Renate's story
After retiring, Renate Murray set out to improve her health so she could enjoy more time with her family. She lost significant weight and stayed focused on getting healthier. She underwent skin-removal surgery and completed two successful hip replacements. Renate had one knee replaced and was preparing to replace the other. Each step demanded discipline to fight through the hard days, and Renate stayed the course. She looked forward to being more active with her husband, Frank, and their grandchildren without the arthritic pain she’d been experiencing for so long.Unexpectedly, Renate began to notice weakness in her legs. At first, doctors thought it was related to her knee replacement surgery, but the weakness spread to her arms. Initially, she was diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndrome and began treatment immediately, but her strength continued to decline. Eventually, she couldn’t use her arms or legs and was unable to feed herself.
Renate was re-diagnosed with Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy (CIDP), a chronic form of Guillain-Barre, that attacks the nerves. She underwent treatments including IVIG (intravenous immunoglobulin) and steroids to calm her immune system. At this point, she could no longer care for herself.
She was in need of inpatient rehabilitation to regain her strength, mobility and endurance, Renate chose Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation - Marlton. Due to the nature of her illness, she had to stop therapy and return to the hospital for additional treatment three times. “My therapists and I had to start from the very beginning... after each event,” explained Renate. This complicated matters, but motivated Renate to take everything she could from her therapy sessions.
At the beginning of each admission, Renate required total assistance for all daily activities and transfers. Her goals were always the same: “to walk, use my arms and play with grandchildren.” Her physician-led team created a personalized plan to help her reach those goals.
Physical therapy focused on rebuilding her strength and mobility. Renate used equipment that provided cycling movement to strengthen her arms and legs. With passive, assisted and active modes, this device provided benefits like joint mobility and circulation at the lower settings and strengthening at higher settings. She also used a recumbent bike to build endurance. Therapists helped her with range of motion exercises in her arms and shoulders to improve her flexibility and therapy bands and weighted rods helped her regain arm strength.
“I hadn’t been able to walk in 15 years with such bad hips and knees – it was never in my vision to be independent again,” said Renate. Taking steps unassisted was a milestone that she couldn’t have imaged years prior. Her CIPD onset occurred after losing weight and having joints replaced, so she didn’t get to experience the positive benefits of both.
When she came to Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation, Renate could only walk five feet using a rolling walker and assistance with a wheelchair follow for safety. By discharge, she could 65 feet with supervision, navigate curbs and stairs with contact-guard assistance and propel her wheelchair more than 150 feet independently.
Occupational therapy worked on upper body tasks such as seated and standing exercises that encouraged her to reach, hinge and bend while remaining stable. These built her functional abilities while strengthening her core muscles. She also worked on reaching and grasping exercises, to help complete functional tasks, like eating and brushing teeth. Crowley, the hospital’s therapy dog, joined in some sessions as well. Playing games with Crowley gave Renate joy but also strengthened her ability to remain stable while being active and to keep moving when she felt like stopping.
Progress was slow at first, but Renate never lost her upbeat attitude. “Oh my gosh, my rehab team … when you tell them your goals to target and we work on those, I felt the difference, I felt the improvement,” she said.
Her husband, Frank, was by her side daily, learning hands-on techniques to support her recovery in Kessler’s Care Partner Program, such as helping her move from one place to another safely and how to provide set-up assistance so that she could eat and groom on her own. Their determination paid off. By discharge, Renate had gone from total dependence to supervision for all activities and had regained functional mobility.
Her son noticed the transformation. “It was like looking at my old mom again – I got my mom back,” he said with gratitude. Renate plans to continue outpatient therapy and is most excited to play with her grandkids. She’s also looking forward to hosting a gathering with friends and family members to celebrate her progress.
Reflecting on her experience, Renate said: “I couldn’t have been in a better place…. There’s nothing that would stop me from telling anyone to go to Kessler for any kind of therapy. You feel the energy when you walk into the gym.”
Since her discharge, Renate has continued to make progress. She receives IVIG treatments four times a month to help manage her CIDP. “I continue the daily exercises Kessler taught me, and I feel stronger with each passing month,” she shared. Renate is sometimes able to walk with only a cane for assistance, and she looks forward to the day she can visit her “Kessler family” without any supportive equipment at all.