Can you lift a bag of groceries over your head?
It began on March 1. Surgery for a torn bicep. It was followed by three months of physical therapy.
In early June, when I was two weeks from being done, I felt something in my shoulder snap while reaching for my phone on my bed. I knew immediately it was a torn rotator cuff. The MRI confirmed my expert diagnosis.
On June 28, I had another surgery to repair the tear. It was followed by six months of physical therapy. SIX MONTHS!!
Here’s how it adds up:
Two surgeries. Nine months of PT. Sixty-seven sessions. Plus, countless hours of doing the exercise at home. Oh yeah, I almost forgot the monthly checkup with my orthopedic surgeon.
We can now add it up because I graduated from physical therapy and doctor’s visits on Monday. Finally!
But, as I was getting ready to leave PT, I had to complete a survey. It was a page of simple questions about what my affected arm can and can not do. For instance, they want to know if I can drive. Yes, I can. Can I sleep on the affected arm? Sometimes, but it's better than a couple of months ago. Does it affect your work and hobbies? Can you catch and throw a ball? I can throw it but not sure about the catching part yet. Maybe I need the quarterback warm-up thing where he throws the ball and someone else catches it. Finally, they want to know if I can lift a bag of groceries above my head.
What kind of question is that? How am I supposed to answer that? When does anyone ever lift a bag of groceries that high? Why would anyone do that? When you go food shopping, do you ever pick the bag up that high?
So, I asked the therapist about the question. She laughed and said, “Yeah, right. I always laugh whenever I see this.” When I asked her why they didn’t do something about it, she said, “The questionnaire is done at a higher pay grade than mine. Just fill it, go home, get on with your life and try not to come back here.”
Yes, ma'am!! So I did exactly that. We hugged it out and I left the building, hopefully never to return. It’s four days later. So far so good. But on Tuesday, I was unloading some groceries from the back of the car. My first thought was could I lift a bag over my head? I just brought them inside without trying. Maybe someday…maybe.