We completed the week of parent training sessions on the NeuroSuit. I found the 4 one-to-one sessions just about the right amount of time.
Day 1: One to One Training Session. The therapist started off by asking about his history; what he can & can't do; what are my objectives in suit therapy; got to know my son. She checked his muscles for tightness, range of motion etc. She also suited him up while we watched to learn how to do it ourselves. It takes a longer time to suit up a child when doing it for the very first time, so he was probably in the suit for only 10mins that day. The 2 hour session flew past.
Day 2: One to One Training Session. We observed the therapist in prepping him before putting on the suit. The preparation that she did was mainly "compression" and then it was our turn to suit up my son. I thought I memorised which bungee cords go where, from the first day, but I fumbled. It's a learning process. Then we observed his movements whilst he was in the suit and made small adjustments to the bungee cords. By the end of the 2 hour session, I was concerned why it didnt seem to make much difference to his gait...and it bugged me the rest of the day & night!
Day 3: One to One Training Session. Shared my concerns with the therapist. So this time round, we observed him moving around first without the suit. Then my helper & I suited him out. The therapist made some adjustments & got him to move around. It was great! He walked with such a beautiful gait! Running was good too, with slightly larger strides, instead of his usual trotting manner. The therapist & I were estatic!
Day 4: Group Parent Training from 10am - 4pm. Therapist demonstrated the exercises to do with our child before putting on the suit. E.g. stretching the achillies & gastroc soleus; hamstring stretch; hip stretch; hip flexors, quadrucepts stretch, trunk rotation etc. We were also shown exercises to do with our child when he's in the suit. For my son, since he had range of motion & is high functioning, I don't have to spend as much time preparing him for putting on the suit as the other parents of kids who aren't ambulatory. The therapist also got the parents to do some of the exercises on ourselves, especially the motor planning ones, in order for us to understand that it's not that easy - we had to think a bit to make sure we were doing it the right way! It was too many exercises for me to remember, but thankfully, they gave us a VCD demonstrating all the exercises! Phew.
That evening, we suited him up ourselves at home, to practice suiting him up & to note any other concerns as the next day was our last & the therapist would be flying off. I think he was too tired by then & was extremely grouchy. In the end, we took him to the park for him to run around in the suit, to get him happy. He loves running outdoors. But one of the neighbourhood park was closed off (guarded after a certain time at night) and the other neighbourhood park was not lighted up. He was so upset in the car (cried) when we couldn't get into his usual park! So drove to Tmn Tun park which I knew would have some areas lighted up. He was happy enough initially, moving around in the lighted area. But as we moved further in, it was dark & he wanted to go home. Asked why, he said "ghost"!
Day 5: (Final day) One to One Training Session. I received the Home Programme drawn up by the therapist, customised for my son, based on his abilities & weaknesses. We discussed & went through it.
I expressed my concerns on why on Thursday night, he didnt seem to run as beautifully as on Wednesday & whether it was because I didn't suit him up right. She explained that the suit is not a fixed brace. It's dynamic. We then observed him walking & running in the porch & on the sloped driveway. It was noted that when coming down a slope, the front of the foot tends to hit the ground first before the heel. Also, he could walk with a very near normal gait, if the walked slowly. But if he ran, he got into the habit of trotting. The gait was similar to a child who just learnt to walk. It was the way he learnt to stabilise himself when moving fast. It was easier for his body to stay in motion by running in that manner even though it required more energy. We need to break that habit & for him to re-learn the right way to run. It was suggested that we get him to walk slower, but also allow him to run freely as he's a kid afterall.
Also, treadmill training with a harness for safety, was suggested. In that training, he would be in the suit & we would manually move his legs to show him how to move properly while the treadmill moves very slowly, e.g. heel strikes first before toes; to have a wider stride; to lift up leg straight ahead (instead of swinging outwards). I googled that last night. It's variously known as "body weight supported treadmill training" or "partially supported treadmill training".
While he was in the suit, we also did some of the activities as suggested in the home programme. One toy I found useful during that session, which I borrowed back, was a game of catch the ball. This version has a small (15cm diameter) soft fabric ball and 2 discs which we hold in our palm. The front of the disc is covered with velcro (the hook part of the velcro). Up to now, I still havent been able to teach him to catch! So this will be a useful tool for that purpose.
That evening, I suited him up & brought him to the neighbourhood park. We did some of the activities in the Home Programme. He walked on uneven surface (grass), walked up slopes, walked sideways up & down & backwards down a slope (he was following a delivery truck that was probably lost), climbed a short ladder (just 2 rungs).
One thing I didnt expect was that after a tiring day of being in the suit, he didn't chew his food. Just kept it in his mouth. It happened on 3 different days. I think it was because he was very tired...he would have been in the suit for an hour. Exercising in the suit requires a lot more energy due to the resistance accorded from the bungee.
