two treatments in (out of a projected 12)

As of yesterday, the inflammation from the fall is nearly gone, my level of pain has decreased significantly, and it no longer hurts to get up and down. The prognosis is that I will be pain-free by week's end.

I'm still not doing chores, bending over, lifting, etc., and am continuing to alternate walking/sitting/standing/lying down to avoid back strain.

Doctor said yesterday I should be able to resume some normal activity next Monday, including riding, preferably at the walk, but definitely no sitting trot or canter until things are further along.

There are times now when I don't feel anything in my back - what pleasure that is! And every day I feel improvement.

quick little update

I've discovered that I have a rotated pelvic joint which is putting pressure on a disc and is likely the structural misalignment responsible for my psoas muscle being tight on and off on a regular basis for the past two years.

I fell down the stairs last night, in a completely separate and sort of intriguing moment, which I'm referring to as a "wake-up fall," and in a stroke of good fortune my ND had just referred me the day before yesterday to a wonderful Swiss MD/chiropractor who is now offering treatment, which I started today.

The most fascinating aspect of this is that my pelvic rotation exactly mirrors Keil Bay's most common chiropractic issue. It amazes me that he and I not only share the same homeopathic constitutional remedy, the same slight stiffness to the left, but we also have the same pelvic rotation!

Slightly less fascinating, but interesting nonetheless, is that my struggles with my riding position over the past two years are a direct result of this issue. When the doctor put the diagrams on the screen today, I immediately realized why it has been so hard to straighten my lower back and to get my legs in the correct position without shifting my upper body forward.

The good news is that my x-rays reveal a very healthy spine from top to bottom. The prognosis is full recovery with no loss of normal motion. And the doctor has reminded me, gently, that I need to get some extra weight off.

I am not able to ride or do barn chores for around 10 days, and I am walking around like a very old woman right now. But hopefully things will be back to a very good place in about a month.

I didn't know all this when I decided to take a break from the blog, but as is often the case, I guess I sort of did "know."

I'll try to post a few little updates but for now, I'm taking care of my back and looking forward to being back in the saddle, better than ever, come fall.

taking a break until September

I may post a few photos here and there, but have decided to close up shop for awhile to focus on daily life.

Enjoy the season - see you in September!

slow weekend and the conundrum

We had a thunderstorm last night, some more rain, and temps are now below 90 for the week, if the forecast is correct.

This morning I sweated more doing yoga (16 poses that will change your life - but I did only 8) than I did doing barn chores!

I'm still struggling with tightness in the lower back. I can stretch it out with yoga, can ease it with a rolled blanket, and also by lying flat, but I suspect the real cure is to go out and ride.

The hard part of that is getting motivated to do what it takes to be in the saddle, moving. I guess it's one of those things where you have to push through the hard part to get to the good part.

And it's also a lesson in not letting oneself get to the hard place, in the first place. One of those things I have to learn over and over again.

Simply said: if riding makes your body (not to mention mind and soul) happy, do it every day.

awakening the root chakra

Yesterday morning I did a yoga class that was supposed to awaken the root chakra. It was wonderful! We did kriyas, which were fun and a bit wild, and in one meditation I became the big oak tree that stands just outside our barn. Morning chores were delightful. I was stretched and happy.

Late in the afternoon, I realized that I not only awakened the root chakra, I may have sent it into a state of overdrive!

It's interesting that the root chakra is our base of support and groundedness, and the only thing that brought relief to the incredible tightness in my lower back last evening was laying on/leaning against a rolled blanket. A bolster of support.

I suspect the lower back issue is a BIG reminder that when I don't ride, my connection to the earth slips. Yesterday morning was the perfect one to tack up and enjoy the cool air, the ethereal fog, and Keil Bay's big movement. In a sort of magical counterintuitiveness, his lightness grounds me, in the very best way.

This morning it is sunny and already getting humid and hot. I need to find a yoga class that will soothe and gently stretch my back. Meanwhile I am typing with a rolled blanket behind me, and hopefully the barn and the Big Bay will take care of the rest.

interesting p/s the first:

I just did 20 minutes of a yoga class focusing on establishing a foundation, and now, sitting here eating my breakfast, I can literally feel the tightness releasing. It literally feels like it's draining out the bottom of my back.