Saturday morning
Linda is desperate for you to know about her afternoon PT session yesterday. They had planned on doing the Light-gait machine, but on a whim, they decided to do some assisted walking instead. What that means is Fred had her stand up, put her arms on his shoulders, and take some steps while he kept her balance. If you want to know what this looks like, think junior high dance. They went about 12 feet, farther than they intended really.
Since it went so well, they sat on the mat to rest and did it again. The second try was about 15 feet and her steps were slightly better. That is, her form and technique improved. For the third effort, they decided to go as far as she could handle, and I followed with the wheelchair so she could stop wherever she got tired. Well, they went about 40 feet, and really she just got better and better. So, it was very encouraging.
We've been trying to focus on "going home" skills, even though that must still be several weeks off. Obviously, walking is a going home skill, as is almost everything. This morning, Linda and I worked on rolling over. One of the PT students remarked that there are about a billion ways to do this, and no two people really do it the same. In fact the same person doesn't always do it the same way either. So we just parked ourselves on a mat, with Linda on her back, and she gave it her best try.
It wasn't perfectly successful, but I think it went pretty well. Linda can't quite roll from her back to her side without help, but she is very close. I expect all the struggling this morning built some new muscles, so next time will probably be even better. She did lie on her side for some time, just reveling in the feeling. She often lays on her side in bed, but it's not the same because she's propped on pillows and stuff. This was real side laying.
We also rolled to her stomach, which wasn't so great. That's still pretty hard. I know babies usually go from their stomach to their back first, but I don't think it's the same for grownups. After we were done, Linda told me that she never laid on stomach much anyway because it wasn't good for her back. We'll keep working on it anyway. A girl likes to get a backrub every once in a while at least, so it's worth pursuing.
Linda's face and head continue to itch annoyingly. It's probably the single thing that exercises her arms the most. Last night, for the first time, she was able to scratch her face and forehead as high as her hairline. The nurse noticed it when they were doing her shower, and it was cause for a small celebration. All of the nurses kept poking into our room to see her new "trick". Today, she's weak again and can't quite reach, but if she did it once, she'll be able to do it again.
Linda is desperate for you to know about her afternoon PT session yesterday. They had planned on doing the Light-gait machine, but on a whim, they decided to do some assisted walking instead. What that means is Fred had her stand up, put her arms on his shoulders, and take some steps while he kept her balance. If you want to know what this looks like, think junior high dance. They went about 12 feet, farther than they intended really.
Since it went so well, they sat on the mat to rest and did it again. The second try was about 15 feet and her steps were slightly better. That is, her form and technique improved. For the third effort, they decided to go as far as she could handle, and I followed with the wheelchair so she could stop wherever she got tired. Well, they went about 40 feet, and really she just got better and better. So, it was very encouraging.
We've been trying to focus on "going home" skills, even though that must still be several weeks off. Obviously, walking is a going home skill, as is almost everything. This morning, Linda and I worked on rolling over. One of the PT students remarked that there are about a billion ways to do this, and no two people really do it the same. In fact the same person doesn't always do it the same way either. So we just parked ourselves on a mat, with Linda on her back, and she gave it her best try.
It wasn't perfectly successful, but I think it went pretty well. Linda can't quite roll from her back to her side without help, but she is very close. I expect all the struggling this morning built some new muscles, so next time will probably be even better. She did lie on her side for some time, just reveling in the feeling. She often lays on her side in bed, but it's not the same because she's propped on pillows and stuff. This was real side laying.
We also rolled to her stomach, which wasn't so great. That's still pretty hard. I know babies usually go from their stomach to their back first, but I don't think it's the same for grownups. After we were done, Linda told me that she never laid on stomach much anyway because it wasn't good for her back. We'll keep working on it anyway. A girl likes to get a backrub every once in a while at least, so it's worth pursuing.
Linda's face and head continue to itch annoyingly. It's probably the single thing that exercises her arms the most. Last night, for the first time, she was able to scratch her face and forehead as high as her hairline. The nurse noticed it when they were doing her shower, and it was cause for a small celebration. All of the nurses kept poking into our room to see her new "trick". Today, she's weak again and can't quite reach, but if she did it once, she'll be able to do it again.
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