Day 11 of Rehab

Good Evening everyone.

Today was a tiring day. I practiced climbing stairs first thing this morning. Tomorrow will be the big test to see how it is working out when I visit my apartment so the OT can check it out. Then we did quite a bit of walking. In later PT sessions Cali put in AFO's in both my shoes and we walked some more. She is going to get some for both my feet. These will help to keep my foot elevated when taking steps so I don't drag my toes. However they are not flattering so I will not ever be wearing them with shorts or capris. I'm also kind of bummed because I won't be able to wear my rocket dogs!! I don't want to buy bulky and ugly orthopedic shoes so we'll see. We also worked on wheeling around with wheels that go on my wheelchair and are power assist. So when I put my hands on them to move they go farther then what my power would have taken them. This way it's not so hard on me to propel my little chair around. Dropping 20 would be good for my shoulders too. LOL

In OT we decided what shower chair I'm going to take home and test the fitting in the tub. I'm really bummed that I can't lay in the tub but we'll see when I get home. I don't know how in the heck I'm going to shave my legs sitting on a shower chair. I'm not going to go au natural so I need to figure it out. We also figured out that I'm going to need a tray on my walker because I need to be able to carry things from the kitchen to the table. We also worked on getting back up from the floor if I fall down.

So we're getting close to my leaving and I'm getting more and more nervous that I'm not going to be able to do this. Let's hope that I make a little more progress this week so I'm a little more confident about leaving. Cali said again today that I constantly surprise her so who says I can't continually surprise my new PT's and myself when I go home?

Tomorrow is the home visit and checking out the new apartment. Let's hope everything goes well!!

Day ten of Rehab

Good evening everyone. Today was a rough day but good. I'd have to say I'm pretty exhausted.

Today we worked on climbing the stairs going back down and immediately climbing them again. This would be to try and build up my strength to take more than five stairs at a time. Hopefully I won't be at my apartment long so this won't be such a huge issue right away. I would like to get better at stairs so I can still go to friend's houses that have stairs.

I worked on driving today. I have to be evaluated to see if I can drive. Some of the crap they asked me should be asked of 16 year old kids before they get their license. Guarantee some of them wouldn't pass some of the crap I had to do. We tried my reaction time with stopping using the hand controls and using both my feet to work the pedals instead of just one. I did okay with the pedals but don't know if that's the way to go because when I get fatigued my use of my legs get worse and I think it may effect my use of the pedals.

I also went "grocery shopping" and had to work out different scenarios. I really want to be able to go to the grocery store by myself so I can buy fresh fruits and veges in between my big excursions.

Next week is a big week and hope I get some PT in with all the other goodies they have planned!

Tomorrow if I'm up to it I can go to the gym between 11-12 and 1-2. I can work on the hand bike, lift some weights from my chair for my arms, and the "horizontal stepper".

Oh and yay to the Huskers for winning the Big 12 North. I got to watch most of the game so that was really nice!!

Day eight of Rehab

Good morning! It was a looooonnnnngggg day yesterday so my post is a little late.

Yesterday Cali and I used the bioness in my first session. We walked the stairs four times and did some walking without it. She doesn't think I'll need the bioness when I leave but we are using it here to try and stimulate that muscle thereby strengthening it. I also used a machine that is basically like something for squats but uses your own weight as the resistance instead of weights.

In OT I worked on some standing while putting a puzzle together, made brownies in my wheelchair (and standing up when needing things out of the higher cupboards), and learned how to take my current wheelchair apart and put it back together.

During my last PT session I practiced more standing by playing the Wii. Let me tell you that was pretty difficult. I had to also practice transferring my weight like I would if I was really bowling. I would love to have one of those to practice with when I go home! LOL

Finally I went to the gym here in Lincoln that Madonna built for the public and watched the wheelchair basketball practice. It was pretty cool but at times looks to be pretty brutal.

Today the Huskers are supposedly coming to Madonna!! Pretty excited to see who shows up... are we worth 1st/2nd string or 3rd string players???

Day seven of Rehab

Good Evening everyone!

I'm rather tired this evening but didn't want to get into trouble with the parentals so here I go.

Today Cali and I worked with the "brace" to help with my foot drop. It seems to be making a difference and now my left leg seems to be getting tired quicker than my right! I also did leg exercises on the mat at the end of the day and with all the walking I did I didn't think I was going to make it through it but did! Cali has given the nurses permission to walk me with the walker to and from my room to the dining area we use which is probably about 30-40 feet. Although that's not far after PT all day I was a little tired just walking that.

In OT I did a lot of standing. I stood in front of some machines used to exercise the arms and had to do that at the same time. I did that four times for three minutes each time. I'm hoping I can increase my standing time this week to more than just three minutes at one time.

Tomorrow is my big field trip with a couple of the PT's to check out wheelchair basketball!! It's so nice of them to take me somewhere after working hours.

Next Tuesday I'm going to go to my apartment to assess my living situation and hopefully check out a new apartment that I will be living in soon.

Day six of Rehab and weekend

Good morning everyone!

Sorry for not posting until now but I was exhausted Friday night and everytime I try to log my computer on it decides to act up!

Friday OT and PT went well. In OT I did a lot of standing. Even though I could only do it for about three minutes before I need to rest I did it a few times. While standing I had to do tasks so that my mind was occupied with more than just concentrating on standing. So I put together an image with plastic tiles and rearranged the grocery shelves in the "grocery store". I also had to manuever my way through the kitchen while in my wheelchair and figure out how to make a pb&j sandwich.

In PT I got a new wheelchair to use around here. It is sleek and speedy and I really like it. It is made out of titanium so it is so much lighter than the other one. Cali timed me going to the cafeteria from my room. I made it in a little over two there and about 3 1/2 back. She said that was very good. We also did mat work and worked on some machine... not sure what it is but it's like a stepper but horizontal and not vertical.

