aches and gains

Well where is Gabe physically these days? You can see by recent posts that Gabe is pointing, holding, reading, humorizing, raising his eyebrows, swallowing, thinking, looking, giving good hand signals for yes and no and thereby playing twenty questions. “Do you have a pain? “yes”. is it a headache, “no”, point to the pain, ah its your trach where the cover fits over it!!!! And all this time we thought he just liked to hold the trach moisturizing cover away from his trach opening for something to do!!! Aggh!

What has been the evolution physically? Well physically he has gone from a coma where his ever alert right hand was the only body part that was moving. Gotta trace along my hospital gown, along this strange tube , along this feeding line, this pillow case hem… Then a partially open left eye was added, next a partially open right eye, then frowns and raised eyebrows. Then right forearm and upper arm action along with right leg and foot and toes. His head was turned to the left, and only rarely would it turn to the right.

This was the extent of the Gabe field of play until he went to Kentfield. Then the movements got bigger and stronger and in response to challenge. His eyes open wide now. He turns his head to the right by himself and centers it on the pillow for as long as an hour. His lips move in the barest of mouthing of words. His right side is strong, his left side is barely moving but  getting ready to start the action any day.

His PT crew positions him almost daily at the standing frame where, with his lower legs and knees braced in padded supports and head and arms supported by the crew, his body is slowly levered into a standing position where his chest rests against another padded frame and his arms rest in elbow supports with his forearms extended to the front on a chest high mini-table. His firm right hand holds on strongly to the edge of the table. Everyone then says “Gee Gabe, how tall are you?”, because now he is well above us where he belongs.

Friday Gabe, one therapist, and myself were there at the standing frame and Gabe was struggling to hold his head up. Then came the challenge. The therapist said “Gabe, let’s see if you can better your 10 second record of holding your head up by yourself. Chin up Gabe. Look in my eyes!” As that meant Gabe would have to look down instead of up that was a slight problem until the therapist ran up the exercise steps to get to Gabe’s level three feet away. Gabe slowly raised his head and looked him in the eyes. Their eyes absolutely locked. Ten seconds, then 15, then 30, then 45. The challenge kept up and with constant encouragement, with me hardly daring to breathe. Sixty seconds, a minute 15 and finally a minute 30 seconds with Gabe’s head shaking from the effort. The challenger relaxed the bridge between them.

This is big. and today more like it. A first time sitting on the raised PT mat totally unsupported and for 15 long seconds. Head in control, nice lean to the side, propped on one elbow but totally on his own. Fifteen seconds. Now we all know what that means for tomorrow.