Four Month Mark

Sharon here. I thought I would take a second to update everyone on my Dad's progress. Sorry that we haven't been updating this blog anymore. In days and weeks immediately following Dad's stroke, things were constantly changing -- his care, his progress, his location, etc. As things have settled into more of a "normal" routine, it is harder for those of us close to the situation to see the daily changes that would warrant an update. In addition, most of us have our own young families, jobs and responsibilities. So, between our normal lives and caring for our Dad, we don't have a whole lot of spare time. But, because several people have asked for an update, I thought I'd post one so everyone would know what my Dad's new "normal" is.

On June 10th, my Dad came home from Woodland. It was a great day! Very exciting for him and for me, since I was the one that got to drive him home. The day was full of ups and downs, because he was happy to be home, but exhausted from the trip.

A typical day for Dad at home is quite different from what it was in the hospital or the care facility. He went from having multiple sessions of therapy (sometimes 5-6 a day!) to only one session, if that. The physical and occupational therapists switch off days that they come. He has a nurse that comes to evaluate once a week and a CNA that comes three times a week to help my mom with the more difficult tasks. He still has good days and bad days, which are hard to predict. On his good days, he seems to be stronger, more upbeat and wants to do as much therapy as possible. On his not so good days, he is more quiet and wants to keep to himself and not do as much.

Physically, he is still very limited. He can move his right arm and leg slightly when he concentrates hard, but neither are really functional at this point. Once we help him get to a standing position, he can support himself for a few minutes, which is very helpful when helping him get dressed and things like that. He usually wants to stay in bed throughout the majority of the day. We know that he is very tired and his brain is still healing, so rest is very important. And now that his room is all set up with a hospital bed, a flat screen TV and a bell to ring when he needs/wants something... I can see why he's comfortable and wants to stay there! :)

The hardest thing for him (and us) continues to be his inability to communicate. His speech has improved very little over the past few weeks which has been really hard to see. After living a life full of making smart, witty remarks on Facebook, writing poems, teaching Gospel Doctrine and communicating with friends and family daily... that has been taken from him almost completely. A couple of times a day, we will hear him say a full sentence or two that is super clear and it always catches me off guard. But for the most part, his speech is still very garbled and hard to understand. I cannot even begin to imagine how miserable this is for him. Its so hard for us to see him get so frustrated with himself when he can't say the words that he is thinking. An example is that when the grandkids come in to say "Hi Grandpa" to him, he will sometimes repeat back, "Hi Grandpa!" instead of using their names, though he clearly recognizes each of them. Or sometimes he will substitute a word or phrase with something completely unrelated, which makes it even harder to guess what it is that he's talking about. For example, he wanted a drink of water, but kept saying "squirrel" over and over. Whats funny about that (but still frustrating for him) is that once we figure out what he is trying to say, we will explain what he just said. Then he will look all confused and surprised that he did that. Some days, when he's feeling a little better, he will just laugh it off. But other days, its really gets him down. We try to remind him that we know that he is "still in there" and that we understand how frustrating it must be to be imprisoned in your own mind. I think maybe it helps a little bit to know that we still get that. The good thing is that he IS still there. I would say that he comprehends and understands 90% of what we say to him. So that is wonderful! He is definitely still in there. Now if we can just get his darn body to cooperate!

As a family, we have continued to support my parents in as many ways that we can. My mom has taken on the bulk of my dad's care and is a wonderful "nurse." She has sacrificed almost all of her own time and has completely given up anything she wants or needs to care for him. I'm sure this will surprise no one who knows her. A few of us visit at least once a week, but those that live in Grantsville are able to help quite a bit more and I am SO grateful to them. Susan has been going on Sundays to stay with my Dad so that my Mom can go to her church meetings. This has been a huge blessing for her, since she has had to miss a bunch over the past few months. Karen spends most evenings and a couple of full days a week there. And Ryan stops by pretty much daily, if not several times a day, to help or to visit. Karen and Ryan have also taken it upon themselves to supplement physical therapy by working with my Dad most evenings. Amazing. I am truly grateful to them for their efforts. And I know it makes a huge difference for my parents.

As for Dad's long-term prognosis, its hard to say exactly what that is. I went with my parents to his latest neurological exam, which was a couple weeks ago. His doctor took a look at his scans and said that his brain still hasn't completely reabsorbed all the blood from his hemorrhage. She said that it would take an additional 2-3 months to do that, and then they can properly evaluate what damage was done to his brain. The good news is that it opens up the possibility of him regaining even more as the blood continues to reabsorb. That's not a guarantee. But we'll take it and hope for the very best! Other than this, its just going to be more of the same every day. More therapy. More taking care of his needs/wants. More trying to keep his spirits up. More of finding a way to break through the monotony. And balancing that with making sure my mom's needs are met as well. Overall, I do think that he is glad to be at home, even if it is a reminder of how much his life has changed. So I am grateful that he is there.

I've had several people ask what they can do, if anything. Other than prayers, I think that he would love to have a visit or phone call. He can't always talk back to you in the way that he would normally, but he can usually respond well to "yes" or "no" questions. He does seem to be encouraged by visits and phone calls, so please feel free to do so. It would be best to call ahead of time and coordinate with my mom, to schedule around therapy and other care visits and make sure it's a good day. Thanks to everyone for your support and prayers. Keep them coming!

Coming Home

This picture was taken on June 10th on his way home. It was a good day. :)

Still Pluggin Along

Sharon here. This past Thursday marked the two-month mark since Dad's stroke. Wow. Feels like two years. But at the same time, feels like it happened yesterday!

I've been wanting to do a blog update for several days/weeks now. Lately, its hard to know what to say. We've all settled into a sort of routine when it comes to visiting my Dad, and its hard enough trying to stay updated just among us in the immediate family. So unfortunately, keeping this blog updated has fallen by the wayside. But I know that so many people are wondering how he is doing and hoping for an update. So here goes.

I guess the biggest and most interesting news it that Dad was transferred out of the U or U hospital and into a new care facility on Thursday, May 5th. After six weeks at the hospital (one week in the NCCU and five weeks in the inpatient rehab) his team of doctors and care workers determined that it would be in Dad's best interest to move to a less intensive rehab. Somewhere where he could continue therapy on a daily basis and have nursing care, but that wouldn't require quite so much. After much deliberation and consideration for Dad's situation, it was decided that he would move to Woodland Park in Sandy.

It was bittersweet when we left the hospital. Dad (and the rest of us) really got attached to a lot of his nurses and therapists. Collin and Tracy from Physical Therapy were especially helpful and kind to Dad. We will miss them and so many of his nurses that quickly became our favorites! But I can definitely say that not one of us will miss that drive! Or the ten-minute walk from the parking garage to Dad's room!

Its been a long road since the move. And not always an easy one. The first few days at the new place were the hardest. It took a while to get used to the new facility and the way they ran things. (We still aren't quite used to it.) We had a whole new set of nurses, CNAs and therapists to get to know. And because half of the facility is a nursing home, it sometimes feels like Dad is in a nursing home. But he is in the nicer, newer part of the facility that is for non-resident rehab patients. He has his own room (YAY!) and a private bathroom. Lots of things that are good about it, and some things that aren't so great. But its all part of the process.

Probably the hardest thing that we've had to deal with is that after the move, Dad's condition and emotional state regressed severely. For the first few days, it was particularly difficult and we felt as though we were starting over at square one. Very frustrating for us, but I can't imagine how hard for him. He had made so much progress at the hospital. So much so that we were feeling as though him going home and being able to take care of himself was in the not-so-distant future. Now... we aren't so sure what will happen or how soon things will happen. (Hence the reason that we don't have much to update!) From what we've been told, this type of regression can happen with a stroke patient when there is a big change like this. Not that that makes it easy.

He is continuing to have therapy every day. Just three sessions a day instead of six. Occupational, physical and speech. We aren't seeing quite as much progress as we did at the hospital, but that can't really expected at this point, either. In each therapy, he is continuing to work on his strengths and hopefully get better at everything. I think it would be accurate to say that he is almost back to where he was when he left the hospital. Maybe a little better in some ways, but mostly the same or a little worse off.

More specifically, he still cannot use much of his right side. His right arm/hand are exercised daily and kept in a brace for much of the time. But he still has no feeling or use there. His right leg has started to have some feeling/pain and he can move it around when he tries. But its still not quite to the point where he can support his body weight on it, which makes relearning to walk difficult. He does use a walker in therapy, but the therapist still needs to pull his leg along so he can take steps with his left. Hopefully he'll get there soon!

His speech has gone up and down a lot. For a few days, he really regressed a lot and couldn't say much of anything and is back to using an almost silent whisper. But we are keeping at it, and trying to help him remember little tricks that he has learned in speech therapy to help him communicate. Some days are great and we understand a great deal. But a lot of days, its very difficult. Very very frustrating for us, but again his frustration with this is unimaginable. The other day I said to him that I couldn't imagine being trapped in a body that simply doesn't work. He just nodded. But we'll continue on with the therapy and hope for the best.

