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The Paralympic Games are Underway. Rehabilitation Therapy is Key, and Lynn Rehabilitation Center Can Help You Excel

man in wheelchair competing in race

Health & Wellness

By: Krysten Brenlla

While the 2024 Summer Olympics closed last month, the 2024 Paralympic Games have now begun – and the world is ready to watch incredible athleticism.
The Paralympic Games are a series of international sports competitions for athletes with disabilities. The start of the Games highlights the advancements in adaptive technology, rehabilitation techniques, and therapy, while showcasing athletes’ great resilience.

At Christine E. Lynn Rehabilitation Center for The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis at UHealth/Jackson Memorial, the world-class facility has the tools, technology, and therapists to help former athletes, or those looking to become para-athletes, reach their full potential.

What’s recreational therapy?

Recreational therapy is a type of therapy that uses activities, recreation, and sports – many of them seen in the Paralympic Games or elite competitions – to improve individuals’ physical, emotional, and social well-being.

“The ultimate goal with recreational therapy is to help people with disabilities or illnesses achieve their highest level of functioning and quality of life through structured activities, such as sports,” said Ashley Herrera, a recreational therapist at Lynn Rehabilitation Center.

Along with occupational and physical therapy, recreational therapy gives patients the opportunity to practice and train using real-life activities, like hand cycling, wheelchair racing, and swimming.

“Our ultimate goal with recreational therapy is to enhance our patients’ health and foster independence,” Herrera said.

What adaptive technology and sports are available at Lynn Rehabilitation Center, and how does it help?

Lynn Rehabilitation Center’s multidisciplinary team uses cutting-edge technology, along with recreational sports and activities, to help patients achieve the best outcomes.

  • Robotic therapy: Through robotic therapy, patients who are severely impaired can benefit from the Hocoma Lokomat system, a device that provides repetitive gait training to help patients recover the ability to walk. Through the robotic exoskeleton, patients can also receive intensive arm therapy to improve upper body movement.
  • Zero G Gait Trainers: The Zero G Gait Trainers provide support as patients practice walking, balancing, climbing stairs, and sit-to-stand movements. If the sensors on the device detect a sudden change in the body’s position, a harness lowers the patient gently and safely back down.
  • Aquatic therapy/HydroWorx pool: Aquatic rehabilitation therapy, a treatment that uses water’s buoyancy and resistance, supports the patient’s weight by reducing the impact on joints and muscles. Lynn Rehabilitation Center’s aquatic center includes a HydroWorx pool that has high-performance features, like different depths, a moveable floor, an underwater treadmill, resistance jet technology, and computer and camera systems. Patients can also use the pool to practice upper body strength training, resistance training, balance and coordination, and range of motion.
  • Hand cycling: Hand cycling focuses on the upper body, including the arms, shoulders, and core. The repetitive motion can also help increase joint mobility and flexibility in the arms and shoulders, while improving motor skills and balance.
  • Wheelchair racing: Wheelchair racing enhances strength and endurance in the upper body, including the arms, shoulders, and core. It also helps to improve your cardiovascular fitness, and your coordination and balance.
  • Activities and games: Lynn Rehabilitation Center also offers other activities, like pickleball, bocce ball, boxing, strength training assistance, and community re-integration activities to help patients throughout their recovery journey – with some patients hoping to make it to the Paralympics one day. Our recreational therapists also work with patients to tailor their preferred activities and sports into their therapy sessions.

For more information on Lynn Rehabilitation Center or for those seeking specialized care, visit JacksonRehabCare.org.