Rest and Recovery are really important in the process of getting in shape. Our muscles need time to heal and repair the strain that we place on them through weight training and life in general. I have been an avid gym goer since the 8th grade and super active with other activities. I love it. Movement and strength training is natural medicine. While it can’t solve problems, it sure can make them easier to deal with.

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In 2012, I underwent a surgery that I knew was coming months in advance. I had been in pain since winter of 2010. I saw multiple MD’s and 8 PT’s before one figured out what was wrong. She got me connected to a local surgeon, who confirmed the PT’s findings. He then sent me to another state to a specialist who dealt with my case. When I saw the ortho doc about my hip labral tears and cam and pincher impingement. He was ready to

Help. He was very experienced with this. This was not something that was well known and researched at the time, so insurance was resistant to approving the surgery that I needed. Insurance initially denied my claim and I had to do a crazy amount of work and provide all kinds of documentation on the failed conservative treatment I had with a letter to them requesting the decision to be overturned.

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At the time of denial, I had been in severe pain for almost a year and half working full time. After work every single day I had to come home and take a nap before exercising or participating in any kind of activity as this is the only thing that provided any form of relief from the exhaustion and pain. Exercise and music helped me tremendously in this process. Even though I was in pain, doing something I loved, helped. As silly as it may sound, the gym was always a safe place for me. I would put on headphones and deal with life’s challenges through movement. It was the place where I processed some of life’s most difficult circumstances. Leading up to the surgery I had to make some modifications because of how bad the pain had gotten. I joined a Master’s swim team instead of doing high intensity classes like kickboxing, and continued to lift weights as I was able.

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I remember exactly where I was when surgery was approved. I had already moved out of my 3 story townhouse and into a one story house with one of my good friends, so I was fully ready to recover. Surgery was a success. He found more damage than expected, but it was a success. I was finally able to begin the recovery process and heal from years of severe pain and trauma. I had been a Physical therapist assistant for a little over 5 years when I had my first surgery. I knew what surgery was like from an outside perspective and understood the recovery timeline, but I was not prepared for what it actually entailed going through it as a patient. It was by far the hardest thing I have ever been through.

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I had the best PT in this process, I chose to stay in the city where my surgeon was and work with his PT. She was absolutely wonderful. I had so much dysfunction from working through the pain prior to surgery, it took forever to train the muscles to work properly. This PT knew what I did for work and she included me in the process. She was even willing to learn and to try different techniques she wasn’t familiar with. It was great.

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What I didn’t understand, is how hard this process of recovery would be on me mentally, spiritually, and emotionally. Prior to having surgery, I had been through years of trauma that was stuffed and not dealt with. If you have ever had surgery before, you know how life changes. You have much more time on your hands and you can’t do a lot of things you were doing before. Since working out and being active was such a big part of the way I dealt with life’s challenges, it was difficult when I couldn’t do this. I was hit hard with memories of traumatic things that happened in my life that I never took time to actually deal with. During the down times, I experienced awful flashbacks and memories. I had no choice but to experience and deal with them.

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I learned a lot about how emotional issues impact recovery. I also learned the impact of pain and how compensatory patterns develop that it takes months to retrain muscles. This was not part of my plan and it didn’t line up with the recovery timeline. Needless to say it took almost a year and half for me to fully recover. I experienced some of the darkest times of my life, I didn’t think I would survive. Yet, I gained an unshakeable faith and the strength and ability to persevere that has stayed with me to this day.

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Sometimes things happen in our lives and they are not part of our plans. They are not what we would choose. However, what we go through always has purpose. If we can choose to lean into periods of recovery, whether it is a day recovery from an intense gym workout, 4 months post surgery, or injury, or like me a year and half of recovery to get back to full function with my hip, it can serve us well. If we can look for the good in all circumstances, we can and will heal completely. We will grow stronger in the process and be a better person for going through it and allowing the recovery process to happen the way it is supposed to.

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Something to think about

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Has there been a dark or difficult time in your life that you learned or grew from?

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Are you able to see the good that came from your experience?

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How has it changed how you handle challenges now?

Feel free to respond and share your experiences, I'd love to hear from you!!

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