Leah's Story

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Meet Leah

“Leah really enjoyed the programme, especially the sensory parts of it”
- Patricia, Leah’s mum.
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"The most enjoyable part of CIMT was seeing Leah being able to do something on her own which gives me great confidence for the future”
Patricia, Leah's mum.

The Challenge

Leah had an obvious lack of awareness of her left upper limb which limited her access to bimanual play. There was evidence of developmental disregard and a lack of sensory awareness throughout her left upper limb. During the 4 weeks therapist worked with Leah to increase sensory and motor awareness which enabled Leah to include her left upper limb in play.

"The 4 weeks of CIMT is just the beginning of the process and it can become frustrating for parents during sessions - but don’t give in!”
- Patricia, Leah's mum.

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The Goals

  • To increase awareness of Leah’s upper limb.
  • To increase the sensory awareness in Leah’s left upper limb.
  • To improve overall strength in Leah’s upper limb.
  • To give Leah the ability grasp an object.

Our Approach

01

Improve strength

02

Regular use of various textures to increase sensory awareness

03

Practise of grasp of a variety of objects

Harvey removing bricks from jenga tower using least dominant hand

04

Regular integration of left arm in play

"Leah has had a great amount of sensory play, increasing feeling in her hand"
Patricia, Leah’ mum. Leah playing with toys with CIMT therapists.
"Leah has now more awareness that her hand exists!"
Patricia, Leah's mum. Leah putting objects into money bank using weaker arm.
"The most enjoyable part of CIMT was seeing Leah being able to do something on her own.”
Patricia, Leah’ mum. Leah excited about playing with CIMT therapists.

The Science-y Bit

Leah wore the cast for 24 hours a day for 4 weeks which increased her overall awareness and spontaneous use of her left upper limb. This allowed for new pathways to be formed for sensory and motor feedback resulting in a larger area of the brain becoming active for these specific areas.

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This resulted in Leah becoming more aware from a sensory and motor point of view of her left upper limb and integrating it more in bimanual play.

"I decided to try CIMT because this treatment is not available on the NHS”
Patricia, Leah’ mum.

The Results

Increase Upwards Arrow Icon100%

General Usage Items

Increase Upwards Arrow Icon50%

Arm Use Items

Increase Upwards Arrow Icon25%

Grasp-Release (items)

Increase Upwards Arrow Icon67%

Coordination

Increase Upwards Arrow Icon100%

Pace items

The Achievements

  • Leah has greater awareness of her left upper limb as demonstrated during sensory play.
  • Leah can now pick up a variety of different objects from a therapist's and a table such as playdough.
  • Leah has increased accuracy and coordination enabling her to include her left upper limb in bimanual play.
  • Leah has increased range of movement throughout her left upper limb enabling her to reach during play, for example, popping bubbles or knocking down towers.
"I wanted to give Leah every possible opportunity for as much independence as possible, that’s why I decided to do CIMT"
Patricia, Leah’ mum.

The Parents Feedback

“CIMT really helped build strength in Leah’s left arm and hand and we are already seeing increased ability in grasp and release. The most enjoyable part of CIMT was seeing Leah being able to do something on her own which gives me great confidence for the future. ”

“Prior to the programme, I expected Leah to be really difficult to keep in the chair for 3 hours daily but Olivia and Elliot coped really well and Leah really enjoyed the programme, especially the sensory parts of it” - Patricia, Leah's mum.

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The Therapists Feedback

Leah was a pleasure to work with. She was always happy and smiling and made sessions enjoyable for everyone. The difference seen in Leah is amazing, she has not only increased her left arm use but has conquered independent walking throughout her CIMT journey. Leah’s speech has also improved throughout CIMT. We are all very proud of Leah’s overall achievements and wish her and her family the best of luck for the future.” - Olivia, Amelia’s therapist.

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She was always happy and smiling and made sessions enjoyable for everyone
Elliot's portrait headshot

Olivia - Leah's Therapist

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