Stand up Paddle Boarding

Transcript

Marsh Naidoo (00:10):

Welcome to the Raising Kellan podcast. My name is Marsh Naidoo and I blog at raisingkellan.org where we curate resources for parents raising children with developmental delay and disabilities. As always, remember that the information provided on this podcast is purely educational, and if you are seeking advice to your specific situation, be sure to consult a trained professional. Today. We are recording episode 65, and over the next few episodes, we are going to be bringing you our sizzling summer series. Today we chat with Alyssa Walz from Tender Ones Therapy Services, and coming soon we will be talking as well with Colleen Stark from the Stark Off Disability Institute where she chats about the disability rights movement, as well as some of the camps coming up through the institute. So stay tuned for more details, grab your cup of coffee, put your feet up, and get ready for some awesome conversation.

Marsh Naidoo (01:32):

Right. Well guys, I am super excited to be joined by Alyssa Walz who's a pediatric physical therapist and works at Tender One's Therapy Services in Georgia now. And welcome to the Raising Kellan podcast. Alyssa,

Alyssa Walz (01:57):

Thank you so much for having me. I feel truly honored to be talking to you, and I am so glad that this podcast exists because you're changing the world with all the guests that you have on here.

Marsh Naidoo (02:12):

Tell us about Alyssa Walz and tell us about what led to your passion in pediatric therapy.

Alyssa Walz (02:21):

Oh, Lord, you want the short or the long version? So I was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, and I lost my hearing, we think when I was born. So I have, I'm partially deaf and I wear bilateral hearing aids, and I think that experience and having to have a disability myself has kind of led me down the path that I am on. I have always loved children. I have always loved playing and having fun and being outside. And when I fell in love with Paddleboard, I thought, Oh wow, this is changing my balance and my strength in a way that I have never felt before. And so that I thought, Okay, well if I can do this and this is helping me with balance and strength, why can't I bring my patients out here and do it? And so Steve Dorn is a colleague of mine at Tender Ones, and we came up with the program together the first summer that I actually worked at Tender Ones. So I was a baby therapist at that time and didn't really know what I was doing, but I luckily had the guidance of Dr. Steve to help me get this program going and started and it's just been blossoming ever since.

Marsh Naidoo (03:56):

So you and your colleague that's an ot, Mil Clayton, got together. I mean, how did y'all even get something like this set up? What were some of the issues that you guys faced? What were some of the workarounds? I mean, you guys have been doing this for five years now?

Alyssa Walz (04:16):

Yes. So we have two separate kind of programs. So the one is we do individual sessions of standup paddle wooding or product therapy. And so that's PT and ot. We do one hour sessions, one on one with the child on the board. And then I started a standup paddle wooding PT slash OT camp and that we started five years ago. And how we came up with that was first the paddle boarding individual sessions were happening and kids were loving it. And then we had another colleague at work that was doing summer camps and my boss actually asked me to write a grant for starting in autism camp and so paddle boarding camp. And so I wrote it up, I did not get the grant but that was okay because my boss said, Okay, well I still want you to do this camp that you came up with.

(05:22):

It's okay that we don't have a grant. So then I got together with Noca because I realized that doing three hours of paddle board would be kind of challenging if that's all we did. So I partnered with Noca, who is an ot, and the way that we kind of formulated the camp is we started with a warmup bringing all the camp campers together, and we do camp songs and just kind of a warmup activity. And then from there, half the campers go onto the water and they do paddle wooding with me. And then the other half of the campers, they stay on the land and they do fine motor, visual motor, different OT activities gross and fine motor skill on the land. And then we come back together about halfway through and we make a snack. And so again just kind of working on different fine motor and visual motor skills and then also social skills in eating and then that they don't have to eat the snack.

(06:34):

Of course, we have some picky campers that don't always eating them, but they're fun to make some. One of the ones that's my favorite is called fish fish in the river. And so we have a celery stick with cream cheese and then goldfish on top. So we try to make 'em fun and exciting for the kids to eat. We also try to make them healthy, but that is sometimes we like to spice it up a little bit too as far as that goes. And then after that we'll do a switch. So the group A people will go on land and do all those scavenger hunt and different activities on land, and then the group B will go on the water. And then at the end of camp we all come together and do kind of camp songs at the end, and then we part ways for the day.

