One year ago today.....

One year ago today…..

I was at Dana-Farber with a friend for her first visit to an oncologist when I got a call from Mom saying Dad had been rushed to the hospital, just two weeks after they arrived in Florida to begin their next phase of life.  Kate, BJ, Heather and I all got to Cape Coral as quickly as we could, and there began the journey of the past year.  First, we didn't know if Dad would survive what they eventually told us was a massive hemorrhagic stroke.  Thankfully he did.  Then we were told that he probably wouldn't have use of his right side.  I’ll never forget the day in the hospital when he lifted up his right arm (because his left arm was tied down) in an attempt to pull out some of his tubes!  Two weeks after the stroke he was released from the ICU.  Two more weeks found him being discharged to a great rehabilitation hospital for a month where they helped him get his strength back and learn how to deal with some of the residual weakness in his right side.  After that he went to a different nursing/rehabilitation facility for another month in preparation to go home.  Finally, on January 26^th, 2013, he went home to their condo in Cape Coral.

That sounds like a nice end to the story, but it isn’t over.  We’re so glad Dad is still with us, but I’m not going to lie – it’s been a tough year.  It’s been hard on Mom, who has faithfully been there with him every step of the way.  The bulk of everything has been on her shoulders.  It’s been hard on us kids, knowing that we can’t always be there to help because we live so far away and can only take so much time off from work.  BJ and Heather were there A LOT of weekends through the winter and spring, which was great, but obviously they have jobs and other responsibilities.  

Dad still has some physical struggles, but mostly the problem lies with some memory and confusion issues.  He has had some great days – sometimes I talk to him and it’s pretty much a completely normal conversation.  Other times he asks the same questions over and over and seems a little “lost”.  Those days are hard.  He’s also been frustrated because he can’t drive and really wants his independence back.  Overall, most days he’s pretty happy, and he definitely still has that “big good lookin’ guy” personality, so we’re thankful for that. J     

Dad’s having some one year follow up appointments this week.  Based on his ophthalmologist appointment on Tuesday, it sounds like he’ll be having cataract surgery in the next couple of months.  That will be helpful, as his vision has been a challenge since the stroke.  We’re also hoping his other doctors may be able to figure out what’s happening with the confusion and maybe do something to help.  I've spent the past year praying for a 100% recovery.  It hasn't happened yet, but that doesn't mean it won’t, so I’ll keep on asking! 

So, one year later, life looks a little different for our family.  This isn't how any of us envisioned Mom and Dad’s retirement.  I’m so thankful that BJ and Heather are only a few hours’ drive away, and I know Mom appreciates having them around.  Kate is very busy with school (finishing her PhD!) and her business, so it’s tough for her to get away.  As for me - I’m praying about where I need to be.  Boston has been home for a long time (Woo hoo, way to go Red Sox!), but it’s possible a change may be coming.  I don’t know just yet, but the pull to be with the people I love - who also happen to need some help - is pretty strong.   And let’s face it – for a girl who hates the cold and snow, Florida in the winter is a whole lot nicer than Boston!  That doesn't hurt ;)

Mom and Dad would love to see people this winter, so if you’re thinking about a FL vacation, give them a call and stop by for a visit!

5/29 update

HI everyone -

Hope your spring is off to a great start!  I feel like I'm finally getting ahead of all the stuff I've needed to do around the house.  I'm not sure how it happens, but all of this mystery junk appears around the house and in the basement when I'm not looking and I seem to spend weeks getting rid of it all.

Dad is doing well.  He recently spent 2 weeks with Aunt Jean while Mom was up here on the Cape taking care of some business and getting their summer place in order.  Aunt Jean says Dad was great - he took care of the dog, and did his own laundry, etc. There were only a couple of occasions where he talked about things that didn't seem to make sense.  He has definitely come a long way in that area!  Names are still a struggle for him, but I think we can all deal with that pretty easily.  The two of them had a great time together.  Over the past few years Dad had been spending some of the winter down there with Aunt Jean, helping her out around the house, and basically escaping the winters up here, so I know they were glad to have the time together.  They also had a visit from Kate and Jason for the first weekend Mom was gone.  Sounds like they all had a nice visit!

