Spasticity and Splints - Part 17 (Rani and Walking)

Another thing that I’m really happy to be able to do is stroke my dog. My mum, dad and I have a Labradoodle called Rani. She is four years old but she still thinks she’s a puppy; she is very clumsy and loves to run around doing what we call a doodle dash. When she gets excited, she runs the length of the room and back again. Rani lives with my mum and dad, and when I visit, she goes mental!

I get out of my wheelchair before Rani is let into the living room because otherwise, she will get too excited and I wouldn’t be able to get onto the floor until she calms down.

Rani is a daft dog, but incredibly bright! When I first visited after my operation, I had my cast and sling on, so we let her out before I got out of my wheelchair because I didn’t want her jumping on me when my arm was sore. She was very good… She usually excitedly jumps up, puts both of her front paws up on my shoulders and licks me to death! I was sitting in my wheelchair, and Rani just enthusiastically licked my hand. That’s when I knew she was going to be calm enough.

I love playing with Rani, but I couldn’t really play with her much when I had the cast and sling on because of my lack of balance and she would get too excited and forget to be more gentle.

When I go back home, Rani says goodbye to me by putting her paws on my shoulders and licking me when I am sat on the floor and after I’ve got into my wheelchair. When I had my arm in the cast and sling, Rani was anxious to say goodbye but she didn’t want to jump up, even when she was encouraged to. When she did, she jumped up on my left side, away from my right arm. That dog is too clever for her own good sometimes!

Before the operation and when I was due to have my Botox injections for my hand, I didn’t trust my hand not to clamp shut, so I tried to keep it away from Rani and my other dogs as much as possible. I did this to avoid grabbing hold of their hair.

When I got my cast off, I sat down beside Rani and stroked her with my right hand. I ran my fingers through her hair and stroked her ear… The sheer joy of being able to stroke her without worrying about my fingers getting hold of her, brought a tear to my eye! I just sat there stroking her for ages… It was absolutely amazing! As I regained movement in my fingers, I was concerned about grabbing her again, but I guess we’ll have to see what happens.

Before the operation, I knew that I wouldn’t be able to use my walking frame for a while. As I needed to be careful of the wound, I haven’t been out walking… When I walked, I held onto the handlebar of my frame with my left hand and my right arm would be doing its own thing, either flying out to the side or hanging down the side of my frame, intermittently banging on the frame. If I had walked whilst my fingers were sore, I would in too much pain to walk anywhere.

As well as my physical health, walking is really important for my mental health because I feel like I’m achieving something rather than just sitting on my bum all day. Before my operation, I was walking between 0.7 and 0.8Km on average, and I debated whether or not to walk that distance because I would have to start all over again after my recovery as I will be out of practice but I made my last walk count by walking 0.8Km.

I’m hoping to go walking again in February or March 2026. Not being able to walk has made me feel like there’s a hole in my life, and I just feel bored of life sometimes. I’m a creature of habit and when my routine is messed up, I get really stressed and fed up. I think I have OCD to be honest – it wouldn’t surprise me if I was diagnosed with OCD when I get assessed for ASD.

This operation has changed my life! It has been a bumpy road, with lots of ups and downs. I accept that it will be a long road to recovering completely. I’m not going to sugar-coat it – it has been very tough and I have shed lots of tears, I have felt hopeless at times, it will be worth it in the long run. Thank you to the team at QA Hospital!