~Waaahhh
2005-01-19 - 10:38 p.m.

The problem with having a physiotherapist beloved by internationally famous tennis players is that I end up physio-less for a month.

You see, my phsysio took two weeks off work after Christmas, which is fair enough. Anyone would deserve a holiday, and he has a wife and two kids to coincide with. After that, though, he had another two weeks absent from his clinics (he's got three in the area, although I think he's really only based at two of them himself, while his partner is more based at the third) because he and his partner are regular physios at the Australian Open. The excitement of watching the TV, whenever someone gets injured, to see if I can spot my physio isn't really making up for no physiotherapy for over four weeks.

As I haven't really been walking and I've been spending more time on the computer and reading in bed, my neck and back really have been going downhill. Regular massage have kept them from getting too bad up til now. However, last night I wasn't very comfortable sleeping because my back-hip-thigh was aching. Today my neck is back to its old November soreness and I have a migraine. As the migraine seems to be a proper migraine (it started with me feeling that slight hunger-nausea, even though I'd just had a big bowl of popcorn) rather than migraine-like head pain caused by a sore neck, I'm hopeful it'll go away tomorrow, but I kinda suspect it's become icky again.

I'm relecutant to go to another physio because I like mine so much. He's the third one I've had, but he's by far the best. I've possibly said this before, but the first one I went to, when I initially had my back problems, was pleasant and fairly good, but had a little bit of that "it'll hurt a bit, that's just how it is" attitude. When I went back the following year, he had left the practice, but the main physio was away, so I saw the locum. She wasn't very gentle, nor very personable, although she wasn't mean. Then I saw the main physio and he's been wonderful ever since. Gentler than I'd expect, considering he's poking away at all my sore muscles and joints, very considerate, but super-effective. I also find that I can ask him my questions, however silly, and he gives me proper answers. I mean, if you can't ask those silly physiotherapy questions of your physiotherapist then something's not right! I think that's just one of the reasons I generally don't see our family GP anymore, but one of the other main doctors at our Doctors' clinic (which is just around the corner from my physio; the receptionist at the physio has a sister who's one of the receptionists at the doctors').

I think I may have to make an appointment tomorrow or Monday with one of the other physios. Or maybe I can hold out until my massage on Friday. The problem with the massage is that it tends to only slightly improve and generally maintain my physical state. This means that if I've improved during the week by doing my stretches, walking, sleeping well and/or seeing the physio, the massage really helps to stop my health going backwards. It doesn't really seem to make things better though, which a trip to my physio can do straight away often.

*sighs* After having such a disappointing last term health-wise, I'd really wanted this holidays to be a chance for me to get almost tip-top again. I know part of it is my fault for being Miss Sedantry, but I have this sense deep-down that the physio would have probably had me feeling more inclined to get out and walk, because I would have been feeling better. Isn't that like one of those awful vicious cycle things? Well, I'd better get off now because I'm feeling a bit funny.