I have a very arthritic back and all this inactivity is playing havoc with it. As a rule I am not a shower person, I like to bath every morning. Helps my tummy mesh and loosens up my spine.
I was feeling particularly frustrated when I woke up this morning. I went into the bathroom to shower and as is now usual sat on the lid of my lovely new loo seat to wrestle on the Limbo. Looking wistfully at the bath I sat thinking of the day some 3.5 weeks hence when the cast will hopefully be off and I'll be able to sink down into a lovely bath.
Before I knew what I was doing I was standing in the bath and instead of turning on the shower I stood looking at my feet, figuring out if I could get up if I sat down. I can't use my tummy, you see, and I rely on putting my weight through my feet and pushing myself up in the grab rails on the side of the bath. I thought I could. I wasn't sure but I thought I could. So down I sat. Easy. Up I got using just one foot and both my hands. Not easy but not impossible.
"Would it be safe to do so when the bath was wet?" I pondered as I clambered back out of the bath and sat on loo seat. "Yes, there's grippy patches on the base of the bath & if I empty the water out before I stand up it should be fine," I said out loud to no one but myself and the robin chirping outside the window.
10 minutes later my beautiful, much-longed for bath was drawn. Grabbing the rails in the wall then the ones on the side of the bath I lowered myself in. Yes, it was only a few inches deep. Yes, it was a bit of an effort. Yes, it was wonderful. Warm, nurturing and oh-so-relaxing for my aching back.
I only stayed in for 3 or 4 minutes then with absolute focus, commitment and the belief I wasn't going to slip I got out. Took longer to get back onto the loo seat than it did to run the bath and enjoy it but that is not the point.
It is true, this was about getting some relief for the pain in my back. But it was so much more than this.
It was about pushing boundaries - perceived and actual. Not in an arrogant, ego-driven, foolish way. It was about seeing what I can do, rather than what I can't. It was about opening up the opportunity for choice.
I won't be getting in the bath again for a few days I'd imagine as I was utterly exhausted afterwards. However, I know that I can. For my mental health and physical progress this is a gift beyond measure.