Overcooked Physiotherapy

Part on of my journey into the world of physiotherapy can be found here http://anothermigraine.blogspot/physiotherapy-and-migraines.

There was a fair amount of trepidation as appointment two drew nearer.  The combination of the induced migraine and the neck pain from from my first appointment was still sharp in my mind.  To make me less inclined to attend, the physio told me that it would get worse before it got better.  I took a deep breath and began to ascend the staircase to the first floor.  We got straight down to business.  I undid the top few buttons of my shirt and lay face down on the bed.  The physio started to apply the pressure to my neck only this time she had a much better idea where the sweet spot what and it wasn't long before the pain meter was flickering in the red and I could see stars in front of my eyes.  The pain really was quite excruciating and only just bearable.  If the pain got any worse then I would have had to have stopped the treatment.  Apparently she was inflicting a 5.5 pain rating on me out of 6.  As the pain increased, the involuntary giggles started and my leg decided to get in on the act by flipping up in the air.  The more the pain, the higher my leg and the louder I laughed.  I am sure that the physio used this as an indicator as to when the pain subsided.  Leg touches down on the bed equals no more pain.  After some analysis and a glass of water, I was sent on my way for another week.   

The following week the combination of the pain and being face down for so long gave me a nose bleed.  A common problem that I have when I am run down and quite a problem when I am meant to lay face down for so long, so that week was cut a little short.  The following weeks came and went and so did the pain.  After six sessions we had come to the following conclusions:
1- I had a slippery C2.  Nobody had ever told me that before.  Apparently when applying pressure to one side of the C2 it slipped all the way to the other side rather than seating itself in the middle where it should be.
2- The treatment had not worked.  Not only that, but the frequency of my migraines had got worse which was quite a disaster.

Dr Dean Watson from Australia championed this trial and apparently it works for a lot of people.  So, as always, don't let my experience put you off if you want to try it for yourself!

But, this isn't the end of the story.  The physio (who shall remain nameless) took my increased migraines very seriously and personally and after a few weeks research and a number of conversations with Dr Watson, she offered me the chance for her to attempt to reverse the damage.  She had, in her own words, "over cooked it" and had applied too much pressure to my neck.  She was very upset about what she had done, but was confident that it was reversible.

So, should I risk it?  Would it get better, or could I end up with one long permanent migraine.  As I am the trusting type I decided to go for it, even though it meant more weeks of pain.  So I got six more weeks of free physio until we reached the point where no more progress was being made and I was pretty much back to where we started 5 long months ago with 1 to 2 migraines per week.

So was it worth it?  There are always risks when taking part in a trial.  That's why they are a trial!  I came out of it no better and no worse off which is a shame.  But I still think that it was worth it and I would love to hear from anyone who has had a success with this or any other physio treatment.