Sheetal: Tennis Elbow Specialist
SHEETAL: THE TENNIS ELBOW SPECIALIST
SHEETAL: THE TENNIS ELBOW SPECIALIST 1. It was the Year of the Lord 1976. I was posted to National Defence Academy Kharagwasla, moment I was given the substantive rank of Captain in the Indian Army. Most of us have certain weaknesses, generally referred to as some of the Ws. Mine has an S there, ‘sports’, essentially the ‘squash’. Posting to NDA facilitated me to spend substantial measure of my time in the same. The facilities, in terms of routine as well as the materials in the NDA gave one ample opportunities to pick up and practice just any sports, from croquet to equitation. Ask the celebrated all-round sportsman Rupi Brar (an accomplished horse rider and fond golfer) that. Some where between croquet and equitation comes the Squash; I have weakness for even now, while I am running 55. 2. 10-15 games followed by a dip in the swimming pool right next to the Officer’s Mess-come-stadium was a ritual during the summers. It was here that I was introduced to tennis elbow. In that my elbow had what the doctors termed the tennis elbow. Of course, my first question to the doctor was how and why, after all I never played tennis. 3. Maj. (Dr.) Budhwar who attended to my distress had personal experience to narrate. He had tennis elbow even as he also did not play tennis. His tennis elbow was the gift of badminton, and that he had to stop playing the game. He seriously thought this was the last I had seen of the squash court. Of course he prescribed a few painkillers and thought relaxation may do me some good. It is a foregone conclusion that he advised me against playing squash. I had different plans. While it may have been obtuse of me to have persisted in playing the game that gave me the twinge, to me relaxation spelt sports, a such, my energies were diverted to the swimming which I thought would relax me. 4. Well, back to my tennis elbow, I was still in the dilemma. My search for the treatment continued. After all, it was too early to give up. My time at the squash court was taken up by more frequent and prolonged visits to the swimming pool. One could only ignore doctor’s orders at one’s peril. 5. At swimming pool I would frequently meet Sheetal. When asked how come I was spending more time at the swimming pool, I confessed to the newly acquired ailment. Sheetal was known for his skill in massaging, and thought he could be of help. Having had no encouragement from the conventional wisdom on the skills in treatment of the disorder that was acquired by over expressing my malice to the squash ball, I decided to give this a serious chance. It is a forgone conclusion that the licensed medical practitioners advised me not to take risk with the uncouth and coarse methods and people. Imprudently, I persisted, for I thought I had nothing to lose. 6. Methodical, laborious and not really prolonged sessions with Sheetal brought my elbow to the normal within a timeframe of approximately a fortnight. I was back at the squash ball (in the squash court of course) with vengeance. I still do play squash with not so much the vengeance, after three decades and an angioplasty. 7. This one time experience on the tennis elbow makes me no expert; as such have no recommendations for Sachin. Nevertheless, I would be surprised if the thought had never crossed his mind as he suffered (s) from the affliction and anguish, not necessarily because, of late it seems to have become a national concern. 8. As for Sheetal, he was then a class IV employee, responsible for cleanliness of the Academy swimming pool. I still recall his eagerness to relieve me of the aguish that I was in then. His sincerity of purpose and honest expression of the compassion that he carried within his chest could not escape one’s attention. Someone at Academy could let us know his whereabouts.
Pradeep Bajaj, Steppenwolf
SHEETAL: THE TENNIS ELBOW SPECIALIST 1. It was the Year of the Lord 1976. I was posted to National Defence Academy Kharagwasla, moment I was given the substantive rank of Captain in the Indian Army. Most of us have certain weaknesses, generally referred to as some of the Ws. Mine has an S there, ‘sports’, essentially the ‘squash’. Posting to NDA facilitated me to spend substantial measure of my time in the same. The facilities, in terms of routine as well as the materials in the NDA gave one ample opportunities to pick up and practice just any sports, from croquet to equitation. Ask the celebrated all-round sportsman Rupi Brar (an accomplished horse rider and fond golfer) that. Some where between croquet and equitation comes the Squash; I have weakness for even now, while I am running 55. 2. 10-15 games followed by a dip in the swimming pool right next to the Officer’s Mess-come-stadium was a ritual during the summers. It was here that I was introduced to tennis elbow. In that my elbow had what the doctors termed the tennis elbow. Of course, my first question to the doctor was how and why, after all I never played tennis. 3. Maj. (Dr.) Budhwar who attended to my distress had personal experience to narrate. He had tennis elbow even as he also did not play tennis. His tennis elbow was the gift of badminton, and that he had to stop playing the game. He seriously thought this was the last I had seen of the squash court. Of course he prescribed a few painkillers and thought relaxation may do me some good. It is a foregone conclusion that he advised me against playing squash. I had different plans. While it may have been obtuse of me to have persisted in playing the game that gave me the twinge, to me relaxation spelt sports, a such, my energies were diverted to the swimming which I thought would relax me. 4. Well, back to my tennis elbow, I was still in the dilemma. My search for the treatment continued. After all, it was too early to give up. My time at the squash court was taken up by more frequent and prolonged visits to the swimming pool. One could only ignore doctor’s orders at one’s peril. 5. At swimming pool I would frequently meet Sheetal. When asked how come I was spending more time at the swimming pool, I confessed to the newly acquired ailment. Sheetal was known for his skill in massaging, and thought he could be of help. Having had no encouragement from the conventional wisdom on the skills in treatment of the disorder that was acquired by over expressing my malice to the squash ball, I decided to give this a serious chance. It is a forgone conclusion that the licensed medical practitioners advised me not to take risk with the uncouth and coarse methods and people. Imprudently, I persisted, for I thought I had nothing to lose. 6. Methodical, laborious and not really prolonged sessions with Sheetal brought my elbow to the normal within a timeframe of approximately a fortnight. I was back at the squash ball (in the squash court of course) with vengeance. I still do play squash with not so much the vengeance, after three decades and an angioplasty. 7. This one time experience on the tennis elbow makes me no expert; as such have no recommendations for Sachin. Nevertheless, I would be surprised if the thought had never crossed his mind as he suffered (s) from the affliction and anguish, not necessarily because, of late it seems to have become a national concern. 8. As for Sheetal, he was then a class IV employee, responsible for cleanliness of the Academy swimming pool. I still recall his eagerness to relieve me of the aguish that I was in then. His sincerity of purpose and honest expression of the compassion that he carried within his chest could not escape one’s attention. Someone at Academy could let us know his whereabouts.
Pradeep Bajaj, Steppenwolf
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