It was six weeks since my last visit to my nice orthopedist. Yesterday he released me. He saw no need for me to come back.

If you remember, when I saw him six weeks ago, he was absolutely amazed at the range of motion in my broken shoulder, and I was as pleased as punch.

I have to confess that since my last visit, I had not been doing any of the exercises the good doctor had recommended and also not the joyous exercises like swinging two arms together that had seemed to arise naturally.  Well,  once in while, I’d do a little arm-swinging but certainly not as a practice.  I confessed this  to the doctor first thing. I was sure he was going to scold me.

But guess what? He didn’t.  Instead, he was again thrilled at my shoulder’s progress. Again, he said that by far most people with this injury don’t ever get the motion I had six weeks ago!

It’s kind of amusing the things I will be delighted about and seem to take credit for! I am absolutely thrilled that my arm is outstanding. I feel like I aced a test, and I pat myself on my shoulder and am so proud! I was so overjoyed it was like I had to restrain myself from doing handstands! I had gone in to the doctor’s office as a recalcitrant, and suddenly I had become a star again, swaggering in pride.

Dr. Ivins told me that, after the kind of injury I had, a 90-degree angle of restored motion is expected. When he had me move my arm this way and that, he said: “140, 140, 140, 120, 120, 140…”

He also told me that the shoulder, compared to the hip and back, takes the longest to heal. For me it’s been almost four months since I did my spin on the tread mill, and he said it takes up to eighteen months for a broken shoulder to thoroughly heal. So I have fourteen more months to go.

Dr. Ivins now suggests that I increase the strength of the shoulder, lift some weights, and I forget what else. I’ve got to get back to the gym and do all the upper arm stuff. That should do it.

And do you remember that I gave the doctor the Heaven book and CD, and I had such high hopes? Alas, apparently, he forgot all about them.

I have to tell you, I kinda liked checking in with that doctor.