Daily Routine Part 1 Mornings

          Now, where was I? Ah yes, my daily routine. Well, I pretty much covered the physical therapy with the muscle stimming, although I do try to fit some long sitting, sitting on the edge of bed, rolling onto my stomach and getting up on my elbows, time permitting. And there never seems to be enough time to fit the essentials in let alone any extras. But I DO have daily routine that includes a healthy diet, a regiment of vitamins, minerals, and supplements, at least 1 ½ hours of physical therapy which includes the muscle stimulation and 15 minutes of sitting, rolling, or crawling, healthy foods including lots of protein, an afternoon workout with weights, and my nightly meditation and exercise. Let me break it down.

          Morning routine:

·       Herbs – fennel seed, wild yam root, fenugreek, saw palmetto, dong quai, dandelion root

·       Supplements – L- tyrosine

( good for healthy firm breasts, PMS,  pre or menopausal symptoms)

Milk thistle, Echinacea, goldenseal

·       Vitamins – sublingual B Complex, vitamin A  from beta carotene ONLY, vitamin C 1000 mg, Calcium 500mg, vitamin D 400mg, magnesium 200mg, zinc 15 mg (all by Puritan’s Pride)

Range of motion exercises (done by my attendant on my legs and arms) to loosen them up after sleeping in the same position all night long, sometimes I’m in bed as long as 14 hours!(not by choice believe me) Have your attendant start ON ONE SIDE of your body while lying flat on your back. Hips even. You may use a pillow   

·       Hamstring stretch – place one hand under ankle and other behind knee. Bring lower leg up parallel to the bed, knee bent, as you lift foot to straighten leg flip hand beneath knee so it is in front of knee. Gently but firmly press knee toward chest and foot upward to try and straighten leg stop pressing when you feel resistance. Bring leg back down to bed following steps in reverse order. Repeat up to 20 reps pressing a little further each time.

·       Hip flexor - hold leg as in the 1^st exercise except keep it parallel to the bed. Swing the foot GENTLY inward until you feel resistance. Then gently pull foot toward you ONLY A FEW INCHES until you feel resistance. Do desired amount of reps. Lay leg down on bed straight foot first than knee, always supporting knee.

·       Inner thigh – hold one hand under ankle the other under knee lift leg slightly off the bed and swing entire leg out to the side as if performing a “Split”. Pull leg out to the point of resistance. Return to starting position. Do desired repetitions.  

                                                                                    

·       Ankle, Achilles, calves stretch – place your hand under the heel far enough that you can feel the tendon and muscle working. Then using your arm, push forward against the foot. Stop pushing when you feel resistance. (tip: you know you’re pushing too hard when the knee comes off the bed!)    

Always have your attendant return your leg to straight, even position on the bed, straight down from your hips, knees pointing straight up. IF YOU HAVE FOOT DROP like I do, use a straight piece of wood or long cylindrical pillow to prop your feet up against when NOT wearing your orthopedic boots. 

·       Repeat on other leg

·       Shoulders, shoulder blades, rotator cuff, biceps, triceps, lats – have your attendant stand at the head of your bed, grasp your forearms about halfway up and pull your arms straight over your head. Be mindful to keep your arms close to your ears. STOP pulling when it hurts too much. It will take a long while to straighten arms that have not been ranged regularly. Do as many reps as time permits up to 20.

Breakfast –

·       you will need: a large plastic mug, hand held        eggbeaters

·       1 yogurt drink (any flavor), ½ scoop vanilla protein powder, 1 – 3 tsp Benefiber

Pour all ingredients in mug and mix thoroughly until thick and creamy. Enjoy!   

                                        OR

·       The Zone perfect cookie dough all natural nutrition bar (absolutely scrumptious!) and 10 grams of protein! Plus, they are full of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.

·       8oz skim or 2% milk

Physical Therapy

For my physical therapy I use a NMES (neuromuscular electrical stimulation) machine to work my paralyzed muscles and help them remember what it felt like to move. Now the muscles we stim, I can actually feel and flex on my own. I stim every morning time permits and alternate between the following:

·       Chest and triceps

·       Stomach and quadriceps (upper thigh)

·       Buttocks and abductors and adductors of leg

I also practice long sitting – which means sitting on the bed with my legs straight out in front of me and my hands behind me to hold myself up.

Sitting on the edge of my bed – I lay on my back, have my attendant pull the sheet until I’m almost turned sideways ( I help by wiggling, too.) Then she will pull my legs over the side of the bed and pull them until my feet are touching the floor. After that, my attendant will help me sit up with my hands behind my back and my feet flat on the floor.

Or I will practice rolling on my belly and getting up on my elbows which I need to do anyway when we stim anything in the back of my body like my bottom or my calves.

(to be continued)