Most of his days are spent in bed, waiting for meals and therapy. He can't transfer himself to his chair or anything, so its a lot of waiting. Lots of TV. Lots of sitting there trying to communicate with whoever is visiting that day. Lots and lots of telling the staff that he wants something, but isn't able to tell them what exactly. Lots of trying to keep spirits up and trying to stay motivated so that the therapy will work. Lots of sad days, mad days and a few happy days thrown in between.

I wish that this post were more positive. We've tried, for the most part, to keep this blog mainly positive. But my Uncle Von said something to me the other day when I called him to give him an update. He said that he appreciated knowing the negative things, so that he could adjust what he was praying for. And right now, we need prayers. My Dad needs those prayers. We need him to continue to get better, so that we are able to take him home. I know that he misses his home and his "normal" life. Its hard to accept that this is his new normal. Its hard for all of us, but we continue to hope for the best! I keep hoping that one day I'll go to visit him and he'll just stand up and say, "I'm ready! Let's go!" LOL!

If anyone would like to call or visit, please let us know. I know that my Dad would really appreciate any emails, cards, visits or calls that he gets. Visits and calls are a little harder, because we never really know what his schedule will be like or if it will be a "good day" communication-wise. So please contact one of us and we will try to help you arrange something. And its usually better to have one of us there with you, so we can "translate" if needs be. :) We aren't at the new facility with him 12-14 hours a day like we were in the hospital. But between my Mom and our very large family, my Dad still has at least 1-2 visits a day. So at least that is something!

I can't promise that we will update again any time soon. If you would like some more information, please let me know and I'll try to give you an update if I can. Thanks again for all the love and support from all of you. We have felt it and we have needed it. Keep it coming! Love you all!

Fun Day Out

Hi everybody! It's Karen . I just wanted to do a quick update about my dad's fun adventure yesterday. About a week ago, Patricia, his Recreational Therapist told us that she would plan sometime soon, to take Dad on a 'field trip' of his choosing. So yesterday was the day! Last week, when dad decided that he would like his field trip to be going to a movie, they read through current movies playing, and he chose to see 'Conspirator' a movie about the Lincoln assassination. He has been looking forward to doing this, everyday, since the chose the movie, date, & time! When I was here on Saturday, I asked him if he was excited and he indicated that he was excited to see the movie, but that he was most excited because a few of his kids were going too! So, yesterday I got to the hospital about 12:00 and spent the next couple of hours with dad in therapy. This was fun, because now that we mostly come in the evenings, we don't get so sit in on very many therapy sessions anymore. Dad is doing really good! Improving each time I come. Yesterday in therapy they worked with him moving from his wheelchair to a bed, on his own. This has been really tricky up until this point, because he has such limited use in his right side. He has to really support all of his weight on his left side. But, he did it, about 9 times actually! Exhausting work, and slow going most of the time, but he is getting stronger each day, and it shows. I was super proud of how far he's come. It was a big day, and I asked him if he felt good, knowing that he did that 'chair to bed' transition on his own, and he did. I'm not sure if he was as happy as I was though. ;) YAY for dad!

Anyway, about 2:30, Patricia came and walked my dad and I out to the Hospital Van that has a wheelchair lift. Dad thought that was pretty cool. She said that we didn't NEED to use it, that we could have taken him in a car, but 'hey, why not...it's here to use'. LOL. Dad operated the lift, to get himself into the van, and I was surprised just how secure the wheelchair was in the back. I don't think it even moved 1/4 inch, during the whole ride. Dad LOVED the drive. Loved seeing the different surroundings and such. I had fun showing him my favorite old homes, that I've driven past about 100 times now. We had a nice visit on the drive over to the Theater. Ryan, Sharon, Alison & Aidan (who got extra credit for school for seeing this movie), & Diane all met us at the theater. My dad was super excited to see so many of his kids there! He seemed to really enjoy the movie, and although I thought for sure he'd sleep through most of it, after such a hard day of therapy, he surprised us, and only took a little cat nap, during one part. (He didn't miss anything important) ;)

After the movie, we talked outside for just a bit, and then said our good-byes and then we loaded up in the van to head back to the hospital. We took a different route back this time, going up State Street. Dad noticed this and asked where we were going, which I thought was funny. As we got nearer to the State Capital building, dad and I wondered what Leslie would be doing at work right then. I told him that I'd have to message her and let her know that we'd seen her 'office' on our drive. When we got back to the hospital, there was a note on Dad's bed from Leslie. We thought it was too funny that we were just talking about her, and wondering what she was doing, when she was actually trying to visit Dad! :) He enjoyed the note she'd left for him, so thanks Leslie!!

Well, Sharon drove to the hospital from the movie, and brought some yummy take out food from Zuppas! We had promised my dad the chance to eat 'real food' on this outing. He didn't want to eat during the movie, so we brought it back here. Sharon & I took dad into the common room, where they have lots of tables & chairs, and had a nice dinner of yummy soup and gourmet grilled sandwiches. YUM! Once dinner was done, dad was worn out! I headed home, and Sharon stayed while he got tucked in and ready for a good nights sleep. He had a very fun, productive day of doing something that brought him much joy before his stroke....movies AND family! 2 of his favorite things! It was nice to see him get to enjoy something he actually enjoys doing....as it's been a long while since he's been able to do that. And it made me look forward to the chance to go to many more movies with him!

Thanks for all the well wishes still coming in! We appreciate your concern just as much today, as we did a month ago!

Long Overdue Update

Alison here. After seeing two comments today alone on Facebook about people missing the regular blog posts, I decided to do one. So... you can thank Phil and Rebecca for this update! :)

The last couple of posts have mentioned that, for us at least, the days all seem to run into each other and so each day seems similar to the last...and the next. But really, as I sat down to think about what I could update on, I realized that there has been a lot of progress and a lot of change over the last two weeks!

First of all, I'll share a little bit about what has become the normal routine with Dad. As you know, we took shifts so that we were with him 24/7 for the first 7-10 days. After that, he seemed to be sleeping better at night, so we stopped spending the night and instead take shifts to be with him from about 8:00am to 9:00 or 10:00pm. 

Weekdays are very busy for Dad. He typically has 5 or 6 therapy sessions, 45 minutes a piece, on weekdays. These typically consist of two physical therapy appointments, two occupational, one speech therapy and maybe one recreational therapy. My mom has been in the hospital every weekday for the past three weeks of therapy. She typically spends about 6-8 hours a day in with him. The therapists all love her, and she keeps copious notes on Dad's therapies and progress. On weekday afternoons, the kids take turns coming in to spend the evenings with Dad. He's usually pretty pooped in the evenings, after a full day of therapy, but it's a fun time to visit with him.

Weekends are a little more relaxed, especially Sundays. Saturday usually brings a little lighter therapy schedule (typically not with his regular therapists either... so the "replacements" don't tend to push him as hard), and Sunday is therapy-free. The kids take turns coming in on the weekends too, and then my Mom spends Sunday in the hospital as well. Side note -- those of you who know my mom know that she loves to walk. One Sunday, I went in and Susan was there. I asked where Mom was because Susan had mentioned they were going to drive in together. She said that my mom had asked to be dropped off at Temple Square to watch the choir broadcast and then was walking to the hospital. Now... if you googled this, you'd see it is "only" three miles (as my mom said), but if you've ever driven to the hospital, you know what a walk it would be! My mom is amazing!

So, my dad still has someone with him most of the time, except for when he's sleeping. This has been helpful because we tend to understand him a little bit better than the nurses and aides, although his speech is improving! (More on that later.)

Dad has had several other visitors as well. Some have asked if visitors are welcome, and I think for the most part the answer is yes. My own personal recommendation would be to try to come on Saturday or Sunday evening if possible. Therapy days are tiring, so he often is sleepy and worn out in the evenings on those days. Weekends, he's a little more alert. And, it may be better to call before coming too. Sometimes, the nurses take him off for scheduled tests, etc, so planning a visit ahead of time is a good idea. :)

So, now to the good stuff... progress. You know, when the stroke first happened, we didn't know what to expect. The doctors were hesitant to tell us what to expect because everyone responds and recovers differently. We knew that Dad's stroke was serious and that he'd likely have longterm or permanent disability because of it. But, it's really just been a "watch and see" sort of thing.

From the beginning, we had the sense that Dad's cognitive ability was largely intact. He has responded well to us even from the first night in the ER. So, that was and has been the biggest relief. He truly seems like he is "all there." And we are thrilled to see that his sense of humor has returned in full force. We love this and it definitely lightens the mood for all of us!

The two areas that Dad has struggled the most are physically -- he has effectively been paralyzed on his entire right side -- and his speech. We have joked on the blog about him sounding like he speaks Cherokee. Also, they think that he suffered some damage from the breathing tube in the ER, or that his vocal cords were temporarily or permanently paralyzed. As a result, when he does talk, it is in a whisper. This whisper has gotten a little louder over time, and he can even force out a louder voice at times (which we refer to as his "Barry White voice" because it is loud and deep). 

