COURTESY OF fireflyfriends.com / www.worthytoshare.net
Nothing inspires and creates solutions faster than necessity. For Debby Elnatan, mother to a little boy named Rotem, finding a way to help him walk was crucial to managing his cerebral palsy - and now she’s sharing her innovation so other parents can benefit as well.
Desperate for a way to enhance Rotem’s mobility, Debby developed a harness that eases the strain on both parent and child. Debby invented the Firefly Upsee, a harness that the child can be placed in, which is then strapped to the parent. She said:
“When my son was two years old, I was told by medical professionals that “he didn’t know what his legs are and has no consciousness of them”.
‘That was an incredibly difficult thing for a mother to hear. I started to walk him day after day, which was a very strenuous task for both of us. Out of my pain and desperation came the idea for the Upsee and I’m delighted to see it come to fruition.” [source]
Nothing inspires and creates solutions faster than necessity. For Debby Elnatan, mother to a little boy named Rotem, finding a way to help him walk was crucial to managing his cerebral palsy - and now she’s sharing her innovation so other parents can benefit as well.Desperate for a way to enhance Rotem’s mobility, Debby developed a harness that eases the strain on both parent and child. Debby invented the Firefly Upsee, a harness that the child can be placed in, which is then strapped to the parent. She said:“When my son was two years old, I was told by medical professionals that “he didn’t know what his legs are and has no consciousness of them”..VIDEO IN THE NEXT PAGE
‘That was an incredibly difficult thing for a mother to hear. I started to walk him day after day, which was a very strenuous task for both of us. Out of my pain and desperation came the idea for the Upsee and I’m delighted to see it come to fruition.”
In the video above, it shows that the Upsee places the child’s feet beside the adult’s feet using specifically designed sandals. Facing forward, the children move as the adults do. It is similar to the techniques that some parents use to teach their children to dance.
So far, the public reactions have been astounding. Stacy Warden of Colorado, mother to 5-year-old son Noah with cerebral palsy, said:“It allows us to do so many things and go so many places that we couldn’t before.”
Warden also reveals that there have been emotional benefits to the Firefly Upsee as well:
“He laughs and giggles, something he doesn’t do with other walking devices, which he sees as work.”
Northern Ireland mom Maura McCrystal explained that the special harness enabled her son Jack to play soccer with his father and brothers for the first time in his entire life.“To see Jack playing like any other 5 year old boy made me very emotional.”[source]
Debb’s Firefly Upsee harness was manufactured by Leckey and will be available for purchase on April 7th, costing nearly $500. So far, a Leckey representative has revealed that the company has been “inundated” with inquiries for the harness.
