VT Works

As a general rule, the trampoline is not a tool we use when treating patients with Traumatic Brain Injury, at least not initially. Often times, simple everyday movements are enough to trigger symptoms so there is really no need to up the ante by asking patients to bounce. Other triggers may be riding in the passenger’s seat, walking through the grocery store, reading a short passage of text, and for some, even seeing people around them breathe was nauseating. It’s a rough place to be, and certainly requires a huge chunk of emapthy and compassion from those around them. Most of these patients seem to find a new space in life, and eventually, move on to happy and prosperous existences.

Please note I said most.

It’s only considered a mild Traumatic Brain Injury when it’s not happening to you. ~ Dr. Paul Harris

Oddly though, or perhaps not so much, some patients endure and embrace the challenge. Once they overcome the emotional aspects of accepting their new normal, they meet the challenge of recovery with a bravery and a strength most of us can not even imagine. I even had one patient refer to her Vision Therapy induced dizziness and nausea as “the feeling of healing” as she pushed herself way past the limits of my requests. She explained that she, alone, has to endure the consequences, so if it was going to “suck anyway”, she was determined to push until she could not continue. That was her choice and benefitted her in the long term, but from the outside looking in, was extremely painful and debilitating along the way.

One analogy I’ve adopted when treating this population is “pushing them to the edge a very high cliff, but not push them over the edge”. As they recalibrate, and “take a few steps back” from the edge, we will discuss how they are feeling and the duration it lasts, right before we push them back to the edge with the next activity. Eventually, hopefully, the edge of the cliff becomes level ground and they can manage themselves no matter how hard we push.

All this to say, I was a little hesitant when one of my post TBI patients asked to jump on the trampoline. My concerns obvious, as someone who has trouble with movement in the world, consistent jumping could help the cause, but it may have had disastrous consequences. But sometimes the patients need to lead the way and teach us.

And so we pulled out the trampoline…

We agreed to progress slowly and start with simple bouncing, ensuring her feet did not actually leave the canvas surface. After 30 seconds we would stop and sit in a chair, taking inventory of the world around her and assess her abilities to continue. We continued along this path up to two minutes and thirty seconds before this young lady told me she felt like she “was at the edge of the cliff”, and so we sat for a few minutes, allowing her to collect herself. Afterwards, she got on the trampoline and started jumping – not lightly bouncing – like full on jumping. She continued for roughly 60 seconds before returning to her chair, stating she “just needed to feel like she could do it”.

In leaning on my twenty plus years of Vision Therapy experience, my patient challenges tend to lead to place of personal comfort, and where the outcome is manageable. Ironically, though, sometimes patients create the challenge, effectively pushing my knowledge and level of comfort to the edge of the cliff, hoping I can take a few steps back to recalibrate, and then find a new and creative way to help them improve.

Kind of funny how that works, huh?