Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Me & Uncle J
I had a nice visit with Uncle J on Sunday. I got there about 2:00 and Uncle Greg and his friend were still there. They stayed until about 3:00 and then it was just Uncle J and me. We talked a little, watched tv a little, and just hung out. I stayed around to help him with dinner. He ate almost all of his dinner and he fed himself the whole meal. I only had to help getting him situated with his tray and getting him drinks. It was nice for me to get to see the steps he has made! I don't get to go as often, or during the week, so I keep myself updated by the blog like everyone else! After dinner, Uncle J even said he would escort me out to my car. I think it is awesome now that he has a chair and can be mobile! I got a little worried about him going back inside after I left. I drove slow and saw him going in the front door but the door shut and knocked his wound vac off the back of his chair. I had just thrown my car in park, grabbed the keys and was running out to help him when I saw the receptionist coming to help him. All in all, it was a pretty nice visit!
Look Who's Browsing at Kohls!
There is a shopping center one short block from the Villages of Westerville and the physical therapist decided it was time that Jon and another gal in similar conditions should try their hand at maneuvering the aisles of a department store. Off they went early Friday afternoon. They had to go down an incline to get to the sidewalk and then cross the street and wheel down the sidewalk.We discovered when we got to the door that there was only a button the size of a quarter to push for the door to open automatically. On the way out the button is right on the door frame which would be almost impossible for anyone in a wheelchair to get close enough to actually push it. For those whose handicap would be heart related etc. it would be adequate, but not for these two!
I am proud to say that they both handled their chairs like pros. Nothing even came close to being knocked over and with Jon’s oxygen tank hanging out so far behind him that is really something. They wandered through both the women’s and men’s departments, through the shoes and even stopped to read some of the greeting cards.
They wound their way through a parking lot next to the rehabilitation center and Jon spotted two nifty motorbikes he needed to check out. When they got back to the center they drove their chairs over some grassy areas to get the feel of it. Some stretches were flat but they tried their hand at some small hills, too. It was a great day.
The only downside was the official notification that once again he has a urinary infection. That is not uncommon for quads they tell me and we are valiantly trying to get Jon to understand how important drinking lots of water is. I think we've found an article that he seems to think is convincing...I hope so. Thanks for checking in. Thanks for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers! Marj
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Visitors
Jon has been quite busy. On Friday his Uncle Frank, and cousins Jan, Jill, Brynn and Devon came to visit. They were on their way to a family reunion on Saturday which Jon had hoped to be able to attend but we couldn't get the arrangements done on short notice so it was great to have them stop by for a few hours. I'm not sure Jon had ever seen Jill's daughter, Brynn, before and she reminds Barb and me of Jo Marie when she was at the same age. (I also thought she looked a lot like her Aunt Judy but think I was out voted.) Sunday my mother and sisters came to visit. Mother and Margaret Ann were able to stay till Monday and see some of Jon's physical therapy.
He has continued to work on supporting his upper body by making a triangle with his body and hands. Yesterday they were concentrating on retaining an upright position if he starts to lose his balance. His reaction times were good but needs to work on getting his hands in a good spot to support himself. The physical therapist gathered a group of 3 other patients who have similar injuries as Jon's and gave them a talk on how their injuries affected their prognosis. He included the staging of the muscles and it was interesting to learn that if a person can raise an extremity against gravity they have a good chance at recovering its use. Jon's also working with some weights in occupational therapy and is starting to get his upper arm muscles back.
His attitude has remained good for the last couple of weeks and he is working on learning everybody's name. It's nice to see him so outgoing again. Yesterday we spent almost a half an hour outside and I think daylight has made a difference also. He went for a long time asking that all the lights be turned off and since his bed isn't on the side next to the window he wasn't getting much light period. Now that he spends a lot of his time in the lounge which has several windows he's getting much more light.
On the down side he's just finished his antibiotics for a urinary tract infection and it looks like it's back again--or never really clearedup. We just can't get used to how much liquid he needs to keep this controlled!
Thanks for checking in and keeping Jon in your thoughts and prayers. We appreciate it. We especially thank Reibo for his frequent visits throughout the week...Jon really appreciates them.
He has continued to work on supporting his upper body by making a triangle with his body and hands. Yesterday they were concentrating on retaining an upright position if he starts to lose his balance. His reaction times were good but needs to work on getting his hands in a good spot to support himself. The physical therapist gathered a group of 3 other patients who have similar injuries as Jon's and gave them a talk on how their injuries affected their prognosis. He included the staging of the muscles and it was interesting to learn that if a person can raise an extremity against gravity they have a good chance at recovering its use. Jon's also working with some weights in occupational therapy and is starting to get his upper arm muscles back.
