Getting Back on My Feet:It's been nine weeks since I had knee surgery, and five weeks since I began physical therapy. The journey to full recovery has been a slow, natural progression - one that leaves me amazed each day at the body's ability toheal.By no means is therapy as difficult as much as it is time consuming. I've spent1-2 days per week with a physical therapist, and I've also had to complete another 1-2 (sometimes 3) hours of therapy exercises eachday on my own. As someone who enjoys being active, these exercises don't have me shouting withexcitement, but I understand the importance of simple strength training, balancing, and moving.Early in therapy, I asked my physical therapist,"What am I trying to accomplish in doing these simple exercises?" She responded with a few phrases that I expected - to regain flexibility, to rebuild lost muscle mass, and to get you back on your feet. Then, she said, 'to help strengthen the muscles surrounding the knee joint because they are what provide you with the ability to walk, sit, stand, run, and do all the things that you love to do'.This whole time, I was wanting to try exercises thatI knew would be good for my specific injury. It never donned on me that strengthening my quadriceps (upper leg muscle) muscle was imperative because it is attached to my knee joint. It wouldn't be until I had enough strength in this muscle that I would be able to get back on my feet.As the weeks passed, the exercises became a bit more strenuous, but they were still fairly easy. However, each week I noticed the progress that I was making. Tasks such as flexing my ankles and balancing on one leg have me in a position where I am now able to walk fairly easily without the use of crutches.So much of what I have been going through has been mentally challenging. It's because so much of my recovery from my specific knee injury is dependent on the growth and development of the areas surrounding the knee. It's the 'supporting cast' that helps to perform all the tasks that I once did, and without them, my road to recovery would be much longer than I would like.Our Supporting Cast in Life:Imagine a life with no family, friends, peers, role models, or mentors. What would your life look like? So much of who you are as a person, and what you do, is reliant on having these types of people in your lives. Who would you turn to when life gets hard? Who would you call to share good news? Who would you walk through life with? The truth is, without another person to experience life with, the more challenging it becomes to learn andgrow. It is difficult to get support, care, and even love.Now, imagine a life in which you only had one other person to spend time with. Would your life look any different? I'm not going to argue that life would be better with one person than it would be ifyou didn't have anyone at all. However, this type oflife provides you with one perspective of everything you experience. Your growth as a person will heavily depend on this one other person and your ability to grow with them.Lastly, imagine a life in which you were surrounded by more than a handful of people. People that you would invite to sit at your table and share in life. These would be people who bring a variety of life experiences, perspectives, and backgrounds. In this network of people, you would have a support mechanism when you fall on the ground, someone to keep you grounded when you're flying a little too high, and someone to stabilize you when the road you're walking becomes a bit rocky. If you had these types of people in your life, do you think life would be a little easier and a bit more enjoyable?Just like the recovery from my knee injury requires the support of the areas surrounding the knee, so to do our lives need the support of different people from various walks of life.5 Reasons to Have a Supporting Cast of People:When I think of synonyms for the word support, some that come to mind are 'hold up, bear, carry, prop up, keep up, brace, reinforce, encourage, strengthen, pillar, and post'.When a contractor builds a home or an office building, do you think he or she will do so without establishing a strong foundation with support beams?The same concept applies to who you are as a person, who you want to become, and how you plan to grow into that person. Life isn't meant to live alone. It's meant to have a supporting cast - people who will remain committed to aiding in our growth and development. At the end of the road, these are the people who will help us get back on our feet and become the person we want to be.So, more specifically, what's the importance of a supporting cast?1. It Provides Stability - As we travel down the road of life, there will be plenty of times when we hit a speed bump, or a pothole, that causes us to lose our balance and get off track. A supporting cast helps us to remain stable, getting back on track as quickly as possible, making the road smooth again.2. It Keeps us Grounded - Have you ever done something extraordinary or fascinating? How did you react? At times, it can be difficult to maintain control of our emotions, and at times our emotions can get the best of us. We might find ourselves flying on cloud nine instead of moving at ground zero. A supporting cast helps bring us down to a level of humbleness - a level that peopleappreciate.3. It Gives us Support - It sounds simple, but it is necessary. It helps us stand tall, grounded in our values, and it ensures that we have the resources available to us when we need them most. It supports us in our decision making, aids us in achieving goals, and carries the weight of defeat.4. It Develops a Larger Network - Just as my knee injury requires a network of muscles, ligaments, and tendons working together in order to fully recover, so to do our lives need a network of people to fully The network of people grows as one, and the common goal is to help each other succeed. And, the larger network we are exposed to, the more stability and support we will find.5. It Cultivates Strength and Makes Life Easier - I imagine my recovery without the strength of my hamstring, quadriceps, and calf muscles. If I didn'thave strength in these areas, I couldn't imagine how much longer the recovery would take, or if I would even be able to regain my ability to perform certain tasks.A supporting cast isn't there to pull us down, or hinder us, but rather make us stronger individuals with the strength, courage, and ability to do anything we put our minds to.Stability, humbleness, support, network, and strength. How would your life be different if you had each of these characteristics? Would your life would be more enjoyable? Would you be more inclined to take risks, try new things, and step into the unknown?What if you attempted the unknown by yourself? Even better, what if you dared greatly with a supporting cast surrounding you?Check out more athttps://johnathonjones.wordpress.comArticle Source:http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Johnathon_Jones/2238654
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