Meet 10-year-old Aliah, a New Yorker with a passion for walking. Since August, Aliah has been actively using the Trexo as a part of a research study at the St. Mary’s Hospital for Children. At the time of this story, she has been using the Trexo 3 times per week for 3 weeks. Read on to hear about her progress and the benefits of Trexo in this short time!
This story shares Aliah’s experience only. The following is not reflective of results as investigated by a formal research study and reflects the experience of one individual.
Meet our friend Aliah
Aliah is a determined young girl who loves music and communicating using sign language. She has a busy schedule and you can find her spending time with horses in hippotherapy and swimming in a pool to stay active.
Before the Trexo, Aliah was frustrated because she wanted to spend more time being upright and walking. She has bravely undergone two surgeries which helped her get on her feet. With her commitment to working on getting her whole body moving, Aliah has been using her mobile stander to move around and would take steps in her gait trainer.
Aliah’s progress with the Trexo
It’s been 3 weeks since Aliah started using the Trexo at St. Mary’s Hospital for Children when we caught up with her mom Erica. When we asked Erica how it’s going, right away she exclaimed “It’s going incredible!”. Just half way through their participation in this study, they have started noticing many benefits from using the Trexo.
Each time Aliah heads to St. Mary’s Hospital she gets excited and starts moving her legs. “She has started putting up her legs on the passenger seat which she never did before” Erica tells us laughing. As frustrating as it can be to have your child kicking the passenger seat, in this case it’s exciting because it shows tremendous progress.
Although the Trexo session can be quite demanding, your body is moving in new ways after all, Aliah has been staying strong. She is active through the whole hour and hasn’t been getting terribly tired. Above all, her drive has impressed everyone!
According to Erica, Aliah has never had anyone help her get so many steps before and each session her steps continue to increase. And without the Trexo? Well, she’s “starting to take a more natural gait without stopping every couple of steps… she see’s the connection”.
Physical benefits of Trexo
While Aliah’s legs have definitely become stronger and more relaxed, Erica is excited about many other positive changes her daughter has shown. For example, some of the changes they have noticed are:
- Remarkable changes in standing upright and
walking in general. Prior to the Trexo sessions, Aliah could stand about 5
seconds before her knees would buckle, and now she can go a full 2 minutes
standing straight! - Her bowel movements have become more regular and
her appetite has increased. - At a recent hippotherapy session, they could see
from afar how straight and relaxed she was sitting. This is especially a
surprise considering Aliah has scoliosis for which she wears a full body brace.
“You can see it on her face, she’s recognizing her body”
Erica, Aliah’s mother
More benefits from Trexo: Aliah’s confidence
Beyond the physical changes, Aliah has also experienced several other benefits of the Trexo in her confidence. “It’s like overall she’s aware of her body” Erica tells us in discussing the impact of the Trexo on their family. “You can see it on her face, she’s recognizing her body”.
With consistent use of the Trexo, Aliah has started taking more independent
and confident steps and developed a true awareness of her limbs. Taking
advantage of these improvements, Aliah has started getting dressed standing up
rather than laying down. An important skill to build as she gets older!
Takeaways from this Trexo experience
At the start of the research study, Aliah had a chance to set some goals. One of these goals was to take 10 consecutive steps in her gait trainer. Now, not even half way through the study, Aliah has met this goal and built confidence to run around in her gait trainer. Additionally, she has learnt to take reciprocal steps and developed a habit to walk with a more natural gait.
Reflecting on this experience, Erica tells us “As parents all we want to see is her walk, we feel very blessed and fortunate”. They have begun observing some benefits from the Trexo but there is still more work to be done. While they have bigger goals now, the Trexo is a step in the right direction.
Looking for more stories about how kids used the Trexo? Watch the progress made by Iris in 5 months and read about Judah’s experience taking his first independent steps.
Ready to try the Trexo? Let’s connect and discuss if it is right for your child, just leave your contact information below!
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