May 19th – May 25th 2024: “Afternoon Park Crawl”

5/20

I had probably one of the best therapy sessions in such a long while! I really got my legs worked today, it was incredible! I’m sitting here in a long sit, at 9:40PM and I crawled over here in my shoes! Which, has honestly been such a difficult thing for me to do up till this point! I can’t believe I was able to do that! It’s interesting, because when my shoes get stuck, I can’t get them unstuck myself really, so it feels like me feet are in shackles.

I really am feeling so much throughout my legs, and really feeling my legs engaging! The mental practice (MP) exercise went really well!

Hopefully the CT scan with contrast comes back negative with results, I’d rather not have a surgery for that lump on my neck….

I wish I didn’t have to be dealing with so many different things, but I guess that’s how it goes. Not much to complain about, but just odd how it happened this way.

5/21

So I woke up this morning with some really intense feelings in my legs. They are feeling a lot more fatigued and tingly than they have in a while, but also, I was thinking about how I had to go to the bathroom most of the night, so I might have exacerbated that feeling from this.

I still am on a mission to learn more and more about the crawling! I really am feeling each day how much better I am getting myself to crawl. Even last night! It was 9 at night and I was able to really lift my knees and crawl with my shoes on! Which I think is an accomplishment! My right lower part of my leg was less cooperative, but he was doing okay!

One day, one crawl, at a time. This has put a literal meaning to the saying “baby steps”. And I’m not even mad about that!

Okay, so crawling on the hard floor is super slippery and discouraging. I’m not sure if that is the place for me…. I made it only 8ft and I was slipping and falling over the place. Not exactly an ideal situation, but I did get a good stretch in? I think that’s okay.

Goodness, I’m at the gym right now for the first time this week, and I’m feeling so much through my feet, down my lower back, literally everywhere!

5/22

So I had a thought about the tingling feeling I have, and then Callie brought this up:

Lactic acid itself, as a chemical, doesn’t have a “feeling” in the tactile sense. However, when people refer to the sensation of lactic acid, they are often talking about the buildup of lactic acid in muscles during intense exercise. This buildup can lead to a feeling of muscle fatigue, burning, or soreness. The burning sensation is due to the acidity and the metabolic stress in the muscle cells. This can be uncomfortable and may persist as muscle soreness after the exercise is completed. I was legitimately feeling this in my abdomen during therapy, this exact feeling, and I think this might actually be part of it all. Like, what heck?! Is this actually a real thing I am experiencing?

5/23

I ended up having a great day, with lots of crawling! This was absolutely amazing to get down on the floor and move my body a bit!

5/24

So today has been interesting. Kevin and I had discussed some important topics about work and coming back, as well as some additional dynamics of it all. We had a great lunch! And this was the first time I had crossed a street by myself!!

My body right now, at 10:07pm, is feeling such a significant amount through my right leg, starting at my hip, and moving through my knees and all the way down!

It’s really interesting thinking about how far I have come in therapy, and the things I am doing now and able to do! I seriously had a huge apprehension to move my legs in such a way, as I might hurt them. But now, I don’t let that be a thought!

5/25

The day was beautiful, sun was shining, and we made our way out to the park!

It was really nice because I was able to back into a spot and we were right where i was going to attempt my next crawl! I wanted to see what I could see, and try my best to crawl farther than last time!

So I get down and on the floor, and I set off! And I notice how much more breath that I have, and I realize that I need to string together more than 20 steps this time! So I was able to string together 100 consecutive steps before I took a break! And I’m pretty sure, these steps were even bigger than last time!!

This was amazing, to get on the ground, roll over, get myself up, and into a long sit. I had my watch going, so I could try to make sure that I would only sit on the floor for 1-2min, and then get back to it! Which was perfect!

So, I am off again, and I really feel my hips and legs engaging! I can really feel my body without having to look down there. And I string together another 100 steps before a break! It was interesting to watch this family come over to the picnic tables that I was attempting to crawl to.

They were setting up to grill out, and then I noticed one person in particular in their group. She was a lady, maybe only 5-10yrs older than me. She was in a wheelchair. But there was something different about her. And that’s when I noticed her legs.

She didn’t have the lower part of her legs. She was being helped out through the grass, and as someone who is using a wheelchair right now, I can attest to how hard the trek thru the grass is. That was tough to see. She had knee pads on, and I couldn’t help but wonder how she lost them.

As I got crawling a bit closer, her and I made eye contact. She yelled over to me, “you’re doing great” and I said, “you are too” and she said that we are both surviving. Which she was right. It was hard to have to see someone with only part of their legs, it really was. But she got down on the ground, and was walking on her upper parts of her legs, and was doing everything that she could. It even looked like she had daughters, and they were really just normal kids doing their thing. It’s wild the things you see when you start to pay attention to everyone around you.

So, I get done with my crawl, and sure enough, I crawled 210ft!!!! I can’t believe it! This was amazing! And I was so proud of this! It really made me feel so loose and engaged in my legs all at once! I couldn’t be happier right now. Just cross lateral movements, and trying to do more of them! I think there really is something special to this crawling!

We ended up going to have a nice dinner at this cute little place, which really made for a nice summer day. I’m really lucky to have days like this, especially when they are days I get to eat some goulash! Yes, I ordered goulash, and I’m not even sorry about this. I’m glad I did! It was definitely a spot for me!