"I was confident that all my questions had been answered"

I was first introduced to this service at a community event in a hotel in Banbridge where Shona gave a presentation about the FES service and who it would benefit from it. I had already been placed on the waiting list by my consultant but this introduction to the device and what it could do made me even more eager to try it.

In January of this year I had an appointment with Shona which lasted almost three hours. During this time I had a demonstration of the device and how it works. By the end of that session I was confident that all my questions had been answered and I left with the device and a introduction pack containing replacement electrodes and instructions for how to use the device and who to call if I had any issues.

I was wary of being able to position the electrodes correctly as I noticed how the foot could turn inward or only lift properly on one side if the pads weren’t in the correct position. Shona agreed to mark the outer edge of the electrodes with a marker to help me identify the optimum area. I continued to do this myself each day until I was confident about where best to pace them and after a week I was able to give up the marker and I felt confident in identifying the best position by myself.

Over the course of the next four weeks I kept note of my observations and the queries and Shona was happy to go through them with me at my next appointment. I had noted that some days were better than others and what I done one day I couldn’t do as well the next day. Shona explained to me that this was all to be expected and that my other muscles were having to work in a different way than they had in the last few years due to the severity of my drop foot. 

During my second appointment Shona set up an exercise mode on my device that allows me to “exercise” my affected leg whilst seated. I had been trying to do that by “testing” the electrodes to help move and lift my weak foot but the new process of exercising via the stimulator allows me to have regular 5 minute exercise sessions throughout the day.

In the space of five weeks I have progressed to walking up to 40 meters using the device and I am gaining the confidence to go out using a single crutch instead of the two that I have relied upon for the last two years. This device has given me the confidence to try things that I knew I couldn’t do myself. It’s a small distance to most people but it’s a huge distance to someone with drop foot that literally has to be dragged along making every step. Without the device I would have taken at least twice as long to cover that distance and the effort and anxiety it would cause would have prevented me for 

It is a process that requires a lot of commitment and I found that I had to persevere with it, even on bad days to help incorporate the device as part of my daily routine. I noted any issues or negative experiences and Shona talked them through with me and helped explain why they had happened and how to avoid it in the future.

I have my next appointment in six weeks and hope to continue building my confidence and feel able to do things that I have had to rely on others to do for the last few years. I do understand that the device won’t suit everyone but it is worth sticking at it because it has made a huge difference in my life already.