Evan’s Alabama Experiences

One of the first signs of stroke in children is when they start showing a hand preference before the age of three. In Evan’s case, he began using his left hand for everything when he was about five months old. I think he may not have realized that he had a right hand until he started therapy.

In 2009, we attended the Children’s Hemiplegia and Stroke Association (CHASA) family retreat in Florence, Alabama. It was a fabulous experience that really opened our eyes to the challenges Evan would face if he didn’t learn to use his right hand for certain activities. Fortunately, during the retreat we were also exposed to the University of Alabama’s Constraint-Induced Movement Therapy, a program that though casting the patient's dominant arm teaches the brain to "rewire" and allows the patient to improve the ability to use the weaker parts of his or her body.  After hearing about the amazing results children can realize after spending 3 weeks doing CIMT, we decided to submit Evan’s application.

On July 24, 2010, Marvin and I packed up the car and headed to Birmingham with Evan. I have to admit that I was a bit apprehensive about how Evan was going to handle having Lefty in a cast for three weeks and having to rely on Righty. I was also apprehensive about him sleeping in a pack and play in a hotel room, keeping him occupied in our off time, and staying in touch with our children back home. After the first day, which involved testing how much/often Evan used his right hand and applying the dreaded cast that would stay on his strong arm for the duration of the program, I left my little man in the capable hands of Marvin and Super OT Miss Elise. Each day, they worked tirelessly to get Evan to open his hand, grasp objects, use his pincers, feed himself, throw a ball, and supinate his arm and wrist. 

When I returned 2 weeks later, Evan was making progress, and after this third week of therapy, he was able to do things with Righty I never thought possible, including feeding himself M&M’s. (My Peepah would be proud.)  

When we arrived back at home after our time in sunny, hot Birmingham, we worked diligently with Evan to make sure he didn’t have any setbacks. But then, life got in the way, and we gradually stopped working so much with Righty. Lucky for us, UAB offers follow-up sessions for patients who have been through the CIMT program before. 

So, on November 26, 2011, we headed back to Birmingham for round two of therapy. This time Evan made amazing progress, and he seemed to pick up right where the last session left off. He was using Righty again in no time to do things I had never dreamed he could.

So, today’s special thing about Evan is that he is a two-time graduate of the UAB CIMT program, and I think it has really made a significant difference in his life.

OLIVIA'S STREAK