WTB program plenty busy after drawdown

By Dean Siemon, Northwest GuardianFebruary 19, 2016

Aquatics helps wounded warriors
(Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. (Feb. 5, 2016) -- Growing up, sports can be a great way to teach important life skills through fun activities. In adulthood, service members can find a similar opportunity through adaptive sports -- only the skills are geared more toward recovery.

Since December 2010, Lou McGranaghan has led the adaptive sports program for the Warrior Transition Battalion on Joint Base Lewis-McChord: a place where several injured service members have been able to adapt by finding a sport to play. Service members who were wounded in combat have found ways to compete in sports like basketball and volleyball.

Even with the recent military drawdown and fewer service members being injured, the group has remained busy with service members who are dealing with more than wounds suffered on the battlefield.

"There's not a great percentage (of Soldiers in the WTB who) are injured in battle," McGranaghan said. "Even four years ago, it was only 30 percent. (We see) all types; it could be orthopedic injuries or illnesses like multiple sclerosis."

According to McGranaghan, about 75 percent of the service members under the WTB have behavioral health as a primary or secondary diagnosis. This includes traumatic brain injuries, post-traumatic stress disorder and other related conditions.

"It could be someone with a personality disorder coming into the military and the stresses have brought it to the forefront," McGranaghan said. "It's the same with physical injuries; somebody could be doing some sort of training wherever, like rollover training, and hurt themselves."

With fewer service members being injured in overseas activities, there are still approximately 180 service members -- active duty, Reserve or National Guard -- in the WTB who are finding ways to live life through different forms of adaptive reconditioning.

In the winter months, WTB staff focus on programs like aquatics, yoga and TRX suspension training. McGranaghan said the focus is on the ability to control posture, heart rate and breathing while also developing a better mental focus that his staff calls "mindfulness."

"You get wrapped up in this skill and it diminishes your obsession over issues that are affecting you emotionally and psychologically," he said.

In his nearly 30 years of sports medicine and physical therapy, McGranaghan said he isn't surprised that some studies find that consistent endurance activities are more effective for depression than pharmaceuticals.

Service members work to improve core muscles in various classes, including lumbar stabilization. Muscular development is built by doing movements against the natural resistance of being in water. Service members dealing with back and spine issues are able to strengthen their core and spine as they continue with their lives.

Many sports are adaptable for multiple types of injury. For example, McGranaghan can recall a story about a patient paralyzed from the chest down after a spinal injury. The person was able to cross skiing off his bucket list after learning to sit ski.

Golf is possible no matter what physical or psychological injury a service member has, thanks to the WTB's partnerships like the one with the American Lakes Veterans Golf Course in Lakewood. Specialized golf equipment, such as a cart for spinal cord patients to swing from, is provided.

Bicycle riding is one of the best examples with special recumbent bikes that recline for those with back problems and hand pedals for those who can't use their legs. For many patients, finding a new form of mobility, regardless of injury, helps the service member in moving forward.

"All of a sudden, their mobility has changed and their perception of whether they are invalid has changed; (the activity) has provided greater value for them," McGranaghan said.

There is no set plan since individuals have different needs in terms of intensity. Varying abilities call for several types of adaptive sports taught throughout the year. For example, one person may like the idea of entering a pool while another would prefer riding a bicycle.

"We want people to have a menu to choose from so it means something to them intrinsically," McGranaghan said. "If I have five things to choose from and I have a passion for something (in particular), I'm going to work harder."

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