The afternoon sun cast a golden glow in my studio. My new client sat on the edge of my Cadillac. His left arm rested heavily on his lap. It had been six months since his stroke. After two intensive physical therapy programs he expressed to me that he felt like a car radio tuned to the wrong frequency.
I stood across from him, I didn’t ask him to stand, to lift a weight or do anything other than breath. Controlled breath work improves stroke recovery by increasing oxygenation for neuroplasticity and strengthening the weakened respiratory muscles. This is the first step to empowering long term wellness.
Then it was time to add somatic practices to help activate the parasympathetic nervous system for relaxation, reduce anxiety and improve overall cognitive function.
“It should always be about the soma – the whole body,” I explained to him.
Then we started moving – bringing strength to the “good side” and flexibility on the weight-bearing side. Creating symmetry – for equal weight distribution and gait acquisition are also crucial. Along with training the body’s proprioception without relying on vision. And of course, no stroke recovery program can offer physical freedom without incorporating core work which has recently been proven more effective than simply working on increasing stronger limbs. After six months he found functional independence along with the balance point between the physical body and the emotional body.