This Was a Great Day

Hi folks,

Today’s title was specially requested by Doug himself. The main impetus for this proclamation is that he’s going home, finally! Tomorrow (Saturday) he’ll be going home for just a while, then coming back to the hospital. By next weekend though, Doug’ll be out for good. He’ll go back to MossRehab three days a week for intense physical therapy but will otherwise be at home. Earlier in the week he also made his first “field trip” away from the hospital, back down to HUP for some scans. Needless to say, Doug was happy to leave the hospital grounds even for just a bit, and ecstatic to hear that he’ll not only be able to visit home this weekend but will be there for good next weekend.

He also no longer has a wheelchair, and is walking around on his own. At his request, the hospital gave him his daily rehab schedule, and he’s been in charge of making sure he makes all his appointments. They haven’t been sending nurses around to fetch him or anything. Conversation has also improved, he’s much more involved and engaged. Current plans are for his cast to be removed July 11. The wrist is fine, the finger is still healing.

So, this is all great news, but there are a couple things I should point out. While Doug physically doesn’t need to be in the hospital anymore, he still has a lot of work to do. Even though he’s going home, he’s not going to be back at work, school, riding, or even hanging out normally in the very near future. There’s still a long healing process remaining, to improve on issues like concentration and memory retention. He’s also still not quite in the same frame of mind as before the accident, for example he doesn’t seem to be taking any interest in art or looking out windows, which is unusual for him.

Despite all that, things are still looking up. In addition to leaving the hospital, he’s started  to identify problems for himself that he has to work on. For example, it seems to have finally clicked for him that he can’t yet follow conversations quite like normal. He himself pointed out recently that he still can’t really talk with more than one person at a time, and can’t focus if the radio or TV are playing. All of that’s normal, but this is the first he’s had real recognition of it. He has also been asking and talking about his risks in the future. That was a surprising thing for him to bring up and a good sign that he’s looking ahead. Just so everyone knows, one of the things that Doug’s going to have to live by from now on is that he absolutely cannot drink alcohol. There’s a good chance that doing so would cause a seizure. He’s also going to have to seriously evaluate his activities. Long story short, the probabilities and risks involved in another head trauma would not be good.

But, despite not seeming to take the same interest in art and the world around him as before, he has expressed interest in playing guitar and writing songs again. Also, he’s started reading back entries of this website via a computer on the first floor of the hospital and has taken real interest in it. He really appreciates everyone’s comments, and is visibly amazed at all the people that remember him and have been following along and wishing him well. Later this week we’re going to work on him posting something and setting up something for him to talk about his experiences.

Doug’s also still very keen on riding his bike. The current idea to make this happen are for him and Jen to ride on a tandem. His’s doctors have approved this, and the basic plan is for Doug and Jen to ride on a stationary at the hopital a few times so his therapists can evaluate the situation. If all looks good, they’ll then hit the road and get out for some fresh air and exercise. That sounds awesome, but there are a few things we need to work on. None of us have much experience with tandems, so if you can answer our questions or help out in any way, please let us know. Some questions we have are: Is there somewhere or someone from whom we can rent or borrow a tandem? Also, will it work on a trainer or is the weight too much? Finally, what sort of a rack do you need to transport it?

So, that’s about it for now. Please feel free to stop by the hospital anytime during visiting hours. Chatting with all his friends that have come by the past few weeks has clearly been the highlight of Doug’s days, and it’s really good mental exercise for him to be engaged and talking. Finally, Douginator: There’s some chance you’ll read this before I see you again. If you do, keep it up buddy and I’ll see you soon!

– joe