Well, that's the verdict. Rehab says "get ready for discharge". Bob is showing "no functional improvement" so he's being cast out. He's flunked, if you will. One more week of therapy and that's it: this is the end, my friend.
Wow. Even though I was half-expecting this, I still cannot believe it's happened. Around here, everyone is talking about the big Casey Anthony trial in Orlando, but it feels like this week it's been Bob on trial. And the verdict is not so good. His sentence: LIFE in a wheelchair.
And where does that leave us? Bob still can't lift his own butt out of the wheelchair, he has to be lifted. He can only stand hanging onto a bar. He can walk in the parallel bars, but not outside of them and even then, someone has to catch his right foot when he places it wrong. He can't even sit up at the edge of the bed, I have to pull him up and then, once sitting, he begins to wobble and I have to steady him.... And we still have to use the slide-board to transfer him from bed to wheelchair and vice versa. And I just can't believe he's being discharged from therapy like this---I mean, I never expected this, when he started Rehab I figured he'd at least be hobbling around a bit with a walker or something before they discharged him....
So once again, it's all on my shoulders. And I've been going back and forth (in my mind) trying to figure out the next step. Couldn't sleep at all last night, my mind reeling: What to do? What to do? Because, you know, I'm not about to give up. So, screw the therapists! They might have the practical know-how and the experience and equipment, but I've got one thing over them: I love this guy!
So, I'm thinking I need a plan. Here's what I've come up with so far:
Plan A: Pray for a miracle. That Bob will rally 'round and show them some "functional improvement" in the next four sessions. OK, this is a long shot, but miracles have happened to him before.
Plan B: Take a bit of a break from therapy and see his doctor next month. Maybe we can go to a different rehab center? (Will the insurance allow this? God only knows. But I'm told that folks some times "take a break" and return to therapy, so there must be a way to do this...)
Plan C: Turn the Pink House into Bob's personal gym. Easier said than done. Especially with no cash to speak of.... But I'm thinking, for starters, that maybe I can get a grab bar installed along the wall in the hallway and Bob can hang onto that for walking practice. This is a bit scary, as what happens if he falls? At Rehab, they always have two people there for him and I, of course, am only one person.....
So back to Plan A. I walked Boomer early this morning and we took a little detour and paid a visit to the Our Lady of Lourdes shrine behind a Catholic church near our neighborhood. There, I said a little prayer for a miracle.
What can I say?
3 comments:
Diane: This post is heartbreaking. If I get a vote, I say Plan C. Bob is already working 24/7 to regain his previous abilities - and you are right there doing it with him. Why not surround yourselves with tools to help him heal? I agree that the grab bar might not be the best first step (so to speak), although, if you start with him walking a distance you know he can already do safely, the chance of him falling is less. Then he can practice going along it and the distance can be increased as his ability increases.
And, please remember how important it is to have one good laugh and one good cry every day, as my best buddy says. She also tacks on "yet" whenever I say I can't do something. So Bob can't walk yet.
Bob is so blessed to have you as his advocate and fiercest supporter. I. too, believe in miracles and it seems to me that YOU are Bob's miracle.
keep trying to do your exercises. I was one of the stupid ones,who quitwhen the PT people said they couldn't help me any more. So i quit also.
I definitely hope something works for you!
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