So, let me give you an update on these two areas:

Physical - Dad has amazed us with his ability on his left side. He is right handed and, as mentioned before, has suffered from a tremor in his left hand/arm for the last six months or so. So, we were worried about him being able to use his left side. He has done amazingly well! As of today, he eats completely on his own, with his left hand. As part of his occupational therapy, he dresses himself (with little assistance) and grooms himself. He uses the iPad and TV himself. He is very sturdy with his left hand and you would never guess that it wasn't his dominant hand before the stroke. He has drawn a few things in therapy and, again, we've been amazed with what he's done. In fact, here is a picture he drew in therapy two weeks ago.

It's kind of dark, but you can see how great it is. It is hanging in his room now and several people have commented that they couldn't even do that well with their own dominant hand. :)

Dad's strength continues to improve as well. One focus of his physical therapy is to practice standing and walking. He has continued to improve in standing and now does it unassisted while holding a bar. He also does much better in transfers (moving from the bed to a wheelchair, to a table, etc). When he first arrived, they had to do a full assist transfer, taking 2-3 people. Now, this can typically be done with just one aide helping him. Great! He has been practicing walking the last couple of days. Keep in mind that he still has very little feeling and use of his right side, so this still requires a lot of assistance, but he's up and trying it nonetheless. He has been experiencing a lot of pain in his right side, which is a good sign (to us) because it means he can feel something.

Last night, Sharon and my mom were with him at the hospital and all of a sudden he started raising his right leg off the bed on command. This is sort of how things have been happening lately. All of a sudden, he can do something that he hasn't been able to do before. They usually aren't huge steps, but it is exciting to see evidence that the brain is healing and that maybe some of the damage we assumed would be permanent may not be!

SPEECH

This is probably the most exciting thing for us right now. From day one, this has been the most frustrating thing for all of us, including I'm sure, my dad. It has always seemed to us that he knows what he's trying to say and just simply can't say it. Until recently, I would say that he was understandable only about 5% of the time. If he was trying to communicate something, it was typically a VERY long process of yes and no questions to try to get to it, and most of the time, we'd just have to give up. Thankfully, he had a pretty good sense of humor about this, but it still had to be very frustrating for him (and it was for us too because we couldn't help him). 

In the last week, though, we have seen HUGE improvements. I can barely type right now because I'm crying just thinking about it. LOL Thank you SO much for your prayers on Dad's behalf. We have prayed that his speech and ability to communicate would be restored because we knew that this was one of the most important things in his long term quality of life. I would say that Dad is understandable now at least 50% of the time, and is improving every single day. He has learned to talk slowly and deliberately and he can usually get the message across even if a couple of the words in between are a little off. And he regularly surprises us with completely clear, complex sentences. We love it! And he seems to love it too! :)

Well, hopefully that will suffice for an update today. I apologize that we haven't done a better job of keeping this up. We'll do better! I'm glad to know that you all still are interested and care to know how he's doing. It means the world to us.. and to him. 

Here is a final photo... Sharon took this of my dad overlooking the Salt Lake Valley from the Huntsman Cancer Center window (thank you for the tip, Von... he LOVED it!). This is before Karen just gave him a much needed haircut, but it is a great picture of a very peaceful, enjoyable afternoon for him.

Love you all!

Friday Afternoon Update

Hi...it's Karen. I just got home from visiting with my dad this afternoon. I just wanted to do a quick update. I was happy to spend time with my dad today, just doing 'normal' things. This is hard to explain, but my dad just seemed so 'normal' today. He looked great. He felt good. And he was alert and not in any pain or experiencing and discomfort. He had only had a short day of therapy - only having 3 sessions, when he usually has 6, so I am sure this contributed to his relaxed state of being. ;)

So, after an update on the snowstorm we were having on this not-so-spring-like day, we watched a couple of sitcoms on TV. This is something that I do often with my dad, as he frequently comes down to my house in the evenings to watch TV with Jim & I, so it was so nice just to do something 'normal'. Dad even chuckled at most of the funny parts.

One of dad's classmates, Don Fawson stopped by for a quick visit. It's always fun for dad to take a walk down 'memory lane' with his old friends, and it's always good for us to see that he still has those memories. I also heard that he had an visit earlier today from President Phelps from our Stake Presidency. These visits are all appreciated and are a welcome distraction from the mundane-ness of the hospital.

After Don's visit, dad shared his dinner with me, since I was starving (he ate the lasagna, roll & pink lemonade, and I ate the green beans). And we just had a nice time visiting and just....'be' - ing. He was upbeat, and in very good spirits, and other than his speech and him laying in a hospital bed (LOL)...it just felt like a normal, everyday visit with my dad.

The highlight of his day I'm sure, happened shortly after Susan arrived for the 'shift change'. I bent down to give my dad a hug and stood up and smacked my head on the metal extension bar that holds the TV. Dad made a pained face and said, 'ohhhhh', and then all three of us proceeded into a fit of laughter. It was worth the headache that followed, just to hear my dad laugh..... :) Anyway, just wanted to let you know that he is doing well today...so thank you for the prayers that have been being offered in his behalf...(and ours). I felt truly blessed today, to see my dad have a good 'normal' day!

Wednesday Evening

This is Karen. I got to the hospital on Wednesday afternoon, just as dad was finishing his last therapy session. My mom was with him all day again today...(she is filling most of the day shifts during the week now, so we can get back to our 'normal lives'....and my sibilings and I will continue to fill the afternoon and evening shifts).

He had 6 therapy sessions again today, one of which included a session with therapy students, who each took turns giving dad instructions of things to do. Mom said he did very well. His days are getting more routine now...waking up, getting dressed, eating breakfast, and heading off for a combination of 5 or 6 therapy sessions...with a break for lunch in between. Dad is doing really well in each. I think speech is his least favorite, as this is probably the most frustrating to him, since his speech has not returned. The speech therapist described this condition as Aphasia, or a disorder caused by the stroke that affects the portion of the brain that controls language (speaking and writing). As I spend time with my dad, this I believe is the most frustrating thing that he is dealing with. We spend a fair amount of time, trying to understand what he is telling us. He is getting better at using his left arm/hand to play 'charades'...sort of....to try to help us better understand. Once in awhile...he does speak a short phrase or something, just clear as can be. It will be interesting to see, as the weeks progress, how his speech recovers. Prayers in this regard would be greatly appreciated!

Dad was pretty upbeat most of the evening I was there. I'm not sure how at this point...but I am grateful for that nonetheless. ;) I talked to him about some of the information we had gone over in his stroke class. He always is very interested in learning more about the 'specifics' of what he is dealing with. I updated him on stuff going on with the grandkids, etc. He is always most interested in hearing about what's going on outside the hospital. I kept asking him if he wanted me to stop talking and let him rest, and he said no. I am glad when he can spend time alert and busy during the day, so that he has a better, more restful night.

The highlight of my visit today, was seeing a picture that dad drew (with his left hand), during one his therapy sessions. They asked him if he would draw something. They didn't tell him what to draw, they just let him choose. He drew a simple landscape scene, consisting of a mountain, sun, and a couple of streams, running at the base of the mountain. I loved seeing this! And I have to admit, he did a much better job, inspite of using his left hand, than I could've done with my right. Love it.

Thank for all the well wishes we continue to receive. We use those to continually remind dad that so many people are pulling for him, and he needs that encouragement right now. Sorry for the updates being so few and far between now....but as we have stated before, no news is good news, and dad just keeps plugging along, doing his best to be able to return home soon!

Quiet Sundays

Nothing much to update. I have been here since this morning, just visiting with Dad and watching General Conference. Its been a very nice, quiet Sunday so far.

My dad's brother, Ef, called earlier. I asked him if he wanted to talk to Ef and got a HUGE nod in return and he reached for the phone. I just handed it to him and he "talked" to Ef for few minutes. He tried really hard to respond to everything Ef said, and some of it was understandable. It was the first time this week that I've heard his voice loud and clear, so that was a treat for me! He seemed really pleased after talking to Ef and I hope that he will call again soon!

Thanks for all the thoughts, prayers and concern that have been coming our way. My dad loves to hear about all the people that ask about him. We really appreciate everything and hope that you will continue to keep him in your prayers! We need all the help we can get right now!

Just about to start the second session of Conference. Hopefully it will continue to be a nice, quiet day!

Therapy, Therapy and More Therapy

I'm beginning to realize that these blog posts are going to get pretty repetative! Most of dad's days now consist of 5-6 sessions of therapy. And all the days are running together. So its getting hard to keep track of everything and even harder to remember to leave notes for everyone! I know that everyone is anxious about him and want to know more about his recovery. But hopefully you know that no news is good news! It mostly just means that he is continuing to work hard and get better!

I spent most of the day at the hospital today, so I was able to sit in on all six of his therapy sessions. He had Occupational, Physical and Speech two times each, so it made for a long and exhausting day! (More on that in a minute.)

We had two wonderful surprises today. The first one was a visit from Von, who showed up at 9:00 and was able to go to three sessions of therapy with us! We were so happy to see him and hope that he can come a lot more while he is in Utah. Thank you so much for coming, Von!

