MobiliserMobiliser Diary

Laura's Daily diary

Tuesday 25th September

If actually think about it I probably suffer from back pain most of the time. But you get used to it and it becomes the norm! My mid back aches the most. And my neck.
I have a rotated pelvis. It is rotated forward and up on the right hand side. This is because i have a scar on my right hand side of my stomach and the muscles that side have healed tighter and stronger, so pull my pelvis up and forward. I have a noticeable difference in body fat on the right hand side compared to my left hand side of my stomach....less fat on the right.

As my hip is higher on the right when i sit on the horse that leg seems shorter, the stirrup leather seems longer. I have stretched my stirrups to unequal lengths.

When i have had sports massages in the past they have hut A LOT! And was adviced i needed one every 2 weeks!! But cant afford that.
The sports massage focused a lot on my glutes. As have tight muscles here due to riding.

Used the Mobiliser this morning in Marlow when collected it. Made me giggle again!!
Wasn't too sore...little tender but definitely not sore as had predicted it would be.

Ginny and I both very excited about having it for 2 months.
Ginny has named hers Mikey. Mine is Milly.....a pretty, girly name...hoping that means she wll be gentle with me and kind!

Had the most awful rest of day....everything went wrong, ran round like a lunatic, got soaked and late for everything! Sposed to be going out to supper with an old friend, but was an hour behind time so just got there to have a drink. Didn't have time to use the Mobiliser.....had been looking forward to using it all day. :-(
Got back at 11:30....exhausted....but itching to use Mobiliser so unfolded it and did 15 minute program. When so tired was quite nice and relaxing.


Wednesday 26th September

Rolled out of bed at 6am....SO tired! Rolled onto Mobiliser. Pulled duvet down ontop of me!!
So nice and warm after 5 minutes....lay there thinking about the cold winter and thinking it should be able to be plugged into a timer so that the Mobiliser warms itself up 10 minutes before you wake up.....would make getting out of a warm bed onto it in the winter much more bearable!!

This morning the left hand side of my mid back was very painful when using it. Right hand side fine. But left hand side definitely SORE!
Felt it working my glutes this morning.

Think it could be rather addictive...no pain no gain attitude....now its sore rather feels like its doing some good...by 9am want to go on it again!!
Is there a limit to how many times can use it a day?!

Felt taller on my horse today. Always stretch arms up and round and get myself more felxible when get on horse, but today those exercises easier....felt taller and legs longer, heel easier to drop down.

Used it mid afternoon as going out in evening.
Mid back SORE! Really feel it working my glutes.
Left side, less pronounced difference, but definitely sorer than right side.
15 minutes past way too quickly....only seemed like 5 minutes.....definitely slightly addictive!!

About hour afterwards develop a rash down back of thighs....red, spotty and blotchy....
Cant think have worn anything new, eaten anything funny....Wonder whether this has anything to do with Mobiliser, but sure it cant be.

Had visit from an old friend at lunchtime. She used the Mobiliser. LOVED it!
She doesnt do any sport at all. Student.
Her muscles, by self admission, are pretty minimal. She thought it was great....interesting dialogue if you were overhearing and couldnt see.....details not needed but she certainly found the experience pleasureable!!!

My 2 housemates tried it this evening.
1 of them has a very bad upper back. When Mobiliser worked that part it really hurt her, but she like the rest of it. Said it really felt like it was stretching her and putting her in alignment and moving her vertebrae into the correct position. After about 5 minutes her eyes closed and she stopped talking....so left her to it. She finished and collapsed into bed literally 5 minutes later.
Will get her next day update tomorrow.
Other housemate doesn't do much sport. She thought it was "AMAZING!" Was very sleepy and spaced out afterwards.

Fi still reluctant to use it again as says she could hardly walk after using it at Newbury show. Conceeded that she may use it when shes drunk....as then her muscles owuld be relaxed more so hurt less!!!
Still reluctant to admit that it hurt her so much cos her muscles are so tight and need it!!




Thursday 27th September

Used this morning. Duvet definitely needs to come with me as roll out of bed!!
Rash gone by this morning.
Feel it really working my glutes this morn.
Again mid back still sore, but less uneven than yesterday.

15 minutes after using Mobiliser rash back again....this time on my bottom too.....
Could this be some form of toxin release or something....???
Now midday and its staring to fade again.

Neck and lower back achy today. Notice them more than usual.
Mid back always achy. But today bit more achy on right than left.

Just been riding for somebody who had told i was getting the Mobiliser....lots of questions about it today and would like me to bring it over for her and her husband to try.

Lunchtime and want to use it again....
What's the longest can use it for? And how many times a day?

Saturday 29th September

Had an emergency admission to hospital on Thursday night. Got out last night. All very dramatic....i should have a starring role in Casualty!!

Back REALLY achy....always gets sore when get stressed. Very sore neck and mid and lower back really aching.

In the morning did normal 15 minute program.
Legs and glutes easier than earlier in the week.
Back more even. But extremely sore all over.
Got less sore as heater started to get warmer and further into the massage.

