Topic: Knee Pain - Getting Worse with PT - Suggestions?
lymednva
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9098
posted
Some of you may recall that I broke my shoulder last spring. I had my arm in a sling that wrapped around my body to keep my shoulder from moving. Due to rotator cuff damage I needed to wear this for about two months.
During the summer I realized that my opposite knee was having increased pain. I realized I had been leaning on that side and relying mostly on that leg to get up and down, due to the inability to use my other arm for any weight bearing activity.
Now that my shoulder is rehabbed, my doc wrote a rx for PT for my knee. I am finding that it seems to be getting worse, rather than better.
I did have surgery for a torn meniscus in this knee 11 years ago, and it completely healed, although I would still have occasional pain in it, but nothing like this.
I wake up in the mornings and can barely move that leg. Last week one day I could hardly put any weight on it. I was afraid it was going to buckle.
Usually after I have been moving for a while it improves, also when I get my pain meds in me.
My question is has anyone had any experience with this type of problem? I am wondering if the Lyme is causing this and PT will not help it. I had to actually stop one of my exercises in PT on Friday because it was so painful.
-------------------- Lymednva Posts: 2407 | From over the river and through the woods | Registered: Apr 2006
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lymednva
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9098
posted
^^^
-------------------- Lymednva Posts: 2407 | From over the river and through the woods | Registered: Apr 2006
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bettyg
Unregistered
posted
hi lymed
i don't have same experience as your above situation.
i've had a lot of PT over years for many things. i found on several that pt exercises MADE ME WORSE TOO and i quit because i was in better shape PRIOR to coming in than leaving!
did they give you the colored bands to work with? are you able to do any EASY NOT PAINFUL exercises? if yes, do them slowly.
i believe we have PT members here too so perhaps they will see PT in subject line and respond.
posted
I had to quit PT for my knee when it was bad, because the things they had me doing made it worse. I described and described but they kept giving me PT to address a different problem than I had. I gave up and did other things to get better.
-------------------- Just because it' s not nice doesn' t mean it' s not miraculous. --Terry Pratchett Posts: 121 | From Nazareth, PA | Registered: May 2008
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lymednva
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9098
posted
Thanks for the input. I've also gotten PM's about this. I see a wonderful massage therapist on a regular basis.
I did see a chiro, who used active release techniques, but when I switched to the insurance she took they changed my plan and she wasn't covered any more.
My therapist is really good, has over 30 years experience and keep sup to date by attending classes and conferences regularly. After 6 months with her, I know her pretty well.
I do think I will address this again with her tomorrow and ask her opinion on it, too.
I'm now 3 days out of therapy and it's better, but last night it was in a lot of pain when i simply moved it while sitting.
Someone suggested water therapy, saying they had gotten better in water aerobics. I am still unable to do any aerobic exercise, so that' s out.
They do have an indoor pool in my community, but I haven't used it yet.
I was in an outdoor pool last summer and I found it made the neuropathy in my feet a lot worse, just walking on the bottom of the pool.
At that time my shoulder was still in too much pain and had very limited range of motion, so I was hesitant to try anything else.
I may venture to the pool in the near future, but not this week. Too many things to do before Thanksgiving.
-------------------- Lymednva Posts: 2407 | From over the river and through the woods | Registered: Apr 2006
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If its knee related, theyll know the answers...
Posts: 514 | From . | Registered: Apr 2008
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METALLlC BLUE
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 6628
posted
Because of the pervasive inflammation caused by Chronic Lyme Disease, joint damage is often preceded by more joint damage when we attempt to exercise to aching joint or muscles.
When you exercise, you break down and rebuild stronger tissues, this process causes more inflammation, thus more pain. The only real rehabilitation that seems to work for Lyme patients is gentle stretching, massage, and extended time-frames for rebuilding.
Keeping inflammation down while gradually rebuilding the tissues is a balancing act, because while treating with antibiotics, you're often more inflamed, and herxheimer reactions serve to only aggravate the problem further.
Surgeries and rehab seem to really only help those who are already back on their feet to some extent. Horribly ironic.
-------------------- I am not a physician, so do your own research to confirm any ideas given and then speak with a health care provider you trust.
The only things that help my bad knee are structural rebalancing and joint-building supplements. My chiro does a little of rebalancing, but to be honest, my knee always hurts more when he's done with it. Probably because I have an hour drive home--it's my right knee and by the time I get to the highway where I can use cruise control, it's already hurting.
Chiro attempts to get more space in the knee joint, because I have very little cartilage left. Initial injury was over 20 years ago and I've literally re-injured majorly or minorly it at least 50 times since then.
My massage therapist does wonders for me. He releases all the muscle tension in my thigh and calf, and all the inflamed and tight tendons. Everything gets pulled out of proper alignment by wear and tear, overuse, and muscle imbalances. Not just in the knee, but low back, pelvis, and hips as well.
He's shown me how I can help some of this at home with stretches and self-massage, but some of it I can't do myself so I go back to see him about every 2 weeks.
I find that overuse (from overwork or body work) can happen very quickly, because lyme/fibro muscles are more fragile and don't repair easily. I had quite a few Rolfing sessions a few years back, which gave me instant restructuring, but I found it extremely painful and then I rebounded and felt even worse. Myofascial release done by a massage therapist is more gentle.
I've never had any luck with PT for anything. They just want to put me on a machine so I can continue to overwork my dysfunctional, already-hurting knee or other part, and make it feel worse.
I've never had one willing to do more than a few minutes of massage or hands-on stuff. I think ultrasound or other devices could help a lot. I have a hand-held infrared light which is a great adjunct to the massage and stretches I do at home.
Supplements like d-ribose and acetyl-l-carnitine help to rebuild muscles and remove metabolic waste products. Joint-building supplements like glucosamine, chondroitin, hyaluronic acid and natural anti-inflammatories can also help.
Take care, Nutmeg
Posts: 386 | From WA state | Registered: May 2005
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