Sitting Unassisted During Physical Therapy

[Kevin Schaefer]

If you follow Michael’s personal YouTube channel, you’ve probably seen clips of him doing physical therapy each week. One of the exercises he’s been doing recently is trying to sit up unassisted on the PT table at the clinic he goes to. I told my PT Jean about this, and of course she had me try it.

This went really well. I do water therapy, and at the clinic I go to there’s a bench built into the pool. Jean sat me on the bench and had me stay there for a few minutes while I moved my arms and legs. I also wear a neck collar while I’m in the pool to keep me above the water, and having this on while I sat on the bench did help me stay balanced. Basically my entire upper-body was a few inches above the water while I sat on the bench. I’ll see if I can take a few pictures next time, but I just wanted to share this update.

Even if you’re not on Spinraza, I really encourage you to give PT a shot. I’ve been doing it since before I started Spinraza, and it helps me tremendously. Do you have any questions about how to get started?

[Chantell Venter]

I also use a collar in the pool at my PT. He has me sit on the bench in front of the inflow of the pool to practice my balance. When this gets too easy he moves the water around me to make it a bit tougher.

[Kevin Schaefer]

The collar helps me tremendously. And yeah, my PT is the same way when it comes to making my exercises more challenging if they’re too easy haha.

[Kelly Miller]

Glad to hear things are getting better for you Kevin! I don’t do PT, haven’t really since I was a kid. I’m scared to death of the water because I’m too afraid I will go under & whoever is with me won’t know that I need help. I know I should probably do range of motion and things like that, but my legs just hurt way too much to start doing that. I do recommend that anybody younger who’s still doing PT should keep doing it as long as they can. Once you stop, it’s very difficult to start back up.

[Kevin Schaefer]

Thanks Kelly!

And yes, I do understand that concern. Though in my experience, the physical therapists who I’ve worked with have been great about keeping me safe and secure in the water. Most of the people who do water therapy at the clinic I go to are older adults. I’m definitely one of the younger patients.

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