Our Angelfish of the Month is Nathan, a bright and happy 5 year old boy who’s been working with Angelfish Therapy for 3 years now.  He suffers from Spastic Diplegia, a form of cerebral palsy where both the arms and legs have abnormal stiffness.  It’s sometimes also called “paraplegia,” and was originally called “Little’s Disease,” after the British surgeon who first described the disorder in the 19th century.

With Spastic Diplegia, the legs are often more affected than the upper extremities.  ”Spastic” means stiff or contracted. The word Diplegia breaks down into “di,” meaning two, and “plegia,” the Latin word for weakness. Therefore, “Spastic Diplegia” means stiff or contracted muscles affecting two extremities, causing weakness.

With this condition, it’s not hard to understand why Nathan would have a hard time getting around on land, and he’s currently in the process of learning to use a walker with moderate assistance.  The only complete independence he can find is in the water, where he’s able to move freely and address multiple movement opportunities, thanks to a gravity-eliminated environment.

Cognitively, Nathan is very bright, and in the pool, he is highly motivated, social, excited, and successful.  He grows stronger and more independent in the water with each passing month, and his parents have seen positive carryover into his land-based function.

We love working with Nathan, are thrilled to be part of his therapy regimen, and agree with his mother when she says, “He is truly a ray of sunshine for all of us!”

The photos below (click to see larger versions) tell the story of what a happy child Nathan is, and how much he loves being in the water.

Here’s a video of Nathan working with Angelfish co-owner Cindy Freedman in the pool …

And here’s what Nathan’s grandmother has to say …

My grandson Nathan has been in Angelfish aquatic classes for 3 years. The instructors have done an amazing job getting Nathan to feel independent and comfortable in the pool, which in turn makes him feel confident in any body of water i.e. the ocean, lakes, in a boat or even in the bathtub.

With his flotation collar he can float comfortably on his back or kick his feet and move his arms in an attempt to swim alone.

He also can just remain alone in a vertical position (treading water) breathing properly without letting his head fall to one side. It is always a challenge to get toddler swimmers to close their mouths, breathe through their noses and not swallow water. In the beginning they taught Nathan to “hum” in order to keep his mouth closed. This works!

Angelfish is very creative in the way they use different swimming devices and methods to reach a goal. They put weights on his ankles to keep his feet down or set him on the pool steps to try to get him to balance in the weightless water.

He loves people and knows the names of every Angelfish instructor PLUS the names of the children in the pool. They call him “The Mayor”. I also believe he watches carefully and tries to imitate what the other swimmers are doing.

I don’t know how anyone can laugh and smile and try to swim at the same time but Nathan can do it!

He absolutely loves his aquatic classes and cannot wait until the next class. His movements in the water have improved his motor skills and they “loosen” the tight muscles in his legs and arms.

Hopefully, someday he will feel comfortable enough to be able to swim without any flotation devices. From the beginning Angelfish took away his fear of the water and now we cannot get him out!

Ginny