Some other exciting news - it appears that BJ and Heather may be making a move down to the Fort Myers area for work.  Nothing's set in stone right now, but their company is relocating it's headquarters down that way, and right now it looks like they will most likely be transferred to that office.  It is awesome that they're already in Florida, but if this move does happen, they won't be 4 hours away anymore!

I don't know exactly when, but Mom and Dad will be making their way north soon for the summer months.  It's getting pretty hot in southwest Florida, and I know they're both looking forward to being "home" on the Cape, where they can enjoy the pond in Mashpee and see all of the friends they've been missing these last several months.  I know they are looking forward to seeing lots of you, who have been so wonderful through this process for all of us.  Hit them up toward the end of June.  I'm guessing they'll be here by then.  I know they'd love to have some visitors!

Right now, I'm not sure how often I'll be updating this blog.  It seems to have served it's purpose, in keeping everyone updated on Dad's progress.  He's doing so well now - I can't say he's entirely his "old self", but he is really, really close - that I don't know what else I would write.  Maybe I'll just post some pics over the summer, if I get any from them....that's a hint, by the way.  Mom is terrible about sending me pictures, so if you get a chance to visit them this summer, please take a picture and send it to me!  If you do, I'll put it on here. :)

Thank you all again for all of your love and support you've given to all of us and for all the prayers offered up for us over the last 7 months.  It's hard to believe how dire things looked all those months ago when we almost lost him.  Even though the images of him hooked up to all kinds of tubes and machines are fresh in my mind, it's almost like that was another person.  He truly is a walking miracle!

4/24 update

Hi all –

Sorry to be so long between updates.  Life has been pretty crazy lately.  I think I’m going to reduce my updates to once a month.  Dad’s made a lot of progress in the last (almost) 6 months, and things are pretty good at this point.  He continues to improve all the time.  I hear he’s been calling people on the phone a lot more.  BJ theorized that he’s starting to feel that he really is improving, and struggles less to find his words, so he’s more confident and is getting back to more normal activities.  He did see a doctor about his shoulder (not stroke related) in the last couple of weeks, and it looks like he will need a shoulder replacement if he wants to have any lasting improvement.  They gave him a cortisone shot and that has helped.  He’s still having PT for that and his hip.  Other than that, he no longer has any therapy appointments.  He supposedly does exercises in the pool, if you can call it that…..

Here’s a nice pic of Dad with Mom and Aunt Jean at a friend’s birthday celebration.  Everyone looks pretty good! 

On a sad note, yesterday BJ and Heather had to say goodbye to their little buddy Sam.  He was a sweet boy, and had been a faithful furry visitor to Mom and Dad’s these past several months.  He's been a member of the Hall family as long as Heather has; she and Sam were a package deal for BJ.  Even as his 16 year old little body was failing, he still had a lot of spunk and was always glad to see everyone.  Of course BJ and Heather are heartbroken and will miss him terribly.  The rest of us will too.  It’s so hard when they have to leave us..... 

That’s all for now.  I’ll shoot for the end of May for the next update unless something major happens.  If you want to know how he’s doing before then, give him a call!

4/9 update

Dad has been a busy guy over the last week or so.  Yesterday, I believe, was his last day of speech therapy.  He's doing well, but needs to keep working on remembering words.  That's the biggest problem at the moment.  Today he went to a doctor about his hip.  His physical therapist was concerned that he may be having an issue, but the good news is it's just a bit of arthritis.  It's been hard to tell exactly what's been going on, because the stroke did affect him on the right side, and he walks with a bit of a limp.  But, the limp was somewhat present before the stroke, so the PT wanted to get it checked out.  The doctor said everything looks good, and wants Dad to continue having PT to keep it loose and moving.  He needs to get better about doing his exercises in between.  Apparently that has not really been happening.

Tomorrow he sees the neurologist again, and on Thursday he will see yet another doctor about his shoulder. The shoulder has been a chronic problem, and is not stroke related.  He's already been seen for it so this is a follow up.  I'm guessing that doctor will also want Dad to continue with some PT to get that joint moving as well.  