Day 1: One to One Training Session. The therapist started off by asking about his history; what he can & can't do; what are my objectives in suit therapy; got to know my son. She checked his muscles for tightness, range of motion etc. She also suited him up while we watched to learn how to do it ourselves. It takes a longer time to suit up a child when doing it for the very first time, so he was probably in the suit for only 10mins that day. The 2 hour session flew past.
Day 2: One to One Training Session. We observed the therapist in prepping him before putting on the suit. The preparation that she did was mainly "compression" and then it was our turn to suit up my son. I thought I memorised which bungee cords go where, from the first day, but I fumbled. It's a learning process. Then we observed his movements whilst he was in the suit and made small adjustments to the bungee cords. By the end of the 2 hour session, I was concerned why it didnt seem to make much difference to his gait...and it bugged me the rest of the day & night!
Day 3: One to One Training Session. Shared my concerns with the therapist. So this time round, we observed him moving around first without the suit. Then my helper & I suited him out. The therapist made some adjustments & got him to move around. It was great! He walked with such a beautiful gait! Running was good too, with slightly larger strides, instead of his usual trotting manner. The therapist & I were estatic!
Day 4: Group Parent Training from 10am - 4pm. Therapist demonstrated the exercises to do with our child before putting on the suit. E.g. stretching the achillies & gastroc soleus; hamstring stretch; hip stretch; hip flexors, quadrucepts stretch, trunk rotation etc. We were also shown exercises to do with our child when he's in the suit. For my son, since he had range of motion & is high functioning, I don't have to spend as much time preparing him for putting on the suit as the other parents of kids who aren't ambulatory. The therapist also got the parents to do some of the exercises on ourselves, especially the motor planning ones, in order for us to understand that it's not that easy - we had to think a bit to make sure we were doing it the right way! It was too many exercises for me to remember, but thankfully, they gave us a VCD demonstrating all the exercises! Phew.
That evening, we suited him up ourselves at home, to practice suiting him up & to note any other concerns as the next day was our last & the therapist would be flying off. I think he was too tired by then & was extremely grouchy. In the end, we took him to the park for him to run around in the suit, to get him happy. He loves running outdoors. But one of the neighbourhood park was closed off (guarded after a certain time at night) and the other neighbourhood park was not lighted up. He was so upset in the car (cried) when we couldn't get into his usual park! So drove to Tmn Tun park which I knew would have some areas lighted up. He was happy enough initially, moving around in the lighted area. But as we moved further in, it was dark & he wanted to go home. Asked why, he said "ghost"!
Day 5: (Final day) One to One Training Session. I received the Home Programme drawn up by the therapist, customised for my son, based on his abilities & weaknesses. We discussed & went through it.
I expressed my concerns on why on Thursday night, he didnt seem to run as beautifully as on Wednesday & whether it was because I didn't suit him up right. She explained that the suit is not a fixed brace. It's dynamic. We then observed him walking & running in the porch & on the sloped driveway. It was noted that when coming down a slope, the front of the foot tends to hit the ground first before the heel. Also, he could walk with a very near normal gait, if the walked slowly. But if he ran, he got into the habit of trotting. The gait was similar to a child who just learnt to walk. It was the way he learnt to stabilise himself when moving fast. It was easier for his body to stay in motion by running in that manner even though it required more energy. We need to break that habit & for him to re-learn the right way to run. It was suggested that we get him to walk slower, but also allow him to run freely as he's a kid afterall.
Also, treadmill training with a harness for safety, was suggested. In that training, he would be in the suit & we would manually move his legs to show him how to move properly while the treadmill moves very slowly, e.g. heel strikes first before toes; to have a wider stride; to lift up leg straight ahead (instead of swinging outwards). I googled that last night. It's variously known as "body weight supported treadmill training" or "partially supported treadmill training".
While he was in the suit, we also did some of the activities as suggested in the home programme. One toy I found useful during that session, which I borrowed back, was a game of catch the ball. This version has a small (15cm diameter) soft fabric ball and 2 discs which we hold in our palm. The front of the disc is covered with velcro (the hook part of the velcro). Up to now, I still havent been able to teach him to catch! So this will be a useful tool for that purpose.
That evening, I suited him up & brought him to the neighbourhood park. We did some of the activities in the Home Programme. He walked on uneven surface (grass), walked up slopes, walked sideways up & down & backwards down a slope (he was following a delivery truck that was probably lost), climbed a short ladder (just 2 rungs).
One thing I didnt expect was that after a tiring day of being in the suit, he didn't chew his food. Just kept it in his mouth. It happened on 3 different days. I think it was because he was very tired...he would have been in the suit for an hour. Exercising in the suit requires a lot more energy due to the resistance accorded from the bungee.
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