The Secret To Better Balance: Unlocking Your Senses

In this episode of the Live Parkinson's Live an Exceptional Life podcast, we delve into the fascinating world of sensory training and its profound impact on balance for individuals with Parkinson's. Discover how:

• Vision, touch, and proprioception play a crucial role in maintaining balance.
• Simple exercises can enhance sensory awareness and improve stability.
• Everyday strategies can be seamlessly integrated into your daily routine to boost balance and confidence.

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#Parkinsons #Balance #SensoryTraining #FallPrevention #ParkinsonsAwareness #LiveParkinsons #Podcast #Neurology

References:
Visual Dysfunction in Parkinson's Disease, Brain, Weil, et. al, July 13, 2016

DIY: Using Visual Cues to Live Better with PD, Parkinson's Foundation

Effects of Sensory Motor Orthotic on Postural Instability in Parkinson's Disease, A Pilot Study - Clinical Movement Disorders, Volpe, et.al, July 6, 2017

Some Observations on Visual Attention Style Through The Administration of Two CLinical Tests on SUbjects with Parkinson's Disease, Crimson Publishers

The Effect of Diagonal Exercise Training for Neurorehabilitation on Functional Activity in Stroke Patients: A Pilot Study, Brain Sciences, Lee and Kim, May, 14, 2023

Chapters

• 0:11 Sensory Training for Parkinson's Balance
• 9:27 Improving Visual Focus and Attention
• 19:57 Improving Visual and Touch Sensory Training
• 25:26 Enhancing Proprioception Through Sensory Training

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:11

Hello and welcome to Live Parkinson's. Live an Exceptional Life, the podcast dedicated to helping you live a great quality of life through strategies, stories and science. I'm your host, chris Kustenbader, and I've been living with Parkinson's for 15 years. Thanks for joining me today. Today's topic is the secret to better balance unlocking your senses. Imagine this you're walking down the street enjoying a beautiful sunny day. Suddenly the ground seems to shift beneath you, your feet feel unsteady and you stumble. This is a fear that many people with Parkinson's face every day. But what if I told you there's a way to regain that feeling of confidence and stability? In this episode, we'll explore the power of sensory training how, awakening your senses, you can unlock a newfound sense of balance and reclaim your freedom of movement.

Speaker 1: 1:02

I wanted to discuss balance again because I would say most of us living with Parkinson's have struggled with balance issues on their Parkinson's journey. From my own personal experience, having balance problems is not only frustrating, but it also limits what you can do on a daily basis. Now, while I've been fortunate that I haven't fallen because I was able to catch myself or grab something to prevent falling, however, I do have a number of days when my balance is off, like I'm standing on the deck of a ship in rough seas, or one that occurs more often is catching the toes of my sneakers or shoes, and that causes me to stumble. I've done it numerous times in the grocery store, and sometimes I get the awkward stare where someone says are you okay? At which point I say yes, I'm just not used to the new feet yet. Thank you, though. Since I'm having these experiences and figure many of you are too, I wanted to discuss unlocking your senses to help you with your balance and potentially, reducing fall risk. So hopefully this topic has piqued your interest and you're saying to yourself what are we going to be talking about today, chris? That's a great question. Well, let me give you an overview of what we'll be discussing in this podcast. We'll lead it off with defining what sensory balance training is and how it works, and then link it to the importance for Parkinson's. Then we'll discuss several sensory training techniques, including vision training, touch training and proprioception. Then we'll transition to incorporating sensory training into daily life and give you some practical tips and strategies that will help us incorporate sensory training into our daily activities to help us with our balance and stability, and then we'll tie it all together.

Speaker 1: 2:46

So, chris, what exactly is sensory training for Parkinson's? Well, don't feel bad if you don't know what it is because, honestly, I wasn't real familiar with it myself until a few months ago, when I read a few articles on it and its benefits. So what is sensory training for Parkinson's and what does it do? It helps focus on enhancing our body's ability to process and use information from our senses to help improve our balance and stability. Now, one of the things Parkinson's does is it disrupts the brain's ability to effectively receive and interpret signals the senses including, for example, your vision is going to be sending you. So Parkinson's can cause difficulty focusing and wow, can I relate to this judging distances, which of course, is important for driving and depth perception, making it more difficult to pick things up Now. In the study Visual Dysfunction in Parkinson's Disease that was published in the Journal of Brain, the researchers noted that depth perception is also affected in patients with Parkinson's disease and is associated with worse motor dexterity and decreased color perception. The researchers also noted in their conclusion that alterations in visual function from the retina to higher cortical brain regions have been found in Parkinson's, with some aspects of visuo-perceptual processing worsening with disease progression.

Speaker 1: 4:14

Now, touch and proprioception senses that are affected when the brain's ability to effectively receive and interpret signals are disrupted. So, in terms of touch, the disruption can lead to someone having reduced sensitivity to touch, pressure and vibration, while proprioception which we'll talk about in just a minute, because that's a pretty big fancy word, but essentially it means it's our body's way of knowing where it is, where all the parts of our body are, like our arms and our legs, without having to look. So a good way to think about it, it's your body's built-in GPS system. It helps you, for instance, touch your nose with your eyes closed or walk without needing to look at your feet. That's proprioception. So it's helping us know where our limbs and other things are, so that we know where we are in relation to space. So, for example, when your brain sends signals that aren't disrupted by Parkinson's. So let's say you're walking up the stairs in the dark, you know where each step is and how high to lift your foot for the next step, because your body automatically senses the position and movement of your legs without needing to actually look at the stairs. So that's pretty cool, huh? Now let me give you an example of a person with Parkinson's trying to button a shirt with their proprioception disrupted. Now a person with Parkinson's may struggle trying to button their shirt. Now, in a healthy person, their fingers would automatically know where the buttons and the buttonholes are. However, the person with Parkinson's might have trouble sensing the position and movement of their fingers and that is going to cause difficulty in aligning and fastening the buttons. So hopefully that gave you a better understanding of proprioception. Okay, now we know that Parkinson's disrupts our brain's ability to interpret information that we get from our senses.

Speaker 1: 6:02

But how can sensory training help us improve our balance and stability? Because, honestly, why do sensory training if it's not going to help right? The first way sensory training can help your balance is through enhanced sensory awareness. So exercises can be specifically designed to improve your visual focus, sensitivity to touch and awareness of your body position. So that's all three. That's, our visual, our touch and our proprioception. Now this can help your brain better interpret information from your senses and help you make adjustments to maintain your balance and stability. Now, another benefit of sensory awareness training is an improving integration of all your senses. So this type of training focuses on integrating or combining input from multiple senses, like vision and touch and proprioception, or touch and proprioception, because that's going to help you get a better picture of your body's position and how you're moving in space. Now, finally, sensory training can increase your confidence. The more you participate in sensory training, you become more aware of the information that you're getting from your senses and how to use them for helping you with your balance. And when you feel more confident, then you can move more safely and feel more balanced. And then that's going to help you with your independence, and having more independence is going to give you a better quality of life.

Speaker 1: 7:26

Now let's give you some examples of sensory training exercises or techniques. Now, don't worry, we're going to go into more detail on each of these in a few moments, so you have a better understanding in each sensory area. And let's lead off our examples with visual exercises. This involves focusing on a moving object, tracking objects with your eyes and being able to identify visual distractions. Next up, we're going to talk about touch exercises, and that's going to include light touch stimulation, using textured surfaces for balance training and utilizing assistive devices with tactile or touch feedback. And then, finally, proprioception exercises are going to include balancing on unstable surfaces, from foam pads to wobble boards, and weight shifting exercises. They're just a few of the examples that we're going to be discussing Now.

Speaker 1: 8:17

I did want to note that sensory training is most effective when you combine it with other therapies, like physical or occupational therapies. Now, both of those of which I participated in and I have to be honest with you they're very helpful. The physical therapists and occupational therapists really know what they're doing and they design a personalized plan for you and that's really going to help you overcome some of the issues that you have. And then your doctor can help you manage your medication. That can also help with your balance, in case you're having balance difficulties. Now it's crucial to work with a qualified healthcare professional, like a physical or occupational therapist, who is experienced, and they can help you develop a personalized sensory training plan. And I also want to give a disclaimer that when I'm sharing this type of information, that the information I'm sharing with you is for your general knowledge and discussion purposes only and it does not constitute medical advice Always consult with your healthcare professional for personalized guidance and treatment. Now I don't want you saying I'm going to go do sensory training because Chris talked about its benefits. So please keep that in mind. Make sure you talk to your doctor first and see if it's right for you All.

