Physical Therapy

The Rack

I have been having some back issues for about a month and had an MRI done this week. The good news is that there is nothing drastically wrong with my back other than degenerative disk disease and some arthritis. Sensing however that I was in pain the doctor prescribed some physical therapy to strengthen my back muscles.

I do not wish to offend any physical therapists (as I did feel better after I left then when I went in) - but, they have a room full of devices that resemble a mid-evil torture chamber. The session started with an electric cord taped to my back so they could "zap' me a good one. OK - maybe it was a bit more sophisticated than a cord coming out of the wall, but it did involve electricity and electrodes. I had 20 minutes of a "tingling" sensation. the therapist had indicated it, "...should be strong, but tolerable." Being a man i figured more was better and chose a level that almost made my teeth rattle. I quickly succumbed and asked for a lower jolt - which the therapist accommodated.

The next part of the session had the therapist bending and twisting my legs in directions I'm sure they haven't been in for a least 20 years. I was quite relieved that we didn't hear any cracking noises. She stretched and I groaned...

We topped off the session with 20 minutes on the rack. Now I'm sure they call it something else, but it looked liked a torture rack and they trussed me up so I could hardly breathe and s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d. The machine was on "automatic". I did have a panic button in the event the machine short-circuited or something and started tearing my legs off. 20 minutes, while lasting only 20 minutes, felt like a lot longer. I am absolutely convinced that I am taller today than yesterday.

And, ...I get to go back at least 2 more times. I should be 6 feet tall in a couple of weeks!!