Uplifting

He lay on his side, one leg bent and the other straight out to balance his body.

She rubbed her hands together to warm them before touching bare skin. Bracing her thighs against the table edge, she ran her fingertips along the stiff ridge until she found the right spot. Then, she pulled… hard. Her nails digging into tender flesh.

He rose in protest against her manipulations, letting out a low groan.

“You let me know if this is too much,” she said, worried about her patient.

“I’m fine. You’re an invigorating young lady,” he chided, flexing his thawing shoulder.

The 100 Word Challenge, a writing prompt created by Velvet Verbosity, takes a single theme to tell a story in only 100 words ~ no more, no less. This week’s theme is ‘Invigorating.’

* My recent sessions with a physical therapist brought flashbacks of two years ago and my first experiences with PT. I had what is colloquially called “frozen shoulder.” I had lost all but about 30% range of motion in my right shoulder, and when I did try to lift my arm to wash my hair, or dress, or cook dinner, the pain was excruciating.

At a certain point in my six months of PT, the therapists would have me lie on my side, like this patient, while one of them would find this certain place along my scapula, then with prying fingertips, lift me off the exam table by my shoulder blade.

Hurt like a mofo, but it was the only thing that truly helped to ‘thaw’ my shoulder tendons and muscles. I now have almost full range of motion, but it’s never going to be back to 100%.