Active Camp in Tenerife
For the first time, I experienced a place where it wasn't about performance
A personal experience from a FYZIO KLINIK client®
This April I took part in the FYZIO KLINIK® Active Camp in Tenerife. It was a leap into the unknown for me, as it was my first experience of treating my chronic neuromuscular condition abroad.
All I knew was that I needed to try something different, that after a difficult period it called for a radical step. That is why I signed up for the camp on my own, without my sister, who knows everything about my health and always looks after me when needed.
My only certainty was my physiotherapist Katka, who has known me for almost seven years. She is well informed about my health and over that time has come to know me so well that she knows when she needs to push me into activity and when, on the contrary, she needs to hold me back.
She has already seen every possible state I have been in and she has never been frightened off. At the same time, she has never given up on me, even when I myself wanted to give up.
The worries that, in the end, didn't come true
When Katka told me that the camp in Tenerife could be a good fit for me, at first I wasn't sure, because I have experienced many times that my condition becomes a problem for the whole group I find myself in. In the end I said to myself: I'm going.
The whole camp was organised by the travel agency TUI ReiseCenter Slovensko and throughout the trip we were accompanied by the wonderful representative Katka, who was extremely helpful to me from the moment we arrived at the airport.
A place where it isn't about performance
Since I have been a long-standing client of FYZIO KLINIK® and this particular camp was also organised by my therapist Katka, everyone knew about my health condition. That gave me a certain sense of relief, that I wasn't in it alone. I tried all the planned activities, which Katka adapted exactly to my needs, capabilities, limitations and level of fatigue.
Even though the exercises were tailored to my situation and I skipped some excursions because they were too demanding, I was still part of a group of wonderful women. What connected us was that we wanted to enjoy movement, do something good for our health and, above all, share a lot of laughter while doing so.
Suddenly I realised that I had found myself in a place where it isn't about performance. Nobody judges anyone, nobody assesses anyone.
And this is, for me, perhaps one of the most valuable experiences from the whole stay.
Therapy that brought relief
The alternative programme I had during the excursions was far more beneficial for me and, above all, safer.
I had a full-body massage with the therapist Dianka, which brought me relief after several days of muscle overload. Electrotherapy to relieve chronic pain is welcome at any time, and I had it available to me throughout the camp.
I also had the chance to try a facial and décolletage massage with Slávka, who is also part of the FYZIO KLINIK® team in Tenerife. It was my first experience of such a massage.
Having the opportunity to try various activities, such as yoga, Pilates, circuit training and strength training, also gave me new insights into myself.
Seven years that changed my life
I had the chance to test how much I can currently manage and which types of exercises suit me and which, on the contrary, don't suit me at all. Of course, I also caught myself comparing myself to the other participants, but I immediately chased those thoughts away by remembering my beginnings at FYZIO KLINIK®.
When I came in tears to Tomáš about seven years ago, telling him that the doctors wanted to put me in a wheelchair and I refused to accept it. Tomáš was the only physiotherapist in Bratislava who wasn't put off and who accepted me at the clinic.
And today I walk, I manage a lot of things, I am self-sufficient.
Sometimes I want more than I can manage, but I am learning to work with that too.
The best therapy is the people around you
If I had to mention just one thing I brought home from the whole camp, it would be the experience that surrounding yourself with people who motivate and help you is the best therapy.
I was able to enjoy my stay thanks to the careful planning and exceptional care of the entire FYZIO team, and I hope to repeat it again.
Would you like to experience Active Camp too?
Active Camp was created to provide a safe space for people who want to do something for their health, movement and mental wellbeing.
If you too feel that you need to switch off for a while, get moving, recharge your energy and experience a supportive environment, we would be delighted to welcome you to Active Camp Vol. 2.
You can find more information here:
