For 12 year old Damian who lives with spastic quadriplegia cerebral palsy and scoliosis, there are no limits — especially with the support of his Lysterfield parents.
And now, with Melbourne’s new RoboFit therapy clinic that works to combine physiotherapy, physiology and evolving technology — helping Damian to achieve his goals, just got a little more accessible for them.
RoboFit uses wearable neuro-controlled exoskeleton technology that works with a patient’s own brain signals to re-engage the mind and body connection that helps people walk.
Over the last 12 months, Damian and his mum, Juliet had tried nearly every therapy service that was available to them, including physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy.
But as Damian got bigger his parents began to struggle in maintaining his therapy at home.
“What we were finding is that as parents, as he’s getting bigger, taller and heavier, we’re getting tired as well, because as we’re getting older, it puts a lot of strain on our bodies”, said Juliet.
It was then that Juliet came across RoboFit therapy.
Over the last six months, Damian and his family have had to travel to Sydney to receive this therapy, which Juliet says put a lot of strain on the family.
“These things are expensive, you’ve got to fly, you’ve got to get accommodation, or if you’re driving up, it’s quite strenuous on him as well, ” said Juliet.
But Juliet says they were adamant on not “losing the momentum” that was evident after just a few sessions.
When they got back to Melbourne after his first session in Sydney, they began to see significant improvements to his movements and coordination.
“We found when we got back, basically he started self propelled walking,” explained mum Juliet.
“So he would do 20 steps on his own.”
“Which with cerebral palsy and spastic quadriplegia theres tightness of the muscles
“So sometimes you need to navigate the bending of the knee and the stepping and that sort of stuff for him.
“But he was able to do that once we got back and we were like, ‘What the heck just happened?’
“It was such a shock for us, because we didn’t expect that.
“And the therapist was like, ‘Yeah, I thought he walked’, and we’re like, ‘no, he doesn’t just walk’.
“So it was a big eye opener for us, and probably a catalyst for us to do it more and then get more involved.”
For Damian, a key aspect of therapy is repetition to maintain the new neural pathways that were being activated by the exoskeleton therapy — a key aspect that wasn’t sustainable during the last six months in Sydney.
But with the new Melbourne clinic, Damian and Juliet no longer have to worry about travelling to Sydney to keep up with Damian’s therapy.
For Juliet, the transformative services that RoboFit offers, now being available closer to home, is a “load off their shoulders”.
“We’ve never changed our perspective with Damian…he’s here in the world for a reason right? He’s got his purpose in life here, right?,” said Juliet.
“So we’re gonna do everything we can to make sure he’s healthy and happy,
“And that was ultimately our driving force for the past 12 years. And we didn’t just accept what the doctors said.
“We pushed it to the limits, and we went out and we tried different things and different therapies…
“We give everything a go, because maybe it is going to help him, or maybe, you know, so having that, like going to Sydney, like that, was really full on for us, and it was a big burden for us as a family.
“But having it now in Melbourne is such a big relief, and to know that that access is so easy, is just a load off our shoulders.”
As Damian finishes up his primary schooling, Juliet says his physical therapy will increase, and although he’s still young, they’re hoping to one day work towards participating in the Paralympics.
RoboFit Melbourne is now open and located in Clayton.
For more information, go to robofit.com.au/robofit-melbourne/
