Last week, physical therapy brought us a gait trainer for Liam to use, but he was about an inch too short to be able to actually use it. We got a new one this week, but again he is slightly too small. We made it work by using some of the prompts upside down, but we will only be using it until we get a new one ordered in. Luckily the AEA is letting us until ours is ordered. We have to have a doctors prescription for it, but we were told that they come in pretty quickly. He will only need a chest prompt and a pelvic support, but it still costs $1400. Insurance will most likely cover it, I just can't imagine how much it cost for the kids who need all the supports!!
The physical therapist said she was surprised at how well he did with it on his first time, she expected that he would only go backwards, but he was going all around the room and I was surprised at how fast he went! She was talking about other brands of gait trainers (we are getting a rifton) but said that she usually puts kids in the other brand if she doesn't think they will ever walk on their own. She seems pretty positive that Liam is going to be walking on his own eventually. I always figured he would walk on his own, but hearing it from someone who knows what they are talking about is always nice!
He walked around for about twenty minutes, and probably would have longer but it was time for a nap. It must have worn him out because he was asleep before I even left his bedroom. It's kind of bittersweet, though. Every parent looks forward to watching their baby take their first steps, but no one imagines watching those steps with a metal device strapped to them. But he looked so proud of himself (well, before the nap time melt down) strolling across the room though, that I barely noticed it.
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