(07:31):

So that's kind of the schedule of camp and how did it come together both of us with a big dream of what it would look like. And then we've just had a lot of help along the way as far as each year that we do it, we get a little bit better at what we're doing. We learn a little bit more. We figure out what kind of supplies would make things easier for us. We have wonderful students that we come and volunteer and then also help prep us for camp as well. So it's a great learning experience for the students and how to integrate OT and PT into an outdoor setting, but then also a great opportunity for interdisciplinary care between the PTs and the OTs.

Marsh Naidoo (08:24):

So to give you guys an idea of what a camp possibly looks like I would like for y'all to go on Instagram and check out Tinder under score once you guys have a Instagram page. And there's some really neat many videos on there. And I mean, I just love looking at those camp experiences as well as your therapy practice itself. So you guys do innovative fund stuff. What's the line for the summer? How are y'all working that out?

Alyssa Walz (09:04):

So currently we do have three camps. They are all full at the moment. However, we are taking wait list of people just in case summer plans change. We had the sign up start in December. So I know people's schedules sometimes do change in the summer, so where things happen last minute that campers aren't able to come. So we definitely, we are on a wait list at the moment but don't deter that from at least trying it. And the other option, if camp isn't something that you can do if you're in the Georgia area, you could try doing the individual sessions which are, there's still some spots open for that or try the individual sessions, see if it's something that you like. And then maybe next year we will have the information out and you'll be able to sign up in December when we start doing signups again.

Marsh Naidoo (10:17):

I have a dear friend Dana that lives in Georgia's, so I'm gonna definitely let her know about the camp. I know Levi would love to try it out. Alyssa, tell us more about the dates of the camps when are those coming up?

Alyssa Walz (10:35):

Okay, so it's June 6th through the 10th, June 20th through the 24th, and then July 18th through the 22nd.

Marsh Naidoo (10:47):

Now is this a day

Alyssa Walz (10:48):

And all Monday through Friday, nine to 12.

Marsh Naidoo (10:53):

Okay. So this is basically a day camp, right. And are drawing on participants that are already in your guys program or is it people out in the community as well that's coming in for these camps?

Alyssa Walz (11:13):

So some of them are our patients, but some of that are already in the program, but some of 'em are We have campers that are coming from all over the United States. They don't have to be a patient ATTs in order to come to the camp.

Marsh Naidoo (11:31):

What about some therapy students or high schoolers or counselors or anybody that might wanna volunteer in the program? Is that something y'all do?

Alyssa Walz (11:47):

Yes. So we do these camps run off of volunteers. And so anywhere, any pt, ot, med students psychology student, really anyone in the medical field, students or early education, any kind of students, you just have to really be above the age of 18 and then fill out our volunteer form. There's a background check that we require of our volunteers. But yeah, it's a great opportunity if you need volunteer hours and if you need observation hours for any med program

Marsh Naidoo (12:36):

To find out more about the camp. Is it a online resource that folks can go to find out more about the Camp Alyssa?

Alyssa Walz (12:46):

Yes. So you can go to www one.com if you click on services provided and go down to robotic therapy, there's a tab on paddle wooding camp.

Marsh Naidoo (13:04):

A question specifically for therapists now that might be asking Alyssa, why pedal boarding? What is the draw of paddle boarding?

Alyssa Walz (13:19):

Okay, so for me, my first answer is why not <laugh>? But

Marsh Naidoo (13:24):

Then my, that's

Alyssa Walz (13:29):

But specifically paddle boarding. So for me, the biggest draw to me was I love the water and I love being outside and I'm thinking, okay, if I fall off the board and I fall into the water, I am not, it's relatively safe. You fall into the water, you're wearing a life jacket, you just cry back up on the board. And for some of these kids that have difficulty walking, if they fall over on the land, they could potentially break a bone or really hurt themselves. So the water, I thought was a safer way of working on balance and strength on the paddle board because if they fall off again, they're gonna fall into the water or a lot of times we'll fall onto the board. So we use a mix between inflatable boards and hard boards, and all the hard boards have a foam covering on top so to kind of minimize any kind of injuries that way.