I talked to Dad on Sunday morning for the first time in a while.  He hasn't really been interested in talking on the phone much, so I was a little surprised that he actually picked up.  It was a great talk - almost completely normal.  I was really pleased to hear how much better he sounded.  I think part of that was that it was morning rather than afternoon.  He seems to be able to find his words much better in the morning.  I think he's just too tired by the time 3 or 4 o'clock rolls around.  He did get stuck a couple of times.  Every once in a while he gets a word in his head and it pops in where it doesn't belong.  He asked me about church, which was appropriate, but then the word "church" kept coming up when we were talking about different subjects.  And as we were talking about different people, he called most of them Kristen, but would catch himself and know it wasn't right.  I gave him the correct names and he recognized them.

Overall, things seem to be going pretty well.  Dad is anxious to find out when/if he can drive, but he said he may wait until the fall to pursue that matter.  I think we are all relieved at that!  

I don't really have any good pictures of Dad.  Mom took one of him during Easter dinner at Aunt Jean's house, but he looks like he's half asleep.  So, here's one of Mom and Syd waiting for Dad outside his therapy appointment last week :)

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter everyone!

I hope everyone has a great day celebrating with your family and friends tomorrow.  I'm not sure what plans Mom and Dad have, though I suspect dinner with Aunt Jean will be involved.

Last weekend Mom and Dad got away to see BJ and Heather for the weekend.  That was a nice change for everyone, since it's usually BJ and Heather who make the 4 hour drive to see Mom and Dad.  I hear they had a nice time, and got to see Aunt Carol and Uncle Bob before they headed back to Maine.

One thing they got to experience was the pottery studio BJ and Heather frequent.  They've both really gotten into making their own pottery pieces, and Mom and Dad went along and tried their hand at it as well.  Here are a couple of pics of them in action:

After their weekend adventure, Dad had an appointment with the neuro-opthalmologist to be evaluated for cataract surgery.  The really good news is that his double vision is improving on its own!  And the doctor says his cataracts aren't bad enough to warrant surgery yet, so they'll see him in 6 months to see how he's doing.  Dad has been continuing his physical and speech therapy at the local wellness center.  He is still very frustrated by his inability to remember names of things, and that seems to put a damper on him having conversations with people.  Even with me on the phone, he gets flustered and I have a hard time understanding what he's trying to say, and then he passes the phone to someone else.  He's such a talker, I can imagine how tough this has been for him.  But, we still have a long way to go in his recovery.  Tomorrow marks 5 months since the stroke, and he has come a long way since that day in October.  His PT is working on strengthening his legs, so he's walking better and better.  And the more he keeps with the speech therapy, the better his memory will get.

Again I want to thank everyone for their concern and prayers for Dad.  Please keep praying that he continues to make great strides in his recovery.  We all want to see him back to his old self!

3/22 update

Hi everyone -

Sorry for the late update. I actually don't have much to report. With all their company, it's been tough to talk to Mom or Dad these last two weeks.  I do know Dad likes his new speech and physical therapists, so that's going well.  Mom and Dad are currently on their way to BJ and Heather's for the weekend.  They'll also see Aunt Carol and Uncle Bob sometime over the course of the weekend since they're still in Cocoa Beach.  On Tuesday, Dad will be evaluated for cataract surgery, and I hear he's looking forward to it.

That's all I know at the moment. If I hear anything new, I'll post again.

Have a nice weekend!

3/8 update

Happy Friday all!

Well, I hope the weather where you are is better than it is here.  The local weather peeps said the Boston area wasn't going to get all that much snow, but the foot I shoveled when I got home from work sure felt like a lot!

Dad is having a good week.  I understand he had lunch with some of his cousins earlier this week.  And Mom's sister, Fran, arrived on Tuesday for a visit.  Sounds like everyone has been enjoying themselves so far.  Today Dad started outpatient speech and physical therapy at the local wellness center.  He seems to like the therapists he'll be seeing.  Some good news on the physical therapy front was that he had his left shoulder x-rayed, and they don't see any tear or damage to his rotator cuff.  He's had shoulder pain for a long time and tried to ignore it.  They started working on it when he had PT to help him get stronger walking, and thought he may have torn the rotator cuff in the past.  But it looks like it's just arthritis.  Good to know it's not really damaged, but I don't know how much they'll be able to do about the arthritis.  Maybe with some anti-inflammatories they can get it moving a little better.  It's been a bit of a problem since his right side does have some weakness, so he's been relying on his left arm and leg more.

