My personal feeling about PT in regards to GBS is that function tends to return as the nerves heal. PT is most important when one is lying motionless in bed (range of motion), or teaching one how to do transfers from the bed to the wheelchair, doing stand-up transfers, & first learning how to walk. Once a person is to the point where your brother is, then PT will probably not benefit him anyways. If he seems to get by on a normal amount of rest, then he could at least try working, he appears to have made a very good recovery already. If it turns out to be too much for him, then he quits with nothing to lose. Relapses are very rare, a flare-up of some minor symptoms would be more realistic if he were to overdo it.

hello,

im 17 years old with GBS diagnosed in October of 2008, i went thru a long period of my journey where i wanted to give up on PT also. my GBS went from my tips of my feet all the way to the top of my head, i couldnt move anything, i was on a ventilator and everything so when i finally started PT it was critical for my recovery. But only 2months later i am walking with AFO’s for long distances and without them around the house with little to no assistance. just tell her to keep it up that this is a journey taken by baby steps, my parents struggled everyday to get me to put a full effort in therapy because i thought i was alone in this, but when i realized i wasnt, i kicked it into over-drive and i have come so far..all my wishes

Survivor17

I was talking to nate’s new Neuro yesterday and I was telling him about the mess Nate’s insurance made when they cancelled him for NO reason while he was paying for Cobra after his job terminated him.
The hospital denied him PT and anything else the MediCaid didn’t pay for. It took me 5 mos to get someone at his insurance company to listen to me and reinstate his coverage.
Thats when PT people finally stood him up to see if he could stand. They had not been doing anything for 5 mos because they wouldn’t have gotten paid. In the meantime, his right ankle became badly deformed and no one did anything about that either.
His new doc says they definitely slowed his recovery down by not giving him PT and not helping him with his deformities.
Doing PT is very important. Your recovery won’t go anywhere if you don’t do it
But you need to take it slow. Forcing yourself to do more than your body can handle only makes you too tired and sets you back.
Your body will let you know if you’re doing too much.
Trudy, natesmom

I had GBS in 2002 and started going to PT in 2005 because of back problems. It really helped. I went 3 times a week for about a year. Now I go to water aerobics twice a week.