Balance Problems After "Recovery"

Hi ~ the two things I recommend are water walking and yoga. They made the biggest difference for me. Good luck!

michelle,

w time, balance & other residuals will subside. take care. be well.

gene gbs 8-99
in numbers there is strength

Hi Michelle,

It’s been 15 months for my fiance Ben,and he’s still in rehab for balance issues. He recently got AFOs to help with the drop foot.

Shannon

One of the simplest balance exercises I was taught was while on hands and knees, lift opposite limbs (e.g., left knee, right hand). (Your father may have progressed beyond this.)

Next I was given a large ball –you can find these in sports stores — that I could sit on and balance with both feet on the ground. Once that was done, lift one foot. Then, put a small ball under the foot that’s raised. Have someone kick a ball to you, and kick it back to them. Finally, play catch while balancing on the balls.

Another easy to describe exercise is to stand on one leg. First, observe how much work the ankle does in a person who doesn’t have GBS: people aren’t designed to stand still, and you’ll see the ankle is in constant motion. Then imagine the weight effectively on the other end of this lever (leg), and the small muscles in the ankle which must support the body’s entire weight. Essentially, that’s the issue for GBS patients: small muscles (at the end of the limb, where it will take longest to repair damage) controlling a lot of weight on the other end of the leg. No wonder your father (and I!) are having problems.

Finally, I haven’t tried this, but a “[URL=”http://www.gbs.org.uk/cgi-bin/ikonboard3/ikonboard.cgi?s=44a41629753fffff;act=ST;f=1;t=865;st=13″%5Dwobble board[/URL]” was recommended on the [URL=”http://www.gbs.org.uk/cgi-bin/ikonboard3/ikonboard.cgi”%5DUK board[/URL]

Excellent suggestions from Olay. I also have balance problems as well as propriation problems (knowing where your body is in space). My physical therapist tells me that your brain can be retrained to correct these problems with exercises like what Olay described and others. As a good PT to help with this.

Hi,
I still have balance issues two years+ post GBS. One of the exercises I do is tandem walking, putting one foot in front of the other heel to toe (just like you would do if stopped for drunk driving). I do this at my Health & Wellness Center in the balance bars. I have done it at home in my hallway, it helps to have that extra support of the bars/walls close if you start to lose your balance. I still have problems in the shower whenever I close my eyes.
Bonnie

My PT set up short cones in a line for me to step over forward, then in time going backward. She also had me lay on my back on a large round padded “log” with my feet on either side. It helped a lot to train my brain and learn to balance on one foot again. Now I have a large exercise ball to sit on and do bent leg lifts and hip rotations – it helps alot, alothough I still need some time to regain my balance if I’ve been sitting for a long time, but every little task is a new accomplishment!

Thanks all for the info. I hope you dont mind, I printed out your ideas to give to my PT’s and Dr’s. we need all the help we can get. At this point, I am standing on something like foam tryen to balance, hurts my legs like hell, but I do it. I did beg for the balance ball”something I was into befor this hit” and am doing well. I have dropped some big time pounds “needed” but due to IBS, with hard core trots.
I am able to walk short distance, in my shoes, I’ll take any small improvement.
Thank you all for being here, I’m so cxlose to losen my mind.
Net