therapy

Janet, A Success Story. May 21. #TSJ

Tez put Janet through her paces this morning and when I called her at lunchtime Janet was feeling good that Tez praised her for how well she was doing. I’m not sure what all they did but Janet described it as “a lot of walking”. She did a lot with me this afternoon as well, the first trip being freestyle from her room to the patio to enjoy some sun. There was a little protesting along the way but each time I do this with Janet the need for me to be right there to catch her is lessened, in fact her last walk of the day was from her bed about four feet to her wheelchair and I let her do that with me still sitting on the bed. I had to help her with the very difficult pivot move before sitting down but the whole point was to give that feeling of independence. I think I saw in her face some satisfaction in getting there on her own.

The only other exercise activity Janet needed to do tonight was the bike and again I had her sitting farther back than what was usual and kept the degree of difficulty high. She did well and felt the difference in both legs. I tested her in pedalling with just her right leg after her ride and noticed some improvement but really shouldn’t compare as I left her in the new riding position which she’s never done a one legged pedal from. Maybe tomorrow we’ll test for real.

After dinner we tried our first neighbourhood walk in the sun of the year but some high cloud and wind made it a little too cool for Janet. We did get a little ways along our route and Janet remembered it from last year which is a good sign. Janet did a great job counting out pennies to be rolled up tonight. It had been a while since she’s done any of this and I noticed her stacks of five more often actually had five pennies in them this time and she was better at counting in general. Curtis mentioned he noticed an improvement in Janet’s cognition and that goes along well with today’s report that her Dilantin levels are back into therapeutic range. They are still a little higher than I would like but nice to see some correction taking place.

We read quite a bit of One Hundred Years of Solitude tonight and Janet had a little difficulty figuring out what is happening. Fortunately not a lot is happening yet as we are still reading the set up parts. Janet is enjoying the language and has answered all my questions correctly as we read along so at least she’s paying attention.

Praying that Janet sleeps well tonight and continues to get stronger and smarter.

Janet, A Success Story. May 20. #TSJ

Janet was busy doing laundry when I got to Connect this afternoon. She told me she had a little trouble getting to the bathroom on time this morning but she was OK now and remained so the rest of the day. She didn’t seem all that tired and agreed to a Shuttle session before dinner. Slowly but surely she’s getting stronger as evidenced in this picture modelling a pair of jeans Jess gave her. Notice she’s standing alone with no AFO or shoes on and looking pretty good. Thumbs up!

Standing strong

Standing strong

Jess had Janet walking everywhere again today including from the car into the lab this morning so Janet never argued about walking from here room to dinner. She didn’t even argue about walking freestyle and made it all the way! There were a couple of pauses and she grabbed my shirt a couple of times but that was it. A new record that she tied going back to her room after dinner. That was enough though and the only way I could get her up to Games Night was by letting her hold my hand. There had been no mention of a sore right foot until the end of the trip upstairs and Janet said it seemed to be getting better.

Games night was quite challenging tonight but Janet managed to contribute and I’ll keep taking her in hopes she gets better at some of the games which should make it more fun. Janet did not think it was fun freestyle walking down to get her meds and it was late in the day especially not having had a nap so the effort she made was commendable even if her performance wasn’t her best. There is obvious improvement every day.

Tonight we started to read One Hundred Years of Solitude and wow what a difference from the last book we read. I know I’m going to enjoy it and so far Janet is keeping pace. Praying for rest and healing tonight and another day of progress tomorrow.

What she does when I'm not around.

What she does when I’m not around.

Janet, A Success Story. May 19. #TSJ

Since this was a holiday Monday a lot of residents were still away for the weekend so Jess and Curtis were able to spend a lot of time with Janet. Almost all of her physical therapy stuff was done by the time I arrived in the afternoon and she had also done some reading practice and gotten her nails painted. Janet felt good about it all saying her right foot was not as sore as before even after Jess had her walking everywhere she went today.

The walking continued with me this evening and one interesting thing came out of that. I constantly need to remind Janet to walk straight ahead as she tends to skew her body to the right easily. Today she said she does that so her foot doesn’t hurt as much. Good information I told her to mention to Tez tomorrow. Twice I had Janet freestyle walk tonight and both times she was going so fast it was difficult for me to keep up in a way that I felt I was ready to help her if needed. One of those fast walks was from the Den to her room, a Connect distance record.

We had a lot of time to work on cognitive skills tonight since the physical stuff had been done. Janet reluctantly played Four Pics One Word with me and I found she was more willing if we alternated guesses. She is quiet good at figuring out the word if she really tries. Janet’s reading skills are slowly improving as evidenced by her reading to me a half a page without missing a word. She didn’t think it was that great but it was a definite improvement from going six or seven words then skipping down to the next line. Janet is unhappy she can’t remember or clearly understand what she’s read but that will come once she gets to a level where she’s not trying so hard to see each word. Reading provided the most excitement of the night as we read a chapter from Lets Pretend This Never Happened about a lady getting bitten by a couple of dogs. Seconds after reading that story I felt something touching the back of my shirt. I turned to see a large black dog staring at me! She was wondering around looking for attention and was not nearly as startled as I was. We found out it belonged to a staff member working in one of the other houses and Janet and I had a good visit with her and a laugh.

Janet seemed very bright today with good memory recall and she was physically strong too. Praying that doesn’t mean her Dilantin levels are too low now.

Janet, A Success Story. May 17. #TSJ

Today you could really sense the rhythm of Janet being at home for an extended period. Our morning was relaxed and talkative with no urgency to do anything in particular. We continued to discuss the movie Heaven Is For Real and watched YouTube clips of the real people plus a young artist who painted an image of Jesus around the time the real events of the movie were happening and the little boy from the movie said that was the Jesus he saw. Janet was fascinated by it all.

We went downtown to pick up a book we had ordered, One Hundred Years of Solitude, and cruised through “the store we never buy anything at”, just in case there was something to spend the gift card we’ve had for three years on. Nope. If any of you have legitimate use of a $100 Lakehouse gift card, it’s yours.

The only physical workout Janet got today was walking from the car to her seat at church and back out again. On the way in there was no mention of a sore foot but it did come up on the way out without impeding her performance though. There was no mention of it the few times she walked at home.

It was sushi and movie night at home and after rejecting Her thirty minutes into it we both enjoyed August: Osage County. There was not one happy person in the entire film but somehow we enjoyed it anyways. Janet understood it and gave a good recap after and did the same for the day as well even as she was falling asleep. Her memory is improving and I suspect the Dilantin situation has improved, allowing her some cognitive gain.

Praying for a long night of healing sleep and an energetic Sunday.

Janet, A Success Story. May 16. #TSJ

I was so pumped to write yesterday that today seems a little anticlimactic but here goes.

My intention for the day was to let it unfold at a Janet pace with therapy taking place covertly and I think that’s how it ended up going down. We were up at a decent hour and Janet elected to have a shower to start off with. That made breakfast to be more like brunch which also set back the planned trip to the grocery store. Janet wasn’t too into that idea so she was thrilled when I offered to go alone and have her vacuum while I was gone. That is a challenging task for her and she was still working at it when I got back although more accurately she was trying to free herself from the hose so she could go to the bathroom. High five for effort.

The sun was shining again so we went for a nice long walk then sat out and had a late lunch while trying to get some colour on Janet’s legs. She’s been somewhat shy about showing her AFO and I’ve had to really insist she wear shorts or a skirt so far. She’s getting more confident about it though and was pleased to see some tanning happening on her legs today.

We simplified our dinner plans to take in a movie tonight, something Janet was very excited to do. When asked what it was that was so exciting about going to a movie, she was like a little kid saying, “just the whole thing about going out”. There aren’t too many Janet movies out right now and we agreed on Heaven Is For Real. Janet said she was “into it right from the beginning, I couldn’t even eat the popcorn”. I wasn’t sure if she was into it or zoning out so was glad to hear at the end that she really enjoyed it. Janet also mentioned its not a movie for everyone but really was for her. A big part of her connecting to it was the fact its centred around a four year old and we all know about Janet’s connection to them.