For his speech therapy, Mom sat in and listened to his session to get an idea of how we can best help Dad when he's not at therapy.  I don't remember if I wrote it last time, but his neurologist says he has anomic aphasisa.  Here's a link to a wikipedia article about it:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anomic_aphasia

So, basically he can usually look at an item and tell you what it does or what it's used for, but he can't find the name.  It's seems to be similar with people.  He knows who people are, but he can't put the right name with the face.  The other day I heard him telling Mom that the dog wanted some mosquitoes.  I'm fairly certain he meant treats, but I have no idea where mosquitoes came from.  Sometimes it sort of makes sense; the word he comes up with can be related to what he's trying to say, but it's just a little off.  Other times, like the mosquito reference, he's way off.  He probably saw a mosquito and the word got stuck in his head.  Overall, he can usually get his point across, but sometimes he gets pretty frustrated.  I can only imagine how hard it must be to know what you want to say but not be able to say it.

Aunt Fran was nice enough to take a picture of Mom and Dad for you all.  This is from earlier today, while they were all enjoying an afternoon by the pool:

Wish I could have been there to take it myself instead of having to shovel!

Have a great weekend!

3/2 update

Hi everyone -

I spoke with Mom a little while ago and got an update.  Earlier this week, Dad had an appointment with his new primary care physician. She wrote the orders for Dad to have continued physical and speech therapy.  This coming Friday he will begin seeing therapists at the wellness center not far from Mom and Dad's condo. Dad has had a problem with his left shoulder for quite some time. It sounds like the PT will be working on that, as well as helping him get stronger and able to walk better.  He also saw his neurologist for the first time this week.  This doctor was the first to see him in the emergency room the day of the stroke.  As far as I know, this is the first time he's seen Dad since he left the ICU.  He thinks Dad is doing great!

Mom made an appointment for later this month for Dad to be evaluated for cataract surgery.  Dad is still considering whether or not he wants to do it, but the reality is that his vision will not improve unless he gets it done.  He has told me he can focus on one person or object in the room, but it takes a lot of effort.  And if there is any movement, he loses the focus.  So, watching TV and just generally looking around is not so easy.  The neuro-opthalmologist says Dad may still have some double vision after the surgery, but at that point they could help that with special glasses that have prisms in them.

Dad has been having lunch most weeks with some local car enthusiasts.  And he's even going without Mom! That's a big step!  She's been dropping him off for a couple of hours, and he calls her when he's done.  It's great for both of them for Dad to be able to get out and do something somewhat independently.

Mom and Dad will be having a lot of company over the next couple of weeks.  Aunt Fran (Mom's twin sister, for those who don't know) will be heading down on Tuesday for two weeks.  And Uncle Bob and Aunt Carol (their brother and his wife) will also be coming to visit while Aunt Fran is there. I know Mom appreciates all of them coming down to see her and Dad.  Moving to a new place where you don't really know anyone is already tough without what Mom has been dealing with these last 4 months.

I still don't have any pictures for you.  Maybe when Aunt Fran is there she can get some of Mom and Dad together.  I'm sure they'll be out and about doing some fun things during her visit!

That's all for now....thanks for continuing to follow Dad's progress!  If you have his number, give him a call.  The more practice he has talking to people, the better!

2/22 update

Hi folks -

Sorry for the delay. I've been a bit swamped since my last visit, and I didn't have a chance to have a real conversation with Mom and Dad til yesterday.

 There's really nothing new to report. Dad's still been having therapy at home, but that may change after next week.  He will be seeing his new primary care doctor and his neurologist next week, and his therapy may move from home to a local wellness center.  He continues to improve physically and cognitively. Today happens to be my birthday, and Mom and Dad sent me a card with a nice note from Dad in it. He clearly wrote it himself.  I took a picture of his closing for you....

