7/24-8/1 update Lindsey’s Recovery Journey Continues Movie nights with friends at home, ice cream runs, girlfriend dinners, family visits, a day outdoors with friends on the lake, errands with Dad, Rehab work, Rehab work and more Rehab work……..makes up Lindsey’s busy days. Sounds like fun but every conversation, every visit, every worksheet and exercise, every picture, and every step while helping to further Lindsey’s recovery also takes more effort, energy and focus that what we are normally used to. “Why am I tired?” she asks…. Because she’s working over time all the time! LINDSEY – We are so thankful that you have this opportunity to live your life to it’s fullest and as God intended! We’re all praying for you to have strength, endurance, confidence in your recovery and trust that God has a special plan for your future. THERAPY · SPEECH THERAPY - Memory Recovery, Short Term Memory, Cognitive Exercises ü Lindsey is having Speech Therapy 4 times a week now instead of 3 and she has worksheets that she completes at home as well. If you know Lindz you know she’s always been a day planner person. Always planning activities and going to events and keeping track of them and everything else in her Day Planner. So she’s switched from the basic Memory Notebook that we started working on at Mercy Rehab Hospital and she’s using the 2013 Day Planner that she had while in Spain. Yea, one more move back to “Lindsey Normalcy”. ü I know Lindsey is thankful to Joe, her cousin, for the smart phone he gave her because she’s using the facebook app and texting on it a lot. She might not be as fast as she was before the accident but she’s managing and getting quicker all the time. ü Short term and long term memory are steadily improving. Lindsey spends time reading about things that seem foggy to her by looking back on facebook over the past years at not only photos and friends posts, but her own. We’ve made a time line on a poster for the past few years just so that “seeing” the when of certain events in relation to all the more recent events can help Lindsey be more oriented with them. Again, facebook has helped me date events to add to her timeline. We can see that Lindsey is remembering things that are short term much more than she was a few weeks ago. Sometimes it takes a clue but then she pulls it out of that beautiful head and remembers what she did with who and where. Long term continues to be filled in little by little. Overall there are gaps but people, places and events during those gaps seem to be “peeking through” for Lindsey. She will see a face or name from someone in Spain who is “a friend” on Facebook and know that “that is one of my Spanish families’ cousins” and she can point them out in a picture. Who knew that FACEBOOK could be such a memory tool and help piece back something as precious as someone’s memory? I don’t think a day goes by that something, even if just 1 person’s name, doesn’t bring back some tiny part of Lindsey’s memory. God we thank you that her mind is renewing every hour. ü Insightfulness is a term we’ve learned through our short education on TBI’s and Lindsey is very insightful about so many things. She realizes her memory needs help and even comes up with a ideas on how to help on her own. Asking us to start giving her a recap of her day in the evening is 1 example of her problem solving. Putting an app on her phone for her to jot things down she wants to remember is another. Now she’s writing in her day planner. That’s my girl….. an organizer and planner!! · PHYSICAL THERAPY – ü Her PT sessions continue to be more of the same, strengthening, stretching exercises and lots of walking trying various assistance tools. It’s gradual, not fast enough for our girl, but we see Lindsey getting more balanced and stronger every week. She’s also wanting to try and move from 1 area to another by herself. Yes, she can even be sneaky! I’ll hear a noise and find her leaving the bathroom (instead of letting us know to assist her in walking out) via holding on to the sink to the doorway next to it, to the doorway she can reach around the corner, etc. WHOA!!! Gotta be safe – but we understand you want to “get places on your own”! ü We know Lindsey will be walking down the aisle in September for the two weddings she is in, Chelsea’s and Jim’s and then Luke’s and Lindsays. No wheelchair for this bridesmaid! There will be plenty of escorts that will be happy to walk with you for balance and support. · OCCUPATIONL THERAPY – upper body work ü There are a lot of specific muscles exercises to do on her left hand and arm that we are still struggling to find time to do them. We hear and say “doing rehab and getting better is your full time job, Lindsey” and that’s what it takes…..a lot of time and energy. I won’t say ALL her time and energy because we know our girl and being around friends, family and even meeting new people is something she has always thrived on……..so we think it is important to her recovery as well. So we make sure she has time for that as well. Energy? Lindsey needs good sleep, down time for her brain to rest and heal. She’s not used to having to take time for that and has asked me why she’s so tired sometimes. I’m amazed at her stamina really, because if I even have the flu and get up to do something I’m whipped, worn out. After all you’ve been through Lindz? Yes, you should sleep as much as you need to! ü Still taking a mild muscle relaxer twice a day to help relax her left arm. Since the hospital just gave her a 30 day prescription we weren’t sure she would need to continue to take it. Her OT Therapist, Trisha thinks she does. We’ll be seeing her primary and her rehab doctor over the next 2 weeks so they’ll