Professional Physical Therapy - June 2021

Professional Physical Therapy - June 2021

PRO PT PRESS

June 2021

Boxed in by Knee Pain? The ‘Have a Good Summer’ Workshop

As summer waxes, I know we all have fun things to do outside. I can’t wait to get in the boat or on the jet skis or travel for the first time in far, far too long. Between lockdowns and winter itself, I’ve felt cooped up — and summer really is my season! For that reason, I can’t imagine losing the ability to do some of the fun things I described above. But that’s the situation many of our patients are in or are at least worried about it. The fact that we know is actually a good thing; it means Professional Physical Therapy has an engaged and enthusiastic patient base with people who don’t hesitate to tell us what’s bugging them when we ask — or even when we don’t. For years we’ve been running our Back Pain and Shoulder Workshops, but you’ve been requesting something else for a while now: a Knee Pain Workshop. We don’t do something if we cannot do it right; that’s just who we are. Previously, we focused on the other kinds of pain and injury for a few reasons, not least of which being prevalence. Back, shoulder, and knee pain are the three most common areas we treat, and that’s why we specialize in them. Knee pain is painful enough to stop you from doing the things that you love,

therapy is something we do often, as knee replacements are the most common replacement we treat. We’ve gotten so many requests for a Knee Pain Workshop that it indicates, by itself, the extent of the problem. One reason for this is that there are many different ways to end up with knee pain. I’d say that old sports injuries are the most common; the things we did in our teens and 20s as athletes come back to haunt us! But you can also be injured through repetitive use, such as kneeling down a dozen times a day at work to check someone’s tire pressure or through injury in an accident like a car crash. Sometimes, none of the above have happened, and the knee is just worn out — weight has a big effect on knee damage over the course of a lifetime. Once injury has occurred, a full course of PT rehab is key to correct the mechanics of the knee or arthritis has its way, and that’s the pain that can end up leading to joint replacement. Of course, the recovery process isn’t a quick one. Sure, you’ll get back on the floor with the grandkids, but there’s a long road to recovery first. Best to treat it early and avoid or delay surgery! We want our patients to have options this summer and to stop knee pain from boxing people in. I’ve seen people say “I can’t go four stories this year, but I could do six the year before last,” and I can’t help but see acceptance in their eyes that in a few more years, they’ll be restricted to two-story buildings unless an elevator is involved. Hiking, jogging, or even taking a walk after a hot summer day — one of my favorite activities — are all out of the question. Every week, it seems that more freedoms are returned to us as vaccines spread across our country, and it has all the makings of a truly enjoyable summer. I’m even planning to travel again finally! But will you be able to enjoy the same things you did the summer before the pandemic? If you’re not sure, we want to help you regain some of that mobility, freedom, and fun this year. Our Knee Pain Workshop is the start to taking that road.

like jet skiing, gardening, playing golf or tennis, or getting on the floor with the grandkids. There’s a reason we talk about quality of life in this field. It’s not enough to just be alive. You have to live , too. And the sad thing is, not only will knee pain stop you from living the quality of life you want, but it’s also incredibly common. Pre- and post-replacement

–Dr. Stacey Raybuck Schatz

www.proptinc.com • 508-528-6100 1

PATIENT of the MONTH Marie McManus DANA-FARBER CANCER INSTITUTE

Kale, Seaweed, and Other Not-So-New Superfoods

There’s nothing so trendy as a new superfood or diet, and the “in vogue” ones change constantly. Older readers may remember the Atkins diets and other fads of the early 2000s, but younger ones may not even remember a time before the paleo diet was a thing — and it’s already almost a thing of the past. Many things we associate with these trends, though, are anything but new. We see this most clearly with the grains we turn to in the name of health. Westerners generally wouldn’t be familiar with quinoa, amaranth, teff, or kamut if it weren’t for their presence in the hippest healthy-eating Instagram feeds. Many of these foods hail from Africa or the Far East, so it’s understandable we don’t know them all — but there’s nothing really new about them. People in the Americas and the Old World have eaten quinoa for 3,000– 5,000 years. Teff, which is technically a grass seed, was one of the first domesticated plants, emerging thousands of years ago in what is now Ethiopia. Alternate sources of protein and fiber show a similar trend. Seaweed — the perennial favorite of Twitter dieters everywhere — has been consumed in China, Korea, and Japan since before recorded history. If you know anything about recorded history in those regions, then you know that’s a long time! And kale, whose reputation precedes itself, has been cultivated since at least 2,000 B.C. in Greece, Asia Minor, and other parts of the Mediterranean. So, the next time you dig into your favorite health food, take a moment to Google what you are eating. You might be part of a long line of human beings who have turned to that food for sustenance over the millennia!

“My husband has leukemia and has been in remission for two years. The care that he has received was unconditionally great. Nurses treated him with such respect and care. Also, his doctor, Dr. Rossi, was very caring as his caregiver and treated me with professional courtesy. Dana-Farber is wonderful!” -Marie Dana-Farber Cancer Institute has a goal to reduce and get rid of cancer, AIDS, and any other similar diseases and offer expert, compassionate care to people of all ages. Dana-Faber has a team of specialists who work closely together to give their patients the latest treatments and clinical services as well as access to advanced clinical trials. Marie has been chosen for the Patient of the Month! She is determined to come to physical therapy and get her knee better, despite other obstacles she is going through. She is very sincere and a joy to work with. She won’t let anything stop her from walking normally, strengthening her leg, or regaining her full range of motion. Keep up the good work, Marie! We at Professional Physical Therapy would be honored to donate to the charity of your choice if you become our next Patient of the Month!