I mentioned there was to be some covert therapy today and it came in the form of purposeful walks, like to and from the bathroom. Janet really complained about her sore foot and I’m starting to think she’s psyching herself out about it more than anything now. There is nothing to indicate any soreness anywhere except when she puts weight through it. She said tonight that she felt like she hadn’t been walking enough and things felt stiff. We’ll change that tomorrow. The rest of the therapy was focused on independence with Janet doing a lot of “everyday” tasks on her own. I tried to get her to tell me what she thought she’d be doing with herself once she’s home full time and neither of us has an answer for that right now. That’s a little scary I must admit.

Praying for a solid sleep and a Saturday full of progress.

Janet, A Success Story. May 15. 2 yr Anniversary Video. #TSJ

Feeling confident after having Janet’s doctor adjust her Dilantin dosage I chose to hold off on getting her blood tested today and instead went to Connect this morning to observe Tez working with her. Janet is still complaining of a sore right foot but indicated it might be a little better after not having walked at all yesterday. There were a group of students with Tez who invited Janet to be a bit of a guinea pig in demonstrating the walking sling and sharing her story and the challenges she’s faced along the way. Janet did so with great enthusiasm and humour and I think made the session a good learning experience.

Given the choice between lunch and a bike ride, Janet chose bike ride so she could get it over with. We had to wait a few minutes for another resident to finish which gave me time to ask Curtis about Janet’s positioning on the bike. She had typically been seated fairly close forward to give her the easiest pedalling position but I wondered since she is so much stronger now if it would be more beneficial to sit farther back and extend her legs more. Curtis agreed and we set Janet up that way with the bike on the same difficult settings as yesterday and she rode really well, only sacrificing less than half a mile while gaining a much better stretch and more activation from her right leg.

We enjoyed lunch in the sun then got Jess and Chelsea to help with a little video shoot in the parking lot. Janet nailed her scene in one take! As a reward for her hard work and to “celebrate” her second anniversary I brought Janet home for the weekend a day early. She was thrilled and even tried powering through without a nap until almost five o’clock when things finally caught up to her. It had been a much improved day compared to the last couple and we finally got news from the neurologist re the Dilantin levels. He said fluctuations are common and Janet’s don’t present any reason to change course other than trying a lower dosage. One contributing factor is hydration level and with Janet walking more and the warm weather she’s sweating out a lot of fluid without replacing it all. This time I believe she fully understands and drank well tonight. We will continue to watch her levels closely.

A lot of you have been with us since day one of this journey and on this two year anniversary day Janet and I want to honestly thank you all for your prayers, encouragement, support and friendship. Each day, Janet seems more and more aware of the impact you have had on her recovery and realizing that, motivates her to share her story with others and give support where she can to those facing their own challenges. Today could have been a sad reminder of a horrible day but neither Janet or I had even the briefest thought of that. Today has been a quiet celebration of the amazing recovery that Janet has made through the grace, love and mercy of our Lord and Saviour, and a look ahead to the changes yet to come. This video is a reminder of Janet’s amazing success story and the beginning of a new chapter in a life full of love.

Janet, A Success Story. May 14. #TSJ

Whew! What a day. The warmest day of the year so far and a perfect day for Janet to try sailing. I met her and the others at the yacht club this morning expecting to watch her for an hour or so then take her with me to run some errands but I actually got to go on the boat with her! I really enjoyed it despite the calm conditions, Janet enjoyed sitting in the sun but that was about all. I may try and convince her to go again as it’s an awesome way to spend a sunny morning.

Wes and Janet sailing along.

Wes and Janet sailing along.

Cool Connect Crew and cool Matt.

Cool Connect Crew and cool Matt.

