Susan's Place Transgender Resources

Any advice on how to straighten one's posture after surgery and years of hunching over trying to hide your chest? My back is killing me - yet when I try to move I feel so locked in place. I know still wearing the vest doesn't help. I have a hard time getting my shoulders back. And when I try to stand up straight with my chest out it feels so strange - tightness and stretching...does this go away eventually?

There is a figure 8 harness, it goes over the front of the shoulders and crosses over the back, that helps you to stand up correctly. It 'reminds' your body how to not hunch over. After a while you end up doing it automatically. It can take a year though.

Quote from: Pictrig18 on June 11, 2014, 05:47:15 AM
Any advice on how to straighten one's posture after surgery and years of hunching over trying to hide your chest? My back is killing me - yet when I try to move I feel so locked in place. I know still wearing the vest doesn't help. I have a hard time getting my shoulders back. And when I try to stand up straight with my chest out it feels so strange - tightness and stretching...does this go away eventually?

My mom pointed this out to me after my surgery (months after).  I actually don't think I necessarily hunched over pre surgery all the time though, but maybe I did some.  I am not convinced this is the main reason I hunched after surgery (I think I just stopped about two months ago, at most).

Part of our natural inclination after surgery is to protect the area.  I know that after my colon resection I hunched over as an unconscious way to protect that area.  It is possible that this is part of what you are doing.  Too, I have now noticed it has gone away (I am 8 months out), after the pulling/stretching stopped you talked about.  My personal opinion is that you should pay attention to that (if you are early on), and not stretch it too much.  Until I got the short straw and ended up with hypertrophic scars, possible stretching of scars were taken into account prior to any movements.  The skin will loosen up, give it time.

Perhaps for you it is a combination of being used to being hunched, plus the feeling of skin being tight.  Both of them will get better.  That is my thought anyway, your mileage may vary.

EDIT:  Just realized you were the guy who is only two weeks out from surgery.  Yes, you should still be hunched.  You are healing and everything is very tight.

I'm also still struggling with this.  I have no idea where to find this "figure 8 harness".  I have tried to be mindful of my posture, but being at work, etc. it's difficult.  I found that working out regularly makes me more aware of my body in a general sense, and also makes me more aware of my posture at the same time.  It's just keeping that awareness when I'm not working out that's tough. 

I found it in a catalog, not sure which one at the moment. I will try to find it again.

Underworks has some....designed for female or male shapes.

I went to an actual chiro to fix my posture.

There are specific exercises you can do to correct this. They typically involve a couple of things: stretching and mobilizing your thoracic spine, and strengthening the muscles of your upper back, the ones that straighten your spine and pull your shoulders back.

Here are the results of a YouTube search on "improve thoracic extension" (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=improve+thoracic+extension) -- there's some great stuff in there. (From my own experience: stay away from the ones that show you how to make a "peanut" with tape and a couple of tennis balls or something similar, and get a good foam roller -- they're well worth it. The "peanuts" hurt.)

Thank you everyone for the input. Has anyone ever tried physical therapy for this? I know chiropractic is also an option, I just don't know of one that is legit in my area...I've heard some are really good and some are not so good...

Tysilio - it's funny you mentioned the foam roller - my fiancé bought one at the suggestion of her chiropractor a while back and I may have made fun of it....karma strikes again. Hah.

Quote from: Pictrig18 on June 12, 2014, 06:53:44 AM
Thank you everyone for the input. Has anyone ever tried physical therapy for this? I know chiropractic is also an option, I just don't know of one that is legit in my area...I've heard some are really good and some are not so good...

See if there is a Healthsource in your area.

I couldn't stand up straight until my drains were out and the vest was off. I straightened out pretty easily after that. It took stretching and a lot of practice.

If you CAN be conscious of this during after surgery it would help to NOT protect that area. I think it's a bit of unconscious thing. But I had a LOT less back pain and stuff like that that I hear guys complain of post-op. Though perhaps a lot easier said than done.

--Jay