“I love The Dailey Method and I want to share with you how this incredible workout helped me recover from a medical nightmare. Almost two years ago, July 1, 2014, after celebrating Canada Day, I started experiencing excruciating back pain. Fast forward 10 days later, when I was admitted to the neurological intensive care ward at the Ottawa Hospital with a diagnosis of Guillain-Barre Syndromé, a rare autoimmune disorder that attacks the body’s central nervous system and strips the protective myelin sheath from the nerves. I was in intense pain and even worse, completely paralysed.
The months that followed are sometimes a blur but I slowly regained the use of my arms, graduated from wheelchair to walker, walker to stick, stick to shuffling! By January 2015, after daily physiotherapy as an inpatient and outpatient at the Ottawa Rehabilitation Centre, I was ready to find something to help me regain some semblance of fitness closer to home. I tried a personal trainer but as I was unable to lift weights or jog on a machine, it became clear that this was not the way to go for me. It was when I was despondently walking home after one of these sessions that I noticed some signs about a new place in the Glebe — The Dailey Method. I checked it out online and decided to take advantage of the introductory session. During that first class, I started smiling again. Of course I had difficulty with the planks and stretches that are part of this wonderful workout but it didn’t matter. I knew that this was the workout that would make me healthy again and help me tone up my arms, legs, and thighs after so many months of inactivity. I signed up immediately and have never regretted that decision.
Today the only lingering disability of GBS is the paralysis in my fingertips and toes. But because balance and core strength is an important part of The Dailey Method, I walk with confidence and with good posture (and I even wear sleeveless tops, something I had stopped doing before my GBS diagnosis!).
The Dailey Method has helped me so much — mentally and physically — and I am so thankful that Jamie and Sarah started this incredible studio in the Glebe. Every workout brings me joy and happiness and I truly believe TDM gave me back my life.”