By Clay Reedy PT, DPT
Halle began her Aveanna physical therapy journey by screaming at the sight of me. But the more often I came to see her, the more acclimated to my presence she became. After my first few visits, Halle was happy to see me.
Halle had to have a trans knee amputation due to a congenital heart condition at birth. But she has never let that stop her. It's taken Halle a little longer to learn certain skills, but she meets every challenge with amazing determination. And, of course, her adorable smile.
When I began therapy with Halle, she was able to sit up and play with toys but unable to perform any other normal functional movement that you would expect from a one-year-old. As therapy progressed, Halle showed that she was an exceptionally fast learner. After just three visits, Halle learned how to get in and out of sitting on her own. By my sixth visit, she learned how to crawl with her amputation. This was great for Halle but not so great for her parents. Now she is crawling all over!
I use fun new toys as motivation to get Halle moving towards developing more difficult skills. We worked hard on learning to transfer into tall kneeling and to pull to standing with minimal assistance. Soon enough, Halle was standing, kneeling, and transferring all by herself when standing next to a couch or table.
Now Halle has received a new prosthetic leg. She is learning to transfer into standing, standing by herself, and taking her first steps with a pediatric walker. I have no doubt that she will be running around the house in no time. And I can't wait to see it!