The second surprise was that Dad was moved to a private room today! Yahoo!!! We cannot express how awesome this is. We were getting really tired of constant noise from his roommate and his guests and nurses. And I'm quite sure his roommate was tired of our noise, too! It so hard to share a room! (His roommate was so nice and was actually discharged today! Thats great news and we are happy for him!) But now Dad will be able to really rest during the night and only have to wake up when his own nurses come in. That will make a huge difference. And now we won't have to worry nearly as much about "being in the way." Its not 100% sure that we will get to stay in this room, since new head trauma patients will always be first priority. But we'll take it for as long as they are willing to let us have it!

Occupational was a pretty typical today. The first session was spent practicing every day skills, like getting ready for the day. They did retape his right shoulder (very, VERY tightly) so that the joints to sag and separate due to gravity and not using them. The second session was spent practicing tranfers to and from his wheelchair. He is getting better and better at helping them as much as he can. They have been constantly impressed with his hard work. (He does still have a long way to go... he is far from doing it himself. But any progress is great!)

Physical Therapy was the usual, too. First session was spent getting him into the "machine" where he stood for 25 minutes! His old record was 15, so that was a huge accomplishment. The second session was spent in his wheelchair doing leg exercises. He was glad that he didn't have to stand again!

It was the first day that he had two Speech sessions. This is not his favorite and he always pulls faces when we take him into the speech therapy room. LOL! I'm sure that its extremely frustrating for him. The first session was spent practicing swallowing. He still isn't ready for regular liquids and has to stay on "nector-thick" liquids (gag) but he was upgraded to casserole-consistency foods! That doesn't sound super appetizing, but I can imagine that anything would be better than pureed food after two weeks straight! The second session was practicing comprehension and repeating words. Very hard for him and frustrating. But every day shows improvement. Baby steps. :)

By 4:00, when therapy was over, he was exhausted. He had already been groggy all day from being on pain meds. But after working so hard, he earned a nap!

Susan took over for the evening shift. The only thing I've heard so far is that he has been enjoying an evening of ABBA with her. He has been lip-synching along and bobbing his head. :) I love these moments, because they help us feel like everything is back to normal for a while. :)

Thanks again for all the prayers and support. We still have a long road ahead so keep them coming!

Wednesday

Hi, it's Karen. I was able to spend ALL day with dad today. I arrived at the hospital at 6:30 this morning because we had several items we wanted to discuss with the Doctors, that do their rounds first thing in the morning.

It was actually a very interesting day, because I got to go with dad to his entire day of Recreational, Occupational, Speech and Physical Therapies. He had six, 45 min. sessions of therapy today. Most days they are broken up a bit, and staggered, but today they were all back to back, with only a 1 hour break for lunch. So it was a very long, tiring, but productive day for dad! As the days progress, and more a 'routine' becomes established, posts to this blog might be fewer, as the days become busier, it is really hard to find time to sit and post. I found one minute here or there, before we were on to the next task, but hardly had any time to spend sitting at the computer. Most of the therapy sessions, are getting more routine, so there is not a lot of new information to post, so instead I will post a little bit about each of the different types of therapy and what dad does there. Today was the first day, he had 4 types of therapy in the same day, which will be his new 'standard' day.

Recreational Therapy This therapy is perhaps the one I feel is the least 'important'. Although I know that they will all teach dad different skills about his daily life, after sitting through 2 sessions of this therapy, I would rather trade and see if we could forgo this session, and do another sessions of speech therapy. I asked....they basically said, 'no way jose'. Anyway, so the purpose of R.T, is to teach dad to be able to enjoy the recreational activities that he enjoyed before his stroke. On the first day, they asked dad (and me), if he enjoyed any of the following: crafts....no. Sports.....no. Fishing.....no. Camping.....no. Gardening....(bahaha)..no. etc..etc.. Dad rolled his eyes at each suggestion (which btw...is one of the little things he does that I LOVE, because these moments show me that my dad, is still 'my dad'. LOL). The therapist even asked dad if he would be interested in making a leather belt during craft time. I don't think I've ever laughed so hard. Oh wait, until today that is, when the R.T. therapist asked dad if he'd like to have a chance to do therapy with a Dog, An actual dog that was there roaming around the gym. I proceeded to tell them, that that is perhaps the thing he would LEAST like to do. Which followed by a huge nod by dad. So, what they will be working with dad to do, is to enjoy using his new iPad. There are several apps available to help stroke patients with therapy & recovery. This was interesting to dad, and he enjoyed being able to learn to navigate the iPad on his own. This will be more the line of things they will work on with him during their time. No indian crafts for him. ;)

Occupational Therapy This is the first oppotunity I had to attend O.T. with dad. It was very interesting. They do skills with dad, that will be everyday tasks for him. Get dressed. Brush teeth. Comb hair. etc. This is the most 'diverse' fom of therapy, as the things they work on, touch an aspect of each type of therapy. Today, they worked on problem solving skills and cognitive skills. It was really fun to watch, and see dad be so successful at this, especially right now where his speech is such a struggle. They gave him patterns to match with blocks, items to sort, etc., which he does very well, and is actually very precise in what he does, making sure everything is even and straight. Another 'dad' thing that shows us he is the same dad as before. The highlight of this therapy was when the therapist decided to introduce word cards. They usually do not do this so early in therapy, but because he was doing the other things well, she wanted to try it. And just so you know...up until this point, we have not fully understood what exactly he does still understand. This discovery takes place on a daily basis. The only indication we've had so far about him recognizing letters, was a little experiement I decided to do with him last week, one day when we had time to kill, where at that point, it was clear he did not recognize letters and/or numbers, although visual images were clear and recognizable to him. Anyway, the O.T. therapist, pulled out a few word cards and asked him to look at the word, and match them to objects she had. Dad did every one she asked! This was a huge accomplishment, and one that gives us great hope for the future. I was cheering out loud during this, and dad smiled and did thumbs up.

Physcial Therapy the grueling physical therapy continues. Mostly practicing at standing. He has to have help to stand upright, as he still has little or no use of his right side, other than realizing he can put weight on it, once he is standing. Once standing, he stood for 2 full minutes. Again....more than the physical therapist expected him to be able to do at this point. The good news (good to him long term....not so much right now) is that dad is starting to have significant pain in his right leg. This means that his brain is starting to recognize that side...which up until this point, he has not really felt at all. The pain in his right side today was great, and it was hard to see him be in so much pain. So they will treat his pain as needed, but we reassure him that overall this is good. He really understands that, but pain still stinks. So in therapy today, they stretched his right side, as it becomes very stiff with no use. This caused dad even greater pain, and that was very difficult to watch, but he perservered, and when they asked if he needed a break, he said no. It was more like a 'let's just get this over with'. I was proud of him for sticking it out. I know it was so hard for him.

Speech Therapy Speech therapy continues....and there are still slow improvements each day. One of the main things they addressed today, was how dad is whispering, instead of using his full voice. They didn't know, until we told them today, that he had been intubated (breathing tube), for the first 2 days. This was an 'ah-ha' moment for them, as they suspsect now that the intubation might have caused injury to his vocal cords and throat. They hope these will just self heal over time, and if not...they will have an ENT (Ear, nose Throat) Dr. come investigate further. The speech therapy exercises consist mostly of things like Count to 10, Recite the days of the week (with help), things that are memorized, and that will start to just come naturally. He does fairly well with these. When he isn't exhausted he does better. Today he was exhausted. The speech therapists are great, and again, we see improvement everyday....even if it's small.

So, that was the main bulk of what we did today. It was a long, exhausting day, but dad really was in good spirits throughout the day, (except for the stretching in P.T.), and he somehow manages to continue to laugh off the speech issues, in which we continue to guess wrong, and find other ways to figure things out. I am truly amazed at his patience and tell him this often. He overall retains the things that make him 'dad' to us. This is hard to explain to people that don't see him all day, or the Dr.'s who don't 'know' him. But when you are with him all day, little things here and there reassure us that he is the same 'dad', and we are truly grateful for this. Just an example of this, is tonight when Susan and I were changing 'shifts', I gave him a drink of a slush and told him I didn't know if it was thawed enough to drink from the straw, but he wanted to try that rather than use a spoon, so he sucked, and sucked, and sucked, and started to raise his eyebrows and pull faces....again, hard to explain, but it was just so 'dad'. Fun to see and we all got a good laugh at that.

A fun part of the evening tonight was a suprise visit from Brook & Denise Hales. They brought a small poster of the BYU Basketball team, fresh off the press. They knew it would be a welcome change from all the red 'U's that are everywhere in this place. LOL! I put the poster in the window where dad had a perfect view, and he did a big thumb up! A perfect end to a long productive day!

Sorry for the late night post. Busy, busy day. Thanks for checking in, and keep the prayers coming!

Lunch Break

It's Alison. Rob and I got to the hospital around 12:30 to spend time with Dad during our lunch break. He had already eaten by the time we got there, so he had a little bit of his cream slush for dessert.

