November 10, 2023
"I can feel the warmth and see the bright yellow sun coming out after the darkness." Amy Clabaugh
Another wonderful year of healing, progress and hard work. Amy is blowing away her therapists and doctors as she continues to make progress so long after the injury!
Amy has had the privilege of working with Dr Crawford, a leading functional neurologist, and his team at Neurosolution in Cedar Park this year. She receives 12 hours of therapy a month. They work from a pyramid method of implementing skills. When we met with Dr Crawford last week he said Amy has made terrific progress in the foundation of the pyramid or the primitive reflexes. She is at the point where she is integrating the postural reflexes with the primitives. The other 3 tiers of the pyramid are core, vestibular and finally cognitive. She is making good progress in these skills as well. We haven't seen any plateauing since beginning our journey with Neurosolutions.
Here's a link to their website so you can see some of the things they do there. www.neurosolutionatx.com.
Amy has also been able to receive a few more laser directed prp/stem cell treatments this year through Dr Madera's office. With each one we see continued healing that builds on the last treatment. Gains we have seen from this last procedure have been reduced ataxia, better balance, and her sense of smell seems to be coming back after 11 years! Amy has tried walking with me on one side and a single point cane on the other side but the ataxia made it nearly impossible for her to place the cane and steady it. Last week we walked out into the yard and back with her using the single point cane instead of the quad cane! (with me on the one side)
As I write about the gains I'm reminded about a couple of setbacks we had this year. We lost our Lucy unexpectedly in Feb. Amy and Lucy rested in the recliner every day. This was a big emotional loss. Then in May, Amy fell backwards and hit her head on the wall as she landed on the floor. And 2 weeks later she fractured a few ribs. We used what we have learned over the years and most recently, which allowed her to recover very quickly. I guess I mention these because Amy has come so far but then we are reminded of the work that still needs to be done.
Amy would like you to know:
*her standing balance is so much better and she is now able to stand, unassisted, while looking around without losing her balance
*she has increased her time on the treadmill
*she is working on standing in tandem while looking around
*she is working on taking steps on her own
*she KNOWS and BELIEVES she WILL walk again!
*one of the mantras Amy came up with is: Neuroplasticity is never ending!!
*she is rebuilding brain pathways that were lost from the injury
Recently we were at a social gathering where we needed to go up several steps to gain entrance. Amy and I walked up the steps together and I heard the words "miraculous". This is something we continue to hear from others including her doctors and therapists. It truly is a miracle to see how far Amy has come. Her determination and hard work are paying off.
Please know that Amy would not be receiving these cutting edge treatments and making the gains she is without all of your prayers, positive thoughts and donations. These treatments are all out of pocket and very expensive.
This year Giving Tuesday will be on November 28th. Between midnight on Tuesday, November 28th and 3 a.m. ET on Wednesday, November 29th, Help Hope Live will cover the credit card fee for all online donations made in honor of Amy. Tax deductible donations can be made through www.helphopelive.org/campaign/8899 or a facebook fundraiser will be posted on Amy and Ginger's facebook pages. Please consider sharing the fundraiser with your friends and family. There is a chance donations made on facebook will be matched in whole or in part. Help Hope Live is a 4 star non profit with 38 years experience helping people raise funds to pay for expenses not covered by insurance for those with a catastrophic illness or injury. There is also an option to make a monthly donation. If you send a check please be sure to write Amy's name on the check. We had a few donations that went to the general fund last year instead of to Amy. Also, if your donation is not made anonymously you will receive a thank you from Amy and myself. If you do not receive one, please let me know so I can try to track down your donation.
Make checks payable to:
Help Hope Live
Note in memo:
In honor of Amy Clabaugh
Mail to:
Help Hope Live
2 Radnor Corporate Center
Suite 100
100 Matsonford Road
Radnor, PA 19087
November 14, 2022
Dear Family and Friends,
What a year of amazing progress for Amy! I believe this has been one of her best years, if not THE best. Once again your donations make it possible for Amy to continue on her journey. One of her intentions reads "I celebrate all of the love and support I've received in my life and in the last 10 years, and honor myself in that journey."
Amy has received several stem cell treatments during the last year. Dr Madera and her team do amazing work. Prior to each procedure Amy has a QEEG (brain mapping) called the WAVi. The last one she had in September was her best to date. The results show that her brain waves are within normal range with the exception of 2 areas, but those 2 areas have shown remarkable progress. The neurosurgeon giving the WAVi told us to keep doing what we're doing because Amy's brain is healing and he is excited to see these amazing results especially since it is so far out from the injury. I've told Dr Madera on more than one occasion, with tears in my eyes, "I'm getting my Amy back"!