clarify it for us. GENERAL RECOVERY NOTES and WHAT’S UP WITH US · Rick has been back to work full time and doing his Cleaning Business as well, for some time now. He leaves very early in the morning and although he tries to get enough sleep he likes to spend as much time as possible with Lindsey in the evenings and I’m sure it’s hard to sleep with us still up. But maybe this will help…..Lindsey can now whisper. Bet none of us ever thought about “IF” we could whisper. Up to this point all 3 of us would laugh when Lindsey would motion for us to put our ear next to her mouth so she could tell us something quietly and then she would speak loudly. No matter how hard she would try, her whisper voice would just not come out that way! Now, the whisper may not be perfected but IT’S BACK! · I am spending my time where it is needed, with Lindsey. I am fortunate to work with people who understand that Lindsey’s recovery is what matters! They know I want what is best for their business when it comes to my job and I know they want what is best for our family and Lindsey in particular. God has a plan and He has used both Rick and my employers to help us through this journey with Lindsey. · Our family, including Lindsey, is getting excited about Luke and his fiancé, Lindsay Ritter’s, upcoming wedding. We have lots of family and friends gatherings filling up the calendar with showers, bbq’s, etc. We want to thank Luke and Lindsay along with Lindsay’s wonderful family for understanding our focus during these last 4 months and supporting Lindsey during her hospitalization. We are looking forward to helping make September 21st their very special day! · Wow, I have a sink and faucet, a countertop and stove and a dishwasher IN my kitchen!!!! AND THEY ALL WORK! We are so fortunate to have the help from so many to get our home put back together. With their help Rick coordinated the many details and we now have a kitchen that is almost complete. Everything is functional and that is HUGE! What a blessing that we take for granted every day. God, help me not to do that any more….take things for granted! · It struck me today that I have been very introspective since we got home from the hospital these past few weeks. I have not been looking for those in need around me. I have not been reaching out. I have not been asking God to open my eyes to opportunities in the situations we’ve been in. What happened? How can I forget so easily to keep it real and act out our faith? Have my needs become more “manageable” and so my faith and reliance on God become less? And how can I get back on track? I’ve decided that Lindsey can help me. She’s such a people person and has a heart for those in need. So I’m going to ask Lindz to help me SEE the needs of those around us and help us come up with ways to reach out no matter how small. To touch those we are in contact with by caring about them and asking about their lives. What do you think Lindz? · Being home is such a blessing and Lindsey’s recovery is so amazing but I still have fears and anxieties that I’ve pushed down in my spirit to avoid them. Fear of the unknown future. Fear that I won’t be able to do and handle everything the way it should be handled. Avoiding these thoughts has diverted me from the day by day trust in God that I’ve had to have in the past few months to survive. But God wants me to openly show him my fears so that I can rest in Him instead of letting those fears grow deep down in my soul where I’ve pushed them. Those fears will lose their foothold when I quit hiding them because they’ll fade in the light of God’s presence. Quietness and trust will be my strength. That also speaks to me that I need to be “quiet” at times. Lately I’ve been 2nd guessing everything and everyone. That’s hard to live with. Again, it has to do with the stress I’m feeling because I’m not trusting that God’s got this! So daily I need forgiveness for my lack of faith, my over abundance of verbal 2nd guessing and a fresh start. As I look to Him he will show me what to do Now and NEXT…..remember, LET GO AND LET GOD!!!! THANK YOU FOR PRAYING WITH US: v For Lindsey’s long term memory to be restored and that her short term memory will be renewed in a supernatural process and time. We believe this is happening every day because of your prayers! v Lindsey’s balance and strength to normalize so that she can walk unassisted as soon as possible. v Lindsey to feel God’s peace and reassurance as her brain recovers. That God will give her clarity, soundness, memory and stability in a supernatural way, as well as give her courage and confirm her hope that she will completely recover. Lindsey is doing so well staying positive, using humor to give her courage and we believe it is an answer to your prayers. v Lindsey’s fine motor skills to recover speedily so she will have normal vocal “inflection” and ability to write better and more easily use her laptop and phone.. v Rick and I to make the right decisions regarding Lindsey’s rehab and finances. That we have faith, trust and confidence that God will provide the answers and help at the right time. v For us to have peace about all these requests. That I not worry about tomorrow but have faith that God is in control and not take it back to manage myself. v All those that have come to know Lindsey through her accident and recovery journey, whether in the medical field, via facebook or word of mouth, will see God’s hand on her life, know what their part in this journey is (no matter how small or how big) and that it will bring them closer to God, those they love and affect their lives in a positive way
Posted on: Fri, 02 Aug 2013 13:56:32 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015