For many of our therapists, the work they do is not only professionally rewarding, but personally rewarding as well. One of our therapists shares how LYMBR has made a difference in the life of someone very important to him.
We all have that one relative who just can’t move like they used to. An uncle who used to be agile as a fox can no longer look to his left or right without turning his whole upper body. Or mom who was an active runner all her life but now needs help getting in and out of the car. There is no denying it, our bodies experience wear and tear as we age.
For me it is my grandmother who used to be that one-woman army in the household. She did everything from trimming the hedges in the spring and shoveling her driveway in the winter, to taking the dogs out for a run at 6 o’clock in the morning. She defied all standards for what people her age are expected to do but it was only a matter of time before father time caught up to her. She developed osteoarthritis and had to undergo surgery for knee replacement in both of her knees. Now tasks that required no second thought or energy, such as picking up a piece of paper off the ground or tying shoelaces, were difficult and strenuous on her body.
She has gone through physical therapy multiple times in attempt to regain her flexibility and strengthen the muscles surrounding her knee to be able to do the things she was able to do prior to having her surgery. She made progress, however, she was nowhere near her flexibility goal of touching her toes, and nowhere near the level of independence she wanted and was used to. On some days she even needed a grappling device to pick things up that had fallen. There was still something missing, until I introduced her to LYMBR.
Prior to beginning her personalized stretching sessions, she was only able to extend her hands just beyond her knees in a standing position. I worked with her 3 times a week for an hour at a time focusing on her entire lower body chain. In our first session, I found that the reason she was having limited flexibility was due to tightness in her hamstrings, calf muscles and her lower back. By week 3 she was able to not only extend past her knees but able to grab on to her ankles. As we progressed with her range of motion we incorporated more stretches targeting muscles that pull the legs back towards the midline of the body, such as the adductor muscles. By doing this we were able to gain mobility in more directions rather than just neutral, front to back, which in turn promoted better balance as well. By week 5 she was able to touch her toes and was on track to regaining her independence.
I will continue to work with her so that she is able to maintain her range of motion and enjoy the independence that comes with her acquired flexibility.
We don’t know how valuable the elasticity of our muscles is in so many day-to-day activities until we lose mobility and are faced with that lingering thought, “I should have taken better care of myself.” Like so many people, we tend to think that once we lose flexibility in our joints, that range of motion is gone forever. Here at LYMBR we challenge that misconception and evoke a new quality of life through active engagement of the mind and body through safe and efficient personalized stretching.
