Wellness Forum

Expectations of Wellness

What is your expectation of wellness?   I admit that my standard is probably a little higher than others'.  I expect to be able to have a level of physical activity that, to most people, is off the charts.  I expect to be able to walk two or three hours a day in summer, and double that on each weekend day.  Lately, I've often had to apply heat packs or ice to my back and sides after exercise, and sometimes that exercise is nothing more than sitting in a chair for an eight-hour workday.

In my world, few human activities lend themselves to moderation. It's either all or nothing with me, and where walking is concerned, the toggle switch is set to "all."  "Realize that one minor walking error repeated millions of times can do an incredible amount of damage to your muscles, nerves, and joints, eventually causing incredible pain", this article confirms.  Oops.  I don't know why all this happening now, though I had a similar set of symptoms a little over a year ago.

I received a clean bill of health at my annual physical, but continue to be plagued by problems that are more of a distraction than anything else.  If it keeps up another week or two, it'll be time to take some action, but I don't know exactly what.  If I go back to to my PCP, I'll surely get the look again, the same pissed-off look I got last year.  Maybe a physical therapist is the answer.  I need to be able to get through an eight-hour workday (not to mention the occasional ten- or twelve-hour workday) without pain in my rib cage and flanks.

Despite all this, I realize how lucky I am. With few exceptions, I'd lost all sense of the passage of time or aging since I lost weight--though that wasn't all that long ago.  And I don't have any sense of general malaise.  And I plan another weekend of "off the charts"!

WORDSPRITE: Didn't you tweet this seventeen days ago?
"The search ends where it began: Dr. William Hall of Shorewood Family Physicians is the best PCP, and he's my PCP!"
I think the answer may be partially mixing up the sitting and walking (not huge amounts of each at one "sitting" (PUN!),- you know, like how other cultures have the siesta concept; some massage and PT to help you with things like posture, and maybe stress reduction techniques (breathing, etc). Of course, it could be something like fibromyalgia- do you have the tender pressure points?
I'll be writing a lot about chronic pain on my blog (this ain't an ad. I really want to be able to use my experiences to help others.) So stay tuned.

MIKE: Yes, I did tweet that.  I'm ambivalent.  I feel that Dr. Hall is excellent at what he does, but I note that in the three successive years I've had annual physicals, he has skipped more steps each time.  The only step I remember him doing this year is the stethoscope; I don't believe he even looked down my throat.  As a result, I feel that he is primarily doing triage medicine.  He is not comparing the "actual Mike" to some ideal "target Mike" (except when asking about smoking).  That is why I look forward so much to PT on Tuesday. 

What is your expectation of wellness?   I admit that my standard is probably a little higher than others'.  I expect to be able to have a level of physical activity that, to most people, is off the charts.  I expect to be able to walk two or three hours a day in summer, and double that on each weekend day.  Lately, I've often had to apply heat packs or ice to my back and sides after exercise, and sometimes that exercise is nothing more than sitting in a chair for an eight-hour workday.

In my world, few human activities lend themselves to moderation. It's either all or nothing with me, and where walking is concerned, the toggle switch is set to "all."  "Realize that one minor walking error repeated millions of times can do an incredible amount of damage to your muscles, nerves, and joints, eventually causing incredible pain", this article confirms.  Oops.  I don't know why all this happening now, though I had a similar set of symptoms a little over a year ago.

I received a clean bill of health at my annual physical, but continue to be plagued by problems that are more of a distraction than anything else.  If it keeps up another week or two, it'll be time to take some action, but I don't know exactly what.  If I go back to to my PCP, I'll surely get the look again, the same pissed-off look I got last year.  Maybe a physical therapist is the answer.  I need to be able to get through an eight-hour workday (not to mention the occasional ten- or twelve-hour workday) without pain in my rib cage and flanks.

Despite all this, I realize how lucky I am. With few exceptions, I'd lost all sense of the passage of time or aging since I lost weight--though that wasn't all that long ago.  And I don't have any sense of general malaise.  And I plan another weekend of "off the charts"!

WORDSPRITE: Didn't you tweet this seventeen days ago?
"The search ends where it began: Dr. William Hall of Shorewood Family Physicians is the best PCP, and he's my PCP!"
I think the answer may be partially mixing up the sitting and walking (not huge amounts of each at one "sitting" (PUN!),- you know, like how other cultures have the siesta concept; some massage and PT to help you with things like posture, and maybe stress reduction techniques (breathing, etc). Of course, it could be something like fibromyalgia- do you have the tender pressure points?
I'll be writing a lot about chronic pain on my blog (this ain't an ad. I really want to be able to use my experiences to help others.) So stay tuned.

MIKE: Yes, I did tweet that.  I'm ambivalent.  I feel that Dr. Hall is excellent at what he does, but I note that in the three successive years I've had annual physicals, he has skipped more steps each time.  The only step I remember him doing this year is the stethoscope; I don't believe he even looked down my throat.  As a result, I feel that he is primarily doing triage medicine.  He is not comparing the "actual Mike" to some ideal "target Mike" (except when asking about smoking).  That is why I look forward so much to PT on Tuesday.