Most days Mom and Dad do some errands, see Aunt Jean, and try to get some things done at home. Mom's been able to get in touch with some folks Dad had connected with before the stroke to hang a new ceiling fan and valances in the living room and some new strip lighting in the kitchen. I know she feels good about finally getting back to some of these things they started when they moved in October.  I've asked her to get some pictures of Dad in action while they're out and about during the day, so I will hopefully have some to share with you soon!

2/10 update

Well, it's Sunday, and my luck has finally run out. I'm at the Fort Myers airport waiting for my flight to Boston. It was nice to have a couple of extra days to hang out with Dad without having to worry about all the therapy and doctor appointments.  Dad is extra emotional these days, particularly when we're leaving, so it was hard to say goodbye today.

The past few days have been interesting. After his procedure to remove the feeding tube on Thursday, Dad became very "fuzzy".  It was like he regressed back to where he was a month or two ago mentally. This continued Friday and Saturday, but thankfully seems to be cleared up today. His visiting nurse told us on Friday that this can happen to people with brain injuries, so we just waited it out, hoping it would improve. I'm glad to report that it has!

Yesterday Dad got to visit with his cousin David and his wife Donna, who spend part of the winter just north of Mom and Dad's place. He didn't interact with them too much, but he was still very fuzzy then. I do know he appreciated them coming to meet us all for lunch.

Today before we left for the airport, Dad and BJ spent some time trying to get Dad's old car up and running. I don't think they were successful, but it was great to see Dad out there working on something he really enjoys!  Here's a picture:

I don't have any more trips down here planned at the moment, but I'll do my best to keep you updated with info I get from everyone else!

2/8 update

Well, I was supposed to fly home today, but my flight was cancelled!  Too bad for me, right?  I'm "stuck" here in sunny Florida until at least Sunday.  Thankfully I have some fantastic friends and neighbors who are taking care of my pets and clearing up the snow for me!

Dad has had a really busy week.  He had his feeding tube removed yesterday.  He was definitely concerned leading up to that procedure, and I know he's glad it's finally over.  He's feeling good physically, but we've noticed a bit more confusion yesterday and today.  I'm guessing it's due to the effects of the anesthesia   Hopefully that will clear up soon.

Today he saw the neuro-ophthalmologist.  He said Dad's double vision is only partly due to the stroke.  The bigger problem is he needs cataract surgery in both eyes.  I'm not sure if/when that may happen, but I don't expect it will be in the very near future.  We may be able to help the situation with some new glasses.  We'll be working on that over the next few days.

BJ and Heather arrived a little while ago for the weekend.  BJ hit the big 4-0 yesterday, so we're all looking forward to having some of mom's famous chocolate cake and ice cream tonight!

Hope all of you who are in the path of Nemo stay safe and warm these next couple of days!  Here's a pic of our view tonight :)

2/6 update

Happy Wednesday all!

Well, Dad is one busy guy.  Lots of therapy appointments and doctors appointments, and many ventures out to do errands with Mom.  On Monday, when I arrived, he had a nurse at the house checking in on him, as well as visits from his speech, physical and occupational therapists.  All those visits (and activity, because they work him pretty hard!) wear him out, and he is exhausted by the end of the day.

On Monday I showed him some videos I took of him over the past few months.  He was pretty surprised that he couldn't remember any of them, except the last ones that I posted a few weeks ago.  But I think it was encouraging for him to see how far he's come since the stroke happened.  At the beginning he didn't have the strength to sit up on his own.  Now he's walking all over the place and going up and down the stairs a couple of times a day!

Tomorrow he (finally!) gets the feeding tube removed.  It requires a trip to the hospital and some anesthesia.  He's definitely looking forward to getting it over with.  On Friday he goes to see the neuro-opthamologist because of the double vision he's experiencing.  I know he'll be happy to see better than he can now!

I'm supposed to fly home on Friday, but I heard this morning about a big snowstorm moving into the Boston area that day.  Oh darn....I may have to stay in the 85 degree weather a little longer.  Maybe Dad will come sit by the pool with me for a while! :)

Afternoon update: Dad DID come sit by the pool with me. Here's a pic for you!

2/1 update

Happy Friday everyone!

