Adjusting to life after an amputation can affect a veteran’s entire family, not just the individual. That reality wasn't lost on the Travis Mills Foundation, which offers a retreat program that aims to help veterans and their families bond with one another and participate in traditional activities that are adapted to teach new skills and strategies to ensure participation for everyone.

Now available from APTA's Move Forward Radio: a conversation with APTA member Kelly Roseberry, PT, DPT. Roseberry is program director of the Travis Mills Foundation, which was founded by a veteran who had a quadruple amputation. Roseberry describes what this unique program means to veterans, families, and to her personally. "To be able to see a service member do something they never thought they would do again, or to see how happy their family is to watch them get to do that and to share in those moments together is…priceless," Roseberry says.

Since 2017, selected veterans who have been injured in active duty or as a result of their service have come to Maine in the summer, along with their families, for an all-expenses-paid vacation. They participate in activities such as swimming, biking, kayaking, and a ropes course.

“We take a great deal of pride in being able to serve the whole family," Roseberry tells Move Forward Radio. "We recognize that rehab is a lifetime process, and when someone is injured or goes through some sort of trauma, not only is the service member injured, but the injury affects the entire family. They may not think they can get on the floor with their kids or take them for a bike ride. We want to be able to not only encourage them but give them the tools to reach outside their comfort zone and do things with their family, because at the end of the day their family is their support system.”

Move Forward Radio is hosted at MoveForwardPT.com, APTA's official consumer information website, and can be streamed online or downloaded as a podcast via iTunes, Google Play, or Spotify.

Other recent Move Forward Radio episodes include:

Maintaining an Active Lifestyle and Avoiding Pain
Surfing legend and fitness and nutrition expert Laird Hamilton applied lessons he learned through his surfing injuries to his preparation for—and recovery from—hip replacement surgery. In the podcast, he describes how he avoided pain medicine of any kind during the process, and how he surprised his health care team with one of the fastest recoveries they had ever seen.

A Primer on Sciatica and Physical Therapy
As many as 40% of people will experience sciatica in their lifetime. APTA member Mark Bishop, PT, DPT, PhD, breaks down sciatica’s symptoms and causes for consumers, and explains how physical therapy can help relieve pain.

Navigating the Health Care System With Chronic Pain
APTA member Jen Bambrough, SPT, was in car accident at age 19 but seemed to sustain no initial apparent injuries. Over time, though, a physical toll revealed itself as chronic pain, limiting her activities and compromising her quality of life. Because the root of her pain couldn’t be readily detected, however, she faced skepticism in the medical community and experienced misdiagnoses. Bambrough, now a third-year DPT student, discusses how she became a strong self-advocate and how physical therapy is an important piece of the pain management puzzle.

A PT With Breast Cancer Turns to Her Peers to Make Life-Saving Decisions
When APTA member Gwen Simons, PT, felt what she thought might be a lump in her left breast in 2010, it set in motion a series of decisions and scans that led to surgery. Simons shares her story of unexpected mammogram results, a strategically timed lecture, consultations with colleagues in the physical therapy profession, and a decision by Simons that may have saved her life.

Cancer-Related Falls
Cancer survivors have a higher prevalence of falls than do people who haven’t been treated for the disease. Even worse, various significant health consequences of falls may be more likely and extensive in cancer survivors. APTA member Elizabeth Hile, PT, PhD, discusses the reasons for increased falls susceptibility in cancer survivors, red flags to heed, and how physical therapy and certain types of community resources can help.

Using Physical Therapy to Treat Pain in Addiction Treatment Centers
America is in the grips of an opioid addiction crisis. APTA members Ahmed Rashwan, PT, DPT, and Eric Chaconas, PT, PhD, discuss the treatment for addiction to opioid pain medication. They are working with addiction treatment centers to help medically stabilized patients learn more about their pain and show them how they can use physical therapy to participate in managing it, making relapse less likely.

APTA members are encouraged to alert their patients to the radio series and other MoveForwardPT.com resources to help educate the public about the benefits of treatment by a physical therapist. Ideas for future episodes and other feedback can be emailed to consumer@apta.org.