For the past couple of nights, Dad's been back to his insomnia. Joe and I have been levelled with the worst cold/flu/plague imaginable, so getting up every couple of hours to get Dad to the bathroom, turn on the tv, get him a drink, etc. is slowly (slowly?!) using up everyone's reserves, not the least the poor man recovering from a brain injury! Every time I get up, I think of the above line from the movie What About Bob. Not because I want to pop him, but just because I wish something, anything (since his medication isn't cutting it) could truly "knock him out" so he could get some sleep!
Of course the reason he's not sleeping is that he's SO anxious about Mom. First of all, here he is back home after three months and his wife isn't sleeping beside him (when Dad was in the hospital, poor Mom had the opposite problem!). Secondly, after meeting yesterday with Mom and her care team, it looks as though it might be some time before they can be together again. Please pray that somehow this would not drag Dad down so much.
Dad is also distressed because things are tough for him physically. He's achy, everything's a challenge, and his left hand in particular has been extremely painful. In his words, he feels like he's "falling apart." Pray that his body would heal quickly and he would find some good strategies for pain and stress management.
And please continue to pray that things would smooth out here at home. I would love to get us into a routine, but what with my stupid root canal (which went as well as could be expected, but now I need to finish it off with a crown, so yay, more pain!), the current cold/flu/plague, the fact that I'm in the wedding of my dear, dear friends tomorrow (congratulations guys!) and any number of other niggling "normal" things to do...well, routine, schmoutine. (Maybe, I'M the one who needs to be knocked out. Please! :) )
Friday, March 7, 2008
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Better living through chemistry
Thanks to the miracle of drugs, Dad finally slept last night! Yay! I think it also helped that the anxiety of waiting for the eye appointment was over. At any rate, we all got a pretty good night's sleep and we know how critical that is for Dad to heal and continue to recover.
When I posted to the blog yesterday I looked back at the entry from before Dad came home and how exhausted he was going around the house with his PT team. It made me so happy to think about how now walking around the house, getting up and down the stairs, and getting up and down from different surfaces is sooooo much easier. It's so exciting to see.
I appreciate so much all your kind offers of help. You have know idea how much it means to us to know that so many are at the ready to do whatever we need. Thanks to my sweet cousin (and her husband) who came over tonight to help Dad with his wardrobe. He's lost so much weight (and oddly enough isn't interested in being a trendy guy with baggy pants) and she's a expert seamstress. Truly, these "little things" are so incredibly huge to us. You all are such a blessing!
When I posted to the blog yesterday I looked back at the entry from before Dad came home and how exhausted he was going around the house with his PT team. It made me so happy to think about how now walking around the house, getting up and down the stairs, and getting up and down from different surfaces is sooooo much easier. It's so exciting to see.
I appreciate so much all your kind offers of help. You have know idea how much it means to us to know that so many are at the ready to do whatever we need. Thanks to my sweet cousin (and her husband) who came over tonight to help Dad with his wardrobe. He's lost so much weight (and oddly enough isn't interested in being a trendy guy with baggy pants) and she's a expert seamstress. Truly, these "little things" are so incredibly huge to us. You all are such a blessing!
Monday, March 3, 2008
The good, the tough, and the other
My apologies for not posting sooner. I'm sure you all can imagine how challenging the transition home is.
The good stuff: Dad is doing great, moving around more easily and getting stronger every day. His stamina has been improving and he's always up for hopping in the car to visit Mom or go for a drive. He is working hard on his therapies (his care team decided to send him home with home health care for a couple of weeks until he is acclimated to being out of the hospital) and doing anything he can think of in his "down time" to improve himself physically and mentally. His PT is amazed because he's about the only patient she's had who actually exercises on his own! He's doing so well that I anticipate he'll be ready for outpatient therapy by the end of the week.
For the past two Sundays, Dad has been able to go to church. I hear there wasn't a dry eye in the sanctuary the first time when we surprised them! I simply can't tell you what a beautiful thing it is to hear him singing in worship again.
The tough stuff: Since he's been home, Dad has had a heck of a time sleeping. As you can imagine, he's got a lot of stuff swirling through his mind, so in addition to just trying to get used to sleeping where it's dark and people don't burst into your room at odd hours to draw blood, he's also been pretty anxious about Mom and his own health/recovery. (And as you can also imagine, if he can't sleep, neither can Joe and I, so we're all pretty stinking tired.)
Dad has also been experiencing some aching in his left arm and continues to suffer with carpal tunnel-like symptoms in both hands. It's really discouraging to him to have all these "little" things irritating him when there are so many big things to deal with.