Speaker 1: 9:27

Right, now that we know what sensory training is and what some of the potential benefits are and yes, they will be part of the 25 question test at the end of the podcast, just kidding. Well, I did teach biology for a few years. I don't want to have to grade papers and I don't like taking tests myself, so no test, you'd all get a hundred percent or A's anyway. So who are we kidding? Now? Let's focus in on the specific types of sensory training techniques and exercises and, just like with the benefits, lead it off with visual training. Remember the old song I can see clearly. Now the rain is gone, I can see all the obstacles in my way by Johnny Nash. That was released in 1972. It hit the Billboard Hot 100 on November 4th 1972.

Speaker 1: 10:13

Well, that's what visual training exercises are going to be all about improving our vision, focus and attention. So let's take a peek behind the curtain and look at some strategies we can use to improve our visual focus and attention. Now it's important to note that Improving your visual focus and attention is going to be critical for those of us living with Parkinson's, because visual issues are common and they can have a significant impact on our quality of life. Now, the strategies that I'm going to be sharing are based on information from clinical studies and research. You know, I don't want you thinking, wow, that Chris is really smart or that I'm just making these up because they sound good, in which case neither is true. I'm not very smart and I'm just making these up because they sound good, in which case neither is true I'm not very smart and I'm not making it up. So let's lead it off with strategy number one visual cues.

Speaker 1: 11:02

Now, we all know that when we have vision issues, it makes it difficult to distinguish objects, we have problems with depth perception and it just makes it more difficult to move around. Depth perception and it just makes it more difficult to move around. Visual cues can help us overcome these visual issues. Now, in their article DIY Using Visual Cues to Live Better with PD by the Parkinson's Foundation, they discuss using visual cues, like colors, to help train the brain, to help move around the house, help with dressing and eating. Now here's some of the visual cue strategies they discuss in their article. The first is deals with better movement in your home, and let's start with flooring. The article notes that a solid color carpet is best. They say that solid colors emphasize boundaries between walls and the floor and they help you identify changes in surface level. Like you might have a single step that breaks it up so that you know hey, I have to step up so that I don't trip and fall. They note that large patterns or multiple colors can be distracting and make it more difficult to move across a space. The article says it's important to try and avoid using patterned carpets and rugs on steps and stairways, which can have an effect on your visual cues and your movement. Then, in terms of stairs, the article recommends using bright color tape on the top and bottom steps to signal the beginning and the end of the steps. Now I'll give you a personal example of how this helps. When you follow that, that's the top and that's the bottom of the steps. That that's the top and that's the bottom of the steps.

Speaker 1: 12:34

I volunteer at a thrift shop on Wednesdays and they offer community residents clothing, shoes, houseware items, toys, jewelry that's been donated at very inexpensive prices. Mostly things are 50 cents to $5. And then they use the proceeds to support local charities. Now the thrift shop is in an old house and it has three floors and it has two sets of staircases. They have a main staircase that's in the front of the house and that's pretty wide, and then in the back they have a small, tighter staircase that's kind of hidden from the shopping area. Now I take out the trash and help get items for the women who price the items for sale and put donations away. Now, both sets out the trash and help get items for the women who price the items for sale and put donations away. Now both sets of stairs have yellow tape with black diagonals on the top and bottom steps to let you know where you are on the stairs.

Speaker 1: 13:23

Well, last week I was bringing something down the hidden staircase which I always use and was wearing my new glasses, which have nose pieces, so that makes them sit away from my face slightly, compared to my older glasses which sat flush against my face. Well, not being the sharpest tool in the shed, I was looking underneath my glasses going down the stairs and saw the tape. But because I wasn't looking through my lenses, my depth perception was off and I was on the second step from the bottom rather than the bottom one with the tape. So when I took that next step, to my surprise it was bigger than I expected and I probably would have fallen. But there's a wall at the bottom with a landing on it, so I plowed into the wall, which prevented me from falling. Now the staff heard the thud and came running out and said are you all right? And I said, yeah, I was just introducing myself to the wall because we hadn't formally met yet. Now I have to say the wall was very nice. They laughed and I carried on with my duties. So yes, tape does help when used properly.

