Walk in the Water: Aquatic Therapy

Don Mehringer sits slumped in his wheelchair in the lobby at the Bellevue Aquatic Center, his wispy white hair scattered haphazardly over his freckled scalp. A blast of humid, chlorinated air surges into the room whenever the door to the pool is opened. It is difficult to determine which is more inanimate: Don or his chair.

One year ago Don fell and fractured his vertebra. The vertebra became infected and has severely affected his ability to walk. Prior to the fall, Don, 75, was showing signs of dementia, which was further exacerbated following his accident. His wife and caregiver, Diane, started bringing Don to the aquatic center to take advantage of the co-ed and disability-tailored bathrooms to get Don a shower. On one occasion she noticed a flyer for aquatic therapy with Harriet Ott.

Harriet is the founder of Community Integration Services (CIS), and is primarily an aquatic therapist for people with disabilities to improve their lives by increasing things like mobility and strength. A recreational therapist in the Seattle area for thirty years, she has vast resources for disabled people who want to continue leisure activities following a debilitating accident and who are not sure whether it is possible. She had a consultation with Don and Diane to design a program for Don that would cater to his disability while still providing a challenging workout.

Since beginning aquatic therapy six months ago, Don is able to walk and jog across the pool. “He enjoys it,” Diane says. “What little enjoyment he has in life. He looks forward to it.” Diane, who used to work as a nurse, is now again in the role of nurse for her husband. “When I said for better or for worse, I had no idea!” She laughs. Diane benefits from Don’s aquatic therapy as well. She uses the hour-long session to train for an upcoming half-marathon.

When Don is wheeled to the pool, his face lights up like a child who has just had the training wheels taken off his bicycle and realizes that he is not going to fall. He is wheeled down the ramp and into the water. Once the chair is submerged, Don easily floats out of his chair. His skinny arms push the water as he propels himself forward. The expression on his face is the epitome of joy.
“When you become disabled, all of a sudden you have to look at that in a whole different way,” says Harriet. “When you only have one hand or no legs, you feel like you can’t do any of those, you can’t see beyond it. And the recreational therapist is saying, ‘I have adaptive tools and techniques that will allow you to access any community activity you want to do.’”

Without intending to do so, Harriet has ended up spending much of her time primarily as an aquatic therapist. The more she learns about aquatic therapy, the more passionate she becomes about water. For the past nine years, she has submerged herself in aquatic therapy, employing new methods like watsu, a water massage technique.

Aquatic therapy is a relatively new phenomenon. People with any and every kind of disability can benefit from its practice, according to Disaboom, the largest online community for people with disabilities. Aquatic therapy increases circulation, improves heart rate, increases range of motion, decreases blood pressure, and increases digestive movement. The properties of the water, such as its buoyancy, allows for more dynamic exercises in a safe environment. Aquatic therapy allows the therapist to move and manipulate the patient with greater ease and diversity. It also allows for people to achieve a variety of training goals, such as cardiovascular, weight training, stretching, and massaging.

Harriet is a believer in physical exercise as mental therapy. Not only is she a recreational therapist, she serves as a mental therapist as well. Thus, she refers to herself as a social worker. Harriet believes it is crucial to re-engage into society and the community following a disabling accident. “Every human being has an inner heart thing that makes them want to connect with people and learn something new… if you don’t have that and isolate yourself in your home. . . then you’re going to fall into a huge depression—and that’s not a good place.”

Since its launch in 2007, Disaboom has been dedicated to improving the lives of people with disabilities. Disaboom’s collective resources make it possible to live forward. To discover more on the benefits and practices of aquatic therapy and read how beneficial it is, visit disaboom.com.