Good night everyone,
I just out of the hospital for the 6th time in the almost 2 years of TM. I used
the walk aide for some time when I was learning to walk again, but found it
very difficult too, especially around tight corners. I'm using cruches now, but
I still drag my right leg along. I have 20% of mobility in it, which for me is
a God given gift considering all that has been taken away by TM. I find the
crutches useful, but I still fell I should revert back to the chair because I
have dizzy spells from time to time and there are only so many places on my
arms and hips left to bruise when I fall/collapse. Does anyone have any advice
as to how long I should keep trying the crutches? should I go back on the chair
or should I just fo physio until I could walk on my own again.
Jeron
Date: Sun, 4 Apr 2010 15:41:22 -0700
From: hwyfli...@yahoo.com
Subject: Re: [TMIC] Walk Aide
To: toddtm2...@sbcglobal.net; tmic-list@eskimo.com
Todd,
Yeah, I've found after talking with so many people, that the variances in each
of us with TM is pretty large as far as what works for one and what doesn't..
I'm coming up on two years pretty soon and if the opportunity ever arises again
I'll definitely give the Walk Aide another shot.
Who knows how I may respond after two years of walking and using that muscle
group, however slight it may be.
Quick story reverting back to my PT days...after the Walk Aide experiment, my
neuro decided that it wouldn't hurt to add electro stim to my PT regimen so for
15 minutes prior to my PT exercises, my therapist would wire me up to the
electro stim machine.
This was on my left lower half of my leg since that is what I am having the
primary issues with.
The very first
time she started turning the machine up and told me to let her know when it
got uncomfortable...and she kept turning it up......and up......and up......and
up.....and she kept asking me, are you okay...?
I would respond, yeah, I'm fine. I could feel the stim, but it didn't hurt and
it wasn't making my muscles contract at all...
Anyway, bottom line....she ended up cranking up the machine all the way up and
I still had no response from the machine.
Now, I'm assuming the big electro stim machine has the capability to go higher
and make a larger contraction than something like the Walk Aide....and I was
still getting nothing from it.
Anyway, I did my electro stim anyway and just tried to make a conscious effort
to make my muscles respond in conjunction the stim.
Oh well....
Kevin Weilacher
N.E. Ohio (Canton)
From: Todd Tarno <toddtm2...@sbcglobal.net>
To: TMIC <tmic-list@eskimo.com>
Sent: Sun, April 4, 2010 3:42:48 PM
Subject: Re: [TMIC] Walk Aide
Hey Kevin,
I'm so sorry that the Walk Aide didn't work for you. I know that each person
with TM is different, I too don't understand why you're able move your toes a
little bit, that's all I'm able to do also, but it didn't work.
Let me tell you a little about my visit.
She, the Dr., didn't even bring in her computer into the room with her, because
she didn't think she would be able to find a working muscle on a person with TM
for eight years with a handheld electric unit. She did see that when I tried
to move my toes, the muscles below my ankle was moving a little bit and that
was a good sign. It showed that the muscle signal was getting to the brain.
The muscle that's needed, need to be very close to the skin. My muscle that
did work ( on my bad right leg ), she said is in a weird place, is on the right
side back close to the knee. It's two fingers up from one of my moles. lol I
would need the next cuff side, next HALF side would be perfect, because the
unit needs to be in front of my leg, so it knows where my leg is.
So, if when you try to move your toes and the muscles below the outside ankle
are moving, that's a good sign. This isn't an exact science, but I believe
that as our body heals itself, this unit could work for us. I don't think this
unit would had worked a few earlier.
I hope everyone tries the Walk Aide at least once, but if it doesn't work then
maybe try again in a couple / few years.
Todd in CC, TX TM @ T-4 to T-8 on April 1, 2002
--- On Fri, 4/2/10, kevin weilacher <hwyfli...@yahoo.com> wrote:
From: kevin weilacher <hwyfli...@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: [TMIC] Walk Aide
To: "Todd Tarno" <toddtm2...@sbcglobal.net>, "TMIC" <tmic-list@eskimo.com>
Date: Friday, April 2, 2010, 3:51 PM
While I was going to outpatient PT, I was notified by my therapist and neuro
that someone from Walkaide was going to be at the hospital doing demonstrations
on people with different disabilities (ie:stroke, spinal cord injury,
neurological etc..) and they requested me to be the one that they tried it one
with a neurological disability.
I was the third person to be demonstrated on and the woman right before me had,
had a stroke and she had great success with the walk aide. I was kind of
excited but wasn't getting my hopes up...
The guy wired me up with the device and started ramping up the electrical
charge...nothing at a lower setting....still nothing at a little higher
setting....still nothing higher yet...
He turned the device all the way up and my left foot still did not respond...
Oh well, at least it was a try. The guy was confused too because he said he
had never seen anyone that didn't get at least some response from it.
He even went on and hooked it up to a couple more people and it worked for them
and then he came back to me and hooked it up again...same result, nothing..
My left leg is pretty much dead I guess...
I mean, I can move my toes a very small bit, but that's it. I can't lift my
foot at all...
Maybe someday, they'll find something that will work on me.
Kevin Weilacher
N.E. Ohio (Canton)
From: Todd Tarno <toddtm2...@sbcglobal.net>
To: TMIC <tmic-list@eskimo.com>
Sent: Fri, April 2, 2010 2:14:26 PM
Subject: [TMIC] Walk Aide
www.walkaide.com
Two years ago, I got new feeling in my bad leg and one year ago, I was able to
move my toes on my bad leg for the first time since April 1, 2002. So
yesterday I went to a Walk Aide office here in Corpus Christi, TX and it did
left up my drop foot on my bad leg, but I still will need the walker for
balance. I'm just glad to know that I'm a candidate for this unit. To bad that
Medicare doesn't cover the $4,800 unit. I know there is a 50/50 chance it will
work for people with Transverse Myelitis, but I would still try and if it
doesn't work, might try again, once you have gotten new feeling in your bad leg.
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