It's Diane now. I'm actually home. I didn't get a chance to update while I was at the hospital. Karen told you part of what happened, and here's the rest.
Speech therapy finally, FINALLY came to see Dad shortly after 3:00. He had been wide awake for several hours, so we kept asking if speech could come. When the speech therapist got there, Dad was very worn out from being awake for so long. He mostly stayed awake during the evaluation, but I could tell he was tired and not as responsive as he would have been earlier. The highlights of the speech evaluation were that he counted to 10 with all the numbers being understandable and said the days of the week, although they weren't quite as recognizable.
The speech therapist talked to me about how we can help.... Keep our questions to simple yes or no questions, try to prompt Dad with the beginning of a word if we think we know what he's trying to say, and try to encourage him to communicate through gestures. Dad's speech is improving, but it's frustrating for him when he wants to communicate something that we can't quite understand. We'll keep trying and hoping for progress.
The speech therapist also evaluated Dad's swallowing again, to see if he can be moved up to the next level of diet. She said he was very borderline and she wasn't sure she was comfortable moving him up. I told her we don't want his diet changed unless he's ready, but that he had really been asking for something to drink other than those thick nectar-like drinks. She okayed ice chips and very small sips of water only. She said if water accidentally slips down the wrong pipe, it won't cause the kinds of problems that other beverages would. Maybe it's not much, but I think even those small changes will be welcome for Dad.
I asked for the results of the chest x-ray from earlier, because we had never heard anything. They said it looked better than the previous one, so that is definitely good news. The people who gave him the breathing treatment suggested an incentive spirometer, something that helps patients to breathe more deeply. Maybe whoever is there tonight could ask again about that?
Right before I left, the Director of Stroke Rehabilitation stopped by. He did a few evaluations (again with a very sleepy patient). He said he's hopeful that Dad can make great progress in rehab. He said we're taking things one day at a time, but he thinks Dad could be ready to move to rehab as early as Thursday. The way things seem to move, I don't think we should hold our breath. Maybe by the end of the week? Who knows? He also said to plan on a minimum of about 4 weeks in rehab. The neurosurgeon had told us 1 to 2 months, so that didn't come as a surprise.
I think that's all of my updating for now. The prayers we continue to need are that Dad will be better able to communicate, that his speech will improve, that he will be able to regain strength and movement in his right side, and that his spirits will be good, so he will be hopeful and motivated to work hard. That's not too tall of an order, is it?
Thank you all for your love, concern, and prayers. We love you!
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