Cate started regular PT when she was 6 weeks old. When she was 18 months old, she didn't show many signs of walking so we added an extra therapy in the pool - Aqua Therapy. She took to Aqua Therapy like a fish to water (pun intended!). I have very little doubt that it is the reason that she walked at 22 month. It is amazing for strength building and very helpful when you have a stubborn child - she learned real fast that giving up or refusing an exercise meant a face full of water. As a bonus she also learned how to swim (actually Cate could swim unassisted before she turned 4). By the time she started Pre-K, she had met all her land PT goals so we decided to drop regular PT and just go with a weekly Aqua Therapy session. Well now she has met the Aqua PT goals too, so we are about to end it as well. It is crazy because I know I should be happy that she is "graduating" from PT all together but instead it scares me. I didn't realize to this point what a security blanket therapy is for me. I'm sure that is a hold over from needing to "do something" to help her when she was a baby. Back then I knew that her therapists had more patience and experience to teach her the things and even more importantly since I was a first time mother, to know which milestones she should be working on. So it wasn't easy for me but at the end of January, I'm finally letting go of our PT journey. I can't thank the three therapists we've had over the last 5 years enough for their love for Cate and the guidance they gave to me. (JG, JH & KM - WE LOVE YOU!)
Now the exciting part - in February Cate will be starting on an adaptive swim team!!!
The description of the program is:
The Adaptive Swim Club concentrates on learning and developing swim strokes, improving stamina, team skill development, building self-confidence, following motor commands, and increasing fitness in preparation for bridging over to community based swim team and/or moving forward with pre-Paralympic competitions. Swimmers are coached by pediatric physical/occupational therapists and/or experienced swim professionals.
Perfect for her right???
This is so exciting! I always wanted to be on a swim team so I hope she LOVES it!. Keep your fingers crossed that this new adventure is a successful one- who know you might see a future Special Olympian or high school swimmer!
Here is a video of Cate swimming a couple months ago - she might not win any races yet but she's pretty darn good for any 5 year old:
No comments:
Post a Comment