So, what do we and her doctors think is making such a big difference? Everyone has agreed it is a combination of treatments and therapies. The current recipe for success includes stem cell procedures, working with a new functional neurologist in Cedar Park, Neufit and continued traditional therapies.
Amy was fortunate to work with one of the leading functional neurologists in May. He is in Cedar Park and sees patients from all over the world. After working with his team for 2 weeks we were sent home with an extensive home program. We were diligent about working through as much as we could 4-5 days a week, spending about 2+ hours a day. We returned in August for a 3 month reassessment and were told she was "killing it"! They were so pleased with all the progress Amy had made. Back in May and again in August we talked to Dr Crawford about Amy's ability to walk again independently. Both times he told us she has all the mechanics to walk again. He said that ideally he would like to work with her several hours a week. After the August appt we decided to take the steps to make that happen. Amy returned to see them in October and again they were so pleased with her progress. Amy is scheduled to begin working with Dr Crawford and his team of doctors in January on a weekly basis.
As you can imagine we are so excited to start working with Dr Crawford and continue with the stem cell procedures. We are also cautious and a bit nervous as neither of these treatments are covered by insurance. We are relying completely on your generosity in supporting Amy financially.
This year Giving Tuesday will be on November 29th. Between midnight on Tuesday, November 29th and 3 a.m. ET on Wednesday, November 30th, Help Hope Live will cover the credit card fee for all online donations made in honor of Amy. Tax deductible donations can be made through www.helphopelive.org/campaign/8899 or a facebook fundraiser will be posted on Amy and Ginger's facebook pages. Please consider sharing the fundraiser with your friends and family. There is a chance donations made on facebook will be matched in whole or in part. Help Hope Live is a 4 star non profit with 37 years experience helping people raise funds to pay for expenses not covered by insurance for those with a catastrophic illness or injury.
Amy would like you to know that she is seeing progress in:
>standing balance, she has improved from 3 min to over 15 min
>standing on the vibration plate
>standing with her feet in tandem
>core strength
>her attention to detail and precision in her movements
And she took a step unassisted while walking along the parallel bars at PT surprising her therapist!
Another of Amy's goals reads, "I fully believe I can walk again and independently. I will walk in the yard by the end of the year 2023. I am getting the bird feeders and filling them up independently." We invite you to support Amy in meeting her goals. From Amy, "This is an uphill battle. Taking one step at a time, sometimes the steps are huge and other times they are small. But I am always taking steps forward!"
April 16, 2022
Amy would like to thank everyone for the donations during the month of March, Brain Injury Awareness Month. Amy is pictured with her newest walker, a U Step walker. Her neurologist has had her try it out in his office for the last 7 years but not until Dec 2021 did he think she was ready!
November 13, 2021
Dear Family and Friends,
Amy and I continue to be so blessed to have each of you in our lives. Your support through this journey has meant so much to each of us, it's hard to believe it will be 10 years in February.
This year Amy has continued working with an awesome Occupational therapist that specializes in neurological patients. We have also been blessed to continue working with Amy's speech therapist through zoom who she's known since 2014. Most recently we found a place where Amy can get aqua therapy again. It was always one of her favorite forms of physical therapy. She is also receiving acupuncture, Neufit, neurofeedback, hyperbaric oxygen, and working with her functional neurologist through zoom in Japan.
In August we decided to try a fairly new stem cell infusion procedure, with her Neurologist's blessing. I will include a link at the bottom for those that might be interested in hearing about the process. Amy saw gains almost immediately. Some of the most notable are in her speech, coordination, reduced ataxia, balance and walking. All of her therapists have used the same words to describe her improvements..coordination or smoothness of her systems. They have each said that there is no way prior to the stem cells she would have been able to do what she is doing now. Her functional neurologist said in reference to how quickly she improved on a task for him, "Wow, that is amazing.The stem cell procedure seems to influence the changes/recovery/restoring of her functions much quicker and efficiently!!" .
Amy's therapists all did baseline testing and her neurologist asked for a baseline brain mapping prior to the first stem cell procedure. We will redo the brain mapping on Nov 29th, the day before her second stem cell procedure. The other therapists have reassessed her and testing shows gains anywhere from 30-45%.
What Amy wants you to know:
She thinks she has made major gains in:
1). becoming more independent
2).open and willing to try new ways of doing things
3). processing more quickly and comprehending better
4). walking by being able to use quad canes with supervision now
5) ability to balance while doing everyday tasks
We are reminded that Amy, for the rest of her life, will be looking for ways to continue her recovery journey and to prevent a decline. We wouldn’t be able to afford all of these therapies and treatments without all of your support and generous donations in Amy’s honor over and over!
