Andrea's Story
Brain injury
Andrea Houdek, 56, has been married for more than 30 years and has two grown sons. She loves her career as a children’s librarian. For years, she was plagued with headaches, nausea, balance issues and hearing problems.
After getting a second opinion on what might be causing these issues, she encountered a diagnosis of meningioma, a non-cancerous tumor in the membrane surrounding her brain. The tumor required surgery; however, the surgery didn’t bring the relief she hoped for. The tumor was encased in cranial nerves and the surgery left Andrea with nerve damage affecting her balance, vision, hearing and facial muscles.
Andrea was beginning her comeback in an inpatient rehabilitation program at St. David’s Medical Center. She worked for three months to help her regain strength and mobility, but her ultimate goal was to return to work.
“St. David’s highly recommended the Baylor Scott & White Day Neuro and it seemed like the best option for helping me return to work since it would be six hours of intense therapy a day,” she said.
When Andrea began the Baylor Scott & White Institute for Rehabilitation (BSWIR) - Lakeway Day Neuro program, she still experienced balance issues due to vestibular nerve damage, double vision and near-total hearing loss in her right ear. While she was able to walk using a walker, she was still experiencing weakness, poor endurance and coordination deficits. Weakness in her face muscles made drinking and eating difficult and messy.
At BSWIR-Lakeway Day Neuro, Andrea participated in physical, occupational and speech therapies, each tailored to help her regain independence.
Her physical therapy treatment focused on rebuilding her balance and endurance through exercises like marching and walking in different directions (with her eyes closed). She was introduced to various cardio, strength and other fitness equipment to build endurance and strength in her arms and legs. To improve her reflexes, Andrea also engaged in group activities such as Zumba and kick boxing.
"It was hard at first,” she admitted, “but I made progress.” So much so, that by the end of the program, she was able to walk without an assistive device for an entire mile.
Occupational therapy sessions focused on Andrea’s arm coordination and upper body strength, as well as addressing her vision deficits. Vision exercises, which incorporated head movements, helped her brain adjust to the visual challenges caused by nerve damage. She used virtual reality to help improve her strength, balance and vision. “I wasn’t sure about virtual reality, but I really enjoyed the challenge and how adaptable the games were,” she said. “I liked how I was gently challenged to improve my balance and vision with a huge variety of activities.”
Speech therapy helped Andrea strengthen the muscles in her face to restore her ability to eat and drink without difficulty. One of her least favorite therapy techniques turned out to be one of the most beneficial. "I wasn’t sure about the electric face stimulation at first, but it’s helped me so much." In fact, she said, “My first ‘ah-ha’ moment was being able to hold water in my mouth and swish without it spouting out like a whale.”
Andrea, who is naturally an introvert, didn’t care for group therapy at first. “Then I made friends, and it’s my favorite part of the daily schedule,” she said, commenting that it felt good to be with others who were facing the same neurological challenges.
Through hard work and with the support of her therapy team, Andrea achieved her goal of returning to work. "I miss my students and I’m ready to go back," she said. "Every member of my team contributed to my success. [They] made this adventure as fun as they could, considering how hard we worked."
Andrea also appreciated the solid support of her family. Though he was afraid that the program might be too challenging, her husband could see her stamina increase as the program progressed. “My son has graciously driven me to and from rehab,” she said. He has also helped her ease her way back into everyday activities like grocery shopping and recreational pursuits like walking on nature trails.
"My main goal was to return to my normal life," Andrea said. "I won’t return to exactly the same life, but I have learned to make accommodations to return to work, enjoy time with my friends, family and pets. I can keep food and drinks in my mouth; I can walk without assistance; I can read and paint for relaxation – these are huge wins!"
Andrea continues to build on the progress she’s made with home exercises given to her by the therapists at BSWIR - Lakeway Day Neuro.
She looks forward to reclaiming more of her independence and offers this advice to others who find themselves in a similar situation: "You will get out of the program what you put in. Work hard, make friends and celebrate small victories."