Speaker 1: 14:27

Now, in terms of doors and hallways, placing colored tape in doorways can make it easier if you have difficulty with your mobility, and hallways. Placing colored tape in doorways can make it easier if you have difficulty with your mobility and experience. Freezing the tape can help provide a visual cue for where to place your feet when you're moving through the doorway. Now here's an interesting visual cue I hadn't thought of, and that's sitting in a chair. Now, changes in your brain can make it difficult to determine proper body alignment when moving to sit down in a chair, and this can cause the person trying to sit down before their body is close enough or in proper position to the chair to sit safely. So hence, if you're not properly positioned and you're not close enough to the chair, you're going to fall and potentially hurt yourself. So one of the things you can do is put an X on the floor with tape next to where you need to place your feet and body before sitting down, and that can help prevent falls. Now, I've mentioned before that my mom has dementia and she fell a few times because she wasn't properly aligned with the chair. The occupational and physical therapist worked with her to get her to properly align herself before sitting, which has greatly helped. So that one is very important.

Speaker 1: 15:39

Now, another visual cue strategy relates to freezing. Now, if you've never experienced freezing, it feels like your feet are stuck to the floor while you're trying to get moving, and it can cause falls because your brain is saying let's go, but your feet aren't cooperating, and then this can cause your upper body to move past your center of gravity and cause you to fall. But there is hope. Mobile laser devices that create a colored line for you to step over can help with freezing, and there's canes and walkers that are available that actually project a laser line to help you cue your steps. Okay, there's some. Project a laser line to help you cue your steps. Okay, there's some of the visual cues to help you with focus and attention. Now next up is contrast and lighting. Ensuring contrast between colors and objects and adequate lighting can help you improve your visual clarity. So, for instance, using dark grab bars on light walls and ensuring well-lit spaces can help you perceive your environment better. And then sensory motor training that can help you with your balance and visual focus.

Speaker 1: 16:42

In the study Effect of Sensory Motor Orthotic on Postural Instability in Parkinson's Disease, a pilot study that was published in the Journal of Clinical Movement Disorders, the researchers divided 20 Parkinson's patients into two groups. The experimental group wore a sensory motor orthotic during balance training and the control group performed the identical training with no orthotic. The program lasted for 10 sessions and clinical assessments were performed at baseline and immediately at the end of training and then four weeks after the program stopped, and the study showed that all test outcome measures tested improved significantly at both baseline and follow-up in both groups. During the evaluations At the end of training, only the experimental group obtained a significant improvement in the functional reaching test Sway areas with their eyes closed. Researchers concluded that the preliminary results suggest that the use of sensory motor orthotics in combination with a tailored balance training is feasible and it seems to positively impact on balance and performance in people with Parkinson's.

Speaker 1: 17:55

Research has also shown that Parkinson's patients may have a narrow and closed focusing style, which can affect their visual attention. Well, chris, that's clear as mud. What's a narrow and closed focusing style, pray tell. Well, let's try to make this more understandable. A narrow and closed focusing style in Parkinson's refers to the tendency to focus on a very limited area or detail, often the expense of a broader visual field. So it can make it more challenging for people to process and respond to visual information that is spread out or requires attention to multiple things at a time. So in practical terms, this means that someone with Parkinson's might have difficulty noticing things in their peripheral vision or struggle to shift their focus quickly from one object to another. That can affect your daily activities like reducing driving, reading or trying to navigate through a crowded space. Research has shown that visual attention style is linked to the depletion of dopamine in the brain, which affects the neural pathways involved in visual processing. That comes from the research article entitled Some Observations on Visual Attention Style Through the Administration of Two Clinical Tests on Subjects with Parkinson's Disease that was published by Crimson Publishers. Okay, we've looked at the strategies to improve visual focus.

