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I usually pressure them before they can even think about pressuring me. Then again, my friends are all insane anyway. ChemGoddess: I just nailed the flag day before yesterday. I was so proud of myself lol

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I was a gogo dancer for about a year. I currently fix electronics for a living. I had an AA when I started, but I’ve been working on a BS in physics slowly. My current job is too demanding to really take more than a couple classes. I’ll probably end up dancing again for a little while.

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Ekinkah 🙁 I wish I lived near enough to you to feasibly look her up.  I could never ever dream of telling a doctor how I injured myself.  I like to just shrug and say, "I don't know, I think I was lifting something to heavy at work or something."

On the other hand, I've told a few friends who were a little judgmental about having a pole in the house while I have a teeny baby.  I tell people to get over it or get out of my life.  Be tough, let people know that it's a part of you.  The more firm you are about what you do, the less people will even dream of speaking against it.

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There's also InShape Fitness.  The web address for vip is vippolefit.com.

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I'm glad it's nothing too serious.  Unfortunately, I'm having to seriously stay off of all my joints more or less right now.  I managed to mess my knee up doing something totally unrelated, and my elbow is nowhere near healed enough to really start using my left arm again.  It's a shame, because my pole is supposed to get here Monday.

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Alexa, it sounds like you pinched a nerve.  Anything involving that tingling sensation you should really see a doctor about.

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I'm actually super lucky in that almost everyone at my local studio has a health/fitness background in things that aren't pole.  So, they've actually learned what muscles should engage when you're trying to do certain things.  They apply what they already know to pole more or less.  That and I have such an extensive background in fitness that I know when I'm supposed to be engaging a specific muscle group.  I also know my weak areas (forearms and lats mostly).  I really need to find the baby steps for building my muscle groups! https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_e_biggrin.gif

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Thank you all for the wonderful feedback.  I will probably take a break from anything involving a bunch of forearm strength, and work instead on strengthening my forearm.  After a lengthy discussion with a couple of instructors at the studio I go to, they seem to think I'm locking in my joints too much because I don't have that forearm strength.

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It happens when I do a half bracket or flag pole, and then it stays there for a couple minutes afterwards.  I've been considering making the trip to the doctor, but I think I just need to be more careful for a little while, maybe work on using my left side for strength and my right for positioning and stability.

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I can't do any hormonal birth control.  Not a single one, if you mess with hormones, I go crazy.  My doctor ended up giving me the ParaGard.  It's made out of copper, though, so if you have any metal sensitivities/allergies, I don't recommend it.  Also, it might make you bleed a little more often.  However, it's a highly effective alternative to hormone based birth control, and it lasts for ten years.