More practice standing against a wall! | CP Physical Therapy | Hold On Tight!

Remember that video of Alex practicing standing against a wall a few weeks ago? Well, this has been one of his favorite PT activities at home ever since, and he has been getting better at it. Take a look:



By the way, the "big boots" he's referring to halfway through the video are the new boots that his sister got from the store--his mom was coming downstairs with them.

The big question, of course, is whether this standing will eventually turn into walking. Maybe, maybe . . . there's a lot that goes into standing, and he's putting all the different pieces together. Besides being able to balance once he's up, he needs to learn how to move from a sitting or prone position into a standing position. We're trusting that the selective dorsal rhizotomy procedure that he will undergo this spring at Mayo will open the door for him to make big gains. Developing a sense of balance will be good preparation for the intensive work he will be doing next summer.

Getting ready for the new wheelchair ramp by practicing with threshold obstacles | PT demonstration

Once a month, Alex's school physical therapist does a home visit to teach us (parents and PCAs) different physical therapies. This month, she showed us how she's helping Alex "power over" threshold obstacles so he can get up ramps safely and efficiently -- a good thing, since we are installing our own ramp for him!



And here Alex is watching the workers assembling the modular aluminum wheelchair ramp in front of our house -- he jumped every time they used a power tool, which is why he's smiling!

I'm working on a post and video about the construction and assembly of this wheelchair ramp.

Adopting Alex is now Hold On Tight!

Alex wearing his "Hold On Tight" t-shirt, given to him by his bus driver (right).

Just a quick note to let you know that we're updating the Adopting Alex blog and Facebook page. A good eighteen months after actually adopting Alex, it seemed like it was time to move on.

But as we contemplated how to do that, we realized that people are still interested in Alex's story -- the old friends who helped us adopt Alex in the first place, the new friends who have helped with his transition, and people we don't even know who have stumbled across his story online. So rather than delete the old Adopting Alex blog or let it go stale, we decided to give it a facelift.

Besides giving the website a new look, it now has its own address: www.holdalex.com. (Don't worry, all your old links will automatically redirect.) We've also started a dedicated Hold On Tight! Youtube channel for people who want to follow Alex's progress that way without being subjected to random video of our family birthday celebrations. Visit the channel to subscribe.

Those few hardy souls who are braving the wilderness of Google Plus can subscribe to the Hold On Tight! Google Plus page to get updates from this blog.

We'll try to update weekly for as long as people seem interested.

Oh . . . wondering about the name change? Over the summer, Alex attended an extended academic year program through the public school system to help him catch up, academically and developmentally. Well, his bus driver during that month-long program was so tickled that Alex would shout "Hold on tight!" every time the bus went over a bump, he actually had a t-shirt custom-made for Alex with that phrase on it. It was an endearing gesture . . . and an apt description for the amazing journey Alex -- and our whole family -- has been on.

Hold on tight, folks -- here we go!

PT demonstration | Standing tall with support from a wall

One of the highlights of today's physical therapy session was seeing Alex stand on his own, without any equipment--well, except for the support of a wall. Get his "Joe Cool" act!

PT: Moving from a quadruped position to a tall kneeling position

Alex demonstrates moving from a quadruped (hands and knees) position to a tall kneeling position, with assistance. The purpose of this exercise is to develop the back extensors and greater trunk control.


Besides having "high tone" in his leg abductor muscles,Alex has dystonia in his trunk muscles--yet another consequence of his spastic cerebral palsy.

Notice how Alex is interested in dumping those pieces and cleaning them up again! His PT is right when she says he's a great cleaner-upper at home!