“The pain was so bad I couldn’t do simple things.” - Jennifer 

For more than a year, Jennifer struggled with arthritis in her left thumb, something her doctor told her that many women develop after the age of 50. Jennifer had just turned 50.

“The pain was so bad I couldn’t do simple things like removing a pan from the oven, putting my hair in a ponytail, doing buttons and snaps, opening a jar, even carrying a coffee cup.  Everything was painful. I did steroid shots for a while but eventually decided surgery was the way to go.”

The surgery removed one of the bones in her thumb and moved tendons around for mobility.  She was in a cast for four weeks and was very nervous about her recovery.

“After surgery my thumb was numb, I had a lot of sensitivity at the incision site and pain in my other fingers and hand. I had researched and found DMC Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan (RIM), but I wasn’t sure that therapy would help with any of the pain or get my mobility back.”

Doing outpatient occupational therapy three times a week at RIM’s Sterling Heights Center, Jennifer saw improvements after the second week through massage and stimulation therapies, and dexterity exercises. She also feels their focus on her incision site and the prevention of scar tissue buildup helped in her recovery. Now, just four months after surgery, Jennifer has regained full function back in her thumb.

“It’s so exciting! I can hold a fork and knife. I can change my grandchild’s diaper – things you take for granted. Because my outcome was so great, I’m ready to have surgery on my other thumb.”

Jennifer encourages anyone in therapy to listen to their therapists, work hard and do additional work at home. She has already called RIM to schedule her next round of rehab following surgery number two.