Speaker 1: 19:16

Now let's turn our attention to the types of exercises you might do to improve visual focus and attention with Parkinson's. The first type of exercise is visual scanning exercises, and the purpose of these exercises are to improve your eye movements and the ability to scan the environment effectively. Some examples of visual scanning include following a moving object. The healthcare professional might take a pen or a small toy and move it across the table and then ask you to follow it with your eyes Reading. They'll have you read a line of text, then have you slowly move your eyes back and forth along the line to try to teach you to visually focus and broaden your field of vision.

Speaker 1: 19:57

Next up is visual search. Now this involves finding a specific object within a cluttered scene. So think of Where's Waldo. If you've ever done the Where's Waldo pictures, where there's people everywhere and you have to find Waldo in the hidden crowd, or if you've ever done hidden object puzzles, that would be similar as part of visual search.

Speaker 1: 20:20

Now the second type of exercises are visual tracking exercises, and their purpose is to enhance the ability to smoothly follow a moving object with your eyes. So examples would include tracking a laser pointer with your eyes. So examples would include tracking a laser pointer, where they might slowly move a laser pointer across the wall and have you follow it with your eyes. And then watching moving objects, where you're following a moving vehicle or a person with your eyes. And then, finally, visual attention exercises, and the purpose of these exercises is to improve the ability to focus on a specific object or task while ignoring distractions. Now, examples of visual attention exercises include reading comprehension, where they'll have you read a short passage and answer questions about it, and this would be a tough one for me because I have a hard time focusing when I read. Now tough one for me, because I have a hard time focusing when I read. Now, problem solving, they'll have you working on crossword puzzles, sudoku or any other type of brain training games. And then computer games Sometimes they'll have you play computer games that require visual attention and focus, like puzzle games or strategy games.

Speaker 1: 21:29

So it's important to note that some studies have been showing some promising results in improving visual function and the quality of life for people living with Parkinson's and using targeted visual training programs. So if you're considering visual training exercises to help with balance. It's important to consider consulting a health care professional, like a physical or occupational therapist or vision specialist, so they can assess your specific needs and recommend the appropriate visual training exercises for you. Now, if you do participate, consistency is the key if you want to get good results. Regularly practicing visual training exercises is going to be essential for achieving and maintaining improvements. Finally, consider using visual aids like larger fonts or increased lighting, and minimizing the amount of visual clutter can help you improve your visual focus and attention.

Speaker 1: 22:22

All right, it's time to switch gears and discuss the next type of sensory training technique, and that's drum roll, please touch training. Okay, so what is touch sensory training? Well, it involves exercises and techniques that are going to stimulate or enhance your sense of touch. That makes sense, right? Touch training, where you're trying to improve your sense of touch and this can be a valuable tool for someone with Parkinson's and here's how it can help you. Touch training is going to provide you with some crucial sensory input. Touch gives you valuable information about your body's position and movement in relation to your environment. For example, you can feel the ground beneath your feet when you walk. That's always important the pressure of your hands on a support surface like a wall or furniture, or the contact of your body with a chair, or the contact of your body with the chair. All of those touch stimuli provide vital sensory information that your brain can use to help you maintain your balance.

Speaker 1: 23:19

Now, touch sensory training helps improve proprioception, which, remember, is the sense of your body's position and movement in space. Techniques like light touch stimulation and deep tissue massage oh yeah, I'm all for a nice deep tissue massage they can help you enhance your proprioceptive awareness. And then, finally, it increases your body's awareness. By focusing on touch sensations, you become more aware of your body's position and movement and alignment. So this can help you make subtle adjustments to help you maintain your balance and prevent falls. So this can help you make subtle adjustments to help you maintain your balance and prevent falls. So, for instance, if you're on unsteady surfaces, by being able to sense the surface, it can help you make adjustments and, like if you're going from grass to a rocky soil environment, it'll help you recognize the changes and make adjustments to help prevent you from falling. Now, in terms of clinical research and studies, there's currently limited research on touch-based sensory training on balance, but it's an area of ongoing research Studies have shown that sensory stimulation can improve your motor function and reduce fall risk in people with neurological conditions. However, more research is needed to specifically investigate its effectiveness of touch-based sensory training in people with Parkinson's.

