Quadriplegia is characterized by paralysis of the body’s upper and lower parts. This usually results from damage to the neck area of the spinal cord. The degree and extent of the damage may result in permanent paralysis with quadriplegia. However, it may be less severe, allowing for a higher chance of recovery.
Recovery from quadriplegia is a different story for everybody. After incomplete spinal cord injuries, many people find they can regain some function again; sometimes, a complete spinal cord injury gives a more difficult outlook. Those who have spinal cord injuries have to learn to align their mind, body, and spinal cord again.
One of the most important parts of your recovery journey is attuning to your body. You should be able to feel all the sensations and movements that start returning and then continue strengthening them through repeated practice.
Every movement you make sparks your spine, and the more often you do those movements, the better the nervous system knows when to turn that on. This prompts the healthy areas of your spinal cord to take advantage of neuroplasticity’s natural ability to reform its neural connections and improve upon the affected movements.
So, you continue to practice. Those new neural pathways are strengthened to make the movements more intuitive and comfortable. Still, every human body is different. Not everyone will regain mobility after a spinal cord injury.
The Role of Exercise After Quadriplegia
We all know how essential it is to maintain regular physical activity in our daily lives, physically and mentally. This does not exclude those who are under treatment for their injuries caused by spinal cord injuries leading to quadriplegia. Quadriplegia forbids active movement; we must look for other ways to involve movement in our routine.
Actually, regular physical activity is particularly crucial for those who live with quadriplegia. For instance, studies have proven that exercise positively influences breathing, respiration, and circulation following a spinal cord injury.
Active body care can prevent other complications, including bed sores, swelling of the legs or edema, and infections like pneumonia. Exercise can also improve the digestive system’s functionality, preventing constipation and urinary tract infections.
Proper exercise can benefit the mental health and self-esteem of quadriplegics. In one specific study, it was reported that quadriplegics who performed activities every day were less anxious and depressed after their spinal injuries.
Adaptive Exercises for Quadriplegics
The following are some adaptable exercises that can be helpful to quadriplegics to facilitate mobility and general well-being:
Passive Range of Motion
You are a quadriplegic just starting recovery, and you must have come across the term ‘passive range of motion exercise.’ It is one of the therapies that relies on guided activities. Their aim is to stimulate nerve healing and increase muscle strength.
It’s a godsend for partial and full paralyzes. It gives them a glimmer of hope, not only for the patients but also for the people dear to them.
So, why should you do passive exercises for range of motion? They increase your blood flow, keep you flexible, and reduce your pain following a spinal cord injury. But that’s not all. These exercises make it easy for your therapist or caregiver to monitor any skin lesions that may occur and prevent pressure sores before they occur.
Upper Body Quadriplegia Exercises
For quadriplegic individuals and their rehab team, much of the functional goal is better upper body mobility. Accomplishment can improve self-care independence dramatically because they can use their hands and arms to help move the lower body. However, if possible, it’s also good to try to include exercises in your lower body, such as passive range of motion.
So, we’re here to discuss some more exercises that are sort of centered around building strength and mobility in the upper body for those dealing with quadriplegia. Remember that your muscle function after SCI will depend upon the extent of your injury, so these will probably need to be modified or scaled based on your needs.
Examples
Let’s learn some simple exercises you can try. First up, we have Neck Tilts. Just tilt your neck slightly so your left ear is in a straight line with your left shoulder, then do it all again on your right side. Do this while ensuring that you have calm and relaxed shoulders.
DO NOT attempt this exercise if you have a neck brace or have been advised to take cervical spinal precautions. It is sensible to discuss with your physio or doctor when it would be safe for you to do it. Neck Rotation is easily done by rotating your head from side to side like you do when saying ‘no’ or looking over your shoulder. Be careful to keep your eyes level as you do this exercise.
The basic Shoulder Shrug involves raising your shoulders to your ears and letting them fall comfortably back again. For Shoulder Rolls, keep your arms relaxed at your sides, rolling them around in large circles, sometimes forward and sometimes back.
The second is Shoulder Blade Rows. Just imagine this scenario: you have a pencil between your shoulder blades and need to keep it there. Now, put your arms in front of you or keep them at your sides. Squeeze your shoulders together as though holding that imaginary pencil.
Final exercise:
- Shoulder flexion.
- Begin with your arms hanging down at your side, palms facing inward.
- Progressively advance to raise your arm out in front of you, attempting to keep it as close to the ear as possible without bending your arm. If you have cervical spinal precautions, do not raise your arms above your shoulders.
Mobility Exercises
Dealing with the consequences of a spinal cord injury is much more than the healing of the injury itself. Many secondary effects can be complications of a spinal cord injury. As we have already discussed, these problems-such as blood clotting, development of pressure sores, and thinning of the bones-can be exacerbated by a lack of physical activity.
So, to all quadriplegics who have developed disability through spinal cord injury, it would pay to keep themselves as active as possible to be on the safe side from these dilemmas. It is really fine or rather necessary if a patient cannot move himself/herself, seek help from a carer, or perform passive exercises on him/her by moving their body for them.
But because you are not the one moving, it doesn’t mean you get to check out mentally. You should be engaged and keen during such exercises. After all, note the movements and changes in your body, and being involved in the process can greatly contribute to your recovery.
Now, some good news for those with incomplete quadriplegia injury that doesn’t completely sever the spinal cord. Even when the body has been hit hard, the spinal cord somehow manages to hang on to its remarkable ability to heal itself- a neat trick called neuroplasticity.
This implies that your central nervous system can somehow rewire itself and enhance functions weakened by the injury. Proper exercises and specific movements stimulate this process of self-healing in the spinal cord and even help forge new connections. As they say, ‘practice makes perfect’ – the more you work at it, the better and more efficient your movements will be.
Adaptive Equipment for Quadriplegia
Along with these exercises and therapy, adaptive equipment plays a significant role in helping a person with quadriplegia maintain the capability to perform ordinary daily activities. Being designed specifically for the needs of mobility-impaired individuals, such equipment could realistically make everyday life much more easy and functional than may be assumed possible.
An important adaptive device is the power wheelchair, which allows for mobility when fitted with a battery-powered system. Modern power wheelchairs offer some postural positioning or risk of pressure sores management via tilt and recline functions. Additionally, control interfaces are available in forms that can be adapted to varying degrees of hand and arm mobility on the user’s part.
Another essential piece of equipment includes the adaptive feeding device. While some may only be as simple as utensil aids with larger grip surfaces, others offer high-tech robotic arms providing automated feeding assistance. These developments allow a person to eat independently; they help preserve dignity and independence to a certain extent.
Touchscreen devices have also transformed access for quadriplegics. Voice control applications and styluses with adaptive grip supplies allow easy navigation of smart devices, improving communication and information access.
Adaptive clothing and dressing aids, including magnetic closures and long-handled shoehorns, make getting dressed easier and provide great relief from needing assistance in personal care activities.
These adaptive devices, which emphasize the particular ability and the needs of a person to participate in daily life, enable people to perform their everyday practice and develop well-being emotionally because of their autonomy.
Take Away
Recovery from spinal cord injuries is never easy. Still, with a routine of physical exercises, occupational therapy, and adaptive equipment, ways can be paved toward meaningful recovery.
