Since I am not up to fighting speed just yet, I'll take the opportunity to write about how I became injured, and my Armada of healing and wellness techniques that do not involve shots, surgery, and a crazy amount of medication. For the record, I am not a doctor or medical professional. No disrespect to surgeons, but I don't want knives hacking into my back.
I have worked in law enforcement for 18 years, and have been in patrol for 16 of those years. Last July, I was promoted to sergeant, but a few years before that, I started doing what we call "acting" time, meaning I filled in for other sergeants who were on vacation, long term assignment elsewhere, or, injured. Being a sergeant means you spend more time in a car and at a desk, whilst wearing a bullet proof vest (which curls your shoulders forward), 25-30 pounds of gear around your hips, and boots.
My issue crept up on me about 2-3 years back, in the form of slight pain in the left side of my neck, and it progressed into pain and numbness down my left arm. The pain alarmed me, because it wasn't muscular, which I knew could be handled by my massage guy, Jeff Besser, here in San Diego. It was this awful, nails-on-a-chalkboard, nerve pain. Slow, easy rolling in Jiu Jitsu and light drills in Arnis-Eskrima were the few activities that made the pain subside, because it was just that, activity. Heavy gear and sitting is just not a normal state for the human body.
Long story short, this is how I found chiropractic. Within two sessions, Dr Krause had me halfway back to normal, and after four sessions, I was back on the mat full speed. I didn't miss any work, because I did what many us do and just sucked it up with a vacuum of ibuprofen. I kept up regular follow-ups with Dr Krause, but then I got lazy. I feel good! I don't need the chiropractor! I can skip it! Since then, I have gone through a couple bouts of back and forth to the chiro, always going in a little wrecked, then getting unwrecked, then follow-up, and then, "I'm fine!" and then, this time happened. This time my body had a list of demands.
A few months ago the pain crept in again. "Better call the chiro." The short spells of numbness down my left arm, the slight pain when I turned my head to the left, the necessary shaking out of my torso when I stepped out of the patrol car, were shrinking violets in the face of the section of my brain where the stubborn was being manufactured at peak efficiency. " I really need to call him..." Then on October 9, "okay I'll call..." Then that Friday night, "I'll DEFINITELY call..." Then by Saturday afternoon, I was leaving a desperate sounding message on Dr Krause's answering machine, pleading for the first available appointment, which unfortunately was not until Tuesday, because they were closed that Monday for the holiday.
I actually had to call in sick to work, and thought one session would do the trick. Then, I needed a second day. When I needed a third day, I realized this was an ugly cumulative LEO injury that was yelling "I WON'T BE IGNORED DAN," and was throwing my physical activity into a pot of boiling water.
I called our unit that handles work injury issues. My very dear friend and fellow martial artist who heads the unit took me to task for waiting 3 days to call them. "Deb, I know how you are, you're a warrior, but you've been in patrol all these years, and you're not 25...take some time..." Sooooo, off I went, begrudgingly, to Occupational Medicine. This is my 3rd week away from work, and as I write this I can finally say I am having more pain-free moments than I was last week. I take Ibuprofen sparingly, as I know it's just a quick bandaid and not friendly to the internal organs, but the first week and half of this goat rope I was on a regular schedule of 400 mg every 4-6 hours.
Back and neck problems are a dime a dozen in my profession and considered a "presumptive" for the job. I have always taken very good care of my health and have stayed proactive with weights, mobility, and solid fuel intake. When I look back on the fights I have been in at work, the foot pursuits, and the two years I rode a bike in the Gaslamp on the bike team, I cannot imagine what sorry shape I would be in if I had NOT been training all these years. I have this petulant child voice in my head that whines, "injuries are stupid!" A bag of suckers thrown into the dirt. But then I realize, after 18 years in law enforcement in busy commands and busy assignments, this is my first dance with unadulterated injury, I'm doing okay.
But...lord oh lord, I hate being injured. I hate being away from my squad. I feel like a total loser, and I know that's not the case but gaaawwwwddd this sucks. Being home and injured is not like some free vacay with endless mimosas poolside. It's trying to get a full night's sleep without being awakened by pain, then shaking out in the morning, then trying to balance my daily activity level with rest. One day last weekend I was really excited I was able to clean up after the dogs in the yard (we have 1.25 acre), but then the nerve pain reminded me it was still around. Every day has been a mini-triumph of being able to do something, and having the pain slowly subside a juuuust a little bit more. A walk around the yard, being able to swing a lightweight baston for an Arnis drill...small victories.