Well, Dad's been home for the past week and is doing well.  He gets around the condo pretty well, and has been out and about quite a bit.  Lots of doctors appointments this week, and more to come next week to get a few things sorted out.  He saw his neurosurgeon on Monday, and he said Dad is a walking miracle!  Today he saw the GI doctor in preparation to have the feeding tube removed.  That will happen next week sometime. He'll also be seeing an ophthalmologist who will hopefully help straighten out the double vision Dad's been experiencing.

 While he is doing well, Dad is still adjusting to being home and needs to relearn things like how to use his cellphone and the remote control for the TV. He has trouble staying focused, particularly when he's on the phone.  Its going to be a while before his brain remakes all the connections he lost. But it really does get better with each passing day. It has been amazing to see the changes in him every time I visit.  The neurosurgeon said we need to look at this as a marathon rather than a sprint. One year from the date of the stroke will be the point when we have an idea of what, if any, deficiencies Dad may have to deal with on a permanent basis. We have a long way to go before then and at the rate he has been recovering I believe he will conquer all of the difficulties he currently faces.  So if you talk with him and he doesn't seem quite himself, don't worry; it's only temporary!

I'll be heading down for a visit on Monday and will get some pictures of Dad out and about to share!

1/26 - he's home!

Hi everyone!

Today is a great milestone in Dad's recovery! He came home this morning, 87 days after his stroke. Sydney greeted him and Mom when they got out of the car:

Then he headed up the stairs on his own:

And made it into the condo:

Heather got some balloons and cake and sparkling cider for a celebration:

And Mom was able to return Dad's wedding ring to him, amid a lot of emotion on everyone's part:

Everyone enjoyed the day, relaxing on the lanai, soaking in the nice weather.  All in all, a pretty fabulous day, even for those of us who couldn't be there in person :)  Thanks to Heather for all the great pics!

Dad has his cell phone now, so you can call him if you'd like. If you'd like to call but don't have his number, send me an email. Just be aware that he struggles with names, and mixes up his words sometimes. Other than that, he's the same big good looking guy you always knew!

1/23 update - big news!

Today, 12 weeks after Dad's stroke, we learned that he will be heading home this weekend! He is scheduled to be discharged next Monday, but he is just about done with his scheduled therapy at HealthPark, so Mom has decided to bring him home on Saturday. He will be seeing Dr. Alvarez,  the neurosurgeon who operated on him, on Monday, and we expect he will schedule some in home therapy for Dad.  He still has a lot to work on, particularly cognitively, and we want to make sure he keeps up with that for as long as he needs it.

Mom has been working hard to get the condo ready for him to come home. Mom brought Dad to the condo yesterday so his OT, Colleen, could see how he does getting around. He did really well getting up the stairs!  A few more things need to get done, like getting rid of area rugs and installing some rails in the bathroom, but we're excited that its only a couple of days away!!

Thank you again to everyone who has been calling and writing to show your support and love for Dad and for us. We've said it many times, but it's worth repeating; we appreciate you all so much!!

I'll write another update after Dad gets home, and hopefully I'll be able to post some pictures as well!

1/20 update

Hi all -

Just a quick update of what's happened the past few days. Dad and his therapists made a trip to the hospital late last week to work on going up and down a flight of stairs using only one railing. He did very well, and made it up and down 17 steps! That's more than he needs to do to get into their condo, so we're getting closer to him going home!

Yesterday BJ was there for a visit, and he and Dad went out for a ride to Fort Myers Beach and looked at some boats.  Today he and Mom went out to do some errands together, and then had lunch at a local restaurant. Mom brought his wheelchair along, just in case, but he walked everywhere with his walker. It was a lot for him, and he was tired when he went back to the rehab, but he did it!

The therapists may be going to the condo tomorrow to evaluate it and make recommendations of things we need to do before Dad goes home.

That's all for now. Hopefully we'll know more about when he may be going home early this week.

Some special videos

Hi everyone -

Well, it hasn't worked out for us to have our secret special guest blogger (aka Dad, which I'm sure was not hard to figure out!) write a post, so I got him on video so you can all see for yourselves how he's doing!  These were taken yesterday afternoon, 1/15, in his room at the rehab.  I kept the videos short, as he seemed to be able to stay focused pretty well that way.  And you can hear that he has a little trouble from time to time finding what he wants to say, but overall I think he did pretty well!

