Rebuilding Strength and Independence Through Therapy: Brenda’s Story

After an uncommon surgery and weeks in the hospital, Brenda Lyle returned home knowing her recovery would take time, hard work, and support. With the help of physical and occupational therapy at Perham Health, she began the journey of rebuilding her strength and independence.

Brenda’s health journey began in January 2025 after other health concerns prompting a doctor’s appointment. Her X-rays and blood tests came back abnormal, leading to more testing. While investigating the initial health concern, doctors unexpectedly discovered another unrelated issue.

Months later, she was diagnosed with chondrosarcoma in her pelvis, a rare type of bone cancer.

In December, Brenda underwent a 14-hour surgery.

“They removed a portion of my pelvis, and I have a prosthetic implant that is connecting my femur to my pelvis,” she explains.

Following surgery, Brenda remained hospitalized at Mayo Clinic for about a month before transferring back home to Perham Health. She entered the swing bed program, designed for patients who no longer need hospital care but aren’t ready to return home yet

She stayed in swing bed for two weeks and then moved to Perham Living’s Transitions. The Transition household offers a short-stay intensive rehabilitation program focused on helping patients regain strength and independence. She was at Transitions for about two and a half months, during which she received occupational and physical therapy.

A Rigorous Path to Recovery

Her days quickly filled with therapy sessions—two to four times a day, five days a week. The sessions focused on helping her get stronger and return to daily life.

Because of the surgery, she remained non-weight bearing on one leg from December through April, which limited her mobility.

Brenda worked with occupational therapist Rob Hendrickson, who helped her relearn how to safely complete everyday tasks and regain independence.

Rob Hendrickson, Occupational Therapist, taught Brenda how to pull on socks using an assisting device.

“Brenda had specific hip precautions to protect her surgical procedure, including no bending at the waist, no weight bearing, and no twisting the leg. The first thing we did was teach her how to propel herself in a wheelchair so she could get around,” recalls Rob.

Relearning Everyday Tasks with Therapy

Occupational therapy focuses on activities of daily living, finding practical ways to complete tasks safely when movement is limited.

Rob worked with Brenda on using adaptive equipment, including a reacher to pick up items, a stocking aid, and a long-handled shoehorn. She also learned how to safely transfer in and out of her wheelchair so she could care for herself throughout the day.

“Brenda was eager to learn the techniques to regain her independence. She was always a hard worker,” Rob says.

After spending months largely confined to hospital beds, she knew regaining her ability to walk would require determination and hard work.

“I needed to be more mobile than just lying in bed. I was very limited as far as standing, pivoting, basically just shuffling my feet to get from one place to the next,” she says. “Transitions was very rigorous and very challenging. I needed to get motivated and get stronger so that I was able to get walking and be more human.”

Physical therapy played a key role in that progress. Through guided exercises and hands-on support, Brenda worked to rebuild strength, balance, and mobility step by step.

Matt Johnson, Physical Therapy, helped Brenda to walk again after her surgery.

Brenda worked with physical therapist Matt Johnson. Their focus was strengthening her right leg. This involved working on getting in and out of bed, going from sitting to standing, and getting in and out of a wheelchair. Early on, even standing or taking a few steps required assistance from two people.

“We completed a combination of exercises both lying in bed and seated in a chair. As her strength improved, we worked on standing endurance and balance and did some light strengthening of her left leg. At the completion of therapy, she was able to independently transfer in and out of bed, sit to stand, and was able to walk using her walker,” says Matt.

Gaining Mobility and Confidence

“We had a very good working relationship. We enjoyed giving each other a hard time and trying to keep the mood light,” Matt says. “I’ve been a therapist for 28 years and never encountered a surgery such as Brenda’s.”

“Working with Matt was always upbeat,” Brenda says. “He made things fun and challenging so that you had something to work for.”

Matt regularly varied the exercises and equipment to keep building strength and endurance.

“One day it would be TheraBand, and the next day it would be the wall weight system, and the next time it would be working on a bike and warming up muscles,” Brenda says.

Over time, the steady work paid off. By the time she was discharged from Transitions, her abilities had improved significantly.

“I was able to walk over a hundred feet with my walker. I was able to transition, so I could get in and out of the car. I regained my independence. Transitions provided excellent care. Being able to have physical and occupational therapy multiple times per day and the reliable skill and technique of the exercises and therapy were incredible. I built trusting relationships with the staff,” says Brenda gratefully.

While the road has been long, Brenda said being able to recover close to home — surrounded by family and supported by dedicated therapists. Despite the challenges along the way, being home made a meaningful difference throughout her rehabilitation journey.

“Being able to recover near home allowed family to come visit more often,” she says. “Being dairy farmers, they weren’t able to do that commute to Rochester.”

It was important to be near her young son, who struggled with the long separation while she was hospitalized in Rochester.

“Towards the end of my stay at Mayo, he was thinking that I was not coming home,” she says. “He was my motivation to get home and get going,” she says with a smile.

Since being discharged from Transitions, Brenda has continued with home health physical and occupational therapy for continued strengthening in her legs.

“Walking 150 feet seems like a milestone on this journey, but one day I hope to be strong enough to use a walker or cane instead of the wheelchair on a daily basis,” says Brenda. “For now, the rest and healing that my body needs allows me to do counted cross stitch and pixel art projects. Just don’t take things for granted — legs, feet, arms — and hard work pays off!”