Jake successfully completed his 3 week Intensive Therasuit therapy. The first two weeks we saw a lot of giggles and smiles. By the time the 3rd week came, we saw less smiles and more whining and a few tears while performing the exercises. We never added weights, but he didn’t require the amount of rest we imagined. He did take a nap in the middle of the session on 2 days, but it was just a little snoozer and he went right back to work.

Each session started with Jake lying on the table with heat pads applied to his muscles. The therapist would then massage the muscles to get them loosened up. Jake would then have to go through a series of stretching and strengthening leg exercises. This procedure was usually completed in about an hour and a half. Then we’d put on the Therasuit and begin more strenuous exercises on the mats utilizing various therapy equipment. We did not use the suit for the majority of the 3rd week as it was starting to aggravate him. We felt that Jake’s aggravation was taking away from the productivity of therapy. After this the remainder of the 3rd week was as productive as the first two.

After the table routine was completed we would move down to the mats where a number of exercises were done. He worked on sit-ups, obliques, dead lifts (this is very similar to toe touches), hip extensions and back extensions. All of these exercises were done in 2 or 3 sets, gradually increasing over the duration of the program. Once all floor exercises were preformed we moved over to the spider. He was given breaks as needed. He required a lot more breaks in the 3rd week when he was feeling more fatigued.

The spider was Jakes favorite part of the routine. He was very verbal and active in the spider. We didn’t get a lot of photos of this activity because it was hard to keep him still enough for a photo (we took a lot, none came out good enough to post here). His therapist was very happy with his performance and she even said that he was her most fun Therasuit patient she’s ever had.

Jake certainly benefited from this therapy. Jake is noticeably stronger and he has better control when he falls from a sitting position. Now he will hold his head up when falling backward, versus letting his head slam into the mats. He has started to do the army crawl and continues to practice that daily. He is also babbling a lot more and seems to be trying to vocalize new consonants, which the folks at Therasuit say is one of the most common advances they see. We need to wait and see what other new and exciting things he may do. It is recommended that Therasuit patients take a 3-month break between sessions. If we see enough results during this time to justify another round of Therasuit therapy, we’ll sign him up for another session.

We are very pleased with Lamperts Therapy Center and the Therapists that work there. We are so pleased that we have enrolled Jake in traditional therapy two days per week at their facility for Physical and Occupational therapy. Jake receives these therapies at school, but Jake could benefit much more from paid therapy. Jake went to paid therapy his first three years of life but we stopped when he started school. The costs were too high and we thought what school provided would be sufficient.

Although Therasuit has been a huge part of our lives this month, we were able to squeeze in our third year of visiting the Family Café Conference in Orlando, FL. The mission of the Family Café is to provide individuals with disabilities and their families an opportunity for collaboration, advocacy, friendship and empowerment by serving as a facilitator of communication, a space for dialogue, and a source of information. The convention was large and the sessions were very informative. Jake was able to enjoy the hotel pool while Daddy went to sessions.

Summer school started back up June 24th. Jake’s in school from 9:30 to 1:00 and he is very happy about that. He really loves to interact with other children and he loves to be on the move.

We always take a moment at the end of each newsletter to thank you all but today, we not only want to thank you, we want you to understand that none of this could have been possible if it were not for you. Whether you helped financially, emotionally or spiritually, we appreciate you all more than words can express. Thank You from the bottom of our hearts for all that you have done. Please take a moment to watch the video of Jake's Therasuit experience.