Giulia Bellandi is a 29-year-old sitting volleyball player for the Italian National Sitting Volleyball Team. Since her treatment with Neuromotus™, she has stopped taking drugs to manage her phantom limb pain.

Unbearable Chronic Phantom Limb Pain at Night

Giulia lost her left leg above the knee in a serious motorcycle accident in 2009. She had been suffering from phantom limb pain since her amputation, with an average pain level of 6 (0-10 Pain Scale, which indicates the intensity of pain, from 0 being no pain to 10 being unbearable pain). The symptoms especially manifested at night. „The pain would occupy my mind. I couldn’t sleep without taking my medicine.“ Giulia said, „But I knew that the painkillers I took were very strong and that I had to give them up.“

Learning to Manage Phantom Limb Syndrome via Game Play

At first, Giulia didn’t have much hope of curing the phantom limb pain; for her, it was something that could not be fixed. Therefore, when Giulia learned of the Neuromotus™ System, she pessimistically thought: „Okay, I can give it a try.“ Nevertheless, Giulia diligently went through her treatment plan, and over time, she had improved control over her phantom limb and subsequent decrease in her pain. „Using Neuromotus™ is like exercising with clear goals, and if I can reach the goals at the end of the exercise, I would be satisfied with myself,“ Giulia said.

To Giulia’s surprise, she started to get encouraging results after a number of treatment sessions using the Neuromotus™; her pain reduced to a level where she has now stopped taking painkillers. „I only experience minor pain nowadays, and I can handle it,“ she stated.

Joining the National Team

After recovering from the accident, Giulia started playing sitting volleyball. Her outstanding performance attracted the attention of The Italian Volleyball Federation, and in 2015, as a founding player, she joined Italian National Sitting Volleyball Team.

Giulia states that many of her teammates are in the same situation as she was; they are eager to get rid of their pain management drugs, but they did not know better ways to treat PLP. „I would like them to try Neuromotus™ too,“ she said, „because they may be able to give up painkillers, just like me.“