Friday night
What's new today? Well, first I got to see Linda work with the parallel bars myself this morning. She had an OT session this morning where she worked on pulling herself from sitting to standing, using the bar in front of her. She also did a good bit of just standing behind the bar with a mirror in front of her so she could check her posture. The OT had her remove one hand from the bar at a time and touch her ear, and her balance remained good. She can even remove both hands from the bar and balance for a bit before she teeters over backward (don't worry, we never let her do that).
After 30 minutes of that, we had our morning PT session. Yesterday went so well that they wanted to demo for me. So we wheeled between the bars and helped Linda stand between them. I can report that she really does do the walking without support, and with minimal assistance at all. The process is ordered like this. First slide both hands forward on the bars, so you are leaning forward (making sure your hips come forward too, so your butt isn't sticking out backward). Then shift weight onto one leg. This is often over-exaggerated for the purpose of learning. Bend the opposite knee and lift the foot forward. Then start over and use the other leg.
I can't tell you how amazing it was to watch that. There she was, my slender little wife, dressed in a bright yellow T-shirt and blue jeans. But her back was straight and tall, and she was gripping the bars firmly and concentrating and just doing it. I can't really describe it except to say that she looked strong. You'd almost think she has a spinal column made from steel cable. I've not seen many things in life so simply inspiring. Someone should write a documentary about her.
She ate her first Doritoes today. I couldn't believe it when the speech therapist said we could try it at lunch. I couldn't believe it again at lunch when she was actually eating them successfully. This afternoon was more what I had actually expected. We grabbed another bag from the vending machine, but they made her cough so we put them away. Maybe she was just tired. We can try again another time.
She was a bit down at dinner tonight. I noticed, but I thought maybe she was just tired. Later she finally admitted that she was down, about walking ironically. This afternoon, she got her first walker. It's just like the walker you would expect to see an older person use, except it has platforms for her to rest her forearms on. I think perhaps they were adjusted a little low for her. In any event, it's different than the parallel bars; easier and harder both. Linda found it pretty hard this afternoon, but I don't think she gives herself credit for how tired she was. I reminded her how well this morning went and I believe it cheered her up. Her PT works this weekend, so maybe she'll get to enjoy a bit more success tomorrow. I'm sure they'll work on it.
It's funny how one little hard spot is what you focus on even in the middle of enormous success.
What's new today? Well, first I got to see Linda work with the parallel bars myself this morning. She had an OT session this morning where she worked on pulling herself from sitting to standing, using the bar in front of her. She also did a good bit of just standing behind the bar with a mirror in front of her so she could check her posture. The OT had her remove one hand from the bar at a time and touch her ear, and her balance remained good. She can even remove both hands from the bar and balance for a bit before she teeters over backward (don't worry, we never let her do that).
After 30 minutes of that, we had our morning PT session. Yesterday went so well that they wanted to demo for me. So we wheeled between the bars and helped Linda stand between them. I can report that she really does do the walking without support, and with minimal assistance at all. The process is ordered like this. First slide both hands forward on the bars, so you are leaning forward (making sure your hips come forward too, so your butt isn't sticking out backward). Then shift weight onto one leg. This is often over-exaggerated for the purpose of learning. Bend the opposite knee and lift the foot forward. Then start over and use the other leg.
I can't tell you how amazing it was to watch that. There she was, my slender little wife, dressed in a bright yellow T-shirt and blue jeans. But her back was straight and tall, and she was gripping the bars firmly and concentrating and just doing it. I can't really describe it except to say that she looked strong. You'd almost think she has a spinal column made from steel cable. I've not seen many things in life so simply inspiring. Someone should write a documentary about her.
She ate her first Doritoes today. I couldn't believe it when the speech therapist said we could try it at lunch. I couldn't believe it again at lunch when she was actually eating them successfully. This afternoon was more what I had actually expected. We grabbed another bag from the vending machine, but they made her cough so we put them away. Maybe she was just tired. We can try again another time.
She was a bit down at dinner tonight. I noticed, but I thought maybe she was just tired. Later she finally admitted that she was down, about walking ironically. This afternoon, she got her first walker. It's just like the walker you would expect to see an older person use, except it has platforms for her to rest her forearms on. I think perhaps they were adjusted a little low for her. In any event, it's different than the parallel bars; easier and harder both. Linda found it pretty hard this afternoon, but I don't think she gives herself credit for how tired she was. I reminded her how well this morning went and I believe it cheered her up. Her PT works this weekend, so maybe she'll get to enjoy a bit more success tomorrow. I'm sure they'll work on it.
It's funny how one little hard spot is what you focus on even in the middle of enormous success.
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