Patient Spotlight: Mr. Bobby

Bobby Phillips first came to us in July of 2012. He was in severe pain and couldn’t use his hands or pick up his left arm. His doctors were perplexed. When he started occupational therapy, his therapist, Summer Powell, could tell the nerves were inflamed and not functioning properly. The cause, however, remained unknown. We began treatment while Mr. Bobby continued to see doctors and to have further testing. Finally, it was determined that he was suffering from Viral Neuropathy, which is a condition where the brain has difficulty communicating with nerves in the limbs.

When he first began therapy, he was in such pain that he just wasn’t himself. He couldn’t sleep, had a hard time with many daily activities, and could no longer participate in his favorite pastime, fishing. He even had a job in which he primarily repaired rods and reels, which he was unable to do.

With therapy, the nerves were calmed down and we were able to work on restoring the movement and use of his arms. Once the movement returned, our focus shifted to strengthening. Mr. Bobby was able to return to the job he loves and continued therapy to get him back to his “old self.”

It was a long journey and according to him he wanted to just give up. He admits that Summer did a lot to keep him going mentally. Finally, after 9 months of hard work in therapy, he was discharged. He says that his hands and arms actually work better now than they did before he experienced the Viral Neuropathy.

When he isn’t diligently doing his home exercise program, he is back to working, fishing, singing karaoke, doing a sketch comedy show, and telling tons of jokes. Mr. Bobby was a joy to work with and we are so happy he chose to be a part of our family at Melanie Massey Physical Therapy!

Check out this video where Mr. Bobby recites the poem that he wrote for the team at MMPT!