Lynn Vanwelsenaers is a certified prosthetist and orthotic fitter in the UP of Michigan. She is one of NewGait's founding clinicians. Today, she is the Director of Product Innovation. Listen to her story about becoming involved back when the NewGait was first being discovered as a rehab tool.
Watch the video version here. Certified prosthetist and orthotic fitter, Lynn Vanwelsenaers, discusses learning about the NewGait and how it has changed her practice.
LYNN: My name is Lynn Vanwelsenaers and I am a certified prosthetist and orthotic fitter.
LYNN: I was introduced to the NewGait by Kim Spranger, who happened to stop by my office one day, and asked me if I’d be interested in learning about it. I said, “Certainly.” And then Jordan came to visit me and I actually tried it on that day and ran around in it. I immediately saw that it would make a difference for people with gait imbalances. It’s added a dimension that I didn’t have before. And it actually helps patients have more success earlier on.
LYNN: In my daily practice, I actually use it on new amputee’s who have different gait deviations to help them know how to fire their muscles for gait patterns. I will sometimes use it to see what they’re lacking and what they might need in general. Since I’ve been working with it, I’ve learned to use it to address many muscle imbalance or postural conditions.
LYNN: In general, my favorite moment with the NewGait is the smile that it brings to people’s faces when they realize that this actually might work! It looks weird, it makes the patients feel like a puppet sometimes. But when they actually feel what they feel when they’re using it, it spreads a smile across their face and light in their eyes and the hope is restored. That is my favorite moment.
LYNN: Our team is set apart from others because we actually work really well together. We put first things first. We are grateful. And it’s just a joy to work with everybody who is passionate and focused and excited about what we’re doing.
LYNN: I believe that the NewGait is going to change rehab as we know it today. I think it’s going to add a dimension. It’s going to help people actually restore parts of their lives that they haven’t had, and it’s going to allow people to get back to more functional living.
