Wrapping Up The Week

Considering all that Jackie has been through recently, it is amazing he has been able to keep up with his therapy schedule this week.  His daily twelve hour wake time has been filled with mental and physical work outs as well as goals to stay in his chair for 10.5 of the twelve hours,  I’m hoping each week gets easier for Jackie.  Coming off two weeks of solid bed rest into this schedule is not a small feat.  Using a basketball analogy, I would equate this next phase of Jackie’s recovery as a full court press.  Pain and fatigue will just be part of the daily drills.

Jackie was up and ready for Speech by 9am.  Becca picked up Jackie and they worked together on eating breakfast.  Jackie ate a little bit of eggs and oatmeal.  He wasn’t that hungry because his nutritional feeds ran all night and his stomach was still full.  The positive part of the eating experience was that Jackie’s swallowing continues to be strong and he openly communicated when he did not want to eat anymore.  Anyone reading this blog for the first time would think this is trivial, but in actually these small victories are huge! PTL. Jackie’s quick wit also emerged during the session.  A sign that Jackie’s personality is starting to shine through.

After speech. Jackie came back to the room. We typically would go outside for some fresh air, but we ended up talking with our nutritionist and some other staffers which bridged the hour until PT. Like clockwork, Erin came in and took Jackie to the gym.  Jim and I took the time to eat an early lunch and figure out how we were going to accomplish everything we needed to do.  Erin and Jackie soon emerged from the gym and Erin said that Jackie had a good workout! She is going on vacation next week and looks forward to returning and seeing all the progress Jackie will be making while she is gone.

A well deserved nap was next.  There were a lot of unscheduled interruptions, but Jackie managed to take a small nap.  Nana had also arrived with some clean laundry and was able to sit with Jackie while Jim and I either took a quick nap or completed some errands.

When Jackie woke up we said goodbye to the young family we got to know three doors down from Jackie’s room.  We really connected with the family and will miss them.  Due to insurance coverage their family member had to move from Magee to a different facility.  These changes are hard.  We lived through some of them ourselves.  Our plan is to stay in touch and someday have a reunion to celebrate recovery.

Paula stopped by to take Jackie to the gym for his last therapy of the day.  Nana went along to watch.  The session was productive! PTL. It is so comforting to know that Jackie is slowly starting to make progress again. Time and patience will help each session build upon the next.

It was now 3pm and Jackie was to try to stay in his chair until 7pm.  After a trip to the second floor terrace and a little bit of TV, Jackie could only make it until 6pm.  He got in bed and fell asleep right away.  About an hour later we woke him  to get him ready for the night.

Overall it had been an incredibly busy week for Jackie; being released from the hospital and getting back into a challenging therapy routine at Magee.  No one said any of this was going to be easy, and it is not.  With each new week should come new strength and resilience.  The weekend is on tap and therapies are planned for Saturday.  Jim and I will work on ways to keep Jackie positive and mentally strong.

We continue to appreciate your positive thoughts and prayers.  We are sure they are helping to guide Jackie through this journey.