He was super tired--dozing off in his wheelchair--and not thrilled about going to three hours of therapy. But, he's always willing, even when he doesn't want to do it. Chelsie came and got us and took us down to the gym. Occupational therapy today was all while he was sitting on the edge of a mat/table. She said she wanted to work on his hand because it is starting to show some tone (apparently that's what it's called when it starts going into a fist on its own) that Diane mentioned. She fitted him for a resting hand splint that she said he needs to use at night. She said this will help prevent his hand from going into that involuntary fist while he sleeps. Next, she put several colored cones on a table in front of him and had him lean forward to get them, one at a time, and put them on the mat next to him. It was quite a stretch and reach for him, but he did great. Each time, while he stretched forward with his left hand, he put weight on his right hand to support himself. I was pleasantly surprised with how sturdy he was while doing this. Chelsie and Danielle only had to support him a little bit to keep him from falling. Most of his weight was on his own right arm. He finished the cones and then put them back on the table. Then she set them up again and had him move the cones from one side of the table to the other.

Next, she had him sit without supporting his weight with his arms at all, so he was just balancing. Then she threw a beach ball to him and had him hit it back to her. He did great! They hit it back and forth for about 10 minutes.

Dad was totally pooped, but we had to go over to physical therapy next.  Collin decided to really challenge Dad today, even though he was completely worn out already. He had Rob and me help support Dad while he had him stand up holding onto a bar (that's right... standing without The Machine). Dad stood up for 90 seconds, twice. Collin said that it was better than he expected.  He let Dad rest for a few minutes after that since he said it had to have been incredibly exhausting.

Unfortunately, Rob and I had to get back to work, so we left just before Susan was getting there for the afternoon. So, let's hope that Susan decides to update us later (I think it will be her first post, even though she's been in the hospital many, many times). No pressure, Sue. :)

One day at a time

Hi all, it's Diane. I got to the hospital just before 9:00 this morning. I got stuck behind a traffic accident AGAIN. I swear... Actually, I don't swear but the traffic is enough to make me start!

Anyway...

Dad was still snoozing when I got here. The nurses told me he had slept well overnight. His breakfast had just been delivered. I looked at his therapy schedule, and he didn't have anything scheduled until 10:30. I guess they decided to give him a break this morning after the early start yesterday. He started stirring shortly after I got here. Dad was not interested in his breakfast at all. Sausage and oatmeal did not excite him this morning. I coaxed him into eating a few bites, and he drank most of his milk and orange juice and ate his mandarin oranges, so that's something.

Occupational therapy this morning started with Dad brushing his teeth and combing his hair. Not too shabby. He got a new sling designed to support his weak arm and shoulder. Then we headed down to the gym for a few minutes, where they tried an electrical stimulator on his right arm to try to get the muscles working, especially the extensor muscles because his right fingers are getting too used to closing into a fist all the time. They said they will do more of that in his session this afternoon. Physical therapy was leg stretching and strengthening exercises, after which we headed back to his room for lunch.

He ate most of his lunch -- ground beef and gravy with mashed potatoes. I tasted it and I thought it was yummy! Especially with vanilla pudding for dessert. He dozed in his wheelchair for a few minutes before it was time for his busy afternoon of more therapy.

I wanted to share something I did with Dad in the hour between breakfast and occupational therapy this morning. I wanted something different for Dad to look at and think about. I decided to get out the iPad and let Dad look at his own blogs -- of his photographs, paintings, drawings, and poems. We started with the photos. I let him just look at each one, and sometimes I read what he had written about it. Then we did paintings, followed by drawings. He seemed very attentive and thoughtful. He was quiet this morning, but didn't seem really down. I asked him occasionally if he remembered the things we were looking at, and he always nodded. Finally, we went to his poetry blog. I read him two of his poems. Here is one of my favorites:

Me He Made a Dreamer

The day of life is brief and I do waste what time is mine
In sentimental musings with my thoughts in serpentine.
The worldly ways are naught to me and business seems a bore,
I seek to know what lilies think and what the stars are for.

When I walk the city streets where people sell and buy,
I contemplate the silly jest and seek the butterfly.
In money, news and politics, interest have I none.
My thoughts are rapt in poetry and lying in the sun.

I’ve never wanted land or gold, care not a whit for fame.
If I can sketch and write and think, I don’t even need a name.
As long as I have ought to eat and place to lay my head,
I’m happy leaving greater cares to other fools instead.

When God designed his creatures and placed us here below,
He made some feel responsible and made some just for show.
And me he made a dreamer, without a thought or care,
And when I’m gone no one will know that I was even there.

Standing Tall

It's Karen. Hi friends and family! I just wanted to post a quick update. Dad started his last session of physical therapy for today shortly after I arrived. I was happy to meet the 'favorite' P.T., Collin, and I told him I had heard good things so far about him, but I was here now to decide for myself. No pressure. LOL. He is super nice and you can tell he genuinely cares about dad's recovery. He had my dad stand up today, in the 'machine' as described earlier by Ryan. My dad stood for almost 20 min. It was nice to see him 'tall' again. (I guess it was especially noticeable because when I introduced myself to Collin he said, 'oh Karen...let's see, you are the short sister' as I had been described to him by my other siblings. Rach...you might be the only one who understands. Thanks to my siblings. Glad the only thing that could come to their mind about how to describe me was....short. ;0) jk Anyway, I was so proud of dad for standing for so long. It is extremely exhausting for him to do this....but when Collin asked him he needed a break, dad said 'no' and he kept standing. Good for you Dad! After therapy we came back and got settled in his room. I gave him a 'reward' for doing so well....a blended root beer float from Sonic! YUM! His eyes got big with that news, and he loved every sip! I read him the recent posts to his FB page, and he loves those. There were several very funny ones, and dad and I both had tears in our eyes from laughing so hard. (Not sure if that is good or bad for his blood pressure....I'm hoping good!) Keep the messages coming please! :) Anyway, I am just heading out now, and Sharon is taking over. We just enjoyed a very welcome visit from Ef & Lois. Dad was happy to see them and Ef and Dad look quite the pair....Ef in his wheelchair and dad in the hospital bed. Next time we want to get a picture of them side by side wheeling down the hall of the hospital together. That's all for now!

Monday, Monday

It's Diane now. The title of this post is because of the Mamas & Papas song that Dad loves. Dad has had a very busy Monday morning. Occupational therapy got him started at 7:30 this morning! The early session included helping him get dressed and move from his bed to his wheelchair. He ate breakfast sitting in his wheelchair.

I was so happy to see that Dad's nurse is Ryan again today. Ryan told me something exciting. When he walked into Dad's room this morning, he said, "Good morning. How are you?" And Dad said, "Good. How are you?" Sometimes words just pop out, clear as can be. Even though that's the exception, it's encouraging!

I got here in time to tag along as he headed to his second session of OT. It was so great! They started with having him really focus and try to move his right arm. They were very encouraged, because he's definitely showing more movement than he was on Saturday. Keep in mind that when we mention improvements, they are usually very small, but any improvement is a victory!

The next task in OT was opening various types of containers. Dad's job was to grab the container with his left hand, move it to his right and hold it there, and then use his left hand to open it. He did really well. They tried 5 or 6 different types of containers. With each one, Chelsie gave Dad a minute to problem solve and try to figure out how to open it. If he couldn't quite get it, she showed him how and then had him try again and repeat it until he could do each type consistently. I think there was one medicine bottle that was too tricky, but he did really great with everything else. I love how she was patient and gave him time to think through it. She said every learning opportunity like that challenges him and helps him reconnect those loose wires.

After his second session of OT, he stayed in the gym for physical therapy. Unfortunately, he was very worn out by the time it started. They had him sit unassisted for quite a while, and they did a few leg exercises, but Collin was worried about Dad's blood pressure and didn't want to try anything more strenuous, especially with Dad being so tired. So after a very low-key session of PT, I brought him back to his room and he is sleeping now.

Dad's next therapy session is speech at 1:45, so he should be well-rested for that. After speech, he'll have more PT, and Collin wants to get him standing up again if possible. He also has his first session of recreational therapy scheduled right after PT, so the busy day continues. Keep the prayers and the notes of encouragement coming! We'll keep you posted.....

Sunday Evening

Hi...it's Karen. There is not a lot to report, after Sharon's report earlier today. It was a nice, quiet Sunday afternoon. I started my 'shift' at 3:00. Dad was resting quietly, but woke up as soon as I walked in the room. He looked SO good! Hard to explain, but just seems to be getting back to his 'old self'. Soon after I got there, the CNA, Mark came to get him in his wheelchair. This is how they weigh some patients I guess. So I asked Mark to help get him dressed first, so that we could go on a little walk. I asked Dad if he would like that, and he said yes! So, once he was all situated in his wheelchair, I started to comb his hair. He touched my arm, and began to try to tell me something. We went through the normal routine, of me guessing, and being wrong. All the while I was trying to guess, I was combing his hair. Finally I gave up guessing, and said, 'dad...is this the way you normally comb your hair..(meaning from left to right)...He opened his eyes wide, smiled and said 'NO'. I asked him if that was what he had been trying to tell me all along. He said, 'YES'. So, I fixed his hair by coming it the other direction, and we were set to go. I told him thanks for being patient....and said that next time...he should just tell me what he wants. (wink) He nodded and agreed. I had asked the nurse where I could take my dad for a walk. I didn't know if they would restrict me from taking him outside the Unit he is in. But she informed me that I could really take him anywhere he could go in the wheelchair. So, we set off.

