Linnette's story
Linnette Jobson led an active life but the 59-year-old banking manager and mother of three adult children started doing less due to back pain.
“I was going to physical therapy for back pain for a while,” said Linnette. “One day, I noticed a significant decline in my walking and progressive weakness.” She went to a neurologist and through MRI and CT scans a benign spinal tumor was discovered.
Linnette underwent surgery to remove the tumor and fuse the thoracic spine for stability at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. While optimistic about her recovery, Linnette couldn’t walk and had no feeling in her legs following the surgery.
"I didn't think I would need rehab,” Linnette said, “but after surgery, I knew I needed it, and I'm glad I came to [Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation for it]." Her goal was clear: to walk unaided and without assistive devices. “My daughters are both getting married, and I had a goal to dance at their weddings and walk without a walker,” she said.
Linnette’s physician-led team of therapists developed a plan to help her reach those goals.
Linnette's rehabilitation included rigorous physical therapy sessions where she engaged in high-intensity exercises daily using therapeutic support equipment called the LiteGait and Andago. LiteGait is a wheel based system that provides patients with posture, balance and weight bearing assistance while they relearn to walk. The Andago is an overground harness system that safely supports patients while they practice walking, steps and obstacle courses.
Linnette also built muscle strength and improved her balance during pool therapy sessions at Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation (KIR) - Marlton. In occupational therapy sessions, she focused on relearning daily living activities like showering, dressing, eating and other everyday tasks.
One pivotal moment in Linnette's recovery was tapping her toes. “This was something I had always strived to do. When I first came to the rehab, the doctor asked me to tap my toes, and I couldn't do it. But every day I tried and eventually I was able to tap my toes,” she said.
“My rehab team has been amazing,” said Linnette. “They were able to push me just enough so I felt motivated and challenged every day. I knew they were the experts at what they did and I learned to just trust the process.”
Linnette's family also played an important role in her recovery, providing support and participating in family training programs at KIR - Marlton. "My son and daughters have a newfound respect for what the therapists do and for how hard I've been working," Linnette said.
“When I first came to rehab, I told myself that I could either be sad and negative or choose to be happy and that's what I did,” said Linnette. “I learned that even though my body wasn't where I wanted it to be, I could still smile and laugh, and I learned that going through something like this is really life changing and has made me even stronger.”
“I was going to physical therapy for back pain for a while,” said Linnette. “One day, I noticed a significant decline in my walking and progressive weakness.” She went to a neurologist and through MRI and CT scans a benign spinal tumor was discovered.
Linnette underwent surgery to remove the tumor and fuse the thoracic spine for stability at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. While optimistic about her recovery, Linnette couldn’t walk and had no feeling in her legs following the surgery.
"I didn't think I would need rehab,” Linnette said, “but after surgery, I knew I needed it, and I'm glad I came to [Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation for it]." Her goal was clear: to walk unaided and without assistive devices. “My daughters are both getting married, and I had a goal to dance at their weddings and walk without a walker,” she said.
Linnette’s physician-led team of therapists developed a plan to help her reach those goals.
Linnette's rehabilitation included rigorous physical therapy sessions where she engaged in high-intensity exercises daily using therapeutic support equipment called the LiteGait and Andago. LiteGait is a wheel based system that provides patients with posture, balance and weight bearing assistance while they relearn to walk. The Andago is an overground harness system that safely supports patients while they practice walking, steps and obstacle courses.
Linnette also built muscle strength and improved her balance during pool therapy sessions at Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation (KIR) - Marlton. In occupational therapy sessions, she focused on relearning daily living activities like showering, dressing, eating and other everyday tasks.
One pivotal moment in Linnette's recovery was tapping her toes. “This was something I had always strived to do. When I first came to the rehab, the doctor asked me to tap my toes, and I couldn't do it. But every day I tried and eventually I was able to tap my toes,” she said.
“My rehab team has been amazing,” said Linnette. “They were able to push me just enough so I felt motivated and challenged every day. I knew they were the experts at what they did and I learned to just trust the process.”
Linnette's family also played an important role in her recovery, providing support and participating in family training programs at KIR - Marlton. "My son and daughters have a newfound respect for what the therapists do and for how hard I've been working," Linnette said.
“When I first came to rehab, I told myself that I could either be sad and negative or choose to be happy and that's what I did,” said Linnette. “I learned that even though my body wasn't where I wanted it to be, I could still smile and laugh, and I learned that going through something like this is really life changing and has made me even stronger.”