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Have You Tried Aquatic Therapy?
Aquatic therapy refers to treatments and exercises performed in water for relaxation, fitness, physical rehabilitation, and other therapeutic benefit. My son never tried this for two reasons. He could not tolerate the heat and chemical smell of indoor pools and he had a central line. He could swim in outdoor pools if he wore his dry suit, and if you ever wore one, it’s not very relaxing.
Just wading in water or swimming can be very relaxing but have you ever sought out a professional to assist you with aquatic therapy? If so, did you swim in-doors and were you able to tolerate the conditions? Share your experience.
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22 Replies
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Colleen,
I can really relate to your son with all of what you’re saying. The smell of pools is something that I actually like (I like that chlorine smell for some reason) But it does get to my head after awhile and the indoor pool areas that I have been to really get hot and make me super light headed. I do find pools to be relaxing though especially when the water is nice and warm. One of the better pools that I was in was a salt water pool that was warm! It didn’t have the same smell as the regular pools and just was more therapeutic to me! I know they have some centers that offer relaxation in a pool (more like a personal bubble) and the water they use for it is salt water.
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Before I had a central IV line, swimming gave me the best exercise and relaxation. A number of years ago I did sign up for therapeutic water excercise after back surgery – it was very therapeutic and since I love the water it was great. I gave me more excercise than any other – it works gently on the whole body. Warm salt water was even better, less pressure with little gravity pull.
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@brittany-foster salt water, especially for outdoor pools, has increasingly become more used than chlorine. I wish this was a popular option when we had our small, above ground pool in our backyard. Cullen enjoyed it (wearing a dry-suit) but even outdoors the chlorine would take it’s toll on his breathing. He dad to swim in moderation.
We no longer have a pool and I miss it! Swimming to me is so relaxing and it PHers can tolerate the conditions I can see where it would be both physically and mentally beneficial.
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@cdvol3gmail-com I apologize that I can’t remember. Were you the person who asked me a while back about the dry suits that my son used? If so, did you look into it? I haven’t heard of any adults with central lines giving the dry suit a try . It’s probably so expensive to make for adults.
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No apologies necessary – no I did not ask about wet suits. I use to wear one when (before PAH) for diving. Too uncomfortable. With subQ I could swim covering site with Aqua Cel Foam, but with IV I no longer swim – waiting for the implantable pump!!!
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I realize this is a tad late to the conversation, but I love the water. We have a pool. I enjoy getting into the pool and doing stretched and some type of movement when I can. I have a friend who is a physical therapist. She made me a plan to follow several years back.
Like many of you, an indoor pool is difficult for me. I think the fact that the chlorine level is so high and no fresh air to mix with. I do not have that issue with our pool. My hubby also uses a different type of chlorine that is not so strong once it is mixed.
Swimming and just floating in my pool offers me so much calmness. I cannot wait until I can get in and move about and float. Last weekend I did put my legs in for a few minutes since it was about 70 outside.
This post just made me smile as I think about getting in there and enjoying the water, soon. Until then, I sit out back and watch the water as it offers a calmness, too. Do y’all find that looking at water, like a lake, pool, or water feature, provides peace for you?
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@jenc it’s never too late to join a topic in the forums. I love looking at water and the calming effect it provides. I’ve noticed many clinics and hospital have fountains and aquariums and I’m thinking it’s just for that reason. We’re talking about swimming water but Cullen also loves rain, especially the sound of it. He listens to an app of it sometimes to help him fall asleep.
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@jenc it’s definitely my happy place to be by the ocean. I have a beach house that is right on the water and it’s awesome to be there in the summer. I love going for a drive to the beach when I need to clear my head too. There are benches set up that you can just look out at the water and it was always so peaceful for me. I do a lot of thinking at the beach and it feels really rejuvenating. I love the salt air too! I agree that the chlorine when it is too high just really bothers me and it also burns my eyes. I admit that I LOVE The smell of it though, as weird as that may be. It’s like when people like the smell of gasoline LOL I love that chlorine smell. mmmmmmmm LOL!
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@colleensteele I also love the sound of rain ! It has always been relaxing for me. Funny story: I actually can’t listen to rain or water sounds on the phone when i go to sleep because it makes me have to go to the bathroom. Even when it is raining outside, I feel like if I ever wake up in the middle of the night I have to make a run for the bathroom or I’m not making it ! LOL
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Hey @colleensteele, I also love the sound of the rain. My mom has a porch with a tin roof, that is the perfect sleeping weather when it’s raining. I agree any water feature has a calming effect.
@brittany-foster, OMG too funny. I LOVE the actual smell of gas also. I love our pool when it smells of chlorine but not so strong, just enough to smell fresh.
