Today was my first appointment for physical therapy. I was assigned an occupational therapist named Melanie. She spent an hour with me doing measurements, taking a history, and just discussing my case with me. I really like her a lot, which is a good thing, since I'll be seeing her twice a week through February.
She confirmed that the issue in my shoulder is muscular and not scar tissue build-up. That is very good news and easier to fix. The inner workings of my shoulder all seem to be just fine and fully functioning. The pectoral muscle, where it attaches to my shoulder, is just super tight and needs to slowly be stretched until my range of motion comes back.
She said that the "no pain/no gain" method would NOT apply in my case. (Phew!) She said that slow and easy is the ticket and my at-home exercises attest to that. She wants me to find a way to sleep that helps me avoid rolling over onto that side, since that's probably where a lot of my pain is coming from. I often wake up on that side, with my shoulder practically screaming. She gave me some creative pillow-propping ideas that I'll implement tonight.
Meanwhile, back in my real life, I have been asked to go to Atlanta for the weekend to visit some potential customers. I had to get that cleared with my physical therapist (there is a risk of lymphedema when you've had nodes removed, and flying can increase that risk in some people,) who wanted it cleared with my oncologist, who said it was OK but to check with my surgeon, who said it was OK. heh heh That was a lot of phone calls! I'm glad to know that they don't feel I'm going to cause any issues by going, though.
So I'll fly out midday on Saturday and come home on Sunday evening. A quick turn-around trip for sure. I'll make sure to do my exercises in the hotel room to keep my recovery moving in the right direction. Everyone involved agrees with my plastic surgeon that we need this fixed before my surgery. I'm all for anything that helps my recovery when that time comes.
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