Does anyone have recent experience of working with a physio from the ARNI charity? I would be interested to know how you felt about it.
My wife had a severe stroke in January and came home from hospital in April. She has lost the use of her right arm and leg. We had good physio and OT support from our local NHS Trust but that has now been withdrawn. She has recovered arm movement just a little bit but nothing really in her leg. We are certainly not giving up, but right now we are basically on our own.
Would you recommend ARNI as a way to go?
I have had an ARNI trainer since 2018 and can honestly say she has made a huge difference to my recovery. Having someone to push you to do things you didn’t think you were capable of was a game changer for me. It may not be for everyone though and available trainers can be hard to come by, but it’s worth a go.
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Hi, I’m 5 years post stroke and I worked with an ARNI instructor for a few months after my 7 weeks of NHS physio had finished and we could no longer afford a qualified neuro physiotherapist. Unfortunately I did not enjoy the ARNI method of physiotherapy. I was invited to spend a day at Lingfield at one of their workshops but found tge whole thing overwhelming. There were loads of stroke survivors packed into a freezing cold hall. Far too much going on and being cold makes my movements even more difficult.
I also found the main object of ARNI is to sell their merchandise.
It’s worth a try at half the cost of a qualified neuro physiotherapist, it’s a case of what works for you, everyone is different and works in their own way.
Good luck.
Regards Sue
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@Chris_Baker
did you try ARNI?
i was of the impression that because Tom their founer was a SS they were good. Susan’s comment is interesting. ive found any time ive mentioned to them i’d like to talk to Tom ive been invited to buy a slot - which given the above context i pause to wonder.
There weren’t any locally and then when one was trained arni insisted i had to talk tothem and wouldnt put me in touch - which i’d forgotten about be seems odd now
i’d still be interested if you did make contact w/ them.
Isuspect its a case of how well you get on with the specific individual rather than the organisation
I’ve had 2 trainers since I first started. The first had a gym background and visited my local gym with me to devise a training program that I could do as a supplement to when she wasn’t visiting. She got another job during the pandemic. The second (and current one) is a trained physiotherapist. Both work in their own ways. Neither has ever tried to sell me anything. Prior to getting a trainer I did buy a couple of DVDs, which were quite good, but found I was more likely to actually do anything if someone was actually present to advise. When I look back over the last 5 years, I can see how far I’ve actually come and I don’t think I could have achieved anywhere near the amount of recovery I have.
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I’m firmly of the opinion that is easier to put the work in when there is someone with you even if only virtually (I had my stroke during the early days of Covid so remote virtual was all there was)
Glad youve made good progress. Like I said above the individual seems key not the organization
We have not tried ARNI yet. I tracked down a really good neuro physio at a private practice in my howm town. She works with people with stroke, MS, and other conditions. Just two one-hour sessions so far but my wife has enjoyed them; they have certainly made her work harder and in ways different to those applied by her NHS physio. So all fingers crossed that she might get some benefit from it.
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