A New Me Starting Tomorrow: Six Weeks After My Proximal Humerus Fracture - My Concerns and My New Rehabilitation Journey ## August 4, 2026 (Tuesday) Reiwa8

On June 18, I fell from my electric tricycle and suffered a left proximal humerus fracture.

It happened just when I thought I had become used to riding it. I tried to reach out and press a pedestrian crossing button without getting off the tricycle. In that moment, I never imagined that I would experience such a serious shoulder injury requiring surgery.

I was taken from Bethel Hospital to the Red Cross Hospital on the same day, and on June 25, I underwent surgery.

Because of osteoporosis, my bone was fragile, with cracks inside, and the back part of the bone was also broken into several pieces. A titanium plate and several screws were inserted to fix the fracture.

When I look at my X-ray, I can clearly see that something artificial is now inside my body.

Before this, I never thought I would experience a major fracture.

When I was young, my mother was a judo therapist. When I broke my left wrist, my mother treated it, and it healed in about one month.

However, as I grew older, my osteoporosis had progressed.

Previously, after swimming 1,000 meters of breaststroke, I developed severe chest pain. When I visited an orthopedic emergency clinic, I was told that I had a compression fracture of my thoracic spine.

And now, for the first time in my life, I have experienced a fracture requiring surgery.

## Pain and Anxiety After Surgery

It has been about six weeks since my operation.

The bone seems to be healing and staying in place, but I still have pain.

This pain is different from the unbearable pain immediately after the fracture.

Most of the time, I can live my daily life, but suddenly I feel a sharp pain.

Sometimes it hurts even when I am lying down.

Sometimes walking causes pain.

The first pain medicine caused severe sleepiness, tiredness, and constipation, so I could not continue taking it.

Now I am taking Loxoprofen, but there are days when it does not relieve the pain enough.

One of my biggest worries now is:

"Will the day come when I can finally be free from this pain?"

## Uncertainty About Rehabilitation

After the arm holder was removed, I started rehabilitation.

I was taught stick exercises and how to use the machines available at my facility, and I have continued practicing by myself.

However, I do not know whether I am doing the exercises correctly.

The most difficult movements are:

- Walking my fingers up the wall to raise my arm
- Holding a stick above my head and lowering it toward my shoulder

Movements that are easy with my right arm stop halfway with my left arm.

My elbow bends, and pain appears.

Why can I not move my arm?

Is it the muscles?
The tendons?
The joint?

I cannot judge this by myself, and that uncertainty has been difficult.

## Understanding the Difficulty of Shoulder Surgery

An orthopedic doctor at Bethel Hospital explained something important to me.

Surgery is not only about fixing the bone.

To reach the broken bone, surgeons must move through muscles and surrounding tissues. Blood vessels, ligaments, and other structures can also be affected.

Then a titanium plate is inserted, and the body needs time to repair the tissues.

Healing is not finished just because the bone connects.

The shoulder is a very complicated area involving muscles, tendons, and the joint capsule.

Learning this helped me understand why I still have pain and difficulty moving.

## A New Step Tomorrow

With the recommendation from the orthopedic doctor at Bethel Hospital, I will visit Dogo Onsen Hospital tomorrow.

I will meet a specialist and a physical therapist who works under that specialist and has experience with rehabilitation for proximal humerus fractures.

Until now, I have been trying to rehabilitate while feeling uncertain.

Tomorrow, I hope to understand:

- Why I have this pain
- What is limiting my movement
- What kind of rehabilitation is best for me

I still feel anxious.

But I want to listen carefully, follow the advice I receive, and move forward step by step.

## Returning to Swimming One Day

I love swimming.

I will never forget the happiness I felt when I became able to swim the butterfly stroke.

Right now, I cannot raise my arm normally.

But someday, I hope to return to the water.

It does not have to happen immediately.

First, I want to reduce the pain, regain movement, and return to normal daily activities.

Beyond that, there is my dream of swimming again.

This experience, which began with my fall on June 18, has taught me the importance of my body, the value of health, and the kindness of people who support me.

Tomorrow, a new chapter of my rehabilitation begins.

#ProximalHumerusFracture  
#ShoulderRehabilitation  
#Osteoporosis  
#SixWeeksAfterSurgery  
#PhysicalTherapy  
#ListeningToMyBody  
#ChallengeTowardTheFuture  
#MyJourneyToRecovery