Autonomie

As promised, here is my review of the wonderful establishment, that is Autonomie Therapiezentrum Aschaffenburg.  I have it on good authority that their website will be updated soon. I made it home on Friday with the help of Claire's brother, Jack. This was my second 2-week period of neuro-rehabilitation there, and it won't be my last, here's why:

They offer an intensive neuro-rehabilitation program, consisting of Logopädie (speech, in my case), Ergotherapie (equivalent to occupational therapy), and, of course, Physiotherapie. All this therapy occurs, for the most part, with the aid of  'cutting-edge' technology, with an emphasis on the brain. So, the clientele include patients with neurological conditions, such as Stroke, Parkinsons and TBI. The practice is staffed with young, enthusiastic people, complete with murals such as the following on the wall.

Thanks to therapy that focused on my breathing, while talking, the logopaedie helped me to make gains in that department.

This stay differed from my last visit, in one main way. Namely, instead of living Partridgesque in a hotel, I could avail of the recently built boarding houses, which are excellent for anyone who needs a self-catering option. Particularly if that stay happens due to the necessity to be in or around the business area of Aschaffenburg, as it did for me. Luckily the boarding houses were a safe distance for me to travel, using my legs, on my wheelchair, through a carpark. Here is a picture of me in my apartment, ready to start my first week of intensive therapy.

Here is a picture of the GEO. This was my favourite machine during my two weeks. It might not seem much

, but it moves the user's feet, and so their gait, in the optimal way. This gave me the chance to use muscles in my legs, hips and core that I wouldn't have had to use otherwise. As such, the first few workouts with the Geo were very taxing for me. During the two weeks, I was able to build up my step count, from 1500 to 3000. I even took advantage of a double session, one day, to set a PB of 5000 steps. I noticed that my hip and especially my left knee got noticeably stronger in this time.

Above is me standing on the 'SRT'. This was also prescribed to me daily, where those platforms I am standing on, vibrate and shake violently for a predetermined time. For me, the typical session saw 1-minute of vigorous shaking -- akin to what I imagine an earthquake to feel like -- followed by a 1-minute rest.

Above is the new toy I got to play with, This is like a very large treadmill with a screen in front. There are weight sensors underfoot; so there are various balance games that are available to play; for example, my favourite, where there are balls of paper falling from a ledge, the patient must control a waste paper basket by using their body weight (giving more weight to the left or right), in order to catch the falling paper. There are various games that make use of the screen, weight sensors or images projected directly on to my path; but it can also be used for good old-fashioned walking.

Many of my physio sessions made use of the aforementioned technology, but I also got to workout with more traditional machines.

Meet Icarus. this is a mechanical device, that moves and rotates with the patient's body weight. A typical session, would see a therapist issuing commands such as "weight to the front" and "hold for 20". For a patient with balance problems, it's a real challenge.

Ergotherapie

This is synonymous with occupational therapy, which takes care of 'Activities of Daily Living' ADL, but we focused on my left Harm's motor skills.

Here I am swimming. It's quite realistic because I can't swim for shit and it was accurately portrayed here.

This is another new device; on which I got a chance to play many games including billiards; I haven't lost it. The game you see here prompts the patient to link the constellations of each of the signs of the zodiac. I learned that every one of the star signs are based on a bizarre, very generous interpretation of a group of stars.

This is a passive exercise where the patient's hand and fingers are massaged mechanically.

Because of the proximity to my self catered apartment I, more often than not, had a sufficient lunch break to make it home; but, on days that I didn't have enough time to do that comfortably, I was ushered into a free therapy room where I could enjoy my packed lunch.

To finish, I'd like to thank everyone at Autonomie for two fantastic weeks; I'll be back.

My Tree