(14:33):

But then if they fall into the water, okay, now they can swim around for a little bit and then they can climb back up on the board. So I feel like they can work on falling almost in a safe way and an outdoor environment. So then now they're getting lots of different sensory input lots of visual and noises and other things that they kind of have to pay attention to while also maintaining their balance. Because again, in the clinic we can sometimes control those types of things by putting 'em in a quiet room or being away from where all the people are. But in the real world, there's gonna be people going by and there's gonna be people yelling or there's gonna be people walking quickly by you. And so I feel as if we can get them outside and in the real world, then they are able to work on these skills, balance and strength with real life perturbation and stuff that could be happening in the environment.

(15:41):

But also I just feel happier when I'm outside breathing in fresh air, being around the water, hearing the birds, turb wind in my hair, sun in my face. But that just makes me happy. And so unless you have an aversion to being outside or aversion to water, I see so many smile. I see my kids bite up so much when they get to go paddle in the summer. I mean, I have a child that every time he sees me in the clinic, he signs paddle boarding to me because he can't wait to get back into onto the paddle boards. So just giving them a different experience, something that maybe there are other peers are doing, and it's a way that the whole family can do it together. And in a relatively safe environment, like I said, falling into the water with a life is safer or can ber than falling on a rock on the

Marsh Naidoo (16:51):

Go. I love how your mind works. I love the whole concept of standup paddle boarding and thank you for all that you do for the kids, and I really appreciate it. I appreciate that. Out of box thinking Alyssa, and are there any last words that you would like to end off with my dear? Or anything that you would like to educate our parents on?

Alyssa Walz (17:23):

I just would like to say be open to trying new things. I think that sometimes we can let our disability cause fear in trying new things. I know for me, I used to always be hesitant to go to new places it or be around people if I couldn't make sure that I could hear them. And so I feel like we tend to do that depending on our different disabilities that we may or may not have. And so don't be afraid to try something new and don't be afraid to think outside the box some. It's not for everyone, but I find I've had a lot of really good success with paddle boarding because it's so easy to grade up or grade down. So if a child is working on sitting balance, then we're sitting on the paddle board and we're doing kayaking with a kayak paddle, or if they're working on kneeling, then we will transition to kneeling and we can park the paddle board on the shore and work on it when the board is more stable.

(18:33):

Or we can be in the middle of the water and work on climbing up and down the board that way. So just what I love about paddle boarding is number one, that it is outside. That's the number one thing, but also that you can work on many skills on the board. So it's just another therapeutic tool to use. And I just wanna encourage people that just, if you haven't done it before, don't let fear take over and just try something new because it's so fun and the kids love it and the parents love it because the kids love it. And then parents buy paddle boards and then they have their kids hugging a board in a surf shop because they're so excited to do paddle boarding again. So just all these little things that have happened. And as far as for other physical therapists out there, definitely try new things, get your kids outside. We're not meant to be indoor creatures. We're meant to explore the world and be outside and be in our natural environment. So don't be afraid to try something in

Marsh Naidoo (19:40):

For folks to contact you. Attend the ones and check out more about the stuff that you guys have out. How can they reach you, Alyssa?

Alyssa Walz (19:51):

So they can reach me at alyssa a l ysa.com and I can respond that way. Or if you want to, you could also call the office at (770) 904-6009. Either way is fine. And I look forward to talking to anyone, any PTs, any parents any children that may or may not be interested. And I hope one day that paddle boarding is just another tool that we use in physical therapy and that lots of kids get to try it.

Marsh Naidoo (20:37):

Thank you so much. You have an amazing day. Okay.

Alyssa Walz (20:41):

Thank you so much for interviewing me and having me on the podcast. I really appreciate it and appreciate all you do.

Marsh Naidoo (20:48):

If you would like to keep up with some of the upcoming podcasts we have coming your way, be sure to check out our Facebook page, Raising ki org. And guys, we also have a newsletter that comes out every quarter that you can sign up and that's available on the raising kien org website. So that's a good way as well to get inbox email reminders of upcoming podcast as well as keeping track of what we have planned for the future. Thank you so much for listening and as always, remember, get to the top of your mountain. This is Marsh Snyu signing off.