From there we went to have Janet’s dress for the wedding hemmed. It was quite the production as we had to get Janet into the dress and shoes, have the expert pin where the dress should hang to then get her regular clothes back on. I don’t know how you women put up with stuff like that. We did a little shopping since we were out and enjoyed lunch in the sun at Janet’s request. By the time we got home she was exhausted and went for an almost three hour nap!

I was getting worried she’d never wake up as the clock moved closer to departure time for Heidi’s house but Janet finally woke up just before 5. All I could think of the last hour of her sleep was her Dilantin levels being out of whack and what sort of impact that is having on her. Janet’s doctor was not in today so I had made the decision to hold back a third of her dosage again tonight then get her levels tested tomorrow. When Janet woke up she seemed refreshed but was really warm and her left eye seemed a little relaxed compared to the right one. By the time she was dressed and had a glass of water she seemed fine. Praying for resolution to this tomorrow.

Heidi had all of her SheLife ladies over to her house for dinner tonight and I dropped Janet off there then went to work at the church. This is the first time I’ve left Janet somewhere far away from me and for an extended period of time. I know all the ladies would take good care of her and they did. Janet said she enjoyed the evening but everyone helped her a little too much. This marks the end of SheLife until September. It’s been a true blessing for Janet.

Curtis surprised us with a reduced dosage of Dilantin when we got to Connect. Apparently Janet’s doctor ordered the change and the pharmacy delivered it tonight. That is a bit of a relief knowing the doctor is aware and took action so I will hold off on testing until I hear from her. On the car ride to Connect Janet was able to tell me about her evening quite accurately and with good but a little quiet speech. I feel better about the situation tonight and pray she has a good night of sleep and an energetic and bright day tomorrow.

Janet, A Success Story. May 13. #TSJ

Jess brought Janet in to KGH for her appointment with Dr. Miller this morning and I met them there. Janet is always pretty upbeat about seeing Dr. Miller as she knows its just for a chat and she always receives lots of positive feedback. This morning was no different and I could see Janet openly seeking Dr. Miller’s approval on things and truly valuing his opinion. I can’t think of anyone else she gives that much credibility to. Jess and I encouraged Janet to walk into the office at the start of the meeting and she did the last ten feet freestyle which won her praise from Dr. Miller, but he rightly pointed out that Janet’s cognitive gains are more impressive and carry more weight in the long term. I knew that but needed to hear it again. Janet participated well in the discussion and agreed to speak at a gathering of Rehab staff that Dr. Miller will organize as he believes strongly in staff being able to see the results of their work long term. This idea came about from Janet’s SheLife speech and my prompting that we feel its important Janet share her story. To put Dr. Miller’s theory to the test he encouraged Janet to seek out some staff that worked with her on her way out this morning. Thankfully there were a lot of them around and no seeking was necessary, in fact once Janet was spotted, they were doing the seeking. Each encounter was filled with surprise (Janet was walking through the ward) and excitement and Janet felt good about it all, she even demonstrated her freestyle walking to Moira who came out from her lunch break to see Janet. A very positive morning.

As soon as I got to Connect this afternoon I sought out Tez to have a look at Janet’s painful right foot. He didn’t notice any structural issues and suggests it could be from the increase in walking and using muscles that haven’t been used in a long time. To rule out the new shoes he told Janet to stop wearing them for a couple days. We will keep monitoring this.

Janet had her Dilantin levels checked again this morning and this time they are well above therapeutic range and I expected a phone call from her doctor but didn’t get one so I made an executive decision to reduce her dosage by one third tonight and hopefully talk to the doctor tomorrow. I asked Dr. Miller if he would nudge the neurologist to respond to our enquiry on this topic and he said he would.

The pain in her foot didn’t stop Janet from doing some good walking tonight along with a decent Shuttle workout and Standing Frame session. She really enjoyed the dinner Chelsea made and very reluctantly walked up to Games Night and put in a fine performance there. He “favourite” game is one where the group is asked what they’d pack for a vacation to a certain destination. Each person has to repeat what the person or persons ahead of them said then add what they’d bring without duplicating anything. Janet does best with the sunny destinations of course.

