A Patient Story
Whitman and his family have been working with Dr. Padula since 2022. They report that one of their favorite things about working with him is seeing immediate change. Whitman couldn’t take a single step on the first visit without his leg dropping. It was determined that Whitman’s entire center of balance and his visual midline had been compromised by the tick-borne infections that had crossed the blood-brain barrier and attacked his midbrain, where the three cranial nerves reside. He has a very difficult time adapting to changes visually. Dr. Padula prescribed prism glasses with occlusion tape, which helped his brain/eyes balance. A great start to rehab! It was paired with OT and neuro-optometric rehab. Dr. Padula brought several options to the table to, including one that applied to Whitman’s heel strike, which always lead to a fall because his body gets lost in space and doesn’t feel safe since his visual processing system is compromised. “If we can’t bring Whitman’s foot to the ground, we will bring the ground to the foot,” Said Dr. Padula.
We all cried in the office as Whitman said, “ Look! I’m walking!”
We are thankful for progress and glimmers of HOPE!
– Whitmans warriors
