"My first thought was 'that sounds better than a spinal injection and I will try it.'” - Ned's Success Story

“I started having problems last Spring with my leg having tingling in the lower calf and if I stood too long in the same position, the leg would want to give out, and I would have to move slowly (as I was unsteady) until the leg returned to normal. Then, I started experiencing weakness in my leg along with difficulty getting out of bed, and not being able to walk for a minute or so until I got my balance back, and the weakness in the ankles returned to normal. After a time, the legs got worse, and not only would tingle, but have pain, and not let me walk for even short distances. This pain would vary in location as it moved from one leg to my back, and then the other leg. I had problems playing golf and eventually did not even want to play. I could not attend my grandchildren’s sports functions and not even go shopping. A cane was used to get around the house and even crutches sometimes. Neuropathy was mentioned as a possibility and I went to see my primary doctor. He ordered a CT scan that showed the problem was with the vertebrae. He sent me to a specialist in pain treatment as I was now in constant pain and needed care. This orthopedic showed me how the vertebrae was compressed on the CT scan pictures, and a spinal shot may help if the pain does not get any better. He also mentioned therapy sometimes helps the compression from pressing on the spinal nerves. My first thought was “that sounds better than a spinal injection and I will try it.” I was doubtful it would help with the problem. I went to Maccio Physical Therapy in Troy, NY and was assigned to Julia as my therapist. Starting out I told her I did not think this was going to work as I did not believe in therapy, but would give it a try since the pain was not allowing me to do anything, nor did I want injections or an operation until I at least tried the therapy route. Julia started out seeing what I could do and what affected the neck, back, and the big problem of not being able to walk for even a short distance. Some items that she worked on were the turning of my neck, as that hurt and rotation was not very good. Her main focus was the back and leg pain, along with the tingling. My balance was also checked and I remember I could not stand on one foot more than 3 seconds in the initial session – now I can go over 30 seconds and more if I wanted to on either foot. The exercises started with one type leading into another. If one did not produce results, it was discontinued. Normally, I would not bother to do her exercises at home, but I did not want to return to my earlier condition, and did what she told me to do about 3 times a day. The result is, I can now walk about 90% of what I could before the spinal condition erupted, stand still for a lot longer period without my leg hurting or giving out, and if I think it might weaken, I move from side to side, shifting my weight to stop before it becomes a problem, as I was instructed to do. My neck, I can now rotate without pain and my back pains are gone. I really did not think it would work, but so far it has helped tremendously, and I intend to keep up the exercises. It has been over 2 weeks since I was discharged from therapy sessions. If you are having back, leg, or similar problems, I highly recommend going to Maccio Physical Therapy. Great office, all personnel are friendly and helpful, plus their therapy works. I think what assisted in the recovery was that Julia was not only patient in completing the tasks but her encouragement made me want to succeed.” – Ned