Sunday is a relatively quiet day in the hospital. We walked up and down the halls, stopping to look at anything that dad seemed to have a question about. I showed him where we park, what way we come in. I walked to where he was the first week, in ICU. We went to the lobby and listened to someone playing the piano. We walked through the cafeteria, looking for anything that might be a welcome change for Dad to eat, but still 'qualify' with his eating restrictions. No such luck. So we found a quiet spot in the cafeteria lounge, to sit and chat. I did most of the chatting. ;) We went outside and walked around the hospital. It was such a nice day, and it was so nice to let him get some fresh air. We even got to see a life flight helicopter take off, as we were sitting right next to the building the helicopter pad is located on. I asked him if he was ready to head back. He said no, he'd like to continue. So, we decided that we'd head to the top floor, to see if we could find a good view of the SL Valley. We walked up and down the halls, looking for windows, low enough to look through...but when we finally found some, they only looked out on another part of the hospital, blocking the view of the city. So, we had to settle with the view from the 2nd floor, which was still pretty good. I noticed tonight, when I was leaving, that the view was prettier with the night lights, so I'll have to take him on a walk in the evening next time.

After taking our little 'field trip' for a little over an hour, we decided we'd head back to see if his dinner had arrived. It had. No big surprise however...it was mashed potatoes. I think he's had that 10 times, while I've been there, so it's gotten a little old. After dinner, we watched a few of the 'mormon messages' on You Tube. If you haven't seen these, check them out. I love them. I read Dad his facebook messages. Thank you everyone who posts. I know we've said it before, but these are indeed a highlight of his day, as they are one of the few connections he has with the 'real world'. They always make him smile, and he always seems surprised at how many people leave him a message.

We sat and visited quietly for awhile. During one of our visits, I was trying to guess again, what my dad was trying to tell me. At times, this seems to be improving as I get bits and pieces....but usually that's about as far as I get, and we give up, usually laughing it off. Today, when I thought I was getting close to figuring something out....he shrugged and nodded. I asked him if he usually just resigns himself to what we guess. He said yes. LOL. I can't imagine how frustrating it is to him. Keep the prayers coming that he will regain his speech. This would be a huge help to his recovery. I am truly amazed at how patient he has remained thus far. He usually finds a way to just smile and decide we'll try again later.

We had a welcome surprise later this eveving. Alison, Rob and their cute little 1 year old Brooke, came to visit! They brought Dad an orange creamslush from Sonic. A VERY welcome break from the thick liquids the hospital has to offer. I had also asked Alison to bring him something to eat, if she could find something that would work. Well, ask and ye shall receive. She brought 3 things for him to choose from. He chose trying some spaghetti, and said YUM after the first bite. Something that actually had a bit of flavor! It was fun for Dad to see Brooke, and she even sang Wheels on the Bus for him. It made him smile!

After Alison and Rob left, Dad was pretty tuckered out. He was awake for the good portion of the day today. I am glad that his days and nights are getting sorted out now, as he will need a good night sleep to be able to resume his therapy tomorrow. Overall, he enjoyed a much needed day off today. He promised me that he would work hard tomorrow, and I know he will!

My daughter Megan (9) today, told me that she thinks that her Grandpa's stroke was part of Heavenly Father's plan. As a test to see how we would handle it. And to see how Grandpa handles it. She said that she was going to do her best, to help Grandpa with whatever he needs, including being good, so I can go to the hospital to help him. She wrote him a note for me to read to him, asking him to be strong and work hard so that he could get home quickly. Then she told me not to worry about her and the other kids, because they would be okay, while I go to help Grandpa. (sniff) Thank goodness for the reminders these little ones give to us, about what is really important. I am so grateful that I got to spend today with my Dad. It was a good day. :) Thanks for your continued prayers!

Sunday Morning

We had a GREAT morning. Seriously, best one yet. I got there this morning at 8:30ish and he was still sleeping. They had just brought breakfast, so I woke up him to eat. This was the only frustrating part of today, because I told him that he had to try to do it himself as much as possible. It was scrambled eggs and he kept dropping each bite. But he just laughed every time and didn't act too bothered by it.

I asked the nurse what the therapy schedule was for the day and she said there isn't any therapy on Sundays. Yay! I want him to work hard in therapy, but I was SO relieved to hear that he gets one full day of rest each week. I told him and he raised his eyebrows and seemed relieved, too. So I told him that he could do whatever he wanted. After a few suggestions and realizing that his roommate was going to be very loud as he got read for his church service, he decided on listening to some music with headphones. (We'll try to go to church service next week.) I downloaded some Celtic Woman and Mormon Tabernacle Choir, which he really liked. He rested for a while and when the room was empty, I pulled up today's Priesthood lesson on the iPad. Just as we were getting this ready, some people brought sacrament to us. It was so good to see dad taking the sacrament without help and I think it was great for him, too. It took me about 20 minutes to read the entire lesson to him, and I stopped a few times to see if he wanted me to continue. He always did.

After that, he had a busy morning with some visitors. My mom brought her sister Ros with her, who had only seen my dad once since she got here over a week ago. She is leaving sometime this week, so I'm so glad that he got to see her before she left! Then Leslie stopped by and had a nice, long visit. I think he was very glad to see them! Thanks so much for coming!

After all of that, it was about 1:00 and he was exhausted. I told him that he needed to eat lunch but he said he didn't want to. I asked him if he would eat if I fed him and he said he would. I know we aren't supposed to, but he was SO tired and I didn't want him going without lunch. So I fed him about half his lunch before I made sure he was comfortable enough to sleep. Then I told Dad that I was leaving and that Karen would be here in a couple hours. He just nodded and passed out within a few minutes. Its always going to be nervewracking to leave when someone isn't there to "take over" the shift. But I know he is well taken care of there!

So... all in all, it was great morning! A much-needed relaxing day for my dad! And me!

Saturday Evening

I got to the hospital at 2:00 to take over from Ryan. I was fully expecting a hard time after hearing that Dad had been down during the morning. But two things happened just before I got there that (I think) really helped Dad's mood. Ryan said that he had a little talk with him and told him that he is allowed to feel frustrated, mad, sad, and whatever he wants to feel. But we all hope that he is able to set that aside when its time to work hard. Also, he put some noise-cancelling headphones on Dad and put on some relaxing music. I think that went a long way to help "reset" the day so that he could feel a little more upbeat and energized. Thanks, Ryan, for being the best son in the world and the best brother that we could ever ask for. Seriously.

After Dad woke up from his cat nap, I told him that he had about one hour until his last session of therapy. So we had some time to kill. I told him we could look at Facebook, look through the pictures that I brought, or watch an episode of Friends that I had just downloaded to his iPad. He looked surprised at the last option and chose that. Then I offered the headphones and he told me (in his way) that he wanted me to watch and listen with him. For about five minutes, I felt like I was back in high school, watching Friends at home on the couch.

Diana, the speech therapist came in. She was nice and I had a chance to visit with her for just a minute before she started. She did mainly an evaluation of Dad, since it was her first time meeting him. She used flash cards and asked questions to get an idea of where he is. I think this is one area that needs the most work, but has the possibility for the quickest improvement. I hope, I hope, I hope.

The bright spot of my dad's day was definitely his very special visitors that came at about 5:00. Karen was in SLC with her family for her boys' soccer games, so she decided to bring her girls, Megan (age 9) and Lauren (age 7) to come for a quick visit. Karen's family lives just two blocks away from my dad in Grantsville, so they seem him every day. They have missed him terribly and had been begging to come visit. It must have been very uncomfortable and new for them to be in the hospital, but they handled it so well, even when they had to wait for almost 45 min to even see him. They each brought cards that they had made and brought books to read to him. I guess at home they would read to him on a regular basis and it was there special thing with Grandpa. So they each read two books to him and visited for a little bit before leaving. I think this was a huge boost for him. I love those girlies!

Thank You, Ef & Lois

I'll update more later tonight when I get a chance. But I wanted to thank Ef & Lois for the flowers! I was just thinking of bringing some flowers today to brighten my dad's room a bit. He looked surprised to see them and happy to know they were from the "Orgill" family. Thanks, guys! It was a much needed boost! (I just found out that it was Rachel that ordered the flowers for my dad. *Sniff* Thanks, Smach!)

Saturday Afternoon - The Machine

Ryan checking in for blogging duties. As Alison said I got to the hospital this morning just after 11 and just in time for Dad's second physical therapy session of the day. Collin had to rouse Dad and asked if Dad was ready for another session. He waited a little while for an answer and then somewhat unconvincingly but with a small grin Collin said, "There we go, I saw a nod." Alison and I laughed and I said, "Sure, but which way was the nod?"