Perhaps toughest of all, today we went to Dad's appointment with the neuro-opthalmologist. After several hours of tests, we ended up right back where we started. Dad's eyes are, essentially, perfect. Unfortunately because of the anoxia, Dad's brain is currently unable to process what he's seeing. We are encouraged by the fact that his eyes do continue to improve and the doctor is convinced they will continue to do so for up to 18 months or so from now. The really hard part for Dad was the doctor's prognosis that he will likely never read or (big one for Dad) drive again. But, Dad and I agreed that since he's beaten all the prognoses so far, there's no reason he should stop now. :)
The other stuff: Please pray for us as we continue to try and get a handle on everything. I keep hoping to get a routine down, but with so many appointments, stuff going on with Mom, and goofy personal things (I was down a couple of days last week before having Part I of a surprise root canal. Yippee.) most days we're lucky we have food and clean clothes to wear (which means if you come over to visit, please do NOT look closely at the state of the carpets!). Props to folks who are single caregivers, 'cause I would fall apart. We've got a great group effort going on between friends and family pitching in. THANK YOU to everyone who helps, however obliquely (and huge thanks to my wonderful husband who gets up several times a night to help Dad to the bathroom!).
For anyone who has called, e-mailed, smoke-signalled or otherwise tried to contact me I am not ignoring you. It is most likely that I have attempted to rely (foolishly) on my brain to remember who I need to call, e-mail, or smoke-signal back. If you think you may be one of those people floating lonely at the back of my brain, please try me again. Especially if you are Sherri and you want to share some sushi.
The good stuff: Dad is doing great, moving around more easily and getting stronger every day. His stamina has been improving and he's always up for hopping in the car to visit Mom or go for a drive. He is working hard on his therapies (his care team decided to send him home with home health care for a couple of weeks until he is acclimated to being out of the hospital) and doing anything he can think of in his "down time" to improve himself physically and mentally. His PT is amazed because he's about the only patient she's had who actually exercises on his own! He's doing so well that I anticipate he'll be ready for outpatient therapy by the end of the week.
For the past two Sundays, Dad has been able to go to church. I hear there wasn't a dry eye in the sanctuary the first time when we surprised them! I simply can't tell you what a beautiful thing it is to hear him singing in worship again.
The tough stuff: Since he's been home, Dad has had a heck of a time sleeping. As you can imagine, he's got a lot of stuff swirling through his mind, so in addition to just trying to get used to sleeping where it's dark and people don't burst into your room at odd hours to draw blood, he's also been pretty anxious about Mom and his own health/recovery. (And as you can also imagine, if he can't sleep, neither can Joe and I, so we're all pretty stinking tired.)
Dad has also been experiencing some aching in his left arm and continues to suffer with carpal tunnel-like symptoms in both hands. It's really discouraging to him to have all these "little" things irritating him when there are so many big things to deal with.
Perhaps toughest of all, today we went to Dad's appointment with the neuro-opthalmologist. After several hours of tests, we ended up right back where we started. Dad's eyes are, essentially, perfect. Unfortunately because of the anoxia, Dad's brain is currently unable to process what he's seeing. We are encouraged by the fact that his eyes do continue to improve and the doctor is convinced they will continue to do so for up to 18 months or so from now. The really hard part for Dad was the doctor's prognosis that he will likely never read or (big one for Dad) drive again. But, Dad and I agreed that since he's beaten all the prognoses so far, there's no reason he should stop now. :)
The other stuff: Please pray for us as we continue to try and get a handle on everything. I keep hoping to get a routine down, but with so many appointments, stuff going on with Mom, and goofy personal things (I was down a couple of days last week before having Part I of a surprise root canal. Yippee.) most days we're lucky we have food and clean clothes to wear (which means if you come over to visit, please do NOT look closely at the state of the carpets!). Props to folks who are single caregivers, 'cause I would fall apart. We've got a great group effort going on between friends and family pitching in. THANK YOU to everyone who helps, however obliquely (and huge thanks to my wonderful husband who gets up several times a night to help Dad to the bathroom!).
For anyone who has called, e-mailed, smoke-signalled or otherwise tried to contact me I am not ignoring you. It is most likely that I have attempted to rely (foolishly) on my brain to remember who I need to call, e-mail, or smoke-signal back. If you think you may be one of those people floating lonely at the back of my brain, please try me again. Especially if you are Sherri and you want to share some sushi.
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