all is the same and all is change.

So here are the things that are the same on October 9, 2010. Two major facts Gabe says to his friends who are away “I still have a brain injury” and “I am still at Brewer Rehab”.

I will add that Gabe is still on course with his rehabilitation. The plasticity in his brain is ever creating new pathways for impulses to finally get from his active brain through the dense Maine/brain wilderness undergrowth to those recalcitrant distant muscles.

Speech is more certain and stronger. Telephone communication more secure. The phone is right by his bedside when you want to give it a try and surprise him. Call Kierie or me to get his new number. With more speech comes our ability to better understand how he is feeling. He and I have started a computer journal of profound thoughts. I was interested to learn from him yesterday that he is newly aware of the passage of time “Time passes by now”. He said this awareness came to him that very day. Coincidentally this morning his seizure medication had just dropped another 250 mg, now half on its way to being eliminated from his med mix. So he is very tuned into the finest of body changes.

His visits outside the facility are taking on a change and complexity thank you very much Kierie. Any wheelchair accessible restaurant with a vegetarian offering is fair game to the two of them. Summer’s surprise 30th birthday party at Fiddleheads in Bangor is an example with their wheel chair stair glide. The personable owner of the local Pakistani restaurant rushes to clear their special table when he sees Gabe line up his wheelchair with the door. Gabe comes home every Sunday and gets out two or three times on other days of the week. “Spamalot”  at the Collins Center was a success even though Gabe had to get there in my Windstar (the Fajita wheelchair van was torn apart in the garage for major fuel injector replacement) and sit for two hours in the less than stellar manual wheelchair. Kierie will soon tell you about their trips to Bangor Forest and Acadia carriage trails.

Of course bike riding is still the favorite therapy. What better way to increase balance, lung capacity, stamina, and coordination. Gabe has tried a few three wheeled recumbents and Kierie is honing in on the perfect one. It will be ordered and here in time for those late fall 45-50 dg riding days. A pre-Halloween event we hope.

When not bike riding its walking that is the next favorite of Gabe’s activities in PT. He is at the point of using one Canadian style crutch (the kind with the forearm support) on his right and strong physical therapist, Belinda, supporting and channeling energy to his weak left side. Less favorite but important, just about every form of electrical therapy there is, is applied daily to his body to relearn the coordination of muscles and nerve impulses: e-stim of facial muscles, left fore and upper arm, left calf and thigh.

Medications are changing weekly as muscle spasticity relaxants are on the increase and brain activity stimulants coming under control so as not to increase heart rate unnecessarily. Seizure meds are dropping out entirely with a nice slow, controlled exit.

The layout of his room has changed to incorporate more central space and a long sideboard style high desk to accommodate computer access. Computer refresher lessons have begun with Tom, a friend whose computer, VJ, and biking interests match Gabe’s.

SO this is just a snapshot without the pictures. Kierie’s broader view into Gabe’s life will soon follow so stay tuned. Keep sending in those cards and letters and plan those fall visits.

Those of you who visit or send your good thoughts and prayers, please keep it up. Your–Our dream for Gabe is coming true.

Fondly,
Donna