Wednesday Already?

 

Remember the phrase "time flies when you're having fun" well today I can say it and know we have been having fun.  The long days at the hospital days now seem to fly by quickly at home.  Sam has been home five days now and is adjusting to the freedom that being home brings, such as making his bed, unloading the dishwasher, and getting his own breakfast cereal.  He likes the independence but takes breaks afterwards.  What we might consider a simple task can be taxing to someone recovery from six weeks in the hospital after a brain injury.  This afternoon we emptied a small pond we have in the backyard with Sam running the vacuum while Cameron and I did the heavy stuff.  Sam went in to take a break when we were done.  His body is having difficulty adjusting to temperature changes like when exerting himself he gets hot fast easier and he gets cold fast when the air conditioning is on and then needs to put on a sweat shirt. 

 

Sam is doing great.  He no longer forgets to put on his helmet to get out of bed or to do anything that is not in the prone position.  Sometimes it appears as though his recovery has slowed down until I really watch him and see the baby steps that are progress, just the task of getting his own breakfast is awesome, Step 1 get bowl, Step 2 get cereal from the correct cupboard, Step 3 pour cereal.  Well you get the idea.  It wasn't all that long ago that any task that required more than a couple of steps he had to stop and think about it before continuing on.  Everything we do on an everyday basis requires many continuous steps that our brain processes and tells our bodies to do.  Until Sam's accident I took that for granted as I suspect a great many of us do.  Sam has recovered enough that he sees when his body and brain are not processing in sync and frustration sets in.  He is talking to both Cameron or I when this happens and being the mellow kid he is we help him to understand why this happens and how to cope.

 

He so wants the bone panel back in so he can feel normal and not have to wear the helmet.  Our next appointment isn't until early October so pray for his patience at having to wait possibly another month before this happens.