Nice Weekend

Trish and Scott spent a nice, but busy, weekend with the boys.

Hunter celebrated his 8th birthday this weekend, so there were parties with various members of Trish & Scott's families.

Trish is getting ready for her second week of out-patient therapy, and looks forward to making more progress on her road to complete independence.

Her struggle continues to be tough, as she still is suffering from a significant amount of pain in her lower extremities. This is very frustrating and does hamper her work on her recovery. The doctors continue to work on this problem.

Trish, Scott and the boys are enjoying the generous support of many in providing their meals. This has helped greatly as Trish transitions back to a more normal life. Thank you all very much.

New Phase Begins

After four full days at home, Trish began her next phase of therapy yesterday at St. Joseph's Hospital's out-patient neuro rehabilitation facility in Phoenix. Scott reported that the atmosphere there was very positive and that Trish reacted very well to her first day.

Her two therapists expected quite a bit from her and acted more like "you can do that yourself". Both Trish & Scott think that this approach will help her progress more rapidly toward the true independence she seeks. Trish will be going to this therapy twice a week for 2-3 hours each day for as much as six months.

Home at Last

Trish was released from the hospital yesterday after almost eight weeks of ICU, surgery and neuro rehabilitation. She accumulated quite a bit of stuff in her hospital room, and it was a major project getting everything moved out.

Now that she is home, Trish can begin the real adaptation process of living day to day. She and Scott are still working to make the major home modifications that are required, but they will improvise until they get these things completed.

I understand from Scott's mom that a lot of wonderful folks have offered to help with meals for the family. This will make Trish's transition a little easier, and will be very much appreciated.

Next week Trish begins her out patient therapy, which will be two days per week. She and her mom decided to drive back to St. Joseph's so Trish can take advantage of the SCI specific treatment offered only there. She will maintain this therapy schedule for up to six months so she can complete her transition to full Independence.

More later ...

Help with Meals

As Trish will be going home later this week, her mother-in-law, Pam Stressman is organizing people who wish to help by providing meals for Trish, Scott & the boys.

If you are interested, please send an email to Pam at pstressman@cox.net to let her know. She will work with you on the details.

Once again, thanks to everyone for the terrific support you have given Trish during this very difficult time.

A Tough Few Days

Well, not all days are good. Trish had some problems the last few days that made this week high up on the "not so good" list.

To make a long story short, she has been knocked out of her chair by some auto-closing hospital doors, as well as a few other problems. She really just wants to go home.

The rehab gang was scheduled to go bowling tonight, and Trish is very upset that she will miss the outing.

Better day tomorrow ...

Almost Fun

Here is a shot of Trish riding the "Stim Cycle". This is a device the therapists use to provide some exercise for legs that otherwise get no muscular activity.

Electrodes are attached to the thighs, and a mild shock is sent to the muscles on a timed basis. The result is that the legs move and pedal the bike. This does not work for all patients, but Trish's legs responded beautifully to the stimulus, and she rode for several minutes.

The primary purpose of this treatment is to help Trish keep the muscle tone in her legs and to prevent atrophy. I think there is also a psychological boost just to see your legs move after so much inactivity (even if you are not really the one moving them).

The last few days have been good ones, and Trish continues to prepare for her eventual release from the hospital and the transition into out-patient therapy.

She really does enjoy all the blog comments, cards and notes, and looks forward to reading your messages every day. Thank you for the continuing support.

Another Week of Work

This will be another week of physical, occupational and recreational therapy for Trish. She continues to hone the physical skills that will help her be more independent when she returns home.

The efforts by the doctors are also continuing to deal with the various accident related internal issues. These continue to frustrate Trish and make the PT work even tougher.

Here she is working with Mellisa, her PT, on making the move from her chair to the bed which has been raised above her. This more advanced transfer skill will be needed for her to "pop-over" from her chair into the chair on the stair lift she and Scott hope to buy. This stair lift, while very expensive and not covered by insurance, will be the key for Trish to live her life both down and upstairs in their new home.

Today Trish will be going out to lunch with the other rehab patients as the RT staff continues to work with the gang to "get out and about" from the hospital.

More later this week ...

Quiet Weekend

Trish & Scott took advantage of a day pass from the hospital on both Saturday & Sunday to spend some time at home.

On Saturday they had some friends over for dinner and enjoyed some relaxing time together. On Sunday they had the boys and also went over to Trish's mom's for dinner.

These trips home are really nice as Trish can escape the routine of the hospital and gain experience with what life will be like at home very soon.

Today she will be back at the PT & OT routine in earnest as this will most likely be the last full week of in-patient therapy. Trish will be concentrating on regaining her balance skills after removing the chest brace, and also wants to improve her ability to "pop-over" from bed to chair, and chair to bed.

Her doctors continue to work on the proper combination and dosage of medications to fight her nerve pain as well as her muscle spasms. This effort will probably continue after she transitions to the out-patient therapy sessions.

Next Steps

After reviewing her current condition, Trish's surgeon ordered the TSLO brace removed. This is a full chest, clam shell like brace that Trish wore every time she was sitting up. It was great to get rid of this thing, but she is now presented with a new set of problems.

The purpose of the brace was to provide stability when Trish was upright and protect her spine at the site of her surgery from further injury. She was originally told that she would need this brace for 8-12 weeks. But with only 5+ weeks passed since her surgery, this shows how quickly she has healed. Now that her spinal bones have fused with the screws and metal rods, there is no danger of further injury to her spinal cord.

With the brace gone, Trish must relearn all her balance and transfer skills. Yesterday, she said she felt like a cork bobbing on the ocean when she sits in her wheelchair. This feeling of instability was very unsettling, but should go away after additional physical therapy to help her regain her balance.

Trish and Scott are now making plans in earnest for Trish's return home. If all continues to go well, she may be released from the hospital in two weeks or less. After release, she will continue her PT & OT sessions on an out-patient basis for several months. She will be traveling back to St. Joseph's from her home in Queen Creek two days per week.

Working Hard

Here is a shot of Trish and Max, one of the other patients that was admitted shortly after Memorial Day weekend.

They are both working on improving their upper body strength, which is critical to their level of independence. Once released from the hospital they will both need the extra strength to get around.

Trish is working extra hard with additional sessions each day so she will be able to both get around in her house more easily, and also transfer herself into her car sooner rather than later. As you know, Trish does not like to sit around very much, so getting into the car by herself will be a really big step.

Parker & Hunter came to visit again yesterday afternoon and shared mom's therapy session in the hospital's pool. Not a bad place to be on a 115 degree day. Today, Trish & Scott hope to go to a movie together with several of the other rehab patients.

And since this is the 4th of July, they all plan on rolling out into the parking garage tonight and taking the elevator to the roof. From that vantage point, they will be able to see 2-3 of the downtown fireworks displays up close and personal.

Making Plans

On Monday, Trish, her mom and I were able to visit the out patient rehabilitation center at Barrows Neurological Institute. It is right down the street from the hospital and is a very comprehensive facility.

We were given the tour by the therapist that would work with Trish if she chooses to go there when she leaves the hospital in 3-4 weeks. The main attraction of this facility over the ones available in the east valley is the staff of therapists. They are the only ones that are specialists in spinal cord injury (SCI) rehab. While several of the other rehab centers have therapists that work with neuro rehab, they are really generalists.

Trish, Scott & her mom will make the decision on which center to attend based on the quality of the services, and the travel time required. Once released from the hospital, Trish will need to continue her therapy as an out patient 2-3 days per week for several months. Each session will be anywhere from 1-3 hours in length and will continue her program of strength training as well as occupational skill building (living life).

More later this week ...