Champion Physical Therapy On February 12, 2011, I was hiking in Cades Cove when my left knee started to swell and became so swollen and sore I could no longer walk without excruciating pain. A trip to the Dr., x-rays and MRI revealed a torn medial meniscus and degenerative joint disease, arthritis. The doctor advised that once the swelling went down to resume hiking and keep the knee moving. So for the next 2 and an half years that is exactly what I did.....but what I didnt realize is that my body was adjusting its gait to accommodate the injuries while they healed. The adjustments caused other problems and after 2 and a half years, on September 12, 2013, I again experienced an extremely swollen and painful knee, but this time it was the other knee. In the meantime, I had also been experiencing pain in my left Achilles tendon. I had been to the Dr. for the Achilles and the recommendation was stretching. When I went to the Dr. for the swollen knee a few months later, again, the recommendation was keep on hiking once the swelling goes down. In other words, keep moving and stretching. Well, I did the stretching, and I tried to get back to hiking, but this time I was never able to get the pain to stop in my right knee. And now my left knee was starting to act up, probably because of my body trying to compensate for the right knee this time. So after a month and a half of living with pain, using the RICE method, Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation, and doing stretches, I went back to the Dr. This time I asked if there were any specific exercises I should be doing and fortunately the Dr. recommend I see a physical therapist. Thank Goodness I was referred to Champion Physical Therapy in Pigeon Forge, TN. I had been living with constant pain, whether sitting, sleeping (or trying to sleep), walking, rising or sitting down in a chair, just constant pain. By the time I finally made my appointment with Champion, I believe I was on the verge of depression. Walking and hiking are my favorite things to do, they are a part of who I am. I was almost resigned to thinking that I was not going to be able to hike again and I was relegated to living in pain. But I had an opportunity to try to overcome this with physical therapy. So on November 5th, off I went to Champion Physical Therapy. I could barely get out of my car, then I hobbled into the office. I filled out the paperwork and shared my tale of woe. Then it was over to the table so Brett could evaluate my knees and Achilles. It didnt matter how he moved my leg/knee, it hurt! Virtually no flexibility or movement was happening with my right knee. The exam revealed to me how broken I had become. I certainly wasnt used to this. I am typically a very healthy person and if something is wrong, I just work or push myself through it. This time I couldnt. I couldnt even sleep away the pain as I would wake up several times a night with my knee throbbing. I needed help. And help I got. I went to physical therapy 3 times a week. I wanted to get better. It was slow going at first....mainly because I was in such pain. But Brett, Justin and Melia helped me do what I needed to do and could do. I remember hearing Brett tell someone, you get out of it what you put into it.....well I was going to do all I could to get better. After about 3 weeks I started to see improvement and the pain receding a bit. From there it just started getting better each week. Yes, there were ups and downs and a few set backs, but overall progress. I was doing things in therapy I didnt think I could do even when I had healthy knees. And at 6 weeks I was really feeling a difference. Week 7 was the week I was able to go to bed without having an ice pack to place on my knee when the pain would wake me up! Week 8, Brett told me I would be released from Physical Therapy after that week. He was right. Although I still have a bit of pain getting up from a chair, (the arthritis is not going away, but with the exercises and stretching, I can control the pain) or a bit going downstairs, for the most part, I feel good. I am hiking again. My first hike after 5 months of not being able to hike was an 8 mile hike in the Smokies with no problem. I was thrilled. I have continued with the exercises that I can do at home. And since I never want to experience that type of pain and restrictiveness again, I am going to Champion Therapy and using their equipment through their Wellness Program. My plans for a 200 mile hike this March are still on track, Ill be leaving for southern France the second week of March and hope to have a wonderful, almost pain free, 2 & 1/2 week, 200 mile hike. Thank you Champion Therapy. I definitely understand the benefits of Physical Therapy and having someone with your knowledge, experience and patience advise and show me how to do the stretching and exercises needed to get a broken body working the way it should. I can not thank you enough! Sincerely, Cheryl Morgan
Posted on: Mon, 27 Jan 2014 16:25:52 +0000
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