I listened to one of my patients use this term to describe how he felt during the months before he underwent a total hip replacement. He felt as though his strength was slowly disappearing. There were no alarms, no buzzer, nothing loud to warn him. He simply stopped parking so far away from the store, stopped walking across the lawn, avoided going for walks, avoided stairs, then let the family go places without him because he did not want to hold anyone back.
It is understandable when something such as arthritis becomes severe. How does it even get that bad? How does your strength slowly disappear? With some discomfort, it becomes easier to sit still. Who wants to rock that boat? However, this is the type of thing physical therapy can help with. When you or a family member/friend start to feel as though you are moving less often, or it feels strange to move, becomes an effort; please seek guidance. Do not just accept it as part of middle or older age. On the other hand it may not be wise to go too far in the other direction either. If you go to a gym and do what you see others doing that can be dangerous.
Physical Therapists are movement assessment specialists.
We know what muscles should be doing what and when they should be working. Once you get evaluated by a PT, we can usually spot an imbalance or figure out which muscles are not working properly. Physical Therapy treatment at that point could involve techniques to help your joints move better, your muscles work better, to ease your discomfort , and then its time to strengthen.
PT is designed to be a catalyst to getting your life back. Look for therapists that teach you how to manage your symptoms, how to move, how to increase your overall health and wellness. This will be much more likely to put you in a position of strength rather than a position of weakness. The sooner this is done the more you know. The more you know hopefully the longer you stay independent.
So just remember!
try not to let things wait until another season, or take too long to see if it will get better. Try not to let that little thief come in and slowly steal your strength and independence. Try to notice how an older member of your family is moving- sometimes people downplay it or try not to let family see they are having difficulty because they are private or do not want to “be a burden”. The sooner those movement issues get addressed, hopefully the sooner they get resolved.