This post concerns my personal impressions of the different approaches I’ve noticed between physical therapists and my spine surgeon.
This is something I’ve been thinking about. And, this is not a medical journal. My sample size is extremely small. I’m only one individual relaying my personal observations of how the opinions of my physical therapist and surgeon have differed.
And, this is one of those topics that I find nothing about online.
But, I can’t be the only person who has encountered this. I can’t be!
So, in a nutshell: when I’m talking to my physical therapist and my spine surgeon about what’s safe for me to do now, I notice differences of opinion.
In other words, I had a major spine surgery and a certain increment of time has passed. And, I’m naturally curious about what activities I can do safely. How much can I lift? Can I twist? Can I play some easy-going basketball? Can I do a pull-up? Is it okay to walk 5 miles? Can I be seated in a car for six hours? You get the idea. It’s an endless list.
So, in my personal little world…I’ve spoken with three or four physical therapists and one spine surgeon.
In every case, the spine surgeon is always considerably more cautious when advising me about what I can do. Much more cautious!
So, I thought about this for a bit, and it makes sense.
My spine surgeon has nothing to gain by encouraging me to do physical stuff. While it’s unlikely there will be a problem, it is possible. And, then…he probably imagines the patient saying, “But, Dr. Smith said I could do it!” And, there are a lot of lawsuits in this society.
It stands to reason that he’s always discouraging me from doing things.
What do you think?