The hilarious light in this tunnel, is pre-menopause! In June-July I started having these middle of the night nerve twitchy moments that would wake me up for an hour. I started taking 1000 mg of magnesium and evening primrose to combat that issue. The other night it popped up again, albeit mildly, and I was so excited it was JUST a pre-menopause thing and not my neck nerves screaming out angrily. Ha! Hormones? I got you, bitches! I have breathing techniques, I have a glass of water, I have stretches. So there!
I am going to ease into some activity this week. I've been able to drive okay, so I'm going to start with walking and work up to some vigorous, arm swinging strides. I assist with our kid's class at my jiu jitsu school, so if the walking goes well, I'll work in some light rolls. The bastons we use in Arnis are not heavy and I can do a few drills to wake up the arm muscles. If all goes according to plan, I'll be to brass tacks next week.
I referred to my "Armada" earlier. I use that term with some permanence now. Welcome to 50. This is what age 50 + working a physically demanding job + training + training with intensity + being competitive + training into age 90 looks like. You need to have your people, your techniques, and good fuel. You need an Armada at the ready to back your play.
Mine consists of:
Dr Mark Krause at Chiropractic Healing Arts, in La Mesa. He is straightforward and good at his craft.
Jeff Besser at Body Dynamix in San Diego. Jeff does not have a website and he is always booked two months out. Jeff gets down to business and his massages are not a patty-cake session.
Wim-Hof Breathing. I started doing this in January before the Pans and fought well at that tournament. This also kept the menopausy issues minimal. I got lazy and stopped, but I have started this again.
Cold Showers. Invigorating!
Ice Baths. They. Suck. And they reduce inflammation. They are needed.
Fuel. Since I have been on the reduced activity plan I have been doing a little intermittent fasting, but during my regular activity level, I try to follow a Mediterranean/Gracie diet hybrid. Tons of greens, quality proteins and fats, and purposeful carbohydrates. By purposeful I mean, I eat one carbohydrate source in any meal, and I only eat what I need for that day or workout.
I am still going through the Occupational Medicine process with work but the above list is what has slowly gotten me back to some semblance of normalcy over the last three weeks. I started Acupuncture via occ-med yesterday, and I'll most likely be forwarded to some physical therapy to start strengthening the neck muscles and keep my discs in check.
Till next post, keep lighting your ground.
I have worked in law enforcement for 18 years, and have been in patrol for 16 of those years. Last July, I was promoted to sergeant, but a few years before that, I started doing what we call "acting" time, meaning I filled in for other sergeants who were on vacation, long term assignment elsewhere, or, injured. Being a sergeant means you spend more time in a car and at a desk, whilst wearing a bullet proof vest (which curls your shoulders forward), 25-30 pounds of gear around your hips, and boots.
My issue crept up on me about 2-3 years back, in the form of slight pain in the left side of my neck, and it progressed into pain and numbness down my left arm. The pain alarmed me, because it wasn't muscular, which I knew could be handled by my massage guy, Jeff Besser, here in San Diego. It was this awful, nails-on-a-chalkboard, nerve pain. Slow, easy rolling in Jiu Jitsu and light drills in Arnis-Eskrima were the few activities that made the pain subside, because it was just that, activity. Heavy gear and sitting is just not a normal state for the human body.
Long story short, this is how I found chiropractic. Within two sessions, Dr Krause had me halfway back to normal, and after four sessions, I was back on the mat full speed. I didn't miss any work, because I did what many us do and just sucked it up with a vacuum of ibuprofen. I kept up regular follow-ups with Dr Krause, but then I got lazy. I feel good! I don't need the chiropractor! I can skip it! Since then, I have gone through a couple bouts of back and forth to the chiro, always going in a little wrecked, then getting unwrecked, then follow-up, and then, "I'm fine!" and then, this time happened. This time my body had a list of demands.
A few months ago the pain crept in again. "Better call the chiro." The short spells of numbness down my left arm, the slight pain when I turned my head to the left, the necessary shaking out of my torso when I stepped out of the patrol car, were shrinking violets in the face of the section of my brain where the stubborn was being manufactured at peak efficiency. " I really need to call him..." Then on October 9, "okay I'll call..." Then that Friday night, "I'll DEFINITELY call..." Then by Saturday afternoon, I was leaving a desperate sounding message on Dr Krause's answering machine, pleading for the first available appointment, which unfortunately was not until Tuesday, because they were closed that Monday for the holiday.
