David Aldrich sent us a short clip of his first attempts at standing in over six years. Here is the letter he sent along with the clip.

Hi Everyone,

Today was truly a day of Thanksgiving for me. I went to therapy for what I expected would be my last day of gait training. They hired a new therapist who is 6'5'' and strong enough to handle my weight. After three sessions of standing in the gait machine he felt that I had the potential to try and stand up without the machine. On the first attempt he said I was able to bear between 50-75 percent of my weight. On the second attempt he told me I was on my own and that he was only using his hands to balance me. Then he wanted me to try to stand from a seated position which is shown in the attached clip.

It was decided that I have the potential to pursue my goal of being able to walk on my own. With the help of Michael, my new therapist, that goal has become more realistic than ever! My stem cells are really working overtime. Thanks to my family for always being there to support and to all of you who gave me encouragement along the way!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Dave

Check out the video below and follow David through his Patient Experience and past videos here.