We're Back!

Dear Friends,

So sorry that I haven’t written since Bob’s surgery but January and February were very difficult months for us. As y’all know, Bob’s surgery went well and he seemed to be recovering without hitch when  he had a localized seizure. The ER docs put Bob on an anti-convulsant which had the side effect of depressing his brain’s cognitive, language, and motor functionality. So for the past month, Bob had extreme difficulty generating any kind of responses outside of “yes or no”, he couldn’t get out of the “thick fog” the meds put around his brain, and he wasn’t able to generate phrases or sentences. His spirit was so sad and he was terribly depressed (another side effect). Everyday, he would shake his head, as if he was trying to clear it, and ask me, “What’s wrong with me?” All of this ALMOST sent me over the edge and I, too, was sad and frantic.

But we have good news! The angels do look after us. After a few phone Skype conversations, my twin hopped on the next jet out of Seoul (yes, Korea) and moved back into our lives and my, oh, my, changes have occurred! We’re doing much better now.

First, Shadi insisted that we take Bob to Dr. B. (his original stroke/rehab doc) and Dr. B seemed to think that Bob’s seizure was the result of medications (anesthesia) and not the stroke or surgery. So, the good news is that Bob is now OFF the anti-convulsant  and WHOO-HOO! My old Bob is back! He’s talking more and generating sentences and phrases again AND we’re having little conversations again. (He even called me a “pain in the b--- “ the other night.)

Shadi will live with us until June 30 when I’ll have finished my 30 years in public education and will be able to focus my life on Bob. (THANK YOU, Dr. Bill Letson for sharing your wife and Shadi for sharing your life! We love you and owe you! There’s nothing like family!) I'm not sure that I know how to retire fully so our hope is that I will be able to work part-time to cover insurance and yet spend most of my time helping Bob fully recover. We may be asking for a little help from our friends. HA! 

Bob is on a tight schedule of OT, PT, and speech at rehab and home and he’s showing incremental improvements especially in PT and OT daily. Speech is still a challenge but he amazes us every day!. Lisa, his PT, has Bob on a treadmill (yes, treadmill) and Rachelle is working hard to activate his arm. One of his daily exercises is to put his arm around me daily. I like that!

More later. Much love to all!

Warmly,

Sharon