i've mentioned before that i have had a bout with achilles tendinitis for the last few years.
now it seems that the rest of my body is following suit.
so, i decided to try a different route.
i've been seeing a muscle therapist for the last month.
it's interesting because he's takes more of a holistic approach.
he noted that:
i have tendinitis because one leg was shorter than the other,
so then my knee compensated,
then my right hip compensated,
then my back compensated.
so i've been treating the symptoms without treating the root of the problem.
i've been doing physical therapy, but without the muscles actually being in the right place in my body,
that's kind of like a band-aid rather than a cure.
the massage-esque treatment has been super painful, but i know it's worth it.
slowly, i feel my body becoming aligned again.
because our bodies are obviously affected with how we live our lives,
my muscle therapist asks me a lot about my personal life.
i don't tell him a ton of details, but he helps me understand how i deal with things
and in turn, how that affects my body.
did you know that the right side of your body is logic, and the left is emotional?
so i can tell where my stress is coming from based on which side of my body is more tense.
after both of the first two sessions, he asked me,
"are you a robot?"
"...no..?" i responded both times, both about like that.
"then don't walk like one!"
i've had to re-learn how to walk.
i've had to reset something i've been doing my whole life.
after the third session, he asked, "are you a train?"
"no."
i said it confidently this time, but with a hint of "?" apparent in my face.
"why?"
shoot. i wasn't sure how to respond.
"because a train must remain on its track. you, on the other hand, can move right or left. when you go to europe, if you plan on staying for two days in an area, but then you decide to stay another day, do it! that's okay. you are can go wherever you want. trains cannot."
i knew he wasn't just talking about physically, now.
i started to see what he meant.
today, he told me,
"make sure you keep hold of the stress out in front of you. don't let it consume you. i know that sometimes you can't help it, and it just comes over you [his hands motioned like a wave was washing over his head], but try to take hold of it and keep it in front of you rather than letting it become a part of you." he motioned as if he were grasping someone by the shoulders and holding them about two feet in front of him.
my pulsating headache has been my constant companion today.
so i liked that idea.
3 comments:
yeah, i really like this.
i like the idea of treating the cause, not the symptoms (had a similar talk with my institute teacher a few weeks ago.)
and i like the idea of walking with personality (people used to recognize me by my walk because i "bounced." i don't know if i do anymore.)
i like the idea of our bodies being in emotional sides and logical sides. i'd heard that about our brains years before but haven't heard it translated to the whole body like that. that's really interesting... (and yes, i'm left-handed...)
and i like the idea that we aren't trains; that we can change our direction if we dang well feel like it.
mostly, though, i like that you're learning these things (and sharing some of it with us) and that you're finding the cause(s) of the things that are making you uncomfortable (physically or otherwise.)
i hope your pulsating headache leaves soon;
you deserve better companions.
{*}
There is a lot of truth to the connections of the body, stress, mind, emotions, etc for sure. I have seen that so much in my life and in the lives of others. I have a lot to learn about it still. Thanks for sharing what you have learned.
Tessa gave me this quote, and I liked it: "Now if you are going to win any battle you have to do one thing. You have to make the mind run the body. Never let the body tell the mind what to do. The body will always give up. It is always
tired morning, noon, and night. But the body is never tired if the mind is not tired. When you were
younger the mind could make you dance all night, and the body was never tired...You've always
got to make the mind take over and keep going."
- George S. Patton, U.S. Army General and 1912 Olympian
p.s. Its kinda funny now the little security thing is telling me to "Prove that you're not a robot" :)
I super like this stuff you said he said. He sounds like a cool guy to see. I'm dealing with some back/spine stuff. Might I get his info?
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