LISA'S STORY: REBUILDING CONFIDENCE WITH MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS
LISA’S JOURNEY OF RESTORATION
MOVEMENT COACHING - MOVING AS NATURE INTENDED
By Senior Coach Christina
Approximate Reading Time: 2-4 min
Marcia out riding
INTRO
I am excited to share Lisa’s journey as we celebrate her one year of training this October. I have coached a few MS (Multiple Sclerosis) warriors and Lisa’s story is especially inspiring. Her dedication to her training sessions is admirable. She never misses a day and always gives her absolute best, all while trying to manage her chronic fatigue and daily MS struggles.
LISA’S ASSESSMENT
When Lisa was first referred to Restore Human by her acupuncturist, she was struggling with a very real lack of balance and foot drop. A foot drop is a muscular weakness or paralysis that makes it difficult to lift the front part of the foot and toes. She had been using a few different orthotics and foot braces to help with her foot drop but wasn’t addressing the actual function of her movements.
My first focus with Lisa was addressing her foot drop and unilateral leg strength. Lisa has a steep set of stairs in her home which she has to tackle every day, requiring the help of the handrails to safely make it up and down. Lisa’s first goal was to confidently master stairs.
So we worked on improving her dorsiflexion in her foot and improved her balance. To help with fatigue and overall wellness, we also trained the whole body to ensure Lisa could get back to some of the activities she loved doing.
In just a few short months, I saw Lisa’s confidence soar! Using a step-up box, she can now practice her stairs without any support. Lisa is also now climbing her stairs at home without handrails and even carrying a cup of tea. She is also taking much longer walks without the use of a foot brace.
LISA’S RESTORATION METRICS
Learning to fall face forward takes a lot of courage. Marcia’s belief in herself (with lots of cheerleading from me) to commit to this practice makes my heart full! Marcia may disagree with me but her progressive work through bent and straight arm strength was actually quite easy as she already had a very good sense of where her scapulae were in space. All that was needed was to connect her pelvis and spine into her push ups. She went from doing elevated, eccentric push ups to doing a 20 second eccentric push up on the floor from her knees within a few months. Back to falling forward, we simultaneously worked on finding less tension and more elasticity in the eccentric push up first from hands and knees then gradually falling from a tall kneeling position.
2 min Step-ups. This was an important activity for Lisa as climbing the stairs without support was an important goal for Lisa. We worked hard on these and it shows! also loves to hike and this gave her the strength and confidence to do so.
Dec 2019 - 4inch box height at 32 steps holding on the wall for balance the whole 2 min.
Sept 2020 - 13” box height at 23 steps with ZERO support for balance
Right foot drop, dorsiflexion isometric hold. We tested this to ensure we were building strength and endurance in her foot so we could help manage her foot drop as this aids in her everyday balance.
Dec 2019 - 19 sec
Sept 2020 - 47 sec
Eccentric Push up. This was an important piece for us to train as we wanted to “bulletproof” her upper body in case of falling. This way she would have the strength to brace herself without injury.
Dec 2019 - 14sec
Sept 2020 = 51 sec
Get Ups. When I first met Lisa, she really struggled to get down to the floor and up to her feet again. We had to use blocks and a bolster to give her leverage and something to help pull herself up to get up and down. She can now fully get up and down to the floor in a safe and controlled manner without any support!
LISA’S RESTORATION
Lisa’s restoration began with working on the dorsiflexion in her foot to improve her balance. Dorsiflexion is the action of raising the foot upwards towards the shin. This means the flexion of the foot in the dorsal, or upward direction.
To help with MS fatigue and overall wellness, we also trained the whole body to ensure Lisa could get back to some of the activities she loved doing, like hiking, and skiing. In just a few short months, I witnessed how Lisa’s confidence grew. Using a step-up box, she can now practice her stairs without any support! This is a huge milestone! Lisa is also now climbing her stairs at home without handrails and even carrying a cup of tea - this takes incredible balance. She is also enjoying much longer walks without the use of a foot brace.
“I have MS and I see Coach Christina three times every week. My sessions with her have helped me navigate daily activities such as going up and downstairs, as well as provide enough of a foundation for me to be able to hike, bike, and even ski. Because of my MS, balance is a daily issue. Working with Coach Christina my balance, strength, and brain-body connection has improved so much! Christina’s approach draws upon her vast knowledge and experience to provide training sessions that are tailored to me. During our sessions, she also provides valuable advice to improve my overall wellness and MS fatigue challenges that I face. I am grateful to work with someone who understands what I am going through, with herself also being a Chronic Illness Warrior, and can provide comprehensive support.” - Lisa
It fills my heart to watch Lisa go through her day with more independence and getting back to the things she loves. Lisa has been biking, hiking and she even skied last winter and hiked Blackcomb this past summer!
Way to go Lisa!
