November 16, 2015

by: Renee Canfield

Julia

Julia has been coming to UCP for the past 12 years. Due to the way cerebral palsy affected her muscles, Julia developed poor body alignment and without UCP therapists and her own hard work, it is likely that she would have completely lost her ability to walk over time. The therapists have been working with Julia for many years, but even with therapy, the way her lower body was aligned caused her to walk with a crouched gait (assisted by a gait trainer). Since a crouched gait puts a lot of pressure on the joints and is not a sustainable way of walking, Julia’s ability was still decreasing no matter how much therapy she did. After consulting with a well-respected physician from the area, Julia’s parents decided that she would have surgery with a specialist in Chicago that would help with her alignment. Julia had a multi-level surgery done on her legs and then attended Steps to Independence at UCP of Greater Cleveland after a short rehabilitation at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. Now, Julia has increased endurance and can walk longer distances with just a walker and someone by her side for safety. Although Julia was nervous about having the surgery, she is happy that she had it done. Julia is very proud of what she is able to achieve during her therapy sessions and is motivated by her progress. Julia has also embraced her first year of high school. She is a member of the high school choir and marching band, and participates in Dancing Wheels. Recently, Julia was able to walk to one of her neighbor’s houses which she had not been able to do since she was very young. The next goal she set for herself is to take a few steps on her own without a walker. The future looks very bright for Julia.

---