Spinal Cord Injured Client at Project Walk-Kansas City Benefiting from Aggressive, Exercise-Based Recovery Program
Overland Park, KS (PRWEB) June 29, 2012
More and more research is backing up what people with spinal cord injuries (SCIs) have realized for quite some time now. Exercise based recovery programs work! This is not to say that anyone with an SCI is guaranteed to walk and have a full recovery by participating in such a program, but progress can be made. In the world of SCIs, progress is typically measured in millimeters; not miles, not feet, and not even in inches. The recovery process is so slow, that many people on the outside looking in, probably wouldn’t even consider it progress. For those of us on the inside, every new sensation or twitch of a muscle is a mountain moved, no matter how erratic or short-lived it may be.
Most SCIs participating in an intense, exercise based recovery program will report an improved mental state, fewer secondary health complications, improved sensation and/or muscle function, greater independence, and an overall better quality of life. What is unique about facilities like Project Walk-Kansas City (PWKC) is we specialize in and work solely with SCIs. This allows us to help our clients work towards all of these things in a positive, encouraging and safe environment. It’s a place that helps our clients feel like they belong and can work towards goals that many people said would never come.
Katie Rennie is no exception. She was injured a little over four years ago in a car accident in her hometown of McCune, Kansas. Like so many other people with SCIs, she was told that she would never walk again and that after a year, any improvements that she had experienced, would be the extent of her progress. With her strong will, positive attitude, and endless hope, Katie refused to accept this. She has worked diligently over the past four years enduring countless hours of physical therapy and exercise. Even through all the ups and the downs, the good days and the bad, she kept working through one plateau after another. Katie makes regular visits to PWKC to help stay on top of her workouts. She will typically stay for two weeks that consist of four, three-hour workouts each. She has seen varying levels of progress, in various parts of her body, throughout her four years of being injured. However, it was during her most recent visit to PWKC that she experienced some of her biggest gains. Not only have her legs become increasingly stronger, which allows her to perform certain exercises to a greater degree of difficulty, she was able to stand from a seated position using only a standing bar for assistance for the first time!
The idea that there is hope and that people can improve after experiencing a SCI is relatively new. And unfortunately not accepted by everyone. Fortunately, this idea is evolving and a lot of great people are putting more effort into helping it advance beyond what was ever thought possible. Katie, like many others with SCIs, is proof that something can be done. It may be a slow process and it may not be perfect, but if you continue to work hard, think outside the box, and believe, anything is possible.
Project Walk-Kansas City is an Overland Park, KS based company that provides an aggressive, exercise-based spinal cord injury recovery program to people suffering from spinal cord injuries. Founded in 2008 and formerly known as Quest to Walk, Project Walk-Kansas City is the only non-profit facility of its kind in the Midwest. For more information, please call 913.451.1500 or visit http://www.projectwalk-kansascity.org.
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