When I swim I don't seem to have the same problems that I have when running, etc. When I run or walk on the treadmill/outside I usually pay for it for a few days afterwards with real bad fatigue.
I can take a quick anecdotal stab at why swimming is like this...
I think swimming does two things (at least in my experience)
It keeps my body in a supine position so that my blood pressure is easier to regulate (I am having a problem with NMH which can lead to exercise intolerance)
It also it seems to cool my core body temperature down helping with some of the heat intolerance issues that I get as well (including some pain and exhaustion)
In fact after a swim is the only time I can take a warm shower without my neuropathy flaring up...
Also, just thinking some more...swimming is generally low impact and the buoyancy likely reduces the impact of gravity on the joints, etc..so may help to reduce pain...
Some thoughts...I would be interested in seeing what others think.
-------------------- All comments are for informational purposes only and should not be construed as medical advice - please consult a physician before following any advice. Posts: 37 | From Massachusetts | Registered: Feb 2009
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lymeHerx001
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 6215
posted
Thanks. Im thinking to that while being buoyant that the joints and muscles are trully able to relax and stretch.
[ 05-11-2009, 10:39 AM: Message edited by: lymeHerx001 ]
Posts: 2905 | From New England | Registered: Sep 2004
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Tracy9
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 7521
posted
I like this thread. My mother just totally reamed me out today for spending my back SSDI pay on a swimming pool.
I tried to explain to her as she is about to leave on a 17 day cruise to Iceland and Greenland that she has no idea what it is like to be homebound and have no quality of life. We live in a very rural area, 1/2 mile off the road, on 26 wooded acres.
A pool will allow us to be able to exercise and have some quality of life when we can't do anything outside of home.
UGH....why is it they can push our buttons so much???? Keep the swimming justifications coming....
13 years Lyme & Co.; Small Fiber Neuropathy; Myasthenia Gravis, Adrenal Insufficiency. On chemo for 2 1/2 years as experimental treatment for MG. Posts: 4480 | From Northeastern Connecticut | Registered: Jun 2005
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Jill E.
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9121
posted
When I do gentle swimming or water exercises, it is the only time I get temporary relief from the chronic muscle pain in my legs. I use the warm-water pool at the Y. I think it's a combo of the warm water and the bouyancy that supports the body. After all, water therapy is used for arthritis.
Unfortunately, even mild water exercise now makes my burning neuropathy much worse, although it did not the first few years of Lyme. I presume I have so much nerve inflammation now, that anything that increases movement aggravates it.
I have found that some gyms now offer salt-water swimming pools for those of us who are sensitive to chlorine.
Jill
-------------------- If laughter is the best medicine, why hasn't stand-up comedy cured me? Posts: 1773 | From San Diego | Registered: Apr 2006
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'Kete-tracker
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 17189
posted
Swimming is Great exercise, whether for those w/ Lyme or not. I know when I started to get my energy back, going to the local H-Club & doing a couple laps in the pool, then soaking in the adjacent hot-tub (when my abx were peaking) seemed to really make a difference in the long run.
I ended up exhausted the next day for sure, but just getting out there was a step in the right direction, after spending 12-20 hrs a day in bed!
I started with 1 visit a week, then 2, then every oher day. Now I'm getting plenty of exercise moving amps, speakers & keyboards back at work (& in & out of vehicles, too!) Can't wait to get the kayak back in the ocean. Gotta remember that sunscreen, though!
Tracy- you did the right thing! Maybe some day your Mom will "understand". Tell her you'd rather swim in the naturally heated public spas in Iceland, but that new pool is a lot "handier". LOL
Posts: 1233 | From Dover, NH | Registered: Sep 2008
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lymeHerx001
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 6215
posted
kete you sound like a musician
Posts: 2905 | From New England | Registered: Sep 2004
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posted
We rented a room with a jacuzzi in a hotel out in Montauk. If I could have survived eating Doritos out of the vending machine and living in the hallways of that hotel I would have.
Posts: 743 | From New York | Registered: Apr 2009
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lymeHerx001
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 6215
posted
I actually like hotels. Everything is clean and they have pools!
For some reason the offgassing from the furniture and such doesnt bother me.
I think they have ventallation always going on.
Posts: 2905 | From New England | Registered: Sep 2004
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