February 5, 2018, 9:00 a.m.
Francis was prompt at 9:00 a.m. And I was ready. He spent a full hour with me, starting with a general overview of my current pain history. He was very thorough and professional and very holistic, asking me about other facets of my life, besides mobility, such as social and emotional factors. I asked him about Spinal Decompression Therapy and mentioned his interest in ketogenic diet (which he admitted was just something he was exploring). He was very careful with his answer.
Then he did a brief evaluation of my range of motion in not only my neck but arms, core, and legs. Then he could be very specific in what he recommended in the way of exercises that would target my neck pain. He went through each exercise with me, moving my head, neck, arms, and legs correctly. He then had me do a full set (10 reps) of each one. At the end, he asked me if I wanted to write them down. (If he had not said that, I would have asked him to review each one so I could write it down.) All 3 exercises can be done in bed (or, more correctly, on the bed), and he recommended that I do the full set first thing in the morning, before I get up for the day, and then twice more during the day (midday and evening). He stressed doing the exercises SLOWLY and only to the point of pain (not past it.)
He started with making sure I knew how to do the “Chin Tuck” and while I did that he placed his hands at the base of my skull and pulled upwards. I came to realize that the motion of the “Chin Tuck” simulates the decompression action he was doing at the base of my skull! The 3 exercises are:
- Modification of one of the 7 core exercises: Lie on back, knees up, turn left including core and right arms, while keeping chin tucked. The “Chin Tuck” is instead of turning head to the right since that is painful for me. 10 reps.
- Lie on left side, circle right arm clockwise (like a windmill), then reverse direction to counterclockwise. 10x each direction.
- Lie on back, “Chin Tuck” while turning head to the right (only up to the point of pain, not past.)
At home, I did the exercise set before my midday bed rest. I am totally amazed at how much my pain level has been all day since my morning session with Francis! And whatever he did in the way of manual spinal decompression.