Hopefully this week goes even better. I'm pretty exhausted from last week so having two days off has been nice.

Day five of Rehab

Good Evening everyone! Today was a good day but I forgot to tell you something I did yesterday. During an afternoon OT session Erin and I went out to the new children's play area, that was paid for with money donated by Larry The Cable Guy, and played some basketball. Let me tell you how much more difficult it is to shoot from a chair. I thought I had pretty strong arms but they could definitely be bulked up a little.

Today I tried something new for my leg. It's called a Bioness and it is for foot drop. It stimulates the muscle in my leg that causes my foot to pick up when it takes a step. It was amazing and worked really well! Cali said that I will have to practice with it because it will fatigue my muscle but eventually I will wear it all day every day.

www.bioness.com

One of the therapist's husband plays on a wheelchair basketball team so they're going to see if I can go watch their practice on Tuesday. Guess what? There is also a wheelchair softball team! They play on a parking lot. How fun but challenging would that be?

All this therapy is hard but Cali and Erin are so much fun. They are really concerned about doing the best they can for me since they are around my age and know how much this stinks for someone so young!

Day four of Rehab

Hello everyone! Today was an amazing day! My nurse brought me a container of Nutella- yummo!!, I got my eyebrows waxed, and...... wait for it..... I get to go to the bathroom by myself and don't have to call a nurse every time! I passed the chair transfer from bed to chair to toilet and back again. I have enough strength to stand at the toilet and do what's appropriate so I'm pretty stoked!

Cali put a brace into my shoe this morning that will keep my foot from dropping and dragging when I take a step or climb a stair. It felt extremely odd but it did help. Next she is going to fit me with a device that will stimulate the muscle and help me pick up my foot when walking. I've seen it in a lot of the MS magazines as advertisements.

I have the okay to do open gym on Saturday morning. There is a leg machine, arm machine, and some type of arm weights that I can work on.

I'm pretty excited because I feel like I'm surprising them at times with what I can do so I hope to keep it up. I'm pretty sure I need to get a chair when I leave here but I want more than anything to be able to walk out of here!! How about I walk out of here pushing my chair?? At least if I get a chair I can do something I haven't done in probably 4-5 years.... go to the mall!

Day three of Rehab

Well today is starting out well! I got to take a shower! Woot woot.

I have a full day of therapy and hopefully will get my eyebrows waxed today! LOL

Therapy was long today. I actually wussed out on the last session today. We have found that I can't handle 1 1/2 hours of therapy continuously. Hopefully tomorrow I will get a little more of a break.

Today I did some arm work, worked on balancing on an exercise ball because I need to gain core strength, worked on the stairs again, and made some toast! :)

I talked to some lady and their plan is the following: I have an expected release date of December 4th pending insurance and my progress. Upon release they would like me to be walking whether it is with a walker or cane. They want to make sure that I am able to care for myself in all ways. As for driving right now they aren't sure. They said I have lost a lot of some blah blah blah in my ankle and I'm not able to flex it correctly. If this were the case then they said hand controls on my vehicle could be an option. The have a simulator where I could learn how to use it here.

They also said they would like to go to Omaha for a home visit of my apartment. There they can check it out and decide if I can go there and live. My lease is up in December so I really need to start to find a new place to live but I do need a home to go to when this is all said and done.

I had a visitor tonight. Thanks Heather for the sushi. It is really much better than the "food" that is served here. I must admit the biscuit and gravy I had this morning was actually pretty decent. I should give them a little more credit! :)

Day two of Rehab

Hello everyone!

Today was my first full day of rehab and let me tell you.... I'm tired. :) I had a total of three hours of therapy; 90 minutes of OT and 90 minutes of PT.

I did quite a bit so hopefully I am functioning in the morning. I am still mostly in a chair so we worked on transfering different ways onto another surface while in the chair. I was in the kitchen area with the walker to make sure that I could balance when going through the cupboards. I practiced walking up stairs a little bit. That was pretty difficult. I need a lot more strength in my right leg. I worked on transferring into a car and out into the wheelchair.

I walked about 250 feet today with the walker which seems to be pretty good to me anyways, considering I haven't really been walking for a week. I also did some work on a machine that they said I can use on Saturday when we don't have any therapy scheduled.

Hopefully tomorrow I will get a plan of action and a proposed release date. My insurance has approved 12 days here so hopefully I will be done by then.

Catch up with you all tomorrow!!

p.s. I had to share my slipper socks that Julia brought to me this morning! They are quite adorable and fit my personality perfectly. Even after years she still remembers me!

Day one of Rehab

As some of you know I have decided to seek rehab for this last exacerbation. I chose the Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital in Lincoln, NE.

Today was my first full day of Rehab. Although it started on a Sunday my morning was quite full of evals. I met with the Occupational therapist, Physical therapist, and Speech therapist.


Of course there wasn't anything wrong with my speech. You all know that I don't know when to stop talking. She also looked for swallowing, memory recall (short and long term), critical thinking, etc. Thank goodness it's all there because she said she would recommend no speech therapy which will give me more time with physical and occupational.


Now that I have met with everyone they will all get together and formulate a plan of attack and propose a release date. My personal goal is to meet or exceed that.


Let me just tell you though that the food here sucks!! But that will be good I guess because I love mashed potatoes but these are disgusting so I don't have to worry about the empty starches! My goal is to find some good sushi here in Lincoln and find a way to get it to me. It will help me get through the bad food. :)

I know several of you want to keep updated on my status and I figured this would be a good way to do that. I will do my very best to update this frequently on my progress, milestones, bad food stories, etc.....

I just want to thank everyone that has lent their support and kind words. It means more to me than you'll ever know!