We speak to someone who lives with MS and tells us about their experience with VirtualRehab.
Can you tell us a little bit about your life with MS? When did you get the news that you had the disease and how your life has changed?
I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis six years ago. At that time, I lived in another city and tried to continue my personal and professional life there, but in the end, I decided to move back to my cite, Albacete, Spain, to be close to my family. I had to make many changes in all areas of my life, but from the beginning I have been doing quite well. MS is often called “the disease with 1000 faces” because each person is affected in a different way. Since the beginning I have had balance and walking issues and those are the biggest symptoms I have had to up to now. Luckily, in other aspects such as cognition, I haven’t been affected up to now.
What was your first contact with VirtualRehab?
A few years ago, I was doing rehabilitation in a center that was part of the MS patients association of my city and it was there that they offered me to begin using it in their facilities. I’m in IT by profession and from the beginning I was very interested in t. I was surprised that there was already an existing product using this technology! Afterwards I contacted Evolv to get all the necessary information to install it at home. Due to the progression of my illness a couple of years ago I decided to do rehabilitation at home, but the rehabilitation center which I went to didn’t offer physiotherapy service at home. They recommended the Albacete la Rueda where they did offer home therapy services and that’s where I met my physiotherapist Lorena. One day talking to her the issue of VirtualRehab came up and it was when I decided to contact Evolv to see if I could use it at home.
Why did you decide to use it at home?
Doing any tasks outside my home is very difficult for me, especially travelling. The option of doing it at home for me is ideal.
What are the advantages for you of being able to use VirtualRehab at home?
For me the main advantage is the flexibility it offers. One of the most serious problems for me of this disease is the issue of fatigue. You don’t know how you’re going to wake up the next day and there are days when you can’t move a finger. If one day I’ve planned to do rehabilitation, but I feel very tired, I leave it for the next day and that’s it. It gives me a lot of peace of mind to be able to choose when to exercise.
Is there anything to consider when using a technological solution at home?
Personally, it didn’t take me long to install everything, but I understand that there are people who are not used to doing it and maybe it takes them a little bit longer. Even so, there’s a good user manual and the Evolv team was always there to help me.
Would you recommend the use of VirtualRehab for people living with MS? And why
Absolutely. As they are games it’s not as burdensome to do rehabilitation as well as what I mentioned before with the flexibility. If one day you’re very tired, and you were planning to exercise, you can leave it for any other time when you have more strength.
What improvements would you like to see in VirtualRehab as a user in general and specifically as a home user?
As for the program itself, I don’t have any complaints. It’s always nice to have more content, but I haven’t been able to try all the activities yet.