Undeterred, Collin started to help Dad out of bed and into a wheelchair. He explained that if Dad felt up to it he was going to try to get him to stand up in an apparatus called the Standing Frame. Hearing that triggered in my mind a memory of The Machine in the movie The Princess Bride. I mentioned it do Dad and the three of us chuckled about it as we took the elevator down to the gym.

It was great to see Dad standing. The Machine...err, Standing Frame...is a chair with a back rest, feet holds, and then a cushion that locks Dad's knees and shins into place so his legs can lean forward without his knees buckling. Once in position a little hydraulic pump raises the chair up slowly until Dad is standing up. I pulled back on Dad's shoulders as he was raised up but once standing I let go and he maintained his posture with only a few reminders to raise his chin. He stood for 5 minutes, conquering the Standing Frame in only his 2nd day of rehab. Another therapist that helped transfer Dad back to his wheelchair said, "This is only Day 2? Your therapist (Collin) is crazy, and you are doing really well."

Back in Dad's room physical therapy went on for about 5 more minutes with leg exercises while in a chair. Collin asked Dad to raise his left leg up while keeping the knee bent and to do it 10 times. He was counting out loud, but when he hit the count of 7 Dad started counting in a quiet whisper as well and said, "10". Totally unexpected and absolutely hilarious. So the punishment was to go to 20 instead of 10 which Dad did fairly easily and counted most of the way. Then he did 20 reps of the same leg lift on the right let, which he lifted almost as high as he had the left. The next task was to move his legs in together and then back out, 20 times. Dad hadn't been able to do either of those exercises while I was with him yesterday. It is good to see some mobility in the right leg even in these early stages of rehab.

Occupational therapy started with practice opening and closing medicine bottles and twisting open the top of a bottle of baby powder. Dad could secure the bottle in his right hand and then performed the tasks pretty easily with his left. While he was working, Chelsie noticed some movements in Dad's right arm. "He wasn't doing that yesterday," she said. She worked with his right arm for a few minutes, pushing and pulling on it to see if Dad could offer the opposite force against her arm, and then asking him to bend at the elbow and touch his lips with his fingers. Dad would use his left arm as a guide, apparently trying to visualize what his right arm should be doing. Not a lot of voluntary movement out of the right arm yet, but definitively little moments of muscle triggers, sensation, response.

Chelsie next used the game Jenga to work with Dad on spatial awareness, fine motor skills, and to measure his level of understanding and following instructions. She would arrange the pieces in a pattern and ask him to distinguish and point to certain ones, and then gave Dad four step instructions that he had to listen to and then execute. Dad's sense of humor reared its head again this time around when he had a piece in his hand and was told to place it in a certain place 3-4 times. Finally he set the piece on his lap, under the tray they were using, and left it there. Chelsie took the hint and closed the therapy session for the day.

One final thought...since this is my first entry on the blog I'll say thank you to everyone, and particularly at this time for your kind words towards my siblings that have been so selfless and caring as they've watched over Dad. But much of the thanks should go to the wonderful people that have joined our family through marriage that have made ample sacrifices to allow Dad's kids to spend so much time with him this past week. As has been mentioned many times, being in the hospital really is the easy part. It is being away and worrying that is the most difficult, so a special thanks to family and friends that have helped with our kids and other responsibilities to free up our time.

Saturday Morning - More Therapy

It's Alison. Dad seemed to do really well his first night alone (and by alone, I mean with at least two nurses who checked on him all night long). I'm quite certain his children have much more anxiety over him being alone than he does. :)

I arrived this morning at 8:00 to find Dad sound asleep still. I tried to let him sleep for as long as possible but, because his therapy schedule indicated occupational therapy at 9:00, I had to wake him up for breakfast at 8:30. I may or may not have smuggled in some McDonald's oatmeal and a cream slush from Sonic. ;)

After a sleepy breakfast, Dad started occupational therapy with Chelsie and Rachel. They were great with him again, very kind and positive. Occupational therapy today consisted of moving to his wheelchair, getting dressed, brushing teeth, washing his face and combing his hair. This sounds simple enough, but took the full 45 minutes. Dad did great and, while still very sleepy, was very obedient and cooperative.

Right after occupational therapy, Collin showed up to take Dad to physical therapy in the gym. He did some leg stretches, which is painful because my Dad's right leg is VERY tight and stiff. Then, Dad practiced sitting unassisted on the edge of a table, with Collin trying to push him over so he could assess my Dad's strength and balance. Dad did great. During therapy, I asked Collin if recovery and treatment differs significantly between those who have suffered a hemorrhagic stroke (like Dad) vs. the more typical ischemic stroke (caused by a blood clot). He said that they don't see as many hemorrhagic stroke patients because it is fatal much more frequently than ischemic strokes. But, he said, those who do survive usually have the potential for a better recovery. This made me even more grateful for two things -- 1) that my dad is still here with us after we have learned more and more over the last week about how serious his type of stroke really is and 2) that his long-term prognosis is hopefully much better than we are seeing right now. There is truly some light at the end of this long tunnel, even if we can't see it right now.

After therapy, we headed back up to the room. Collin had moved Dad's afternoon physical therapy appointment up to 11:15, so we only had 45 minutes in between. He said he would prefer if Dad stayed in the wheelchair until he came back, so they wouldn't lose any therapy time doing the transfer into the wheelchair again. Dad agreed to this, but within one minute of Collin leaving, Dad was dozing in the chair. I asked if he wanted to lay down and he said yes. So, we moved him to his bed and he was able to get in a few minutes of much needed rest.

Ryan showed up for his shift just before Collin came back to take Dad to therapy again. Dad did some amazing things during his second physical therapy appointment. Ryan has promised to do an update this time, so you should be able to read about it later.

I'm so proud of my dad. He was so tired and worn out today and maybe a little more down than he has been. But he still worked as hard as I've ever seen and did everything that was asked of him. He knows that it will take hard work to get better and he's willing to do it.

On a side note, Dad's brother Ef called and said that he'll likely be in for a visit tomorrow. Dad has been asking for Ef ever since the stroke, but unfortunately, Ef has been recovering from his own knee surgery and hasn't been able to come in yet. So, I think a visit from Ef is just what Dad needs to have a boost going into his first full week of therapy. I look forward to hearing about their visit. Let's hope Ef speaks Cherokee. ;)

Okay, one more side note. I realize I sound like a broken record, especially for those of you who are also my friends on Facebook. But, if you could please take a minute or two out of each day and send Dad a message or comment on Facebook, it would mean a lot to all of us. After a long, hard day, one of his favorite things is to sit with us and listen to us read these notes. It literally makes his day. So, if you could take a minute or two and do this as often as you can, it would be great. Even just a note about what you did that day would be fun for him to hear. Thank you! Thank you!

Friday night

It's Diane. When I started typing the title of this post, I put "Saturday." My goodness, my days have been so off this week!

I just got back from a few hours at the hospital with Dad. How did I get the job of being the first one to leave him for a night alone? Sheesh! The nurses might have thought I was just a tiny bit overprotective, with all my questions and instructions before I left. They reassured me that they would take good care of him, and I believe them. Sunghee is his night nurse again, and she is every bit as wonderful as Sharon said. And Alan, the CNA, gave me the direct phone number to the nurses' station and said we could call anytime.

Anyway, this post will not be very informative. Ryan really needs to write a post about Dad's physical therapy and speech therapy this afternoon. It sounds like Dad worked hard and did great, but I'll let Ryan fill in the details (hint, hint).

I got to the hospital right after Dad finished dinner, a "real" dinner of lasagna, along with various mashed/pureed side dishes. Apparently they upgraded his diet level after his swallowing evaluation this afternoon. I saw what was left over on his tray, and the lasagna actually looked good enough to eat. Now that's progress! At this rate, I expect that his dessert tomorrow will be something like peanut brittle. ;)

We had a quiet evening. I wasn't able to understand a lot of what he said, but I figured out a lot of what he wanted -- the blinds closed, a drink of juice, the blanket, to sit up, the pillow under his arm, etc. We watched a little basketball and Dad rested some before waking up for the bedtime routine..... Regular checks, medications, and a luxurious mouth and teeth cleaning from Sunghee. He got a phone call from Susan and Regan, which brought a big smile to his face. Right before I left, I read him all the new posts and messages from Facebook. He loves those. Please keep them coming!

When I told Dad I was getting ready to leave, I asked if he needed anything. He said no. I asked if he needed me to stay. He said, "Uh, no!" I laughed and said his daughters must think he needs a babysitter even if he doesn't. I gave him a hug and kiss, and he kissed my ear/cheek. I have to admit, I got a little teary as I walked down the hall.

That's all for now. Alison will be going first thing in the morning, so we'll likely hear from her next.

Friday Morning - First Day of Therapy

It's Alison. I'm a bit late in posting... it was a BUSY morning in Dad's room. I was there from about 8am to 1pm, so I'll update to that point and then hopefully Ryan can catch us up later.