Speaker 1: 24:37

All right, let's look at some of the types of touch sensory training exercises. For balance and leading us off is light touch stimulation, and some examples would include gently tapping, which involves gently tapping different parts of the body, like your arms, your legs and your back with your fingertips. This helps to increase tactile awareness and sensory input. Stroking they have you gently stroke the arms, legs and back with your hands, and then, finally, using a soft brush on your skin with a soft brush to stimulate touch receptors. And the next type of exercises are deep pressure stimulation. Now this involves massage, where they apply general pressure to your muscles and connective tissue through massage techniques, and this can help improve circulation and reduce muscle tension.

Speaker 1: 25:26

And then weight-bearing exercises. These include activities like standing, walking and carrying light weights, which provide deep pressure input to the joints and muscles. Now the next type of exercises are on textured surfaces, and they have you walking on different surfaces like grass, sand carpet or a textured mat, to give you varied sensory input to the soles of your feet, and exercise in this category is going to help you in managing different terrains. And then handling textured objects. They give you objects with different textures whether it be smooth, rough, soft or hard to stimulate tactile receptors in your hand. And then the last type of sensory-based touch training exercises involve proprioceptive input. Now, these type of exercises include weight shifting, so they have you shift your weight from one foot to the other, heel to toe or side to side Reach exercises, where they have you reach for objects at different heights and distances. And then, finally, balance exercises. They have you perform balance exercises on unstable surfaces such as a foam pad or a balance board.

Speaker 1: 26:37

Now, some important considerations for sensory-based training include safety. You always want to prioritize safety when you're doing any type of balance exercise, and then make sure that the exercises are tailored to your specific individual needs and abilities. Tailored to your specific individual needs and abilities. Now it's important to gradually increase the difficulty of the exercise as your tolerance and your balance improves. Another thing that is key is make sure that your exercises are supervised. It's important to work with a physical or occupational therapist to ensure you're using the proper technique and safety during the exercises. And again, remember, this information is for your general knowledge and it's just for this discussion purposes only. Make sure that you consult with your health care provider, all right?

Speaker 1: 27:21

Next up, let's move on to our third type of sensory training, and that's proprioception training. Now let's do a quick refresher on what proprioception is. It's the sense that provides information about the position and movement of our body parts in space and, again, it's like an internal GPS that helps us interact with our environment. Now let me give you an example where I have problems with proprioception. When I'm in a dark area with very little to no light, I usually end up freezing in place and can't move because I have trouble figuring out where I am in relation to my surroundings. Here's a little story to reinforce that.

Speaker 1: 27:57

I have a little cabin in the mountains of northern Pennsylvania, where I grew up, and I go up there with my family and friends and we enjoy going for walks, looking for wildlife, and when it's dark there's a field at the top of the mountain. We like to head up to the field and watch the stars, which are really brilliant because it's not blocked by a lot of light pollution from lights in town and then watching all the lightning bugs light up the field. Now, one particular night we went for a little walk after dinner and we're going to come back and sit around a campfire. Now it was early evening and I didn't take a flashlight because we planned on being back before it got dark evening. And I didn't take a flashlight because we planned on being back before it got dark. Well, on our walk we happened to see a doe and her fawns feeding in the field and we watched them for a while and then we saw a hawk gliding above the field and diving down to catch its evening meal. So on our way back, my walking wasn't quite the best, so I was walking more slowly and deliberately and I fell behind the group, which wasn't a big deal because I spent my entire life in the woods and know how to get around. But I digress they were all excited to get back and get the campfire started. Well, because I was walking slower, it got dark and I lost my sense of the environment and frozen place and was standing there with no light to help me figure it out. So after what seemed like five or 10 minutes, my brother wondered where I was and came back with the light and I was able to move again once I could see where I was going, because then I could relate to my environment. So I got back my merry way and went back to the campfire. And that's my story and I'm sticking to it Now.

