Unstoppable
Navigating Farm Work With A “Foundation of Healing”
-Liz Guenther
This is my fifth or sixth journey to Cioffredi’s over the past 35 years or so, each time with a different injury or overuse issue. As a farmer working mainly alone managing traditional small-farm operations, I move about 3500 pounds of hay several times, by hand, each week all winter, and handle thousands more during summer haymaking. I carry endless pails of water during the winter. I handle heavy farm equipment all summer and large, powerful, occasionally mischievous animals all year round.
Each time I have walked into Cioffredi’s injured or crooked, I have walked away recovered, usually within 6 or eight weeks, once or twice longer, and most recently in just four weeks. Most recently (this past January and February) I saw Bill after aggravating a 2023 herniated disc. Both incidents involved lifting or moving very heavy farm equipment.
In 2023, I worked with Bill and the combination of “hands on work” (manual therapies and mobilizations), very specific and carefully chosen stretches and later strengthening exercises, and training with the Neubie to help retrain muscles that were ‘afraid’ to move and support me as they were meant to do. I went from a completely contorted posture and a cane, being only able to walk if I bent 45 degrees forward, to walking upright and resuming farm work fully, within 6 weeks. Furthermore, I had to continue my farm work throughout treatment and recovery as I had no help milking cows and little help with haymaking until my bale tossing crew showed up in the evenings. I was actually moving hay bales within 8 weeks, and took a cautious but successful 2 mile run within 10 weeks.
“I went from a completely contorted posture and a cane, being only able to walk if I bent 45 degrees forward, to walking upright and resuming farm work fully, within 6 weeks.
This year, the results were even more rapid. I was apprehensive that perhaps a pattern of continuous reinjury and worsening back trouble was looming, and this is an obstacle because my life demands fortitude as well as physical strength. But within a week of beginning PT with Bill I experienced marked improvement, and was also definitely able to progress and heal faster this time thanks to the stretches, exercises, familiarity with working with the Neubie, and the overall understanding of back and nerve pain I had gained by working with and talking to Bill in 2023. Everything we had discussed and put in practice was valuable again this round, as though the foundation for healing was already in place.
I found this sort of ‘healing foundation’ to be enormously encouraging, and I am delighted to report I have been fully back at work with no limitations, perhaps just a little more consideration about how to accomplish some tasks a little more carefully! As ever, I am eternally grateful for the opportunity to work with Bill as I have been also to work with other members of the staff. We are lucky to have Cioffredi’s in town!!
“As usual I have returned to my farm work greatly empowered by your help. I am happy, my confidence (so essential!) is restored, and life goes on. Yesterday I climbed Hurricane Ridge on skis. From my front door at 1,450′ to 2,000′, in 12++ inches of new snow. I have older fish-scale skis which do little in deep snow, and I had my trusty younger dog Finn stepping on my skis all the way up the ridge. I used to do this circuit daily, now I am lucky to find time to make it 4-5 times in a winter. Be that as it may, I had a great ski and here’s why: I experienced only minimal left hip and sacroiliac discomfort, and this is one stout, steep hike! Snow so deep I couldn’t even try a modest tele-turn on the descent, and instead just leaned back to keep the tips of my skis above at least half of the blow down. It was so fun, and so healing. Many thanks to you, Bill!” -Liz Guenther (and Horatius above), 2/13/25
“I found this sort of ‘healing foundation’ to be enormously encouraging, and I am delighted to report I have been fully back at work with no limitations.”
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