Then did top body massage as was improvement in my back having done 1st 15 minutes.
Much much easier as massage went on.
Massage finished and lay there for a minute to wait for light headed to go away.....fell asleep for half an hour!!

In the evening the pain was again more even across my back, less focussed on the left hand side.
Again glutes and legs not painful, feeling much more relaxed.


Sunday 30th September

Didnt do massage in morning as had to get up really early to go to a dressage competition.

Drove lorry there, rode 3 tests then drove home.
Usually on way home shift about in my seat a lot to try and get comfortable as back painful after riding for long periods. But noticed once got home that had been pretty comfortable for the journey and hardly had to shift position at all.

In evening neck really achy and mid back sore.

Crossed over arms to try and get deeper between my shoulders.

Left hand side of my mid back really painful during massage again. But both horses i rode during the day were heavy on the right hand side, so use the left side of my back more.

Starting to notice how uneven my hips must be as my right leg is coming off the massage bed moments before my left when the rollers role down.

Glutes and legs quite relaxing now. Think maybe might star using the weights on legs soon??

Less light headed when got up.


Monday 1st October

When got up neck ached and just under and below my left collarbone was painful.

Crossed arms over my chest again.

On my back left hand side of back sore close to my spine and right side sore further away from my spine.

Back lady came to do my horse today. She also puts my back into place.
Last time she saw me said i had to go and get more sports massages as my muscles were SO TENSE!
So asked her to have a feel of my back and compare to last time she saw me....said there was a noticeable change and that my muscles seemed more maleable. Still a long way to go but definitely less tense!

Tuesday 9th October

Had a bone marrow test last Tuesday as part of the preparation for the stem cell transplant.
On the back of my hip bone. Caused a large bruise. Have been able to ride as usual, but havent been able to use the Mobiliser as the pressure on the bruise hurt too much. Did try, but didnt last very long.
Has healed now....so cant wait to getback on the Mobiliser today.

My neck is so so sore. Noticed itmuch mroe the past few days than have done before. Maybe because my neck pain decreased when was using the Mobiliser the first week and now notice the pain much more now it is returning having not used the Mobiliser for a week.
Sore lower back again too.
Is funny how you get so used to being in pain that you dont really pay much attention to it......but having the pain reduced during last week i now notice how much pain my neck and back were in.

Cant wait to start using the Mobiliser again.....

Off to do a session now!
October 9th

Expected my back to be so sore when using Mobiliser after a week and considering how sore my neck was.
But it wasnt!
Crossed arms over.

Now shoulders achy.
When using it felt like i wanted it to massage my shoulders and neck more than it was.

Legs dont hurt at all now.

So think i might do morning sessions just on my back as feel my back needs way more work.

Then do evening session with weights on my legs to try and work a bit deeper on my legs now they are relaxed.
Have been trying to get to the computer for the past few days.....knew you would be wondering where my diary had disappeared to!!

9th October-17th October

Nothing specific to report daily.

Just that Milly the Mobiliser and i are having a love affair!!

Mid back still sorer than any other part of body when on machine than anywhere else, but much much reduced.
Lower back and neck still ache during the day, but noticing it a lot less.
Feeling generally more supple and mobile.

Mobiliser is AMAZING!! Now such a routine part of life it will be very very weird not having it.
Cant wait to get on it in the evenings.
Unbelievebly, it helps me unwind and relax.....i say unbelievably as i HATE sitting still and am not good at relaxing....like to be on the go....but now really enjoy my 15 minutes of relaxing, chilling out time. Sounds corny, but really does ease the stresses of the day!!

Got to the point now where the massage is actually relaxing!! Which at the beginning seemed a very far off aim.
Minimal pain when it goes over top part of glutes and mid back, but everywhere else so relaxing now.
Tend to be using program 2, so just doing upper body. Using that rather than full body programme have seen a much quicker and noticeable improvement in my muscles over the last week.

Reduced my painkillers (Amitryptaline) from 4 pills at night (40mg) to 2 pills at night (20mg).

Started to find that when on the Mobiliser my stomach, after about 5 minutes starts to gurgle. This is great!!! As i have greatly reduced bowel sounds and movement due to the Crohns disease.....so gurgles and movement is really good!
Have experienced this before with sports massage and also reflexology. Talked with my father about the possibilities of massage making an improvement to my Crohns disease and that it would be an interesting experiment to see if did reduce my pain and did help my bowel function better, as people have mentioned it as a complimentary therapy before. But never been able to afford to find out!
Am beggining to think that it actually may be making a difference to my pain and my stomach.....thinking about it, relating it back a couple of weeks, i do think my pain is reduced, and my stomach does feel a bit more relaxed. Which considering my recent bouts of illness, plus the fact that i have kept riding and working as hard as ever during these bouts when it probably would have been more sensible to rest, is very encouraging.