I love the beach, too, the lake is just closer. But the beach is only a half-hour drive. Sadly, the beach is closed, so I am not sure that we can even drive on that part. The seawall is probably the only access at the time. I may have my hubby take me to see tomorrow. I do go on drives just to get out of the house. What about y’all?
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@brittany-foster @jenc the smell of chlorine often makes me sneeze and the smell of gas is ok…LOL! I’m wondering if those smells have a nostalgic connection for the both of you? When I walk into a hardware store, such as Home Depot, I breath in deep because I love the smell of the wood. It reminds me of when I was a child and my dad would do projects around the house, for example, refinishing our basement and building a deck. If I could bottle that smell I would.
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I find swimming and just standing in the pool to be relaxing. I cannot tolerate the indoor pool,high humidity and the
Higher chemical concentration. -
@jimi same for my son, even post-transplant. He can enjoy an outdoor pool but the indoor pool environment is too much for him. Do you have a private pool that you are able to enjoy?
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Hey @colleensteele, I am not sure about the pool smell being nostalgia. But, the gas is, I bet. My Dad and his twin brother, my uncle, owned a tire shop and an auto parts store. I was around that often. The gas certainly reminds me of my Dad, just like going to Discount tire, does.
I love the story about wood and thinking of your Dad and your childhood. Thanks for sharing.
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No pool, I use the nearest aquatic center that has an indoor and outdoor pools, special rates and hours for seniors. Wish it was open for anyone with a disability, that exercise would benefit. The water relieves the stress and helps with the weight issues. My daughter lives in a neighborhood with a community pool, had to get over the stares and rude comments, now it is all about the grand kids and my health
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@jimi I am sorry that you were faced with stares and some rude comments at the pool that you went to. Some people can be so ignorant. I understand this first hand. It always helps when you shift your focus onto other things, like your grandkids and doing the right thing for them and the next best thing for yourself. Thinking about the things in my life that I have to fight for always helps me through situations like this and helps me remain my best self. Hope this helps you too!
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Oh no, @jimi, I am so sorry to hear about the stares and rude comments. People can be awful, adults are the worst, it seems. I am happy that you can move past that to enjoy your time with the grandkids. That must be so uplifting when you can enjoy time with them. How many grandkids do you have?
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As we begin to see more sunshine in many areas, I thought this would be an interesting post to discuss. Has anyone found a way to enjoy aquatic therapy at home or elsewhere with PH? How do you feel exercising in the water versus not?
I’m looking forward to this soon, but our condo community is having its pool redone next month before the kids go on vacation.
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I’m on Subcu Remodulin, how do you all manage swimming in these meds? I would love to know, I miss it so much!
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Hi @Kira Cronk , it’s wonderful to see you pop in and ask a question. How have you been?
Like you, I love being in the water, so I can only imagine how difficult this has been for you while on the subq Remodulin. Thankfully, I’m on all oral treatments at this time. But now, some have talked about using a dry suit to continue enjoying water activities. One example is one post in which @Colleen shares more about the dry suits., I’ll post the link below.
Yes, adults have found dry suits for them, too. It is all about finding what works best and safest for you to get you back to those enjoyable activities. If you try it or other options, keep us posted. Accredo or another specialty pharmacy that supplies your Remo would also be a great person to ask. Many have worked for years and learned and evolved with their patients.
Enjoy a wonderful weekend!🤗
pulmonaryhypertensionnews.com
Have you used a Dry Suit for swimming? - Pulmonary Hypertension News Forums
Have you used a Dry Suit for swimming? - Pulmonary Hypertension News Forums
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@Kira Cronk Yes, a dry suit! Check out the forum link @Jen C shared. In a column, I shared some information about the dry suit I purchased for my son and how we protected him more underneath it in case of leaks. You can find it in the forum post, but I’ll also place it here.
https://pulmonaryhypertensionnews.com/columns/phantom-ph-haunts-son-post-transplant/We bought it off of Hammond, a company in the UK. They make them for children and adults. Here is the link. https://hammond-drysuits.co.uk/
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I was a competitive swimmer throughout my college years 40 some years a go and I missed it and kept looking for a way to effectively workout with my PAH. Last month I modified an old snorkel with a fitting so I can attach 50 foot of tubing. With my O2 bottle midway on the side I can swim the full length of a 25m pool. I am now doing interval workouts again and have worked up to just over 2,000m 3x a week. We also live on the water here in NW Florida so I am modifying a kayak cooler to hold my O2 so I can drag my bottle behind me using a tether and a waist belt and swim in the open waters of our bay.
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