His attitude has remained good for the last couple of weeks and he is working on learning everybody's name. It's nice to see him so outgoing again. Yesterday we spent almost a half an hour outside and I think daylight has made a difference also. He went for a long time asking that all the lights be turned off and since his bed isn't on the side next to the window he wasn't getting much light period. Now that he spends a lot of his time in the lounge which has several windows he's getting much more light.
On the down side he's just finished his antibiotics for a urinary tract infection and it looks like it's back again--or never really clearedup. We just can't get used to how much liquid he needs to keep this controlled!
Thanks for checking in and keeping Jon in your thoughts and prayers. We appreciate it. We especially thank Reibo for his frequent visits throughout the week...Jon really appreciates them.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
New Firsts!
Saturday everyone traveled to Columbus to celebrate Jon's and his father's birthday. Jon was up early per the new schedule and I was afraid that by the time 2:30 came around he would be a whipped puppy. As it turned out he was still going strong early in the evening. Each day he has stayed up a little longer and yesterday he was in his chair for 14 hours!
He has a new tray that fits on the arms of the power chair which makes it much easier for him to feed himself. Last night, once I cut his meat for him he did most of the work. He would ask for a drink and then go back to eating. His friend, Mark, has been there about suppertime and has kept up a steady stream of conversation and encouragement which also helps.
There's been a welcome change in Jon's attitude. Up until last week Jon was satisfied with leaving the room only for therapy. I did occasionally get him outside for a short pass down the driveway and that was it. Now that he's up longer he's more like himself and stops by various rooms for conversation....that's more like the old Jon. Being in his room is quite cramped since it's hardly made for a chair as bulky as his (plus a room mate who also has a wheelchair) so he prefers to spend a lot of time in the lounge (which also has more comfortable seating for Mom and Dad and any other visitors!)
I arrived late yesterday so I came in the middle of physical therapy and missed occupational therapy altogether. Jon was working on sitting by himself on a bench. Matt was showing him how to position his arms so that the arms worked with his body to form a triangle. When Jon mentioned that he had already managed to sit by himself for 35 seconds Matt's competitiveness kicked right in...35 seconds, 40 seconds, right up to a full minute! They were both quite pleased, as was I.
Must get going, have got to see what I've missed so far this morning.....Thanks for checking in.
He has a new tray that fits on the arms of the power chair which makes it much easier for him to feed himself. Last night, once I cut his meat for him he did most of the work. He would ask for a drink and then go back to eating. His friend, Mark, has been there about suppertime and has kept up a steady stream of conversation and encouragement which also helps.
There's been a welcome change in Jon's attitude. Up until last week Jon was satisfied with leaving the room only for therapy. I did occasionally get him outside for a short pass down the driveway and that was it. Now that he's up longer he's more like himself and stops by various rooms for conversation....that's more like the old Jon. Being in his room is quite cramped since it's hardly made for a chair as bulky as his (plus a room mate who also has a wheelchair) so he prefers to spend a lot of time in the lounge (which also has more comfortable seating for Mom and Dad and any other visitors!)
I arrived late yesterday so I came in the middle of physical therapy and missed occupational therapy altogether. Jon was working on sitting by himself on a bench. Matt was showing him how to position his arms so that the arms worked with his body to form a triangle. When Jon mentioned that he had already managed to sit by himself for 35 seconds Matt's competitiveness kicked right in...35 seconds, 40 seconds, right up to a full minute! They were both quite pleased, as was I.
Must get going, have got to see what I've missed so far this morning.....Thanks for checking in.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Another Year Rolls By
Jon had a pretty good day today. He was dressed early this morning so that the first shift could get him up in his chair to eat breakfast. While we love the bed because we don't have to be such worry warts about his being turned it is an absolute monster when it comes to eating in it. It's back is rather slippery and when he is pulled to the top of the bed and then raised to a sitting position it is like watching him slide into a swimming pool! His final position is not a good eating position and he still does a lot of coughing and choking while eating.
The word got out that it was his birthday and so a good number of people stopped by to wish him a good one. He did finally agree to going outside and staying there for 15 minutes instead of a quick pass from one door to the other. There is a nice shady area with a bench that we sat at and talked a bit.
Barb brought a delicious steak, sweet potatoes, baked potato and salad for his birthday supper. She bought one huge meal and split it 3 ways. No complaints (or coughing) during this meal!
Evening brought many phone calls from family and friends. A beautiful basket of flowers arrived earlier.
Many thanks to all of you for helping make this a good day for Jon. Tomorrow it is his Dad's turn -- Jon was his birthday present many years ago as he looked forward to having a boy. (He enjoyed the girls but they aren't the same!)
The word got out that it was his birthday and so a good number of people stopped by to wish him a good one. He did finally agree to going outside and staying there for 15 minutes instead of a quick pass from one door to the other. There is a nice shady area with a bench that we sat at and talked a bit.
