Out on the town
Our funnest news of the day is that we went out this morning. We were out for about two hours. Linda didn't know exactly where she wanted to go, but she had a few ideas. We started by going to Boone Hospital Center which might not have been every person's first choice. I took her in through the lobby which she, of course, had never seen. I showed her the coffee bar and the computer with the chicklet keyboard where we would compose updates for the blog.
Then I took her up to 4th floor. We visited the nurses desk where Linda had stayed after being in ICU. Many of the nurses recognized us and came over to express surprise and delight over Linda's progress. They were all strangers to Linda, but I think she enjoyed all of the well-wishing.
She wanted to see ICU as well, so we wheeled over. I showed her the waiting room, and told her how no one ever used it. As usual there was a whole slew of furniture in the hallway. I showed her how you have to pick up the phone and ask to be let in. I picked it up and asked if any of the nurses on duty had treated Linda Bindner a month ago, and after a moment they buzzed us in.
Now if you think the nurses on the floor were pleased with Linda, you can imagine how much these people were stunned. They had seen her at the worst, so having her come in, say a few simple words, and just generally be a real, alert person was impressive. They told a few stories about how I would come in and sit with her when she was sick. It was all news to her, of course. She didn't remember the room or the people or the events. But I think she was pleased to have visited.
We finished with a run past the cafeteria then back through the lobby.
After Boone, we went to a small coffee shop called "Coffee Tea and Spice" and ordered some coffee. It's very near Rusk, and we sat for a bit. I brought Linda's portable communication board which turned out to be helpful. I still can't understand a lot of what she says yet, but we were able to visit a little by spelling.
She seemed very unconcerned with being seen in a wheelchair or being effectively unable to speak (of course we were the only customers in the shop). Perhaps it's like breastfeeding. You wouldn't normally bare yourself in public, but compared to having a child and all that goes with it, that seems like something pretty silly and inconsequential to worry about.
In other news, Linda used a straw for the first time last night. She has a hard time generating an initial vacuum to make it work, but once she gets it, she does pretty well.
Her eating is incrementally improving. At the suggestion of one of the speech therapists, I ordered French cut green beans (not puree) today to see how Linda would do. It seemed to go well, and I expect her regular speech therapist will be open to trying other soft foods like macaroni and cheese or soft desserts. I think they may also start letting her have some thinner liquids.
After dinner tonight, Linda and I did what was probably an OT exercise. I put a fat pen in her hand and asked her what she was able to write (I was supporting her elbow the way they do at dinner). If you help her move her arm, she has enough hand control to mark in a box. She can't necessarily make a full X although sometimes she does pretty well. She did make a recognizable LINDA in block letters (although you would only recognize it if you know what she was writing). I dated it and put it in my scrapbook "Linda's signature 3/20/04."
I congratulated her. I said she can now enter into written contracts. She could get her own apartment and decide she's done with me. I don't think she's really considering it.
You'll want to read this:
One other big piece of news. There is now something of a culprit as to the cause of the stroke. The doctor at Rusk ordered some more obscure blot clotting tests and it turns out that Linda has an elevated level of clotting factor number 8 (I know no more than you about this). This is probably responsible for the clotting problems in her family history, and the doctor suggested that her close family members be tested. I forgot to ask what we should do about Ellie in this regard, since she is so young.
I asked the doctor why she would have gone so long without problems having been a heart patient, mother, and so on. I asked if he thought long hours doing the sedentary work of university life might be a factor, but he really couldn't say yes or no to that. I know she has had less time to exercise because of her work and family, but I suppose there's no way to know if that made a difference. She'll be treated for the clotting problem now that it has been identified; it should be similar to Sarah's treatment.
Our funnest news of the day is that we went out this morning. We were out for about two hours. Linda didn't know exactly where she wanted to go, but she had a few ideas. We started by going to Boone Hospital Center which might not have been every person's first choice. I took her in through the lobby which she, of course, had never seen. I showed her the coffee bar and the computer with the chicklet keyboard where we would compose updates for the blog.
Then I took her up to 4th floor. We visited the nurses desk where Linda had stayed after being in ICU. Many of the nurses recognized us and came over to express surprise and delight over Linda's progress. They were all strangers to Linda, but I think she enjoyed all of the well-wishing.
She wanted to see ICU as well, so we wheeled over. I showed her the waiting room, and told her how no one ever used it. As usual there was a whole slew of furniture in the hallway. I showed her how you have to pick up the phone and ask to be let in. I picked it up and asked if any of the nurses on duty had treated Linda Bindner a month ago, and after a moment they buzzed us in.
Now if you think the nurses on the floor were pleased with Linda, you can imagine how much these people were stunned. They had seen her at the worst, so having her come in, say a few simple words, and just generally be a real, alert person was impressive. They told a few stories about how I would come in and sit with her when she was sick. It was all news to her, of course. She didn't remember the room or the people or the events. But I think she was pleased to have visited.
We finished with a run past the cafeteria then back through the lobby.
After Boone, we went to a small coffee shop called "Coffee Tea and Spice" and ordered some coffee. It's very near Rusk, and we sat for a bit. I brought Linda's portable communication board which turned out to be helpful. I still can't understand a lot of what she says yet, but we were able to visit a little by spelling.
She seemed very unconcerned with being seen in a wheelchair or being effectively unable to speak (of course we were the only customers in the shop). Perhaps it's like breastfeeding. You wouldn't normally bare yourself in public, but compared to having a child and all that goes with it, that seems like something pretty silly and inconsequential to worry about.
In other news, Linda used a straw for the first time last night. She has a hard time generating an initial vacuum to make it work, but once she gets it, she does pretty well.
Her eating is incrementally improving. At the suggestion of one of the speech therapists, I ordered French cut green beans (not puree) today to see how Linda would do. It seemed to go well, and I expect her regular speech therapist will be open to trying other soft foods like macaroni and cheese or soft desserts. I think they may also start letting her have some thinner liquids.
After dinner tonight, Linda and I did what was probably an OT exercise. I put a fat pen in her hand and asked her what she was able to write (I was supporting her elbow the way they do at dinner). If you help her move her arm, she has enough hand control to mark in a box. She can't necessarily make a full X although sometimes she does pretty well. She did make a recognizable LINDA in block letters (although you would only recognize it if you know what she was writing). I dated it and put it in my scrapbook "Linda's signature 3/20/04."
I congratulated her. I said she can now enter into written contracts. She could get her own apartment and decide she's done with me. I don't think she's really considering it.
You'll want to read this:
One other big piece of news. There is now something of a culprit as to the cause of the stroke. The doctor at Rusk ordered some more obscure blot clotting tests and it turns out that Linda has an elevated level of clotting factor number 8 (I know no more than you about this). This is probably responsible for the clotting problems in her family history, and the doctor suggested that her close family members be tested. I forgot to ask what we should do about Ellie in this regard, since she is so young.
I asked the doctor why she would have gone so long without problems having been a heart patient, mother, and so on. I asked if he thought long hours doing the sedentary work of university life might be a factor, but he really couldn't say yes or no to that. I know she has had less time to exercise because of her work and family, but I suppose there's no way to know if that made a difference. She'll be treated for the clotting problem now that it has been identified; it should be similar to Sarah's treatment.
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