Since her seizure, we have worked diligently to rehabilitate Ruby through prayer, neurology appointments, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, and constant encouragement. We also have Ruby participating in gymnastics, aquatic therapy, and ballet, which will all help her to develop the right side of her body so that it keeps up with the left (the brain’s tendency in a case like Ruby’s is to ignore the impaired muscles). It is sobering to recall that, over the past 4 years, Ruby has relearned to walk, run, speak, use her right arm and hand, and even swim! She has been seizure-free for several years now. Her physical and mental abilities today exceed many of the expectations of her primary neurologist, for which credit is due to the Lord Jesus Christ. We are so proud of how hard she has worked and how far she has come.
That said, Ruby continues to struggle with her cognitive and physical abilities and we are steadfastly determined to provide her with every opportunity to have the best life she can have. While we have done and continue to use traditional methods of rehabilitation, we have learned about hippotherapy, or physical/occupational therapy with the aid of a horse. Hippotherapy is a comprehensive treatment strategy which has been shown to help improve muscle strength and flexibility, coordination and balance, language and communication skills, ability to process information, self-confidence, and social skills – all of which will help Ruby tremendously. To that end, treating Ruby at The Shea Center in San Juan Capistrano, CA (www.sheacenter.org) is a wonderful opportunity to help her continue to improve her motor and cognitive skills. Unfortunately, the therapy is very expensive (~$550 per month for one session per week) and not covered by our medical insurance. In order to make this therapy possible for Ruby, Melissa's wonderful Aunt Julie has arranged a fundraiser at California Pizza Kitchen in Cerritos, Irvine, and Temecula on May 22-24. Just show the flier below to your server and 20% of your check will go towards this therapy for Ruby.
On behalf of Ruby's entire family, we express our sincere gratitude for your support.
You can also download the pdf of the flier here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2cd3F3PJQtwV1hqd0dWQjN2RE0/view?usp=sharing
Here are some recent pictures, just for fun. :)
We really enjoyed watching Ruby at her 1st grade music show. Music class is one of her favorites. You can see she really gets a kick out of it. :)
