Had another great weekend with good company and of course, my amazing parents. You never really realize all you have until something happens that challenges you and your relationships. I've always been really close with my friends and especially close with my family, but somehow, this whole experience has strengthened all those relationships in a way I didn't know was possible.
On Saturday, my parents and I just hung out in the lounge, which is where we eat breakfast during the week. I always find myself in this room because I love to sit in the sunshine that comes through the windows. It's the only place in the building that I've found to have a good view and the warmth of the sun. We played games, ate food from home, made bracelets (which I'm giving out as Christmas presents), and Dad even walked down the street to bring back Starbucks.
I always sit still and try moving my legs, feet, or toes...I read that if you focus on it enough, it helps your brain make the connections. At one point, Mom looked over at me and asked what I was doing. I said "nothing...." and she replied with "are you trying to move your quads because I can see them contracting." I couldn't believe it. I mean, I've tried this several times a day ever since I got to rehab and I thought I was seeing the slightest movement, but wasn't sure. I even tried to trick her and asked if she could still see it when I was no longer trying, but when I wasn't trying, she couldn't see it. This really lifted my spirits on Saturday.
Mom also went through a journal that she had kept and written to me since I got sick. She documented all the ups and downs (unfortunately, there were more downs in the beginning). It's been a little hard for me to appreciate how far I've come at times because I don't really know how close I was to losing my life. I don't remember the whole month of September, so when people express how happy they are that I'm okay now, it's not something I handle as easily (there's still so much wrong, how can people consider this "okay" is that I'm usually thinking). I'm just impatient that I'm not 100% better already. Going through the journal and a calendar to document all that has happened in the last few months reinforced how lucky I am. Like Mom says, my body really has been through hell, and it's going to take quite some time to recover. I just keep praying that I can remember this when I start to get frustrated with what feels like a slow paced recovery.
On Sunday, I had an extra PT session where we did the glider again. Believe it or not, it went even better than Friday! I was able to push more with my arms, take less breaks, and stay up for an extra 5 more minutes. Caroline, the therapist I was working with, thought she could see some of the muscle contractions while I was sitting (this is new because they've only really been able to see a little bit of left quad contraction only during weight bearing exercises...not in the right and not sitting down). While I was doing the glider, the muscle contractions became more apparent, and Caroline even thought that the right was stronger than the left! Afterwards, she checked again and felt some hamstring and ankle movement, so I was over the top with excitement.
My tentative release date is Dec. 10, but now I really want to ask for another week since something is definitely starting in my legs!
Besides watching the Redskin's awful performance, Sunday was great. We got more Starbucks and even made it to open art studio so I could work on another one of my canvases. It's going to be someone's Christmas present, so a picture may not be posted for awhile.
Annie, Matt and Nick came by Sunday evening, making it an even better day. It was fun to just talk and watch tv, like we would've done at the house. They mentioned how the sermon at church that morning was something I would've really been able to relate to and told me that the church actually loads them onto the computer, so I'm looking forward to listening to it once they put it up. Before they left, Nick led us in prayer, which meant a lot to me. I'm so blessed to have people like them in life to keep me uplifted and focused on how far I've come and what God is doing in my life. It's like one of Christy's words of advice- surround yourself with people that will uplift you and ask for prayer.
My parents had to leave just a little bit earlier than usual because they had to drive to DC to pick up my aunt who was coming in from Australia. Our small Thanksgiving get together at Magee Rehab has turned into a big celebration! My aunt from Australia, my aunt and uncle from New Hampshire, my parents, my brother, my grandma, Dusty, and Stephanie are all planning to be here this week and I couldn't be more excited. I've also invited anyone I can on my floor, just incase they don't have any visitors that day. I know it'll be a day to remember and we all have so much to be thankful for.
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