Wolf Dettbarn used to travel the world—Italy, Germany, London, New York City—but after a severe stroke, he was lucky to travel 20 feet.
Extensive rehabilitation brought Dettbarn back to life, and now tai chi and
aquatic training are letting him go the extra mile by restoring his balance and
confidence.
Dettbarn, a professor of Pharmacology at Vanderbilt for 28 years, experienced a
massive cerebral hemorrhage Aug. 25, 2006, that left him in a coma for three
and a half weeks and paralyzed on the left side. Friends and family thought
they were making their last visits.
“He was in a coma, and we thought, ‘That’s it,’” said Fridolin Sulser, M.D., professor of Psychiatry, emeritus, and 50-year
friend of Dettbarn. “But he recovered fantastically. It is almost a miracle how he recovered.”
But Dettbarn attributes his successful recovery elsewhere. “I think it’s the art of the neurosurgeons,” he said.
Dettbarn had three brain surgeries in six months and has made a steady recovery
ever since. He spent six weeks at Stallworth Rehabilitation Hospital, and then
graduated to Richland Health Center, where he stayed until May 2007. Dettbarn
was then finally able to live at home, but he still could not walk and
underwent intense speech and occupational therapy at Pi Beta Phi Rehabilitation
Institute.
“The worst thing was I lost my independence. I had to rely on others just to move
or get out of bed. The nurses were good but they treated me like a child,
asking if I had to use the bathroom, but I’m 80 years old,” Dettbarn said.
Now he has regained use of his two languages—English and German—and only occasionally has to use a cane.
“When he was in the nursing home, we were thrilled if he could just get up, so
this is all very wonderful,” said Penny Dettbarn, his wife.
Tai chi and water
The final steps in Dettbarn’s incredible recovery are taking place at Vanderbilt’s Dayani Center. He exercises on various machines and takes tai chi and aquatic
classes with personal trainers.
“These are two very safe places for seniors with disabilities. The activities are
supportive and very gentle and allow the intervention to be personalized,” said Jay Groves, Ph.D., administrative director at the Dayani Center.
Rusty Rust, Dettbarn’s tai chi instructor, says he has improved tremendously.
“He had leveled out with physical therapy, but now he is like a different person.
When I first started working with him, he was totally dependent on his cane.
Now he can go two times around the track without it,” Rust said.
Tai chi uses meditation and slow controlled movements to reduce stress, lower
blood pressure and exercise the body. Rust says it is especially beneficial to
those recovering from a stroke because it increases propreoception, or
awareness of one’s position in space.
“Wolf’s left side was affected by the stroke, but he’s not just helping that side, he is regaining control of his whole body,” Rust said.
Although Dettbarn doesn’t ascribe to the philosophical side of tai chi, he has seen great physical
benefits.
“It relaxes my muscles and helps with my balance,” he said.
Dettbarn has “always been a water guy,” as Penny put it, so it was natural that he would also return to the water for
rehabilitation.
“I used to swim 30 lengths every day. I learned to swim at 5 and would never get
out of the water,” Dettbarn said.
Barb Batson, Dettbarn’s aquatic trainer, said the benefits of training in the water surprise many.
“It is zero-impact, the buoyancy of the water raises the limb higher and the
resistance of pressing back down increases strength. You see greater advances
with less discomfort,” she said.
Water is also a good environment for balance and coordination, which is
especially important for Dettbarn. Batson says he was able to walk without
assistance in the water from day one.
“I don’t have to be afraid of falling,” Dettbarn added.
Barbara Forbes, geriatric nurse practitioner at Dayani Center, says the warm
water helps loosen arthritic joints, and it improves circulation problems
because the pressure of the water acts like a “support hose from the neck down.” The Dayani Center also fosters a comfortable environment: exercisers can wear
whatever they want in the water and do not have to get their face or hair wet.
In addition to the physical benefits, Batson also focuses on psychological
benefits.
“The water is invigorating. It makes you feel great. We have fun while we’re working,” she said.
One-on-one personal training can have additional benefits because the trainee
and trainer can collaborate on goals and achieve them together.
“As a trainer, you have to figure out what motivates them,” Batson explained. “Wolf and I have been a pretty good fit.”
Dettbarn agreed, saying, “She’s a great teacher. She doesn’t get impatient.”
A new lease on life
Observing a session, it is evident that
Dettbarn and Batson have excellent rapport. She uses encouraging phrases like “Keep your eye on the prize!” and “Looking good!” and they share jokes while Dettbarn walks on the underwater treadmill.
The H20Gym underwater treadmill is one of Dettbarn’s favorite pieces of equipment, and his progress has been remarkable.
“He used to do only five minutes and his stride was not smooth,” Batson said. “Now he does 20 minutes with a smooth stride.”
“And it is more difficult than a regular treadmill because you move it yourself,” Dettbarn added with pride.
His other favorite activity is pull-ups on the Aquatrend gym, and he joked that
he is striving for six-pack abs.
Near the end of an hourlong session, Batson asked him to do 15 pull-ups. Once he
reached 10, she asked, “Can you give me five more?” He gave a confident “Sure!” and proceeded to do 20 extra.
“It is really heartwarming to see his new lease on life,” Batson said. “So many people aren’t living, they’re just existing, but that isn’t the case with Wolf. He is slowly and surely moving toward success.”
Dettbarn also walks laps in the pool and does leg lifts and calf raises. Because
his left side was temporarily paralyzed by the stroke, the muscles on that side
need extra attention. He wears a bracelet of orange fins on his left wrist and
ankle to provide extra resistance in the water and give his left side a more
intense workout.
Sulser, who is usually at the pool swimming laps while Dettbarn has his training
session, has kept a close eye on Dettbarn’s progress.
“In the last couple of weeks he has started walking better, and now he can do
pull-ups without assistance. Before, Barb had to help him find the bars,” Sulser said.
Dettbarn is now able to travel again, making trips to New Hampshire to see his
daughter or to New Orleans to visit with friends. He still has trouble tying
his shoelaces or a necktie, but hopes are high that Dettbarn will continue this
rapid pace toward complete recovery.
“I hope he recovers fully,” Sulser said, “then we will have a reason to celebrate and open a bottle of good wine.”
