Therapy is FUN!

At the beginning of the day we met with a patient we have seen almost everyday. She has been doing really well with her walking and is continually exceeding her goals. Her husband brought her a walker from home that she is definitely more comfortable with. We went into the rehabilitation room where we did some strengthening leg exercises, followed by balancing activities. One of the balancing exercises consists of her standing with her walker and hitting a balloon back to me. We did one hand for two minutes and then the other for the same amount of time. She was doing so well that we had her let go of the walker and use both hands to hit the ballon back. This was done for about a minute with rest, and then another minute. Another balancing activity that I have seen is balancing in the same way with the walker out in front, and tossing bean bags into a plastic container. I like both these exercises because they are more fun than anything else. A lot of people view therapy as painful and hard, but it can also be a good time. There was a cute little women who kept giving us the excuse every time that we came in to do therapy that she was just about to get a shower. The only way that we got her to do therapy with us was from her wheelchair, where we’d perform 3 sets of about 5 exercises for her legs. Athina did these exercises with a majority of the patients because it helped their endurance and made transitioning out of bed to a wheelchair or walker a great deal easier. It also was a way to get therapy time in when patients were being difficult. This was one thing that Athina had to deal with on the daily. Patients would refuse to do therapy with her at a certain time, and she’d have to go find someone else to work with and then come back. Oftentimes, when she’d come back the same patient would refuse her again, and that meant Athina wouldn’t be able to leave work until a lot later. Athina was a good sport and never got angry with these patients, but she was firm when necessary and insisted that therapy needed to be done. I learned that one of the most essential parts of a career in athletic training is communicating to the patients, letting them know what you are going to do to help them and why that is relevant. The care will be much more effective when they are put at ease and know each step of the rehabilitation process. Not only will they trust you with making reasonable decisions related to their care, but they will feel that you are truly trying to understand and empathize with them.