This year Giving Tuesday, Amy's only fundraiser, is on November 30th. Between midnight on Tuesday, November 30th and 3 a.m. ET on Wednesday, December 1, Help Hope Live will cover the credit card fee for all online donations made in honor of Amy. Tax deductible donations can be made through www.helphopelive.org/campaign/8899 or a facebook fundraiser will be posted on Amy and Ginger's facebook pages. Please consider sharing the fundraiser with your friends and family. There is a chance donations made on facebook will be matched in whole or in part. Help Hope Live is a 4 star non profit with 37 years experience helping people raise funds to pay for expenses not covered by insurance for those with a catastrophic illness or injury.
We love each and everyone of you.
Gratefully,
Amy and Ginger
Link to the stem cell procedure: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRLvULzegEk
November 19, 2020
Nov 2020
What a year!
We have lived in 4 different homes in the last year. The 4th being our newly built ADA home by Lake Conroe. Amy was able to help make decisions and supervise the construction. We moved in just as everything was starting to shut down, including most of Amy's therapies. She was able to continue one therapy as our Neufit practitioner came to our home until the office reopened.
Amy took advantage of that time to unpack, organize and set up her therapy room and build shelves for our garage. She also learned how to ride an adult trike and has worked up to just over a mile. Once we returned to OT her therapist remarked she had not regressed over the months but progressed!
Amy continues to improve in her mobility, dynamic balance, fine motor tasks, speech and cognitive abilities.
What Amy wants you to know:
She thinks she has made major gains in:
1). standing without assistance while doing tasks
2). walking better with a walker
3). building up leg and core strength by riding the adult trike
4). transferring weight from one leg to another with minimal assistance
5). walking longer distances with the Alinker walking bike
Amy is continuing OT, PT, Speech (through zoom at Texas State), Neufit, hyperbaric oxygen, chiropractic and functional neurology (through zoom with her dr. in Japan!). This year we have added Neurofeedback, PEMF, dry needling (for the tmj) and are hoping to begin a new brain program which will consist of several new treatments. We are excited to see the possibilities to come but worry about the out of pocket expenses.
One thing we realize is Amy, for the rest of her life, will be looking for ways to continue her recovery journey and to prevent a decline.
We wouldn't be able to afford all of these therapies and treatments without all of your support and generous donations in Amy's honor over and over! We love each and everyone of you.
July 3, 2020
Amy continues to make improvements. She is now riding an adult trike! I'm so grateful she has the strength and balance to be able to do this now! She has me running after her now.
I entered us in a couple of virtual races. The virtual ones allow the participant to take their time and use any method of movement to complete the run. As of today, we have completed a 5k and will have a 10k completed by next week! Amy said she may not be able to run or even walk but she can pedal.
Thank you all for your continued love and support. We couldn't do it without you!
December 4, 2019
Dear Friends and Family,
Thank you for donating to Help Hope Live. This is a very important organization to me. My life changed on Feb 27, 2012. I rely on your donations to continue my rehab and therapies. I appreciate your generosity and thoughtfulness. Thank you again for caring about my welfare.
God bless you for donating in my honor.
Best Wishes,
Amy Clabaugh
November 12, 2019
Another year of continued improvements! This year we have seen the nerves in Amy's once paralyzed vocal cord completely regenerate. She is now off all prescription medications. The last to go was thyroid meds. The neurologist commented that her brain is really healing. He said the difference from last year to this year was night and day and to keep doing what we're doing.
The functional neurologists we saw from 2014-2017 in Houston had tears in their eyes when they saw her in May of this year (it had been a year since our last check in with them). They told Amy this is not the end of progress but there's more to come! Big smiles and happy tears all around.
Amy's cognitive abilities are great. She's back to managing her own finances and keeps me on my toes about mine. Friends and family comment on her quick wit and great memory. And she continues to beat us at dominoes. The newest functional neurologist commented after assessing Amy that her frontal lobe has healed.
Amy's balance, mobility and ability to walk is getting better. I think we have surprised many folks when Amy walks with me supporting just one side. Her coordination of speech, fine and gross motor have all come a long way. A program called Neufit, the use of direct current (like our brains), has been a winner for Amy. She is able to bounce on a trampoline and ride an airdyne bike, things she hasn't been able to do for 7 years. Although she can see improvement Amy still wants more.
We have been researching some of the latest alternative treatments for brain injury. Unfortunately, they are expensive and insurance doesn't cover them. That is where Help Hope Live and your donations are helping Amy continue to meet her goals. We are continuing on with the therapies and all the supplements we know are working.
