I went) but I could tell that Dr. was puzzled, in fact he told me so. This wasn't the first time I was told I puzzled someone. When I couldn't see my chiro a couple of times I saw his wife & she told me: "You puzzle me." Anyway, I didn't get much from that Airroist provider so I left.
I tried acupuncture (about 8 sessions) but didn't get better. Heck, I even did the cupping & something called "bleeding" (don't ask-I was desperate) but no help. The acupuncturist said he had never been able to NOT help someone before.
In December I went to see someone that does Muscle Activation Technique & he checked me out & said my left glute wasn't firing. He did something at my neck actually that made my glute work better that day. I went to see him for my upper back but he found nothing wrong with my muscles in my upper body. He just gave me more exercises, saying I needed to work on my glute strength (I had been working on my glutes now for what...a couple of years I think?!?!? Come on!)
I started nursing school in Jan 2015 & still struggled with upper back pain & neck pain sometimes. I went back to Airrosti (the doctor I saw the first time ever for my hip) for that & it helped a lot for my left shoulder blade. I thought this Dr. was better. I went about 5 times over about a month & was feeling about 90% better when I tried a class at the gym (Body Pump). I was careful to start with light weight, use proper form that I learned in PT (chin tuck, pelvic tilt, abs drawn in), & all that but my slight twinge of right shoulder blade tingling that I had been having recently (a new symptom) turned excruciating later that day.
So I went to a shoulder doctor & he sent me for 12 x-rays from every angle but standing on my head & didn't find anything. I was in PT for 8 weeks for the upper back/ribs from that. The PT told me he had only seen my rib problem in a handful of patients his entire time as a PT (4 years) & that it was rare...even rarer since I wasn't in an accident of any kind. Anyway, I felt quite a bit better as I ended PT but felt I needed Airrosti for the trigger points.
So since this past May (2015) I have had 5 more airrosti session for my upper back/left ribs & 6 or 7 for my hips ( a new dr. near my home that I really like). PS: the Airrosti provider told me my rib problem was very rare (shocker) since I hadn't had an accident or any blunt force trauma. He said there is a lot of fibrotic tissue in my left hip as well, probably from the surgery. I also have a thick scar on my right lower pelvis from a strep infection from one of my chicken pox scabs when I was 3. It was flesh eating & had to heal on it's own. The Airrosti Dr thinks that can be pulling on the fascia in my right hip too (since he treated both hips). I am done with that now. I didn't get much out of the upper back airrosti but he did help my ribs feel better. Each time I went for my upper back though, I could tell he was puzzled because the pain would move a bit. Left shoulder blade/ribs, then more along the back of the left arm, then the collar bone on the left side, back to the shoulder blade. Poor guy.
I read Healing Back Pain as I was ending my treatment there & I am on every page of that book practically (as everyone else says right?). I felt great by page 30 of the book & was so excited but now it comes & goes & moves around a lot. The fact that it goes away at all is proof because me not having any pain during waking hours for a whole day is unheard of. That hasn't happened in YEARS.
Oh & somewhere along the way I also grind my teeth at night & have to wear a night guard. Don't know what to do about that because I don't know I do it & I don't want to ruin my teeth so I still wear the guard. I didn't know I did that but had to go to the dentist for a little hole in one of my teeth. I thought it was a cavity but they said it was from grinding. I had a couple of other little holes too. They said it is caused by stress but I said I wasn't stressed. I guess my inner self was. Ugh
I have ceased all physical treatments though & am working thru the Structured Educational Program.Interact