I actually had to call in sick to work, and thought one session would do the trick. Then, I needed a second day. When I needed a third day, I realized this was an ugly cumulative LEO injury that was yelling "I WON'T BE IGNORED DAN," and was throwing my physical activity into a pot of boiling water.
I called our unit that handles work injury issues. My very dear friend and fellow martial artist who heads the unit took me to task for waiting 3 days to call them. "Deb, I know how you are, you're a warrior, but you've been in patrol all these years, and you're not 25...take some time..." Sooooo, off I went, begrudgingly, to Occupational Medicine. This is my 3rd week away from work, and as I write this I can finally say I am having more pain-free moments than I was last week. I take Ibuprofen sparingly, as I know it's just a quick bandaid and not friendly to the internal organs, but the first week and half of this goat rope I was on a regular schedule of 400 mg every 4-6 hours.
Back and neck problems are a dime a dozen in my profession and considered a "presumptive" for the job. I have always taken very good care of my health and have stayed proactive with weights, mobility, and solid fuel intake. When I look back on the fights I have been in at work, the foot pursuits, and the two years I rode a bike in the Gaslamp on the bike team, I cannot imagine what sorry shape I would be in if I had NOT been training all these years. I have this petulant child voice in my head that whines, "injuries are stupid!" A bag of suckers thrown into the dirt. But then I realize, after 18 years in law enforcement in busy commands and busy assignments, this is my first dance with unadulterated injury, I'm doing okay.
But...lord oh lord, I hate being injured. I hate being away from my squad. I feel like a total loser, and I know that's not the case but gaaawwwwddd this sucks. Being home and injured is not like some free vacay with endless mimosas poolside. It's trying to get a full night's sleep without being awakened by pain, then shaking out in the morning, then trying to balance my daily activity level with rest. One day last weekend I was really excited I was able to clean up after the dogs in the yard (we have 1.25 acre), but then the nerve pain reminded me it was still around. Every day has been a mini-triumph of being able to do something, and having the pain slowly subside a juuuust a little bit more. A walk around the yard, being able to swing a lightweight baston for an Arnis drill...small victories.
The hilarious light in this tunnel, is pre-menopause! In June-July I started having these middle of the night nerve twitchy moments that would wake me up for an hour. I started taking 1000 mg of magnesium and evening primrose to combat that issue. The other night it popped up again, albeit mildly, and I was so excited it was JUST a pre-menopause thing and not my neck nerves screaming out angrily. Ha! Hormones? I got you, bitches! I have breathing techniques, I have a glass of water, I have stretches. So there!
I am going to ease into some activity this week. I've been able to drive okay, so I'm going to start with walking and work up to some vigorous, arm swinging strides. I assist with our kid's class at my jiu jitsu school, so if the walking goes well, I'll work in some light rolls. The bastons we use in Arnis are not heavy and I can do a few drills to wake up the arm muscles. If all goes according to plan, I'll be to brass tacks next week.
I referred to my "Armada" earlier. I use that term with some permanence now. Welcome to 50. This is what age 50 + working a physically demanding job + training + training with intensity + being competitive + training into age 90 looks like. You need to have your people, your techniques, and good fuel. You need an Armada at the ready to back your play.
Mine consists of:
Dr Mark Krause at Chiropractic Healing Arts, in La Mesa. He is straightforward and good at his craft.
Jeff Besser at Body Dynamix in San Diego. Jeff does not have a website and he is always booked two months out. Jeff gets down to business and his massages are not a patty-cake session.
Wim-Hof Breathing. I started doing this in January before the Pans and fought well at that tournament. This also kept the menopausy issues minimal. I got lazy and stopped, but I have started this again.
Cold Showers. Invigorating!
Ice Baths. They. Suck. And they reduce inflammation. They are needed.
Fuel. Since I have been on the reduced activity plan I have been doing a little intermittent fasting, but during my regular activity level, I try to follow a Mediterranean/Gracie diet hybrid. Tons of greens, quality proteins and fats, and purposeful carbohydrates. By purposeful I mean, I eat one carbohydrate source in any meal, and I only eat what I need for that day or workout.
I am still going through the Occupational Medicine process with work but the above list is what has slowly gotten me back to some semblance of normalcy over the last three weeks. I started Acupuncture via occ-med yesterday, and I'll most likely be forwarded to some physical therapy to start strengthening the neck muscles and keep my discs in check.
Till next post, keep lighting your ground.
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