Barb brought a delicious steak, sweet potatoes, baked potato and salad for his birthday supper. She bought one huge meal and split it 3 ways. No complaints (or coughing) during this meal!
Evening brought many phone calls from family and friends. A beautiful basket of flowers arrived earlier.
Many thanks to all of you for helping make this a good day for Jon. Tomorrow it is his Dad's turn -- Jon was his birthday present many years ago as he looked forward to having a boy. (He enjoyed the girls but they aren't the same!)
Birthday Boy
Today is Jon's Birthday. We are all going down to see him this Saturday. But, if you've got time, stop in or give him a call!
Thanks!
Thanks!
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Up twice in one day!!
Well, Jon got up in his chair after all this morning. Rick, the chair rep, finally came today to do the pressure mapping. So Jon got up, ate breakfast in the chair and then went down to physical therapy. I wasn't there but according to Mom there weren't any areas they had to worry about, the seat is good! I was quite surprised to see him back up (for the second time today!) when I got there around 5. We went down to the activity room where Jon joined us in eating some pizza!! We went back to his room just to get a game and go back down again to the activity room. We played Password. When we started on the second card (there are 10 words per card and we each had our own), Jon said he was tired and wanted to go back to the room. He needed suctioning after he got back into bed.
Matt said that there is a young woman (around 26) that was shot in the neck and has the exact same injuries as Jon (complete injury at the C-6). She also has a 3 year old daughter to raise. So she has something to work toward. She does not have a power chair yet but when she does, Matt would like them to meet and have some therapy together. This will give someone else for Jon to talk to that has the same damage. Maybe when he sees her determination, he will get some too. Matt is also going to ask a man that has been a true quadriplegic for 40 years to come in and talk to Jon. He has to use his mouth in place of his hands, just like Joni Eareckson Tada (internationally known quadriplegic that has become a disabilities advocate.) Jon and I watched the movie on Joni (it's actually pronounced johnnie - her dad wanted a boy). Since her injuries were not the same he didn't seem to connect as well as I had hoped. He said "she's gone through a lot". With this young woman at the center, he should be able to relate. I think it will be very good for him to talk to someone that can truly understand what he is going through. We try but we can never truly understand.
Mom said he seemed to be in better spirits today. He went down to visit his old roommate Jack from CRSI that is at the this same facility. Jack's room is on the way to the therapy rooms so Jon tries to stop on the way down each day.
The goal is to get Jon up twice a day. I am trying to get him to go outside for the 4th of July fireworks in Westerville. His parking lot should have a relatively good view. He told me today that he hasn't done fireworks for a few years now. I think it would be good for him but I don't know if he will go for it or not.
Thanks for checking in. Please continue to keep Jon and the family in your prayers. Please add this young woman with the same injuries Jon has to your prayer list as well. Thank you and God bless you.
Matt said that there is a young woman (around 26) that was shot in the neck and has the exact same injuries as Jon (complete injury at the C-6). She also has a 3 year old daughter to raise. So she has something to work toward. She does not have a power chair yet but when she does, Matt would like them to meet and have some therapy together. This will give someone else for Jon to talk to that has the same damage. Maybe when he sees her determination, he will get some too. Matt is also going to ask a man that has been a true quadriplegic for 40 years to come in and talk to Jon. He has to use his mouth in place of his hands, just like Joni Eareckson Tada (internationally known quadriplegic that has become a disabilities advocate.) Jon and I watched the movie on Joni (it's actually pronounced johnnie - her dad wanted a boy). Since her injuries were not the same he didn't seem to connect as well as I had hoped. He said "she's gone through a lot". With this young woman at the center, he should be able to relate. I think it will be very good for him to talk to someone that can truly understand what he is going through. We try but we can never truly understand.
Mom said he seemed to be in better spirits today. He went down to visit his old roommate Jack from CRSI that is at the this same facility. Jack's room is on the way to the therapy rooms so Jon tries to stop on the way down each day.
The goal is to get Jon up twice a day. I am trying to get him to go outside for the 4th of July fireworks in Westerville. His parking lot should have a relatively good view. He told me today that he hasn't done fireworks for a few years now. I think it would be good for him but I don't know if he will go for it or not.
Thanks for checking in. Please continue to keep Jon and the family in your prayers. Please add this young woman with the same injuries Jon has to your prayer list as well. Thank you and God bless you.
