Let’s just start with these three truths:
- We’re all body owners.
- Bodies get injured sometimes
- We’re all products of what happens to us
My interest in helping people to have healthy, resilient bodies started way back when I was in middle school when I hurt my own body for the first time. My friend, Billy Johnston, and I were climbing up the trunk of a tree on rungs leading to a tree fort he and his father had built. I never got to the actual tree fort, because Billy’s foot broke through one of the rungs and he came hurtling down, and took me to the ground with him. All I remember was being sprawled on the ground in a sitting position with my legs straight out in front of me, my head in the dirt between my legs, and Billy sitting on my head. OUCH!!
Since I was so young, I was only out of commission for about a week. In truth, it didn’t catch up to me until I was in college when I started to have lower back and neck issues that were diagnosed as herniated discs.
It’s no wonder I became a physical therapist, and sought specialized training to learn how to evaluate and treat people with disc injuries. Yes, I was partially driven to do this to learn how to manage my own issues. But, this means that I have a taste of my own medicine.
Everyone knows that when a care provider has first hand experience with the types of injuries they are treating, they usually become better practitioners because of it. There was an early 90’s movie about this called, “The Doctor”. William Hurt played a talented, but flawed surgeon who couldn’t connect with his patients. This all changed when he had a life-threatening tumor. Suddenly, he could see the experience from the perspective of the patient. He became a better doctor, and a better person.
So, I’m going to show my cards here. If you want to know the types of injuries or ailments that I’m best at treating, just have a look at this list of injuries I’ve rehabilitated myself through:
Herniated discs in neck and lower back
Shoulder instability – likely torn labrum
Tennis elbow – lateral elbow tendinopathy
Golfers elbow – medial elbow tendinopathy
Wrist fracture
Sprained thumb
Sacroiliac dysfunction
Hip tendinopathy
Patellar tendinopathy
Lateral and medial ankle sprains
Plantar fasciitis
Head injury
Vertigo due to BPPV (Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo)
So, body owners, I know you probably have a long list of injuries too. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t go out and put your body to the test! And don’t worry about hurting yourself, I’ve helped hundreds of people through their injuries before… starting with myself!
If you need help recovering from any type of injury, give us a call at Essential Physical Therapy in Eugene, OR: 458-210-2940. We can schedule a visit most times within 48 hours.
Keith Blackwell, PT
Tags: physical therapist, herniated disc
