Sandra's Story
Native Californian Sandra “Sandy” Bigler, 64, pulled up stakes and moved to Arizona with husband, Tom, over a decade ago. Together, they enjoyed an active lifestyle – painting, cooking, spending time with friends and taking lots of trips – something that comes naturally to the travel consultant and professional photographer.
When Sandy began to experience numbness, tingling and weakness in her legs, she knew something was wrong. Her doctor ordered an MRI, which showed that Sandy had a spinal meningioma, a slow-growing, non-cancerous tumor that develops in the protective layers of tissue surrounding the spinal cord.
Doctors performed a thoracic laminectomy, surgery to remove tumors from the middle (thoracic) spine, which would prevent further spinal cord damage. While the surgery was successful, it left Sandy weak and unable to walk.
Her surgeon recommended rehabilitation and Sandy was transferred to Banner Rehabilitation Hospital Phoenix just two weeks after the operation. With a goal of walking independently, Sandy’s care team of physicians, nurses, physical and occupational therapists devised a care plan that would help her reach that objective.
“On Sandy's first day, she was full of questions, full of pain and full of uncertainty,” said one of her physical therapists, adding, “From the beginning, though, her favorite sentence was ‘I’m walking out of this place.’” Initially, that seemed unlikely; Sandy hadn’t been out of bed in over two weeks and had little to no movement or feeling in her legs. She required the assistance of two people to get out of her wheelchair onto a treatment table in the therapy gym. Once she was on the table, they helped her sit upright as well.
Sandy was willing to try anything her team suggested in order meet her goals. Therapists helped her into a seated recumbent bike to get her legs moving and progressed to standing with the support of a standing frame that helped her maintain that upright position. “One day, I walked in Sandy's room, and with tears in her eyes, she raised her leg up and off of the bed,” her therapist said. “From there on out, there was nothing stopping her.” Sandy advanced to an exoskeleton, a wearable robotic device that helped her stand and use her legs to walk. Gradually, the device helped Sandy become more comfortable with walking accompanied by therapists and soon, she was taking her first few steps solely with the support of the parallel bars. Confidence started to build and before long, Sandy asked to use a walker.
Simultaneously, Sandy’s team worked with her on exercises to improve her core strength so she could independently care for herself. Those exercises also helped build muscles used for sitting, balancing and transferring from one surface to another using a transfer board – a small plank that allows a patient to slide from a bed to a wheelchair, for instance. Sandy’s team helped her use the tool and eventually she was tackling transferring on her own. As her strength and balance improved, Sandy’s therapists taught her how to get dressed in bed. Once advanced to a walker, Sandy’s therapy got a bigger dose of fun. She started using video games to bowl and play tennis; while the sports action lifted her spirits, it also boosted her balance and endurance.
Therapists also reacquainted Sandy with how to tackle daily life activities in a suite that mirrored a home setting. For example, she learned how to do meal prep – standing and cutting food at the counter – without losing stamina or balance.
Throughout her entire 53-day stay at Banner Rehabilitation Hospital Phoenix, Sandy’s husband Tom was a constant presence and an active participant in therapy sessions, learning how to help his wife upon returning home. He too learned how to help Sandy with her self-care activities and transfers. “We learned quickly that Sandy and her husband Tom have an amazing relationship,” her therapists noted. “The main thing that shined bright through it all was the support they had for each other as he was willing to help her literally every step of the way.”
Seven weeks after she arrived, Sandy walked through the lobby and double doors into the bright sunshine outside assisted by a therapist if extra balance and stability was needed. Tom was keeping pace, memorializing the occasion on video.
“Sandy truly exemplifies the phrase ‘hard work pays off,’” said her physical therapist. “She was an absolute pleasure to work with day in and day out.” Sandy didn’t know any other way of tackling rehab, stating, “I don’t think you really know who you are until you’re faced with a crisis. I wanted it so badly there was no room for pessimism. I was surprised how I was able to maintain a positive attitude throughout all of this."
Sandy plans to continue her recovery with outpatient therapy. The stronger she gets, the sooner she’ll be able to reignite her passions, cooking, photography and travel.