We are so blessed to have such a supportive group of family and friends. We feel your love and know that you continue to pray and cheer Amy on toward more greatness!
December 1, 2018
Amy and I are once again overwhelmed with the love and generosity that was shown to us on and around Giving Tuesday. Amy continues to improve and get stronger with the many different therapies she participates in. All of her therapists are seeing the positive changes across the board, physically and cognitively.
These are the words Amy wrote and I posted on her facebook page. (unfortunately I am unable to post the same photo on this page)
Thank you for your donations. I am fortunate to have caring and generous friends in my life.
Best Wishes,
Amy
November 24, 2017
Thanks to you. our house is outfitted with a lift that allows Amy to get in and out of the house and a handicap accessible bathroom. Many of you also donated sweat to our workday where we cleaned, built a fence for the dogs, cut, drug and loaded brush, built steps, replaced rotten boards, etc.,etc., etc. It was hard work, but it was also a joy to be a part of such a worthwhile project. We have settled in and are enjoying being near the lake again.
Amy still attends speech, physical and occupational therapy and is working hard to meet her goals of being able to walk independently again, speak clearly and improve her fine motor skills.
Recently, she has tried two alternative therapies, acupuncture and hyperbaric oxygen therapy. Following hyperbaric, she has seen improvements in long and short term memory, swallowing, energy, sleep and processing speed of speech and cognitive abilities. She is also seeing improvement in bladder control and spasticity in her left leg from acupuncture.
You can donate anytime at www.helphopelive.org/campaign.8899, but if you pay by credit card on Giving Tuesday the 7% fee will be waived.
Thank you for your continued support and love!
November 14, 2016
Dear Family and Friends,
After a lot of searching and looking for bargains in our current real estate boom, Amy and Ginger have finally found a new home in Spicewood. It is a modest, but cute 2 bedroom, 1 bath on a lot with lots of beautiful oak trees, a big front porch and a sliver of a view of the lake. There is also a property owner’s park with lake access where Amy can fish and a large wildlife population including lots of deer. Before they can close and move in, some handicap renovations will have to be done to accommodate Amy and her wheelchair. They include enlarging the bathroom, adding handicap bars and replacing the tub with a shower. Since the house is on piers about 5 feet off the ground, a lift is also needed.
Money donated to HelpHOPELive in honor of Amy can help pay for these medically necessary renovations and donations are tax-deductible so I am asking all of you who have been so generous before to dig into your pockets again and make another donation before the end of 2016. Tuesday, November 29th is Giving Tuesday, all credit card fees will be waived on all donations made on credit cards on Giving Tuesday. www.helphopelive.org/campaign/8899 (this will take you directly to Amy’s campaign page)
We are crossing our fingers that you may find yourself in a position to help out once again.
Love to all!
October 25, 2015
Amy and I are driving back to Dripping Springs, TX to see the same speech therapist she saw when we lived outside of Austin. We are going once a month for several days at a time. Amy gets speech 2x a day while we are there. The improvement in her ability to move her tongue, the strength in her tongue, her swallowing and the ability to hold her bottom lip up have been wonderful. With the added strength and movement in her tongue and the muscles working in her lower lip her articulation is improving! As her swallowing speeds up and the tongue gets stronger while eating we are seeing (hearing) less aspirating during meals and when drinking thin liquids. And we've just returned from only our second visit. Amy's therapist is amazing! These trips and therapies are possible only because of your generous donations. We can't thank you enough!
August 26, 2015
Amy will begin speech therapy again in 2 weeks! I'm so excited that we now have the funds and that I have found the perfect therapist! Well, actually I found the perfect therapist a few years ago and we are going back to her. We will be making the drive back to Dripping Springs on a monthly basis to be with the best, as far as I'm concerned. Her main focus will be on swallowing, chewing and strengthening her tongue. with a stronger tongue Amy's articulation should improve as well.
Amy has also started OT again. She was able to get in the pool for her therapy this week. Amy LOVES doing PT in the water so you can imagine how pleased she was to find out she could do OT in the water as well. Her therapist was pleasantly surprised with how well she walked in the water and how well she performed. She just kept commenting on how great she was doing and what she was doing was not easy.
Thank you again for allowing us this great opportunity to continue on with the therapies Amy needs and for your prayers and love.
July 8, 2015
Amy was recently able to pass her PT goals of walking 500 ft with her rolling walker with close supervision AND she walked 250 ft with quad canes with contact guard!!
The money that has been raised will allow Amy to continue to get PT and begin speech therapy again. Thank you all so much for your generosity and love!
July 6, 2015
Amy and I can't begin to thank everyone for their generosity and love! Your donations will make such a difference in Amy's continued recovery!!
