Letter from Kathryn Fisher

FoxCare Fitness Should Remain

I am a 72-year-old woman who has had several major surgeries because I have arthritis throughout my body. Both knees were replaced at Bassett and I have had three spine surgeries at Wilson Hospital. I went to physical therapy at different local locations and after it was over I tried to continue to do the exercises.

After my second upper spine surgery in 2021, I learned about the therapy pool at FoxCare. I chose to do my PT at the FoxCare facility because of that warm therapy pool! I joined the gym right after finishing my PT. On November 15, 2022, I finally had my third spine surgery. This was on my lower spine and my surgeon warned me that the recovery this time would be six-eight months to a full year to get back to normal. I knew that I could rejoin the gym again after I was finished with the month of land PT and then the 10 pool PT sessions that I was allowed by Medicare.

I rejoined on March 1, and then found out about the gym closing. I need to use the therapy pool because I am not able to use the regular gym equipment. I was an athlete in high school back in the 1960s and had a very active life, hiking, downhill and cross-country skiing, and camping and kayaking and golfing. However, I inherited arthritis from my mom and I refuse to move to Florida like she did to cope with her arthritis. The therapy pool allows me to continue my recovery from my surgery and to meet new people who understand what it is like to live with almost constant pain.

Most gyms are geared toward younger people who want to build muscles and compete in athletic events. Those of us who are older, as I am at 72, want to improve our health and keep moving. We need the FoxCare Fitness pools to do this.

Kathryn Fisher
Unadilla