Cast Back On

It was one of those mornings that I wish I could have let Jackie sleep in. He is woken up three times during the night for nursing checks or meds so getting him up for the day is hard especially if he is sleeping soundly, and today was one of those mornings. By the time he dressed, received morning meds and talked with Dr. K it was almost time for speech. He had jut started eating when Becca came in. She finished breakfast with him and then worked with him on clear pronunciation. She gave him pictures and without her looking, he had to describe the picture so she could guess what it was. Becca could understand most of what Jackie was saying and coached him to speak clearer and louder for the words she couldn’t understand. This may seem somewhat elementary, but is proof that Jackie’s verbalization is coming back. PTL

It was now time for PT and the team decided another cast was needed to continue to stretch the muscles in the left leg to the proper position. This cast will stay on until Tuesday and then will be cut off and used as a brace. We were now back to using the power lift again for the first 24 hours as Jackie was not to put any weight on the left leg.

Jackie was hungry and couldn’t wait until the lunch trays were brought up to the floor so he had a Magnum ice cream bar as an appetizer and then ate his lunch. He rested but did not sleep and then got ready for OT.

Paula finished her evaluation of the new left arm brace and decided to move forward with placing an order. The brace will really help Jackie’s left arm and hand stay in a position to help relax the muscles that continue to be tight and pull up the arm. Paula also worked with Jackie on his fine motor skills as they worked on a writing project together.

Back at the room Jackie wanted to watch ESPN prior to dinner. After he ate we helped him get in bed early since we wanted to elevate his new cast. Jackie fell asleep watching the Flyers.

“Although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it.”       ~Helen Keller