Straschnitzki back home, feeling stronger and more confident
An aerial view of the mountains and a hug from an airport White Hat volunteer. Ryan Straschnitzki is back in Calgary.
Sporting a Philadelphia Flyers hoodie, the 19-year-old Humboldt Broncos bus crash survivor arrived home Wednesday after spending a month in Philadelphia receiving physiotherapy treatment at the Shriners Hospitals for Children. He is happy to be back.
“It was a great city to be in. It was amazing,” Straschnitzki said after touching down. “I feel a lot better, stronger and I’m gonna continue physiotherapy in Calgary.”
Seeing friends and family was first on his agenda.
“It’s been a while since I’ve been here and been with them, so it’ll be nice,” he said.
Straschnitzki was joined by his parents and three younger siblings for the tail end of his time in Philadelphia. His mom, Michelle, and dad, Tom, had been switching off with one another as they took care of the rest of their family back in their home of Airdrie.
The family was able to take in a Philadelphia Phillies game and tour the Flyers’ hockey arena during their stay.
“We’ve never done that as a family, and it brought us closer, I think,” Straschnitzki said. “Just how hard they work, I think it was well deserved for them.”
At Shriners, Straschnitzki’s daily routine typically included two physiotherapy sessions, as well as both occupational and psychological therapy. He said he was able to build back the strength in his upper body as he learned to do things such as sit himself up and complete transfers from his wheelchair to a vehicle.
“I’m confident in my skills now, and now it’s just practice to get good at it,” he said.
Michelle said her son’s progress wasn’t surprising, given “how strong-willed he is” and the athlete mentality he carries.
“From that first week when he was just learning how to pull himself up without using any core muscles that he can’t control, to now he’ll just one arm himself up,” Michelle said.
“He’s got all of his teammates and his coaches and Dayna (Brons) and everyone on his mind. He’s just using that as motivation.”
Straschnitzki said he plans to relax for the next few days and take his girlfriend, Erika, to the Stampede, before resuming his physiotherapy at a clinic in the area.
In six months, he’ll return to Philadelphia for a checkup.
“Just getting up and having a goal set every day, you know, I wanted to get better every day,” he said of his time in the City of Brotherly Love, which was originally supposed to span closer to two months. “I focused on that day and not what’s going to happen in the future and sorta got lucky, I guess.”
Tom said the next step for his son is becoming even more independent, especially when it comes to vehicle transfers.
“I said ‘no more wheelchair accessible, you’re on your own,’” he said. “We’re going to do this.”
Straschnitzki remains focused on his goal of getting into sledge hockey, just as he was immediately after waking up from surgery in Saskatchewan back in April, according to his dad. He was able to get a taste in Philadelphia, where the Flyers staff showed him a sled they had on hand.
“He said, ‘well, that’ll be the next thing after car transfers, to get into a sled,’” Tom said.
The family is staying at a hotel as their Airdrie home undergoes renovations to make it wheelchair accessible. They hope it will be ready before winter.
“Just getting back to a little normalcy, whatever the new normal is now,” said Michelle, calling the past three months of their lives “surreal.”.