Patty Houston reaches her goals with help from Beebe HealthyBack

“When I started out, my goal was to be able to run a 5K,” said Patty Houston, RN, MPH, MEd, CBN, a nurse at Beebe Healthcare.

Houston started walking on a treadmill after she began her weight-loss journey in 2012. As Beebe’s Bariatric Program coordinator, she knew how important exercise would be to her continued health. After gradually increasing her stamina by walking, Houston wondered if she could run.

“Running was not something I ever did because of my weight,” Houston says. “But as the pounds were coming off, I thought that it would be great if I could run a 5K. I always admired runners and wished I could be out there with them. To me, they epitomized a healthy lifestyle.”

When she was more comfortable walking, Houston decided to see how long she could run. She barely made it one minute.

Determined, she started running for one minute and walking for four minutes. She slowly started increasing the amount of time she spent running, until she was running half the time and walking the rest. Then, she took her running outside and fell in love with running around her neighborhood.

She distinctly remembers the day she ran one mile straight without stopping. “It was incredible,” she recalls. “I felt stronger.”

Reaching her goals

On Mother’s Day 2013, she reached her goal by running the 3.1 miles that equal a 5K in her neighborhood. She ran the whole way.

She decided to try a race and completed her first 5K race in Dewey Beach on Memorial Day weekend. “And, I didn’t come in last,” she said.

“I felt great when I finished. I was so proud of myself and amazed at how far I had come,” Houston said. She signed up for several 5Ks in 2013 and 2014.

However, in 2014, nagging back pain drove Houston to stop running. “I would have back spasms as I was driving and walking. The pain was excruciating, so I had to stop running,” she said.

Houston met with Beebe HealthyBack and was approved to start the program. For the first 10 weeks, she worked with physical therapist assistant Andrew Clements on an individualized treatment plan.

“I like to work closely with my clients because we really create a specialized plan. With Patty, we focused on when and where the pain happened and tried to understand why it happened,” Andrew said. “We slowly progressed on the machines to increase her strength and flexibility.”

Houston said the treatment was holistic and looked at her overall life.

“We talked about my work and my home life. We even looked at my car and adjusted how I was sitting to take the strain off my back,” Houston said. “We found the vibration of the car paired with how I was sitting was making the back spasms worse.”

Getting back to the life you love

Beebe HealthyBack Manager Lauren Walsh said the specialized machines used by the program are able to be adjusted for each patient. The three physical therapists, two physical therapist assistants, two wellness coaches and one health coach address the physical and emotional needs of each patient.

“We look at the patient’s goals, strength, range of motion, and we can specialize each session to their needs and how they are feeling,” Walsh said.

Beebe HealthyBack is a comprehensive treatment solution for patients who suffer from chronic back and neck pain. Unlike other treatment programs, Beebe HealthyBack does not use needles, drugs or surgery, and those who complete treatment report significant increases in function and quality of life, and decreases in pain.

For 10 weeks of the initial program, Houston worked out at Beebe HealthyBack twice each week and continued to improve. She noticed her back spasms were happening less and less. The chronic daily pain that she had been feeling was greatly diminished, and she was able to come off all of her pain medication.

“In treatment, Patty was incredibly positive. I saw her personality really start to shine as she started to get stronger,” Clements said.

While in the program, Houston completed her first 10K with Clements as her unofficial coach. However, the next month, Patty tore cartilage in her knee, setting her back on her running goals, which now included completing a half marathon. She was in the Wellness portion of the HealthyBack program, which meant she still worked out at the Georgetown location at least once each week.

“I continued going to Beebe HealthyBack throughout my knee recovery,” Houston said. “I kept telling myself that I needed to keep moving forward. When I had to stop running because of my back, it was devastating, but I trusted the team and myself. I knew there was a light at the end of the tunnel.”

In 2015, Houston was stronger and completed the Chesapeake Bay Bridge 10K for the second time.

In 2016, Houston reached more of her goals by competing in the Disneyland Star Wars Rebel Challenge. It is a 10K followed by a half marathon, for a total of 19.3 miles.

“Andrew truly motivated me and made me believe that I could complete these races,” Houston said. “If Andrew hadn’t been so positive and excited when I told him I was considering a half marathon, I don’t know that I would have really followed through with completing it. After crossing the finish line of the half marathon, I was so proud of myself. I knew I could do anything.”

For more information, call 302-217-3000 or go to www.beebehealthcare.org/healthyback.