Speaker 1: 29:32

In Parkinson's disease, proprioception can be impaired, leading to difficulty with balance, coordination and movement, and proprioception sensory training is going to aim to help you improve this particular sense by increasing your awareness of your body's position, and there are specific exercises that focus on identifying and correcting subtle shifts in the body position, which we'll discuss momentarily Now. Another part of training aims to enhance awareness of your movement by participating in activities that are going to improve our ability to feel and control movements smoothly and accurately and accurately. Finally, proprioception training aims to help us improve our coordination by using other sensory information, like our vision and touch, to improve our overall coordination and movement control. All right, now that we have a good understanding of proprioception, let's take a look at some of the strategies and exercises that are used as part of this training. Now, keep in mind you'll want to be doing the exercises with a trained healthcare professional, like a physical therapist, because some of the exercises they may have you do include balance exercises on unstable surfaces. Now you may use foam pads to balance on, which challenges your body to consistently make adjustments to maintain your stability. They might use wobble boards, which are similar to foam pads, and they may be used because they provide an unstable surface that forces the body to engage proprioceptive mechanisms to help you maintain your balance.

Speaker 1: 31:05

And then balance beams. Yes, just like Mary Lou Retton, gold medalist gymnast in the Olympics, they may have you walking on a balance beam which is about three inches off the floor. So don't panic, they don't have you up on the regular balance beam, but that's going to require you to make constant adjustments to maintain your balance and equilibrium and that's going to help you improve your proprioceptive awareness. And then, next up is weight shifting exercises. They include heel to toe rocking, so you're shifting your weight from your heel to your toe while you're either still or you're walking. They may have you do side to side weight shifts and reaching exercises, where you reach for objects at different heights and distances while maintaining your balance. Next up, are you ready for this one? It's a real tongue twister.

Speaker 1: 31:51

Proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation technique. So short is PNF. So PNF techniques involve stretching and strengthening exercises that utilize diagonal patterns of movement and resistance to help you activate muscles in different directions, which have been shown to be effective in improving muscle strength, muscle endurance, balance and fine motor control. That according to the study the effect of diagonal exercise training for neurorehabilitation on functional activity in stroke patients, a pilot study that was published in Brain Sciences. Finally, blindfold exercises, which involve performing balance and coordination exercises with your eyes closed, to help improve your reliance on proprioceptive input. Now, before we run off and start doing these type of exercises on our own, remember it's important to work with a qualified healthcare professional, like a physical or occupational therapist, because they're going to make sure that they pick specific exercises that are tailored to your specific needs and, more importantly, they're done in a safe manner. And again, remember, consistency is key in order to see improvement and proprioception. Okay, hopefully you're still hanging in there.

Speaker 1: 33:07

Let's quickly talk about incorporating sensory training into your daily life, because ultimately, it's about using what we learn to improve our balance. Now here's a couple practical tips for everyday practice, but make sure to do them in a safer manner. Remember safety first. First up is mindful walking. Now, mindful walking. What you want to do is focus on your feet. Pay close attention to the sensation of your feet contacting the ground. With each step you take, notice the pressure distribution and the softness or hardness of the surface. Heel-toe walking, where you consciously think about your heel touching down first and then your toe, heel, toe, and do that while you're walking, and then you want to make sure that you look up ahead so you want to keep looking forward as you walk and avoid excessive head down position where you're staring at your feet.

Speaker 1: 33:59

Now some everyday activities that you can do to include carrying objects. So if you carry objects of different weights and shapes, they can help to challenge your balance Reaching. You want to practice reaching for objects at different heights and distances, Standing on one leg, the flamingo move While brushing your teeth or waiting for the tea kettle to boil. Household tasks like mopping, vacuuming and gardening are all great ways to improve your balance because they involve different moves. Use your senses. Walk barefoot on different surfaces, like grass, carpet, linoleum, to stimulate the soles of your feet, and touch different textures to engage your sense of touch with roughly smooth, hard and soft textures. And then, finally, practice mindful movement. Participate in a tai chi or dancing class, but remember to get approval from your healthcare professional first to make sure it's appropriate. Alright, friends, that's all the time that we have for today. Remember, by incorporating these sensory training techniques into your routine, you can take an active role in improving your balance and overall quality of life.

Speaker 1: 35:03

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