Originally posted by ijustcallit
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Practical ways the spasticity impacted me
- The muscles in my mouth were so tight/spastic that I had a hard time speaking. It was almost like I stuttered, because I really had to push the words out. Having a conversation was a continual drain and I would be wiped out afterwards.
- A bus driver recently commented that he thought I was "always mad" because my face was scrunched up. He said he was confused because, "my words did not match my face." Meaning I was not cursing at him or being angry, but my face had a perma-grimace.
- My chest had spasticity and I was restricted to shallow breathing. Once the spasticity left, I could feel my chest and my breathing normalized.
Motor Skills -
- I could not cut a steak for a long time. I would either drop the steak, the knife or both. A week after the surgery, I was able to cut a steak (still work).
- Typing. I worked with computers for nearly 20 years. I could type in the 80-90 wpm range. Spasticity limited me to about 8-9 wpm. Once the spasticity left, I could type faster with fewer errors. I'm not near 80 wpm, but the difference is obvious.
- I went to elastic laces years ago. This was necessary because I could not reliably tie my shoes due to fine motor skill deficiencies.
- Strength - I had a hard time opening a water bottle. Now, I can open them without much effort. I still need to work on strengthening and increasing the endurance of my muscles, but it's infinitely better than before.
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