When Nolan first awoke from his brain surgery in November of 2023, he was faced with the extraordinary task of getting up from flat on his back inside of a body that could not find its ground.
Between the hospital and inpatient rehab, Nolan spent 4 weeks re-learning to walk with the goal of returning home to his family. Meanwhile, his brain was adapting to a new world in which his sense of sight, sound, and body awareness were impacted.
Once home, he started to seek ways to engage back in with his family life and the responsibilities as a father and husband. As to be expected, he struggled to keep up with the fast pace of his young family and the outdoor activities. He wanted to keep pace with his active kids and so, set his recovery goals towards fitness.
It’s always a beautiful story when we can find a way to connect back in through the love and freedom of joyful expression a child can bring to us. It is a great opportunity to get on the floor and let go of the pressures to be anything but restricted in pain and fear. Nolan found a safe space within a local climbing gym where one of his children was a competitive climber. They offered an array of accessible options for climbing that allowed the body to relax while the mind gets to work at balancing and problem solving. This experience opened up Nolan to the potential for repair by becoming aware of his own bodies’ limitations and learning to grow from there.
At home, with the focus of putting one foot in front of the other, Nolan began daily outdoor walks. Initially Nolan used a walking stick and worked on endurance, gradually challenging himself by scanning his surrounding while walking. With each turn of the head causing instability, he was forced to slow down and regain his balance. Three steps to the right, three to the centre, three to the left, three to the centre. An excruciatingly slow process. Bit by bit, he was able to increase distance and improve his balance to allow himself to move faster, steadier and, eventually, he was able to move with the natural swing of fluid motion.
He supported his body’s needs by incorporating plenty of rest and recovery, which included heating pads for his neck, and stretching routines. He focused on nourishing his body with vitamins, added proteins and creatine to sustain and aid in strength building. He hit plateaus, met many obstacles along the way, but he persisted and created goals and routines to grow from them. Physiotherapy focused on recovering his space awareness by balancing on a foam pad, moving his head in certain patterns both with eyes open and closed.
Today, Nolan is off and running! A triumph that this author is truly humbled and inspired by. When asked how, he simply responded, “getting moving was the greatest physio as I was able to force myself to focus on one spot and move towards it.” And that right there, is the kind of wisdom that we can all learn and expand from.