Climbing to Succeed

After a severe injury, a mountaineer finds relief in Pilates

by Siobhan Hardy

I was recently asked to name my greatest fear. Because of my accident several years ago, it was assumed I would answer "heights" or "falling." (I fell 60 feet from a sea cliff on the French Riviera while returning from a climb.) My answer was twofold. "I am afraid of being in pain and not being able to move."

Siobhan Hardy stands tall six years after her accident.

The rocks where I fell were razor sharp and tore into my flesh as I tumbled down the cliff. The worst blow ripped into my lower back, severing a large amount of nerve and muscle tissue. I was fortunate enough to eventually regain movement in that area, but I still have almost no feeling from my hip to mid-thigh-just a scramble of numbness and excruciating sensitivity to pressure.

After almost two months in a French hospital, I was transferred to a rehabilitation hospital in New York City. Some of the doctors seemed doubtful that I would ever be athletic again-they were aiming for me just to return home and get back to work. Devastated by their grim outlook but refusing to accept it, I began to look elsewhere to do my rehabilitation.

I was searching for a doctor or physical therapist who would be sympathetic to my recovery goals: pain reduction and freedom of movement. I wanted to be climbing again within a year; not to prove a point or to disregard my new lease on life, but simply because not climbing had created a void in my life. I had been climbing seriously for about three years, and I loved the peace that it gave me. It was like vertical Tai Chi, with my body and spirit in direct communication to succeed. At this point, though, I was still learning to walk again.

I thought that the medical community would embrace me and champion my drive to be better and stronger than before. I imagined I would have a team of experts putting me back together, cheering me on when I made my first ascent up the climbing wall. After meeting dozens of "experts"-neurologists, back specialists, chiropractors, trainers, massage therapists, and on and on-I had a breakdown, the result of prolonged pain, frustration and rejection. The difficulty of finding help set in. I desperately wanted to hear someone say, "I don't know what's wrong with you, but I would like to help you figure it out and maybe stop the pain."

A friend I had climbed with recommended that I meet Tamar Amitay, a physical therapist practicing in New York. I was happy to find that not only did she take my goals seriously, but she worked very hard to find new ways for me to address my injuries, start moving again and relieve my pain. After weeks of progress with Tamar, she began teaching me about Pilates. She had suggested that the additional core strength I could acquire through Pilates would help support my back and increase my flexibility. She taught me some basics-lower abdominal exercises and the breathing that accompanied them-and when I was ready, she referred me to Lisa Love, a Pilates teacher who specializes in movement reeducation and motor learning.

When I began working with Lisa, I was unable to extend my left leg back more than a foot off the ground due to the nerve damage in my gluteus medius muscle and shortening of my hip abductors. The massive scar tissue across my lower back had webbed out, attaching itself to my hip and back muscles and anteriorly rotating and elevating my left hip. This prevented fluid movements and a normal range of motion, and caused sporadic shooting pains in my tailbone. The nerve and muscle damage in my gluteus and lateral leg prevented me from feeling centered, and my left arm was still weak from several operations.

Lisa and I began by making neuromuscular connections-teaching specific muscles to move at certain times-so that I could advance to more dynamic movements. I worked, as I still do, on the machines. The structure of the Reformer, Cadillac, Barrel, Spine Corrector and Chair helps me stay balanced and provides feedback for alignment when I can't feel it on my own.

In further sessions, as Lisa and I both became more familiar with my body, she was able to teach me how to release muscle spasms or realign my back with the most subtle, specific movements. I have learned to make corrections in my posture, helping me move more easily and enabling me to move more. The more I am able to move, the better I am. If I miss a week, I feel it. If I miss two, I am in pain.

One doctor had told me that I would be lucky to walk again. Since I began Pilates, I have recovered full range of motion in my body. I am able to run three to four miles at a time, I hike every weekend, and I recently took part in an eight-day Outward Bound kayaking trip in the Everglades. I am capable of doing all the postures in Bikram yoga, which has contributed to my relief. And, yes, I have been climbing again.

Unlike many doctors and medical institutions that treat individual injuries, Pilates has helped me address all of my injuries as one body, and has given me an understanding of how each movement affects the others. Although my insurance doesn't cover the Pilates sessions, they are a vital part of my ongoing recovery-and an important form of pain management for me.

I have seen dozens of people who have either rejected my case for one reason or another, or referred me down the line of over-specialized doctors who don't know how to treat anything outside their narrow field of expertise. I can only hope that others experiencing the same runaround are lucky enough to find someone with the eye, talent and compassion that I have been fortunate enough to find in Tamar and Lisa.

Find Help In Your Area

Many national organizations have referral services to help you find local physical therapists and Pilates instructors. Siobhan's physical therapist, Tamar, and her Pilates instructor, Lisa, recommend:

. The Institute of Physical Art: instituteofphysicalart.com

. American Physical Therapy Association: apta.org

. PhysicalMind Institute: themethodpilates.com

. Pilates Method Alliance: pilatesmethodalliance.org

. Tamar Amitay can be reached at thriveptnyc@yahoo.com.

. Lisa Love can be reached at lklstudio@aol.com.

Siobhan Hardy is a creative director living in New York City. She is currently working on a book inspired by her accident and ongoing recovery.