OT

Of course, Matt's biggest frustration is still his arm and its lack of function. He's gotten a lot more movement back in the shoulder, upper arm, and elbow, but his wrist and fingers continue to be difficult to move. His OT got him a stim unit that we can actually take home and it has been great. Every day, he works his lower arm with the electrical stimulation - he's hooked up with wires that stick to his arm and shoulder. When it turns on, it opens his hand and bends his wrist back. The idea is that his muscles work fine - they just aren't getting the electrical signal from his brain to engage. When the machine turns on, it gives his muscles the signal his brain should be sending and by concentrating on what's happening, he can retrain his brain to work the correct muscles. Its a really interesting process to watch - and in the few months he's been doing this, it is already requiring less 'power' from the machine to get the same movement in his hand.