At a Snail’s Pace
June 28
Progress seems so slow when you are as close to Jon as we in Columbus are. On the plus side Jon is spending more time in his power chair. He gets dressed and into the chair by 1:00, just in time for lunch. At 2:00 he has physical therapy, usually followed by occupational therapy. He’s still working on stretching his neck and shoulder muscles. In occupational therapy he continues to work with pegs and squeezing play dough between his thumb and pointer finger. In addition we are still experimenting with different silverware and eating techniques. By evening his arms are getting pretty tired and shaky. If he coughs with his fork in his hand I try to keep a hand between his fork and chest so he won’t accidently stab himself! After therapy he’s free to roam the place and while my Mother was worried about how fast he might scoot around in his power chair she needn’t worry--the turtle would beat Jon in the proverbial race with the rabbit!
In speech therapy he is working on drawing conclusions--he played a game of “what if...? For example, what would happen if every family in the United States had 10 children? Half a dozen conclusions come readily to my mind!
Jon is still fighting several infections and I guess I need to remember that those things slow a person down. I’ve been really on him for not wanting to eat as much as he should. He thinks he has been exerting himself quite a bit and I suppose if one considers how digestive tract infections can slow a normal person down then he probably is working hard. A wound vac is back on his bedsore--a disappointment to Barb and me since the new bed has such great promise even if one only believes half of what sales reps say.
Wed. July 1
Jon had a really rough day yesterday. His morning blood pressure was 132/83 and should have been a red flag for the staff. I'm not sure exactly sure when it was taken but not at a time when his Dad was there and it could be written down. I don't recall it being high at physical therapy but later in the day he had problems with his catheter being blocked. It was removed but nothing done for about 4 or so hours. Once it was replaced(for the second time in a week) there was still a lot of sediment in the tube and his blood pressure was at 134/65...still high with red flags flying. We followed the rule about sitting up and after a half hour it went back to 116 over 60 something. So we put away the word search we had just completed I laid him back down and said goodnight. (Blood pressure has a habit of going down when sitting in an upright position so when it is more than 20 points higher than normal he has to follow some protecol for lowering it. We had already checked the urine problem and the bowel problem couldn't be dealt with at the moment.)
He had a rough night from what his dad said a few minutes ago and he doesn't really want to get out of bed. That's a big mistake so I'm off to exert some maternal pressure! He's been having problems swallowing and can't really get to a 90 degree upright position and has been having some problems with coughing during eating. The theory being if he was up in the morning he could be in the chair for both breakfast and lunch to see if that was beneficial.
Progress seems so slow when you are as close to Jon as we in Columbus are. On the plus side Jon is spending more time in his power chair. He gets dressed and into the chair by 1:00, just in time for lunch. At 2:00 he has physical therapy, usually followed by occupational therapy. He’s still working on stretching his neck and shoulder muscles. In occupational therapy he continues to work with pegs and squeezing play dough between his thumb and pointer finger. In addition we are still experimenting with different silverware and eating techniques. By evening his arms are getting pretty tired and shaky. If he coughs with his fork in his hand I try to keep a hand between his fork and chest so he won’t accidently stab himself! After therapy he’s free to roam the place and while my Mother was worried about how fast he might scoot around in his power chair she needn’t worry--the turtle would beat Jon in the proverbial race with the rabbit!
In speech therapy he is working on drawing conclusions--he played a game of “what if...? For example, what would happen if every family in the United States had 10 children? Half a dozen conclusions come readily to my mind!
Jon is still fighting several infections and I guess I need to remember that those things slow a person down. I’ve been really on him for not wanting to eat as much as he should. He thinks he has been exerting himself quite a bit and I suppose if one considers how digestive tract infections can slow a normal person down then he probably is working hard. A wound vac is back on his bedsore--a disappointment to Barb and me since the new bed has such great promise even if one only believes half of what sales reps say.
Wed. July 1
Jon had a really rough day yesterday. His morning blood pressure was 132/83 and should have been a red flag for the staff. I'm not sure exactly sure when it was taken but not at a time when his Dad was there and it could be written down. I don't recall it being high at physical therapy but later in the day he had problems with his catheter being blocked. It was removed but nothing done for about 4 or so hours. Once it was replaced(for the second time in a week) there was still a lot of sediment in the tube and his blood pressure was at 134/65...still high with red flags flying. We followed the rule about sitting up and after a half hour it went back to 116 over 60 something. So we put away the word search we had just completed I laid him back down and said goodnight. (Blood pressure has a habit of going down when sitting in an upright position so when it is more than 20 points higher than normal he has to follow some protecol for lowering it. We had already checked the urine problem and the bowel problem couldn't be dealt with at the moment.)
He had a rough night from what his dad said a few minutes ago and he doesn't really want to get out of bed. That's a big mistake so I'm off to exert some maternal pressure! He's been having problems swallowing and can't really get to a 90 degree upright position and has been having some problems with coughing during eating. The theory being if he was up in the morning he could be in the chair for both breakfast and lunch to see if that was beneficial.
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