Had the chemotherapy for the first part of the stem cell transplant at the weekend.
Kept riding right up until 2 hours before going into hospital!!!
Still used my Mobiliser since then.
My white blood cell count and platelet count are being tested daily, as i go in for blood tests each day. They havent dropped yet.
When, and if, they do drop too low to stop bruising i will have to stop using the Mobiliser until the counts go back up.
However, i start injecting growth hormone tomorrow, each day, to make my stem cells multiply and flow out of my bone marrow and into my blood for stem cell harvest next week. When i have had a couple of days of growth hormone my counts will start to shoot back up again anyway.....so cross fingers i will only have to have a day or two maximum without using the Mobiliser.....cross fingers even more they dont drop too low and i can still keep using it.
Rather addicted to using it now....will miss it, even for a day!!

Missed the first evening i went into hospital and very much noticed my back aching in bed, having not used it that night.
Hadnt had back ache in bed for a few days.

My stem cell harvest is Monday and Tuesday. And then i can go back to riding and working, as my counts will be back up and my immune system functioning again. Just have to be good at keeping clean and washing hands....not something a horsey girl is used to!!!
So only a week and a half off riding in total. Pretty good considering i reckon!!

Hoping that maybe using the Mobiliser for this week in combination with having a break from riding and lots of exercise and strain on my muscles should mean that there should be greater improvement due to using the mobilser as i wont be "ruining" the good, relaxing work it has done on my muscles....???

But last week, aswell as noticing how much easier and more relaxing using the Mobiliser was i started to notice change in my riding.
Once the Mobiliser started to feel relaxing rather than painful i presume my muscles were beginning to relax.....very noticeable when i was riding.
Started to find it easier to drop and relax my hips when doing dressage and really let the weight drop to my heel and felt i was sitting deeper with the horses moevement and generally more relaxed and supple when riding.
Feeling like i was sitting taller and more open through my shoulders.
Also wasnt aching after riding 3 or 4 times and teaching......wow!!!

So all in all a pretty good week.

Didnt notice any big changes daily i have to admit....but then not having written anything for that week and looked back and compared there really has been a BIG change and improvement.

I am in love with Milly the Mobiliser!!! I think i may kidnap her forever!!

Sunday 4th November

Same as before, noticing less obvious changes.

Had some time when couldnt use the Mobiliser due to my platelets being low. But GREAT to be back using it.

After the chemo my stomach had a delayed reaction and was VERY VERY sore starting a week after chemo. This is apparently normal.
I was a bit tentative about using the Mobiliser when i was in such pain......as usually pain causes me to curl up in a little ball!! Hence my posture is so shocking, years spent hunched over, as this way my stomach is more comfortable. Would have thought that stretching would cuase me more pain....but i was wrong! Admittedly the firt few minutes were quite sore for my stomach, but by the end my pain was suprising less than when i started using the machine. This has continued since.....am very impressed!

My mid back, due to my posture because of pain, is by far the sorest part at the moment.
But my back pain during using the Mobiliser is much more even now than it used to be.

I am now finding using the Mobiliser quite relaxing. Would like to increase the intensity now i feel that my muscles are getting more relaxed. Have already started crossing my arms over. What would the next step be? To have weights on my legs? 1 or 2 weights and where should i position them to begin with?
Havent had to use Mobiliser so much to get the same benefits as before. Dont feel i need to use it twice a day anymore.

No major changes i dont think. Pretty even on both sides of my back now, unless ridden a horse that was particularly tense on one side then that evening i will be uneven in my muscles.

Havent taken the pad off as i have lost quite a bit of weight, due to my treatment, so i am pretty bony now. So didnt think it would be a good idea to remove the pad as i probably need the protection of it until i gain some weight again.

Very nice to have reached a stage where the Mobiliser is relaxing and has been of such benefit to my muscles that i am able to use it a less.....seems a good sign in terms of muscle improvement.

I still am gaining benefits in my riding having due to using it. My hips are more relaxed and am feeling that i am ableto sit deeper into the saddle and have more movement through my hips.

Ginny also was using Mikey less, as again she was finding that she didnt need to use it as much.
Think she should have written by now (she has been VERY busy) but she had a fallthe other day so has started using Mikey much more again to help relieve the pain and stiffness from the fall.

Saturday 24th November

Rode on the gallops at a racing yard for the first time yesterday morning. Very different style of riding than the eventing. Although got good string muscles for riding was using new muscles yesterday....standing up in VERY short stirrups!

Was exhasuted last night as busy day after that, so crashed into bed very very early.
But CANT WAIT to use milly today.....my godness i ache this morning....particularly my lower back.

Wednesday 5th December

My back is so so sore at the moment.
Sure it must be because mybody is trying desperately to cope itht he amount of exercise im doing and build up muscle pretty much from nothing.

Lower back the sorest. Sorer on the right. Keep catching it on the right hand side when i bend down.

Did program 2 last night on Milly. Wasnt actually as sore as i expected it to be considering how sore my back was yesterday....did lots of riding then a cooking job....standing up for 6 hours of cooking job finished my bcak off it think!!
Was better afterwards. Bit freer this morning.

Think will be addicted to Milly again over the next couple of weeks.....!!

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