United Brachial Plexus Network, Inc.

I am still in touch with my deltoids and can move my arm out to the side and rest it on the back of a bench, straight out!
Without using my traps to do it... I found that at Camp..

Kath robpi/adult

Kate,
Help!!! lol okay so I have a question. When they were able to flex up the arm in gravity, how were you doing this? Dustin can make the machine light up, but was there a specific angle to start from? Were they doing it from standing with the arm straight down? It seems like for Dustin he can learn the flex of the right muscle and can learn to maintain it for periods of time, but so far no real movement. I know we have to strengthen the muscle but just wondering if there was a "trick" that could help. Although today I swore it was going to come up off the table a few times.
Thanks,
Sue

My thought is that he needs to learn to turn "on" the muscle in all the positions it can be in. So I would try to get that light on at full extension, then flex it a little for him (which will probably lose the light) and let him find it again, and keep doing that until he's getting the light "on" each step all the way to full flexion.

Ideally, I think you want to get to the point where he can keep the light on as you flex his arm up in one smooth motion. I think that not only does he need to "reconnect" with the muscle, but you want his brain to reconnect with a muscle which can actually move the joint. At first it won't be strong enough to flex, but if he can learn to keep the contraction coming while you flex, it should give his brain the right "feeling" of moving the joint.

Kate

Thank you. That was my feeling exactly.
Sue

Sue, trust your instincts! You know his arm better than any therapist

Kate

It has been silent for a while on the subject of the myotrac. I was wondering if you are still enthusiastic about this machine.

Yes we are still using the pathways bio machine every day Frankie says he can feel the difference in the way he carry's his arm and he says afterwards his muscles feel very tired so he knows he's getting a good workout.
Mare

We are still using it. We are using it however to relax Maia's biceps and deltoids which seem to never get a break - always on. We will be meeting with a therapist soon to add some more stuff to our little routine. We're also working on getting used to a new hand splint and every time you add something new to the plan it takes a lot of energy. I think Maia is burned out from years of this and that's why it is such an energy drain every time we add something new.

I'M still using it but am stuck because I have to work on shutting off my deltoids.

It seem like even the slightest movement and all of my muscles fire.

I have had some great gains from using this and if I can manage to get some medical support I think I would make even greater gains.

But so far I have not been able to get a therapist to help me.

Kath robpi/adult

We are also using it, but running into an quandry. As Juliana had rather extensive modquad surgery as a 14 month old, "mapping" her muscles is a challenge.

I have had luck getting her to relax the traps, and we try to get biceps...but it is just so hard for her.

claudia