Introduction
Greetings, dear reader, and welcome to the 18th entry in the topic section that I have dubbed My Bionic Life - since 3/29/2016. For background, the category started with the 8/26/2016 article. The above image is one of six x-rays from 2016. X-rays of my right knee and foot are found in the article from 3/21/2021.
During my 36-day hospitalization in 2016, my initial left arm recovery only allowed me to sit and move my left hand in circular motions on a table as if I were wiping it. After a while, I could raise my left arm straight out and parallel to the ground. I couldn't lift it farther up.
After discharge and over the course of multiple outpatient therapy sessions, twelve deep tissue massage treatments (from 7/5/2019 to 5/15/2020), ongoing chiropractic care, and my personal determination, I have improved my left shoulder, right knee, and right foot to near normal conditions. I, however, still feel differences. I want those joints to feel as they did, before I almost died when the uninsured driver failed to yield to my right of way.
Those three joints, however, are still works in progress. For example, before Tuesday, my still-recovering left shoulder continued to trigger trouble in my neck and right shoulder. These are called crossover effects.
After a routine adjustment last month at the Chiropractic Clinic of Arthur James Poisal, DC, my chiropractor and friend, he suggested that I try shock wave therapy for my left shoulder. Dr. Poisal has recently added the therapy as a service to patients.
Two days ago, after my routine adjustment, Dr. Poisal administered his first shock wave therapy treatment for my left shoulder. The purpose of this article is to explain in layman's terms what shock wave therapy is and to review my first treatment. The conclusion recommends shock wave therapy as a treatment for muscle injuries and soft tissue damage.
What Is Shock Wave Therapy?
First, what is shock wave therapy? Rest assured that it does not involve electrical shocks! Instead, shock wave therapy is similar to acoustic wave therapy, both of which are considered pulse wave therapies. These are noninvasive procedures.
In shock wave therapy, the doctor guides a handheld applicator that transmits what are called extracorporeal (outside the body) acoustic waves into targeted areas of damaged tissue for precise healing. Guiding the applicator, the doctor locates and focuses on specific areas of damage. One session lasts about 15 minutes. Improvement is practically instantaneous. Only one session may be required; however, an additional session or two may be needed for complete results.
Searching online for “shock wave therapy: medical reviews,” I found the following three articles that provide further practical information:
Other medically reviewed online articles are found by searching for “difference between acoustic wave therapy and shock wave therapy.” My understanding is that, since the 1990s, shock wave therapies have been used efficiently to treat kidney stones and gallstones. More recently, shock wave therapies are being used effectively to accelerate the normal recovery of injured or damaged joints, muscles, and tissues. The process diminishes pain, soreness, tightness, and other discomforts.
My First Session: Review
Moving into the practical realm, I wish to describe and review my first shock wave therapy session two days ago.
First, Dr. Poisal, with help from his capable assistant, examined the range of motion in my normal right shoulder and my surgically reconstructed left shoulder. I could not raise my extended left arm vertically and parallel to my body without pulling it forward, not straight up as I can do with my right arm. Muscles around my left shoulder were tight. I was used to it.
Next, the doctor applied ultrasound gel to both shoulders and my neck. Using the small, handheld device, Dr. Poisal touched the round head of it to my skin and gently moved it around the gelled areas. I could feel and hear when the device located damaged tissue, but I felt no pain. The acoustic waves, when focused on the damaged tissue under and around the six-inch scar on my left shoulder, felt like sweat bee stings, which were very tolerable. I also heard clicking sounds from the shock wave device. The comfortable procedure lasted about 15 minutes.
Immediately afterward, my range of motion while raising my extended left arm up and parallel to my body had improved greatly! The stretch is now almost exactly like my undamaged right arm. For over nine years, I have gradually been able to improve that left arm motion. On Tuesday, I realized significant improvement. If it were possible without this session, such an improvement could take months.
Before leaving, Dr. Poisal did not think that further shock wave therapy sessions would be needed for my left shoulder. I asked about the therapy for my surgically repaired right knee and foot. I even demonstrated the difference between my normal left foot and repaired right foot by sitting, extending my legs, and turning both feet inward. My right foot does not turn in fully like my left foot does. Further, I continue to feel muscle tightness around the left side of my right foot and the left side of my right knee.
Dr. Poisal recommended that another shock wave therapy session could address the ongoing inadequacies in my right knee and foot. That appointment is set for next Tuesday. Stay tuned, dear reader. I plan to publish another article about that session, Lord willing.
In summary, today is day two since the shock wave therapy treatment for my surgically repaired left shoulder. My left shoulder still feels loose, relaxed, and greatly improved.
Once home on Tuesday, I can only describe the feeling as surreal. For over nine years, my body was accustomed to how my damaged and surgically repaired left shoulder felt and interacted tightly with the muscles in my back, neck, sides, and uninjured right shoulder. On Tuesday, after a few hours of adapting, my body realized how it felt, especially in the left shoulder, before the damage. Finally, after over nine years, my body now remembers how my left shoulder felt before the injury.
Conclusion
If you, dear reader, are dealing with damaged or injured joints, muscles, or soft tissues, this writer highly recommends shock wave therapy.
For viewers in the Knox County, Tennessee, region, you may already know a capable medical professional who provides shock wave therapy treatments. I advise you to reach out to your provider.
If you do not have a medical provider for shock wave therapy, may I highly recommend to you Arthur James Poisal, DC, Chiropractic Clinic (3371 Whittle Springs Rd., Knoxville, TN 37917; 865-687-5700; artpoisalfrontdesk@gmail.com)? Further, Doc. Art, as I call him, has a Facebook business profile, Arthur J. Poisal, DC. The “Reviews” tab includes my 8/19/2025 recommendation. Today, under the “Videos” tab, is found the before and after audiovisual recording from my first shock wave therapy session two days ago. I granted Dr. Poisal and his capable assistant permission to record that clip. It was an honor to be recorded.
Stay tuned, dear reader. Lord willing, I plan to publish a follow-up article about my next shock wave therapy treatment for my surgically repaired right knee and foot.
By the way, I have 25 total surgically installed metal pieces (i.e., rods, pins, and screws) in my left shoulder, right knee, and right foot. See if you can find and count them in my previously referenced 3/21/2021 article.
It will soon be fall, and the start of my fall, winter, and spring hiking season! I am beginning to hear the mountains call me. I will have to go.
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