Physical Therapy - a little rant

[Bigtex]

@Therealkiller, I have never been able to find a sports medicine clinic that an athletes has ever been too. The last place I was at was called the Houston Rockets Ironman Clinic. The Medical Director is Walter Lowe who is the Houston Texans on field doctor/surgeon. Every time I walked in that place I saw nothing but old, out of shape people who don't want to change. I got some of the worst advice from the doctors there including a back evaluation that told me I was having cramps. My family doctor did x-rays and found I have no disks between the L4/L5. They also told me they only hope I had to correct my shoulder was a reverse shoulder replacement. This new place the doctors are much more state of the art but again, where are the athletes? These places are all like geriatric clinics. They have pictures on the walls but no athletes anywhere. Just fat old out of shape people including the nurses that work there. I have never been to physical therapy, In the past I have only dealt with athletic trainers. These guys deal with multiple athletes but don't get paid what a PT gets paid either. To me this triple booking is like hiring a personal trainer and you show up to find out they have 3 more clients book at your time. So they tell you what to do and wonder off with someone else while you stand around waiting. Unacceptable. Between pro baseball, basketball, soccer, and football we have quite a few top level athletes wondering around Houston. They must be getting treated at their own facilities by athletic trainers and never have to walk into a sports medicine center. One time I was in the Ironman clinic and a nurse asked me who I was. She said, she thought I was someone important. No.....just another broken down old athlete. Thanks for your advice bro! I think at this point I am going to tell these people to only schedule me for 1 time a week.....or maybe even 1 time a month. They can monitor the work I am doing in the gym and give me a list of stuff to do at home. I have never been very big on stretching, only later on in my powerlifting career I only found a more functional dynamic stretch to be even worth doing. This PNF or static stuff is like torture. If you know of any centers here where real athletes going or even people that give a crap about their health, please let me know. ​

 

[Therealkiller]

Hey Tex, that is a tough situation. Yes, do to the state of the USA medical system (watch Southpark's Obesity episode regarding insurance) PT/Sports Med places multiple book several people at the same time. College and pros have their staff PT/ATCs or as you said, someone private. When I worked at a college we would have our athletes in the athletic treatment center one on one with an ATC or a student for up to 2 hours 5-6 days a week. I would tell them that they would never get this level of care anywhere else. Unfortunately, I do not know anyone in the Houston area. All my former contacts are in the Bay area and originated with people connected to Stanford Hospital in some way. When I went in for an emergency consult after I ruptured my groin I even saw a therapist doing a group rehab with everyday athletes on running rehab (they were marathon or those mud runner event types). After my SLAP repair and I was just getting PROM (it was one on one by a clinic I luck fully found close to work) and the therapist admitted that after the very initial beginning phases of PT, she did not really have the exp to get someone back to being highly active (hitting the weights hard). That it is niche market that a ATC/CSCS/Peronsal traniner could get into, but they are hard to find. She offered to give me clients but I managed and trained at corp fitness centers and did not have the time (although now I look back and wish it was something I explored, but to be honest, I was working enough and had my own training to priotize). I'll PM you the guy I knew in the Bay and maybe he will be aware of someone in your area that can help. PNF strenghting techniques by a therpist/ATC can really help but it very much a learned skill and for a strong guy like you would take someone to know what they are doing.

One thing you can look into is Active Release Technique in the Houston area. https://activerelease.com/find-a-pr...95.37011079999999&strAddress=Houston,+TX,+USA
I briefly looked at the providers and one that I saw was https://houstonflex.com/. ART practitioners are generally chiros. Some will take insurance.

Other than that, dynmaic mobility,joint mobilization, and loaded stretching movements are def the way to go with maybe some static stretching thrown in at the end. You can also do PNF stretching tenchiques by yourself or get a friend.

 

[Bigtex]

Just an update......I had a doctor's appointment two weeks ago today. No doctor, only the PA showed up again. This guy pissed my wife and I off so badly we got up and walked out. I went to the desk and cancelled all appointment and will not be back. I also called their physical therapy and cancelled all appointments. I left the head of physical therapy know that the PA informed me that the main goal of PT is to make money. I will not be involved in bilking money from insurance companies.

So two weeks later, I have increased going to the gym from 2 day to 3 days. The pain is subsiding and my ROM has increased. As I told the idiot PA, my issue is I have 18" arms and it take a lot of strength to lift them. After surgery the muscle quit being able to function and you have to start from zero. I need my muscles to get stronger so I can lift arms than my wife tells me are like a leg. they are so heavy. So as the strength comes back, the ROM increases. This pain in the ass PA argued with me over this and told me i was wrong, he said they put all the nerves back and the muscle should still be just as strong. OK.......then he told me despite being in the gym since week 3 he would not release me to go back to the gym. So I got up and walked out. This is the same PA that told me TRT would cause a heart attack and HGH was even worse.

So I am on my own, doing fine and getting more size and strength. I will not every go back to this doctor and never again use PT. I find it highly unethical that I a make an appointment with a medical doctor and get a PA and get charged for a medical doctor. This surgeon apparently did a good job with the surgery but the post-surgical care is horrible.

 

[Wallyd]

I hope you continue to make progress Bigtex. I agree that it seems like a racket to me. I feel better now without going to therapy, I’ve got one week back in the gym under my belt & feeling better! Good luck brother!

 

[3084life]

I find it highly unethical that I a make an appointment with a medical doctor and get a PA and get charged for a medical doctor.

I was just saying this to my wife last night!!! My next appointment will be my last if I don't see the actual dr.