Here they are:

Video 1

Video 2

Video 3

Video 4

We did test the links and they worked, but send me an email if you have any trouble.

1/14 update

Hi all -

We had a great time on our trip to the Caribbean!  It was really nice to be able to get away, all together, and enjoy a little time in the warm weather.  Here's my favorite picture from Grand Turk:

Dad did well while we were away.  Cherry took great care of him!  Here's a picture of the two of them from this morning:

Mom and I had a meeting this morning with the care team at the rehab facility.  Right now, Dad is scheduled for therapy through next Thursday, January 24th.  He may be coming home after that!  He still has a long way to go with his therapy, particularly cognitively, but he continues to do well.  He's doing very well with problem solving, and math type things but struggles with memory loss, and is still having a hard time finding words sometimes.  Focus is also a problem as he tends to drift off while you're talking with him. But we just keep reminding ourselves that his doctors have said we can't even try to evaluate what permanent issues he may have for at least another few months.  And many stroke patients continue to improve for a year after the event.  Considering it's only been 11 weeks we think he's doing remarkably well.

We still have some logistical things to work out before he can come home, but we're getting closer!  Soon the therapy staff will be coming to the condo with him to see how he does getting up the stairs.

Cherry and I are both heading home to the cold tomorrow.  I'll be visiting Dad one more time before I leave.  If we learn anything new, I'll write another post tomorrow.

1/6 from the Ruby Princess

Hi all -

I'm writing to you from the Lido deck of the Ruby Princess.  We're getting ready to set sail to the Caribbean for 7 days and we're all pretty excited to get away for a bit.  The last couple of months have been tough on everyone.  Mom and Dad's friend Cherry is all settled in at the condo with Sydney.  She'll be visiting Dad everyday and will let us know how he's doing.  He had a good week: Kate and her boyfriend Jason flew down on Thursday and visited with Dad before heading to Ft. Lauderdale for the cruise.  Dad has been working on strengthening his hip muscles this week.  He's been walking with a limp for quite a while, and his PT feels that can get better with some targeted exercises.  He's also been working on going up and down stairs while only holding onto one railing, which is what he'll have to do at the condo when he goes home.

He's improving cognitively as well.  His speech therapist has been working hard to help Dad remake the connections in his brain that he's lost.

That's all for now!  We'll let you know how he is when we get home!

1/2 Happy New Year!

Hi everyone -

Hope you all enjoyed a safe and happy new year's celebration.  Mom, BJ and Heather spent lots of time with Dad over the last few days.  They were able to take him out for a ride each day, and also attended some of his therapy sessions with him.  HealthPark has been keeping him pretty busy; he's had therapy everyday, and hasn't had a day off.

His speech therapist, Betsy, says Dad has a condition called fluent aphasia.  A definition I found online says its a condition in which speech is well articulated and grammatically correct, but is lacking in content and meaning.  It seems to show up in Dad when he can't find a word.  He may not be able to recall the word "pen" and instead ask for a  "gun".  But its not with everything: apparently he can recall just about every detail of his hot rod!  Betsy described some techniques she's using to help Dad reestablish the connections in his brain so he can better remember the names of things.

Physically, Dad is doing really well.  He's walking all around, sometimes with his walker, sometimes without.  BJ sent me a video of Dad practicing getting out of bed and he appeared to do it with ease, maybe even better than before all this happened.

We haven't been able to have the secret  special guest blogger write a post yet, but I'm still hopeful that we can have him/her join us soon, at least for one post.  In the meantime, Kate will be arriving in Fort Myers tomorrow for a visit with Dad before we all head out on a cruise!  I hope to write one more post before we leave on Sunday.  Dad has a special friend going down to hang out with him while we're gone.  His friend Cherry from Brockton will be flying down on Friday.  She will be visiting Dad everyday and taking care of Sydney so we can all be together on the cruise.  We booked this trip in the fall, expecting that we'd all be able to go, and we have all wrestled with whether or not we should go, or if one of us should stay home.  Once we felt like Dad was in a good place, Mom made a call and Cherry came to our rescue!  Special thanks to her for making it possible for all of us to get away and not worry.  Its been a stressful couple of months and we're all looking forward to some much needed R&R!