PT recap: Stopping (NOT Ending Therapy--"Slowing to a Stop")

We've been focusing on stopping at PT for a while. Elena can now walk a reasonable distance in a forward direction. Her stopping ability is not reliable. This is a huge issue when other elements are added to the walking problem; other people, objects on the floor, no handholds (for instance). E also tends to reach her destination by stopping short and leaning onto an object (wall, table, person, etc.).

We are trying to teach her to walk to her end destination (end of hallway, for example), STOP, then touch the wall. We have had countless falls because she stops short and leans for a handhold for balance, only to miss it, or have the handhold move (door swinging, etc.).

E is definitely better at stopping when wearing her AFOs and shoes. She still leans for walls, but overall she can stop in the middle of a room and avoid falling or running into people. With her sneakers (sans AFOs), this still needs a lot of work, but this skill is definitely emerging.



In just a week, though--huge improvement!