Physical Therapy

Today I will be starting up physical therapy for my right shoulder. I should have began sooner, but I like to put things off a bit. I took a hard fall on the concrete sidewalk at K St. and 10th back on January 3rd. It was the worst fall I have ever had. 
  Gordon and I had parked at a nearby public garage and we walked a couple of blocks down K St. to the IMAX theater to see Star Wars in 3-D. That was all fun and happiness, but it was on the way back to the garage when I had my accident. It was wet and drizzle was in the air. I was wearing my new foot brace which is supposed to help with my drop-toe (M.S.  jargon for difficulty lifting your foot) which I hadn't become used to using. We were crossing along the intersection talking when my right foot with the brace stuck hard on the yellow, bumpy pads which are installed at every crosswalk. Ironic that the thing that is supposed to aid disabled people is what mainly contributed to my fall. I lost balance suddenly and completely. 
  I just remember how fast it happened, like I was hit by a surprise bus, in the form of a concrete sidewalk. I put my right arm forward naturally on my way down, and it's a miracle I didn't break something. But it jarred my shoulder hard. Real hard. It gave me a quick undersdtanding of what it might be like to fall from a building. My whole body locked up and I was unable to even try to move. I remember hearing a stranger yell, Oh shit! as it happened, and much to the merit of humanity two men came to assist. Gordon helped me roll over, and I was totally soaked and damaged. My shoulder felt like it had been inverted. I asked one of the gentlemen to pull my right arm to help me straighten it out. Finally after what seemed like a while these guys with Gordon got me too my feet. I'm a big, heavy guy and I was virtual dead weight with my legs freaking out on me. No way was it an easy feat.
   We eventually made it back to the car, and Gordon was given charge of driving. Since that day I have had very limited range of motion in my shoulder. I can't even soap under my left armpit or raise my arm over my head all the way. Hopefully this can be healed completely through therapy and not surgery. We shall see how it goes.