Nov 7, 2006
Today Gary made his first transfer to the futon – the idea is for him to do his stretching there. Because it was a new surface for him to transfer to and from, I “helped” him by holding his hips, but I really didn’t have to give him any help at all. I had to pad him off and put the chain loops around one foot, and then the other foot after he had gone through his exercises with the first leg. Before this, I was basically stretching his legs for him as there wasn’t enough room on the hospital bed for him to maneuver his legs around. So, another step in his independence.
Nov 8, 2006
After Gary transferred into bed this evening, he told me that his therapist had a trainee at rehab and that they had discussed his case while he was doing his exercises – he said he found it weird to have them discussing him while he was right there. I asked him what the therapist had told the other person, and Gary mentioned things like how his balance has improved a great deal and he is stronger, things like that. I guess this must have set him to thinking back on things, because he then commented that when he was in the hospital in Birmingham during those beginning days, the thought of being on an exercise mat was scary. I didn’t understand and asked him to explain. He said that a PT had come and seen him there a couple of times but didn’t really do anything with him, saying she couldn’t do so until they got him on a mat – so he knew that would be part of rehab. But he had found it scary to think of having to use such a small proportion of his body (from nipple level up) to move the all the deadweight (below nipple level). He said that when he was just lying in the bed in the ICU or in the nursing unit, he didn’t have to think about it – one doesn’t move about much in bed anyway. Though he is now used to it, he found it hard to think of the “stuff” below his nipples as part of his own body – it felt like someone else’s.
Nov 9, 2006
The new housekeeper, who said she absolutely was still interested in working for us and would be at our home today at 1 pm, was a no-show (Peg crosses her eyes).
Today Gary made his first transfer to the futon – the idea is for him to do his stretching there. Because it was a new surface for him to transfer to and from, I “helped” him by holding his hips, but I really didn’t have to give him any help at all. I had to pad him off and put the chain loops around one foot, and then the other foot after he had gone through his exercises with the first leg. Before this, I was basically stretching his legs for him as there wasn’t enough room on the hospital bed for him to maneuver his legs around. So, another step in his independence.
Nov 8, 2006
After Gary transferred into bed this evening, he told me that his therapist had a trainee at rehab and that they had discussed his case while he was doing his exercises – he said he found it weird to have them discussing him while he was right there. I asked him what the therapist had told the other person, and Gary mentioned things like how his balance has improved a great deal and he is stronger, things like that. I guess this must have set him to thinking back on things, because he then commented that when he was in the hospital in Birmingham during those beginning days, the thought of being on an exercise mat was scary. I didn’t understand and asked him to explain. He said that a PT had come and seen him there a couple of times but didn’t really do anything with him, saying she couldn’t do so until they got him on a mat – so he knew that would be part of rehab. But he had found it scary to think of having to use such a small proportion of his body (from nipple level up) to move the all the deadweight (below nipple level). He said that when he was just lying in the bed in the ICU or in the nursing unit, he didn’t have to think about it – one doesn’t move about much in bed anyway. Though he is now used to it, he found it hard to think of the “stuff” below his nipples as part of his own body – it felt like someone else’s.
Nov 9, 2006
The new housekeeper, who said she absolutely was still interested in working for us and would be at our home today at 1 pm, was a no-show (Peg crosses her eyes).
posted by Peg Daniels at 7:45 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home