physio is it any good ?

this old body of mine has been going down hill fast of late,so my nuroe is sending me for yet another course of physio.have to be honest i,m not looking forward to it.i always feel so awkward there and i,m always embarrassed by my body as i,ve weight on that no matter what i do won,t come off.i,m surrounded by all these lovely slim young things and here i am fat old and can,t do anything about it.so i ,m thinking why bother going and putting myself through it all again.is the physio really worth it .last time it really didn,t do too much good and some of the things the want me to do are reall quiet painful.so what i need to know is should i go or not? does the benefits out weigh the humiliation i know i will feel.has anyone found physio to be helpful please i value all of your comments.

i found my neuro physio really helpful,infact shes been of more help to me than anyone,after my course finished,she sent me away with pilates excercises,and i do them most days,on my bed, because i am stuck in bed at the moment and have been for some months now, on really bad days.i dont do them,because its too much, but i do manage to do them most days,i feel its important to me,and i can still stand for a while.even thogh my ms is quite bad.

jaki i9m waiting on neuro phyysio,wot is the diffrence between that and normall physio?

Hi ya

I am doing months of physio. I personally found them very useful and the most helpful of all he ‘specialists’. They are so ‘human’ and have a plan with you. They do listen to you. My body and strength has improved with the various excercises they are giving me. The only difference I have found with a neuro physio is that their expertise is with people with neurological conditions and they know about the fatigue issues. Oh and they are also allowed more time with me!

Marty

I think neuro physios have more understanding of fatigue and only being able to manage a certain amount of exercise before you run out of juice, they also realise that numbness and altered sensations can make a big difference to the exercises you can manage.

Mine gave me pilates exercises for core strength and Tai Chi exercises for balance and keeping flexible. I went every week for a couple of months while I learned how to do the exercises but now do them myself at home. They have really helped and I can notice the difference

My neuro physio also got things moving with an OT assessment at home and was happy to be my ‘expert opinion’ on the distance I could walk/mobility when I applied for my blue badge

Chris

I went to see a neuro physio and yes, she was a lovely slim young thing but she was also a fantastic help to me, I could see she was massively overbooked but not once did she rush me and she took her time explaining and going through the exercises, she was a gem. She also worked out a plan for me to do at home which I did religiously, I soon saw results and my core muscles improved by the day. I must say that to get a result you really have to persevere.These people are 100% professional and see all shapes, sizes and abilities and that’s what they are there for - people with serious health problems, they aren’t there to judge. I would say go for it!

Suex

The neuro physios specialise in helping people with neurological illness and problems, they really understand things like MS and know just what to do to try and help you,mine was so good and shes helped me more than anyone.hope you get the same result.

Hi

As others have said, I’ve found seeing a neuro physio to be extremely helpful. They’ve always been very good at seeing where I have specific weakness and how I try and compensate for it, and so can tailor the exercises they get me to do. They’ve always been understanding of things like fatigue and pain, and so I’ve always free to take as many breaks as I need.

My walking & posture always improves as a result, so I’d recommend going for it, just asking for lots of rest when you need it.

Dan

I’m assuming, from what you say, that this is a group exercise class?

When I had physio, it was one-to-one, and the exercises were customised to me personally. Admittedly, I paid for it myself, so perhaps standard NHS fare is different. But apart from the potential embarrassment factor, I can’t see how a group can address the specific needs of everyone in the class. No two people with MS will have exactly the same strengths and weaknesses, so you need a physio regime that’s tailored to you. If that’s NOT what you’re getting, and you’re just being lumped into a regular “one size fits all” class, I think you need to press for a personal consultation. Then you can get exercises designed for you, and practice them yourself, in the privacy of your home.

Tina

The physios I’ve met were qualified for MS only no other neuro conditions. So they were more knowledgable about MS than your everyday physio.

Physios as a rule would never take group classes and how you got to this conclusion I am confused by. An NHS physio is just as qualified as a private one and I think it’s slightly elitist to think otherwise. They will both fit exercies to an individal person. In physiotherapy there is no one size fits all MS or no MS.

My reason for assuming it must be some kind of group class was the comment about being surrounded by slim young things!

If it wasn’t a class of some sort, then how would you ever be “surrounded” by anyone? My physio was completely private - nobody but me and the physio. But Mistymoo’s experience apparently wasn’t like that, for whatever reason.

I wasn’t suggesting that an NHS physio was in any way less qualified - no idea where you got that from. But I do know one-to-one time tends to be more limited on the NHS, so I was simply speculating that perhaps that had led to a referral to a class, rather than a private consultation. It’s certainly possible to have group classes in physio, as my local MS centre runs some. Not something that’s my cup of tea, and I quite understand if it wouldn’t appeal to the original poster either. Which is why I thought it important to check if that’s what had been offered, and to press for a private consultation, if necessary, as that would overcome the embarrassment factor.

I might have misunderstood the whole scenario. But either way, nothing “elitist” about anything I’ve said.

I have always been treated by the nhs neuro physios, to start with I had 1 to 1 sessions for quite a while then as I improved an 8 week exercise class was suggested. These are run by the hospital I attend in the physio department.

There was a group of about 8 - 10 people all with MS; some where younger than me - some older, some were fatter than me - some were slimmer, some had more problems with their MS than me - some were more able. The class was very relaxed and if at any time you had to rest you just sat in one of the many chairs around the room. There were 3 physios in attendance so plenty of help with the exercises.

At the end of the 8 weeks we each had a chat with our physio and decided what to do next, some went back to 1 to 1 sessions for specific problems, some repeated the class and some were moved on to Tai Chi classes.

The group thing meant that there was also a chance to chat with other MS’ers and how they coped with everyday life, we laughed a lot so that was good therapy too!

I’m currently having NHS one to one physio and I’m really enjoying it ~ the physio is very helpful, she’s reffered me to an OT who will be able to help with my cognative problems, which no one else has suggested.

Karina

I was referred to neurological physio - appointment came through quite quickly. Physio spent an hour taking my medical history then assessed me and suggested exercises, recommended a balance cushion for balance and a squashy ball for hand exercises.Was seen 2 weeks later, given more exercises and she’s signed me up for the exercise class same as floopy mentioned. Just waiting for the letter with my start date. Used to go to the gym but got to much of an effort. Physio will keep an eye on me.

So, in reply to your question - YES. They know what their doing and can help. A little bit of exercise makes you feel better and does good. Use it or loose it as the saying goes.

Jen x