When I got there this morning, Dad was sleeping. Sharon had stayed overnight and hadn't gotten any sleep. But she wanted to stay for his morning therapy, so ended up staying another 90 minutes or so. She's a trooper!

They have Dad on a very structured therapy routine which at this point consists of 45 minutes of occupational therapy and 45 minutes of physical therapy in the morning and then 45 minutes each of occupational, speech and physical therapy in the afternoon. So, a total of 3 hours and 45 minutes each day. That's quite the schedule!

Here's the highlights from the morning therapy:

Occupational Therapy with Chelsie and Danielle
The goal of occupational therapy is to reteach and improve Dad's ability to do his basic daily tasks -- bathing, eating, dressing, etc. The hope is that, by the end of treatment, he'll be able to care for himself independently and enjoy most, if not all, of his favorite hobbies and activities.

They were WONDERFUL with Dad. They started out with an assessment of his strength and utilization of left and right sides. This was consistent with previous tests -- left side strong, right side not so much. They said that he appears to have some muscle triggering on his right side, but can't feel it and can't move it.

They had him eat his breakfast and showed him how to use his right hand to stabalize and support his food and dishes, even though he can't really use it for the actual eating. That way, he can use his left hand for the primary functions. He did awesome! I can't imagine how difficult it is to use your non-dominant hand for things like eating. But he is doing awesome. It is hard for us to watch him do it because we want to help him, but we understand it is important for him to do it on his own, even if it's a little slow going at first.

After eating, Chelsie put four playing cards down on the table (2, 4, 6, and 8) and asked him to put them in order from low to high. I was pretty skeptical, because he hasn't been able to demonstrate that he understands letters and/or numbers yet. He moved them on the table and looked at them for a while and then slooooowly moved them in the right order. We were so excited!

Chelsie wanted to practice getting dressed, but we ran out of time. She said she'd do that with him during his afternoon session.

Physical Therapy with Collin
So, my family is sick of hearing how much I LOVED Collin. He was so wonderful. So natural and kind with Dad. He was funny and talked to Dad like an adult (which seems to be hard for some of the staff). He explained the goals of physical therapy (pretty obvious -- to improve Dad's strength and use of his right side, and to reteach him to walk, climb stairs, etc). He asked Dad if he wanted to try getting in a wheelchair and Dad said, "Yes!" He had not been out of his bed for almost a week. Collin and an aide got Dad into a wheelchair quickly and efficiently. They were impressed with Dad's balance and said that he even helped quite a bit with getting into the chair -- this was unexpected and a great sign.

When Dad was in the wheelchair, we went for a ride around the floor. Sharon was right -- it's sort of like a nursing home. We went to the common room and watched the big screen TV. There was a door out to the patio, but it was snowing. The snow must have set off the motion sensor on the door because the doors kept opening and shutting constantly. This annoyed Dad greatly, so we left. LOL  We went walking around the floor again, where he became annoyed with me because I kept running into things. In our defense, though, we were pushing a wheelchair around a narrow hallway and dragging his IV pole and oxygen tank with us. He kept shaking his head when I'd bump into things. LOL I told you I'm a hopeless nurse...

Anyway, when we got back to the room, he'd been in the chair about 45 minutes. We assumed he'd want to get back into bed to rest, but he wanted to chill in the chair. We sat him in front of the TV, right next to the window so he could see out, and he watched Good Day Utah and relaxed. It was so good to see him sitting up and relaxing. After a while, he motioned that he needed something and it only took a couple of guesses for Sharon to realize he wanted a blanket. Score for Sharon!

Sharon left at that point and I sat down to talk to Dad. We did Facebook on the iPad and I read him the blog comments. He laughed at several of the comments -- he likes the funny ones. Keep it up!  Afterward, I opened the notepad on the iPad and typed his name to see if he could read it. He said he could and pointed to himself. Another huge accomplishment!

He is still pretty hard to understand. But he's consistent with yes, no, okay, and sure, which is very helpful. He also nods and shakes his head consistently. But when he talks, he still sounds like he's speaking Cherokee. I told him that today and he laughed. I showed him the movies on the iPad and told him to think about any more he might like. I told him we should get Dances With Wolves and he wouldn't even need subtitles because he now speaks the language. He laughed again. He's got a good sense of humor about the situation most of the time.

The rehab unit at the hospital appears to be wonderful. The staff are all amazing. I just hope we get him a single room soon. That will make it pretty perfect.

Ryan can update on the afternoon's activities, which I'm sure were very busy. I asked Dad if he was looking forward to therapy and he said yes. He knows that working hard is going to be his quickest ticket to getting out and his best bet at the best recovery possible.

Thank you for your continued support and prayers. We love you all and appreciate your offers to help and especially your encouraging messages to Dad.

First Night in Rehab

I got to tho hospital around 7:15ish. It took a while to find this room and when I did, Ryan and Dad were watching the last two minutes of the game. Such a bummer that its over for the Cougs, but I am SO glad that Ryan was able to come in to watch it with him. It would have been an even bigger bummer if he had been forced to watch it with me!

Dad is in the rehab section of the hospital now. Here is my overview so far.

My First Impression
- Smells like a nursing home.
- Feels like a nursing home.
- Has a roommate who introduced himself to me and said, "Hi Sharon. If you are staying overnight, I thought I should warn you that my medications make me hallucinate, so just ignore me if I yell out during the night." Seriously, he did. Felt like I was on candid camera. But he was serious. Yikes.
- Night nurse is Sunghee, who is from Korea and hard to understand. Good pick for a stroke patient that has a hard time communicating.
- Has a CNA that talks way too loud for someone that is checking on patients late at night.
- Worried that this was a bad situation and would be a depressing place for Dad.

Now that I've been here for a few hours:
- Smell is far less noticeable after being here for a while.
- Can't do anything about the look of the place. But his room is big and has curtains that divide it down the middle, so its semi-private. The room is right outside the nurses station, so response time is quick.
- His roommate (a guy about dad's age named Haley) is super nice, calm and easy going. He is polite to me and the nurses. He is here for something to do with his leg, not sure what. And I didn't hear any outbursts during the night, thank heavens.
- Sunghee just might be my new favorite nurse. Dad seems to understand most of what she says, and it doesn't seem to bother him when he doesn't. She has a mother who just suffered her third stroke this week, so she is very close to dad's condition and super patient with him. She is the most considerate nurse I've seen yet. When all the lights were off, she came in and used a tiny keychain flashlight when she was trying to find something. LOL! She jokes with dad and explains things to him and us in detail. LOVE her.
- Still not sure about CNA Ryan (not to be confused with Nurse Ryan or Dr. Ryan Orgill) but he seems nice. Might have to muzzle him next time he comes in, though.
- The few times I talked to dad before he went to sleep, he was upbeat and we had a few laughs about our miscommunication. I was able to guess correctly a couple times. (Yay!) He wanted to know why they come in so often and what they are doing each time. He seemed satisfied with the explanation that I gave him. When I couldn't' guess something, he kind of gave up and I asked him if he wanted to pray. He immediately said, "Yes please." I told him that if he wanted to say it, I would love to hear it. Especially since Heavenly Father is the one person he can talk to right now without communication troubles. He smiled and pointed at me so I said a quick prayer. He seemed very thoughtful after that. Not sad, just thoughtful.


So my assessment is mainly positive of his new room/area, which is a relief because I was ready to head for the hills when I first got here. The staff is cheerful and respectful and VERY quick at everything that they do. Twice during the night so far they have come to turn/move him. They did it in two minutes and changed his pillowcases and adjusted the fan for him. They seem very concerned about his comfort which is exactly what we want for him! Once one of the nurse alerts accidentally went off and two people were in the room before I could even get to dad. (He had just bumped a wire.) HUGE improvement from the NCCU, where they would sometimes take ten minutes to respond and even then barely said a word. Sunghee said that patient safety is the first priority here, so they will always be quick. Yay!

I'm excited to go to the "gym" tomorrow with dad to see what they do during Physical Therapy. He has 90 minutes of that in the morning, then 90 minutes of Speech Therapy in the late afternoon. We've talked to dad several times about working hard and keeping a good attitude, because that is his ticket home. He usually nods or says, "I know." Tonight I told him that after being away from him almost 24 hours, I could tell an improvement in his speech and that I was "this close" to understanding more of his words. He seemed surprised by that.

Dad has been sleeping soundly for several hours now, which is great. But just before he went to sleep, he motioned to me. I couldn't guess what he wanted (which I HATE) but I asked him if he wanted to know what I was doing on the computer, thinking maybe he could hear me typing. He nodded. So I explained that I was writing an email to my Ryan and my sisters. We've been sending regular email updates so that we are all consistently aware of everything that is going on and don't have to depend on the blog for updates. I told him that we are doing it so that we are more prepared when we come in for our shift. And that its VERY difficult sitting at home while waiting for an update. He raised his eyebrows and said, "Cool." Seemed very pleased with us.

Looking forward to seeing what progress he makes in the coming days. Thanks again for all your prayers and well wishes. Keep the comments and messages coming. They really make his day!