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PT

A MyMSTeam Member asked a question 💭
Fountain Valley, CA

I have been to Physical Therapy a couple years back to help with my balance. I saw no improvement!! My Dr. asked me if I wanted to go again and I said no thanks. My [[resource:balance is getting worse:5c883adb7dea252ee09f8e51]] but my feeling is it’s bc the lesions in my brain I can’t retrain my brain, right??

October 15, 2019
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A MyMSTeam Member

Physical therapy, as any therapy, is work. You want a quick cure. My daughter had a lot of headaches and was sent to PT for a few months maybe 1x a week? She rarely wanted to do the neck and back exercises at home. So...its sort of up to you, too.

October 16, 2019
A MyMSTeam Member

Don't give up on PT! :-) My first PT experience years ago was horrible - with an expensive and extremely popular trainer. I ended up tearing both my quads under his tutelage. Took almost 4 months to recover. This summer I tore (again) my Achilles. I didn't go to the DR since I had experienced this before and it got better over time (although not to 100%) and I was too scared they'd send me to PT again and I'd get hurt worse. Well, fast forward 6 weeks the inflammation was so bad from the injury that my legs were different lengths and I had severe swelling of my hip flexors and constant knife pains in my lower back. The physiologist sent me to PT. I was nervous....but WOW! If you go somewhere that understands MS it's great! I'm a believer now! My Achilles is about 75% now, but the back pain and hip flexor pain is gone. We've now moved on to working on my rotator cuffs (I've torn both of those too). I will faithfully go to PT as long as it's offered now! And I'm continuing all the exercises they taught me at home on the days I don't go to PT. It's definitely helping SO MUCH. Yeah, we are all different - I'm just glad I didn't let my fear from a bad experience keep me from getting the help I really needed this time. Hope you get well soon! XX

October 17, 2019
A MyMSTeam Member

You can retrain the brain to a degree, things won't ever be 100% but being able to function to a higher level makes life a bit more bearable.
Do things that you find challenging, in my case it was painting a fence, looking up to do the higher parts sent my head and eyes into separate orbits and I puked a lot, puke, get back on the horse and be determined, it's the only way, push yourself and don't crumble because it's not easy.

October 16, 2019
A MyMSTeam Member

I believe you can retrain your brain. I think I have

October 16, 2019
A MyMSTeam Member

I agree with you @A MyMSTeam Member I had physical therapy also, about 6 years ago it was wrong. . . not helping at all. Before they really knew what was going on. In my case and for many, it is spasticity. I have it pretty bad in my hamstrings. So terribly painful. They kept trying to make me stretch, and even had me trying to put a brace on my legs to make them stretch . . . Wrong!!
Later, my Neurologist had me see someone in her clinic who said oh yes there is a certain way to do physical therapy for spasticity. I have a severe contracture in my legs. Then, it was right!! They had me doing stretches specifically in the muscles that are opposite to the problem muscles. That way those can get a bit stronger and that can help. It made sense and I knew it was the right thing. Frustrating that so much time was spent putting me through all that having no effect and doing it wrong. . .
It did help a little bit but not a lot. At least it was the right thing to try.
And yes lesions are scars. It is brain damage . . . We can't fix that damage or at least not yet. . . Everyone seems to always be forgetting about that . . .

October 15, 2019

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