Sleep came seconds after I started reading to Janet tonight which is good because she needs to be up a little early to go sailing tomorrow. She of course is not at all excited but I think its worth a try. Praying for a good night of rest, for Janet’s Dilantin levels to stabilize and the pain in her right foot to stop. We are also praying tonight for Janet’s step dad who is in hospital in Collingwood and for Willie, a resident at Connect who is having some heart issues tonight, his 65th birthday.

Janet, A Success Story. May 12. #TSJ

Is the tide of doubt changing? Janet actually said she did well walking in the sling this morning and she repeated that descriptor tonight. Her confidence in walking is for sure getting better and she is more willing to free walk now albeit for relatively short distances. The pain in her right foot apparently has shifted from above her arch to the area where the leg becomes the foot and is only present when she puts weight on it. I asked Chelsea to note it in Janet’s chart in hopes that Tez can be made aware and talk to Janet about it.

As I walked into Janet’s room this afternoon she only woke long enough to say she’d had a big sleep then went right back to sleep again for a good twenty minutes. Her day had been pretty busy so I let her call most of the shots tonight. After setting the table for dinner we spent a nice time in the sun on the patio and Janet was upset with herself for not being out in the sun earlier. There was no hesitation in going for a bike ride after dinner and Janet set another record riding for 3.6 miles. I snuck her into a higher level of resistance too and she didn’t even notice. High five!

Walking with me this evening was good but not her best. She complained regularly about being in pain while hanging onto me but when free walking she was quiet and did very well. I think that as long as that pain goes away Janet could free walk forty or fifty feet very soon.

Janet chose to just hang out in her room most of the evening doing some reading, coin rolling and chatting. Her reading seems to be improving and could be a lot better if she’d remember to turn her head all the way to the right in order to see everything on the page or screen. When I read to her in bed tonight she actually stayed awake for the whole hour and gave some good feedback on what we read.

Praying for immediate healing of the pain in Janet’s right foot and for a productive Tuesday.

Janet, A Success Story. May 11. #TSJ

I hope all you mothers had a great day today. Janet said hers was “boring” and I got really mad at her for saying that which made for a mediocre evening after what I thought was a rather pleasant day.

Janet was up earlier than yesterday as she had a Skype chat booked with her mom but she still got a sleep in compared to a Connect day. She did a great job getting her breakfast on her own with one little reminder from me for the toaster oven. The mom chat was pretty good and we then walked in the sunshine to the store for some dinner supplies. Upon our return Janet was back on Skype, this time with Heather, and curiously, she didn’t seem to have much to say except for when the topic was Heather’s wedding. Janet is truly excited about that and knew on her own it is just over a month away.

Wanting to enjoy the sun more, we took the dog for a walk around the neighbourhood which ended with a nice chat with our neighbours Bonnie and Toly. I’m really grateful for such good neighbours and for Janet to be able to “bump into” them so often. It will be great when Janet is here full time.

Since we had been in the sun so much we figured John would be wanting some so we drove out to see him and after a slight bit of arm twisting we got him out of bed and out into the world. This was his first adventure off the property and you could see the life returning to his face. I’m somewhat concerned that now that he knows the code that unlocks the doors he might make a run for it one day. Only partly kidding.

Janet slept for an hour when we got back home then chatted with Andrew, Laurel and Cam. Those conversations were poor I thought and Janet agreed that she should’ve taken some time to wake up more before making those calls. Now we know.

Janet had two excellent free walking sessions today going from our bathroom to the dining table, once needing a little help along the way and the other completely on her own. Still being Janet, she refused to acknowledge how well she’d done. The good part about that is she really wants to do better. She will.

Praying for a night of uninterrupted sleep for Janet and that she wakes, refreshed, energized and with a positive attitude for the day ahead of her.