Relieving Pain Since 1992

2 www.proptinc.com • 508-528-6100

... CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4

Which leads us back to the question we’re never (or rarely) asked: “Do I need to do these exercises at home?”

more mobility than I had last week,” or “Hey, I’m not in pain, but I’m taking less medication than I had to at the beginning,” or even “I wasn’t able to lift a book a month ago, but now I can curl a 15-pound weight.” Don’t focus on the road ahead; look at how far you’ve come since starting therapy. And we promise — if you do that, and you do the exercises and stretches at home, you will recover faster and more fully. As tempting as it may be to “leave a little in the tank” psychologically, it actually limits your chances of full recovery. You need to give this your all right from the start. And last but not least, if you need someone to talk to about this, talk to us. The Professional Physical Therapy team has decades of combined experience, and we’ve seen successful results after every kind of injury imaginable. If you still need more counseling, we can help you find someone to talk to, a licensed counselor or therapist who will help.

If we were asked that, here’s what we’d say:

NewWorkshop Talks Knee Injuries We may treat more knee injuries in formerly athletic people than any other group, but you don’t have to have been a star on the field, diamond, or pitch to be at risk for arthritis in your knee. You just have to have injured your knee in the past, whether through repetitive use or acute trauma. From building houses to gardening, we see knee injuries in many patients — and often arthritis, too. It’s time for a Knee PainWorkshop from Professional Physical Therapy. If you’re familiar with our Back Pain Workshops or SciaticaWorkshops, then you know the format. We’re going to run our Knee Workshop through June 26 and cover the most common causes of knee pain. Most importantly, we’ll also talk relief! Thanks goes to anyone who asked for this over the years — and there were a lot of you! Let’s learn about — and fight — knee pain together. 1. Everyone has an area of expertise, and that means we can all think of things in life where regular, meaningful effort is required. For us, of course, that effort comprises the daily exercises and stretches of the recovery process. We can see what happens when people don’t get it done. 2. Similarly, anything worth doing is going to take some time. The Professional Physical Therapy team is often reminded of the old saying, “Rome wasn’t built in a day, but it burned in one.” Can you think of a more appropriate metaphor for injury and recovery? It’s the nature of the universe: Without effort, entropy takes hold. Repairing the car after the engine seizes (the result of failure to maintain oil) is a long, expensive process. Rebuilding a house after a hurricane takes dailly work for weeks, even months. 3. For these reasons, it is easy to get frustrated, which is a natural result of the recovery process. There will be times when you want to quit, especially if you’re doing everything right. One common reason for people not to do the exercises isn’t laziness, or even because it’s painful to do them: It’s fear they will never recover no matter what they do right. But if they only give it a half-try, there’s always hope for the full try … right? We need to understand that the recovery process takes time, and it also is not visible from moment to moment. This is why tracking is so important. When you’re down in the dumps, you need to be able to look at say, “I have 20%

Easy Tuna Poke Bowl

Inspired by TheKitchn.com

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tsp soy sauce • 1 tsp sesame oil • 2 tbsp orange juice • 1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and minced • 10 oz canned tuna, drained • 2 tbsp cilantro leaves, chopped • 1 scallion, finely chopped

• 1 cup rice, cooked and cooled • 1/4 cup avocado, cubed • 4 cherry tomatoes, quartered • 1 tbsp sesame seeds

DIRECTIONS

1. First, make the dressing. In a jar, add soy sauce, sesame oil, orange juice, and ginger. Secure the lid and shake until emulsified. 2. In a small bowl, empty the drained tuna and pour the dressing over top. Add the cilantro and scallions and stir until well coated. 3. Divide rice between two serving bowls. Top with the dressed tuna, avocado, tomatoes, and sesame seeds.

www.proptinc.com • 508-528-6100 3

620 Old West Central St. Franklin, MA 02038 www.proptinc.com 508-528-6100

PRST STD US POSTAGE PAID BOISE, ID PERMIT 411

Inside This Issue

Boxed in by Knee Pain?

1

Patient of the Month Superfoods Are Not So New ...

2

Easy Tuna Poke Bowl

3

‘Do We Have to Do Home Exercises?’

4

PT Exercises at Home ‘DO WE HAVE TO DO THEM?’

In every industry, people want to ask questions — in fact, they often ask those questions. But just as important — and much harder to answer, of course — are the questions that nobody is willing to ask. Questions like this one:

“Do we really have to do these exercises at home?”

At Professional Physical Therapy, we’d love to say we are asked this question a lot. But the fact is that we aren’t. Everybody assumes the answer is “yes!” After all, we wouldn’t bring it up in the first place if it wasn’t important. And nobody likes to look foolish. At the same time, it’s clear that many patients should be asking that question, because many patients don’t do the exercises and stretches prescribed for them at home. That can be frustrating as a physical therapist. Our job is to help patients heal, and when we see someone once a week, there’s only so much we can do to make things get better. It’s ironic that an injury that happens in a split second can take months or longer to heal, but not as ironic as the fact that 15 minutes a day is all most people need to recover from their injuries, assuming they want to see positive, meaningful results.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 3 ...

Relieving Pain Since 1992

4 www.proptinc.com • 508-528-6100