Thanks to one concerned and creative University of Utah Occupational Therapist, stroke patients now have a new approach to stroke treatment that can provide long term benefits, and give them better physical skills for day to day living. 

Yda Smith, MOT, OTR/L, is a faculty member at the University of Utah School of Occupational Therapy who has been working with people with disabilities for nearly a decade, primarily those with hemiplegia.  Hemiplegia is temporary or permanent paralysis of one side of the body, usually resulting from a stroke.

From experience, Yda knew that the only effective therapy for stroke rehabilitation was one on one, therapist to patient.  The problem was that insurance companies would only pay for a certain amount of therapy, and after benefits ran out, hemiplegic patients did not have access to any kind of therapy.  They were on their own.  Yda saw a need to provide affordable, accessible therapy that could help stroke patients have a better quality of life. 

A former dancer, Yda attended Pilates classes, a form of exercise developed by dancer Joseph Pilates, which emphasizes the balanced development of the body through core strength, flexibility, and awareness in order to support efficient, graceful movement.  Yda could see the potential benefits of Pilates for her patients, and there was definitely a need. 

“I wanted to create a community based class with the same look and feel, and cost as the Pilates classes available to able bodied people,” she said.   In order to make the class doable for people with limited physical ability, Yda modified the exercises to make them less challenging, and involves her OT students as hands-on assistants.   The one-hour class is held once a week in an empty classroom near the University’s Rehabilitation and Wellness clinic, an outpatient facility for MS and stroke patients. Participants pay the nominal cost on a per class or semester basis, similar to a health club. 

Pilates is taught on mats similar to Yoga, so participants are required to get down on the floor, which can be especially challenging for people with hemiplegia.  By using a chair for support, and with some assistance from OT students, participants are able to successfully get down on the floor and back up again. 

“Just the process of getting down on the floor and back up is an important  move for hemiplegic patients to practice,” says Yda.  Exercises work the abdominals in almost every move, and involve laying on the back, side or stomach and lifting legs and arms using the body’s core in combination moves that build coordination and strength.  With names like “Star Roll”, “Rolling like a ball”, and “Rainbow” all moves require concentration, proper breathing and slow, precise movements.

As the only spinal cord injury survivor in the group, I don’t have some of the issues to deal with that hemiplegic patients do.  But as an incomplete quadriplegic, with severely limited flexibility and abdominal strength, the class is one of the most challenging forms of exercise that I do.

“Most people are weak in the abdominals,” said Yda, “and that’s why Pilates is so great. It really works the core.”  I can attest to that.  But the class is not just about the stroke recovery benefits. 

 “There’s also an important psycho-social component,” Yda noted.  “Patients interact with one another, and they support one another. It’s an activity-based therapy in a patient support group setting."

I have been attending for two years now, and I keep going back because it is a non-intimidating, affordable and accessible way for me to challenge myself and maximize the limited physical skills I have.
I think that’s what Yda had in mind.  

See Related Articles
Want more information about adaptive exercises for wheelchair users? See Chair Yoga is Accessible for All.

See Staying Motivated While Living with a Disability to learn how to keep active and discover how others with disabilities are making these changes in their lives.