How many times have you gotten x-rayed?

Most people have had an x-ray taken at some point in their lives. In fact, x-rays can be great for discovering fractures, dislocations and anything that has to do with the pathology of the skeletal system but also for some soft tissue diseases like pneumonia and lung cancer. The reason why I bring this up is because I went just last week and got my left shoulder and my neck x-rayed. First, I filled out a couple of forms, one of them confirming and signing that I’m not pregnant. After that, they called me in and again asked me, just to make sure, that I’m not pregnant. After I put on one of those gowns, that doesn’t fit no matter what your size is, I posed numerous times for the radiologist to take my “picture.”

 

The days have certainly changed from the first time that I went to get x-rays. Instead of bringing a bulky package of plates to my other doc, I got a disc with my images and I don’t have to return it since they have the originals. I can even go and get as many discs as I’d like as long as I pay for them. As I’m sitting at home in front of my computer working, I’m thinking about how many times can one get x-rayed and not be affected at all by the radiation? Let’s see, I’ve gotten a fair amount of x-rays taken in my adult life, actually in the last ten years of my life. The first ones were to check and see if I suffered from pneumonia, then I got x-rays at my Chiropractor’s office, another one for possible pneumonia, another one at the chiropractor’s office after a serious injury and now this most recent one of my neck and shoulder. Oh, and if it counts, I guess I should include the cat scan I got of my head to make sure that everything looked ok after a particularly serious incident at the gym. I guess it’s a miracle that we are still standing after some of the things that our bodies have to go through. This does not include the times I’ve been to the dentist and gotten my mouth x-rayed…

As a result of the last couple of weeks experiences with the dry needling (trigger point needling) and the physical therapist trigger point massages and exercises, I’ve thought about and not for the first time, how many times can one get x-rayed without any side effects or negative effects at all? Haven’t you ever asked yourself if you can get x-rayed too much? Many times it’s so easy to get a procedure done and not question if it’s necessary and if and what effect it will have on us. When does the benefit of the technology no longer benefit us but turn against us?

Most people who know me also knows that I’m a little bit of a controversial when it comes to certain procedures and prefer to find alternative ways and options to do things that are less invasive. As i’m sitting researching on internet, looking for unbiased information about x-rays and the benefits vs side effects, I understand why we don’t even take the time to find out. A simple search on internet provides me with over 3,000,000 hits on google. Who has the time and the energy to sit and sift through what is worthwhile to make the most informed choices and decisions about our health?

As I continue my quest to find what works for me and my body while minimizing the intake of medicine with a page long note of side effects, I leave the doc’s office trying to walk the fine line of showing my respect for the education and experience of such a person and to still stick with what I believe in.

First Visit to Physical Therapist (Getting Old)

After the Dry Needle experience yesterday, I put on Arnica gel before going to bed hoping that I wouldn’t wake up all sore and in pain. Honestly, the osteopathic doc did scare me a little when he said that no one had gotten trigger point needled without the injections due to the pain and muscle soreness. When I woke up I was more sore then yesterday but absolutely not intolerable at all. Everything always feels better after a hot shower.

In an attempt to save some time, I’d already filled out the paper work for the Physical Therapist’s office online and submitted it. Therefore, it was pretty easy after I’d gotten to the office. That is, first I had to battle one of those confusing parking garages where everyone goes the wrong way the first time. No matter how detailed directions one has received, there is no way of getting it right the first time so after I’d reparked the car to avoid getting towed while being treated, which the office manager said happens quite often, I was ready to meet with my first ever Physical Therapist…

 

The visit lasted for almost two hours including an evaluation, some manual manipulations and then some exerices. One of my first thoughts as I’m sitting across from the PT describing what’s going on, which by the way cannot for sure be linked to a specific injury or accident, is that I’m getting old. Yes, in my twenties, I didn’t physically struggle and whatever surfaced would vanish just as fast. Now, I’m sitting here being manipulated as if I’m too old to move my own body and definitely feeling a weakness in my left shoulder where I used to be pretty strong. So instead of lifting weights, I’ll be doing isometric exercises for a while, feel the burn, some stability ball exerices and the popular and beloved plank and side plank positions. Well, at least I left with a burn and a sensation in my shoulder moving down my arm that was much more fierce than when I first arrived.

 

Still, I’m so grateful for what’s available and that there are numerous options and alternatives for us to explore whenever we experience pain and or injuries. My body is in good health, I can still do what I love and iad others in their personal journeys toward health and happiness.

Dry Needling (Trigger Point Injections)

Trigger Point Injections also called Dry Needling if one doesn’t accept the anasthetic injections of procaine, lidocaine or corticosteroid. It’s a therapy or treatment used to relieve muscle or joint pain. The idea is to relieve the trigger points, which are knots inside your muscles by injections. However, it can also be done without the injections. The side effects are supposed to be minimal in such a treatment compared to some other treatments out there.

Well, today, that’s what I had done to me for the first time. For the last few months I’ve experienced shoulder pain that has had an increasingly negative effect in my daily life. It’s kept me from sleeping on my left side, causes me pain when I give Thai Yoga Massage, when I rotate my arm certain ways and when I lift my arm. It all began at some point when I was really young. Maybe in one of my teenage car accidents. However, as a young person who is flexible and agile, there were no injuries to my knowledge. As the years have worn on, I’ve become more aware that my left shoulder has a limited range of motion and that during certain yoga poses my shoulder gives in and my left arm falls asleep unless I adjust my pose.

In a constant search of alternative and less invasive methods, I decided to seek the expertise of an osteopath to find out what such a professional person would have to say. After a long and thorough research of what’s available in network and reading patient reviews along with checking out credentials, yes as you can tell I’m serious about this matter, I found someone I was willing to try. Against his recommendations, I denied the anasthetic injections so he decided to use acupuncture needles as supposed to the ones he normally uses during this treatment. I wish I could have seen him stick them in my shoulders but I can tell that it certainly was a different experience. As the doctor stuck the needle inside my muscle, repeatedly but in various places, he poked around to find the trigger points trying to release the knots. If there was a twitch that means that there is a release. The doc warned me that I might be sore for the next few days but he also asked me to make mental notes of how I feel since he hasn’t had anyone do this without the anasthetic injections.

Now, many hours later, I still feel a dull sensation in my left shoulder down the side of my arm to my elbow from the dry needling. It’s not painful but I’m very aware of this area and will take a hot shower and put on some arnica gel. Tomorrow, I’ll be going to see a Physical Therapist for the first time in my life. All of this is new to me but a good experience, since I’m myself in the field of healing and aiding people in various physical conditions.