Dec 16 (Meeting with Rehab staff)

The meeting with the Orem Rehab's social worker went pretty well.  We discussed a little about Dad's medical and behavioral history before the stroke.  Since Dad seems to complain about pain in nearly every part of his body whenever anyone touches him, he asked if Dad had ever been diagnosed with fibro-myalgia or any other nerve disease.  As far as we knew, no doctor had ever mentioned that to Dad.  We mentioned how he'd been evaluated for pasts strokes and had been given a clean bill of health before, and also all of his previous aches and pains (his back, neck, and knee).

We also talked about what Dad's main concerns were at present, as far as he'd told us.  We said he is definitely mostly concerned about his bowels, his hemorrhoids, his pain in his knee and neck, in that order.  Dad rarely talks about much else than his bowel situation when we visit.  I asked if they could attempt to give him food that would help his constipation, instead of using laxatives and drugs to control it.

We also met with both of the physical therapists who have been working with Dad.  They said that they have seen progress in his "transfers," which means going from wheelchair to standing, from wheelchair to bed, etc.  There has not been much notable progress at all in movement of his leg or arm.  They have been treating Dad's arm with the "shocker" as Dad calls it, and it is literally torture for him, but they feel it stimulates the muscle and could help maintain muscle tone in his arm.  Their plan is to continue with the same treatment, as it seems to be producing some results.  The book "My Stroke of Insight" was recommended to us.  It was written by a neurologist who was stricken with a stroke at age 38 and it took her 8 years to regain full rehabilitation. 

We asked Jeff, the physical therapist who Dad seems to have taken a liking to, about his fall the ohter day.  Jeff was the one who helped Dad to the toilet that day and he is clueless as to how Dad fell in the direction he did.  All we can guess is that Dad was trying to lean to grab the cord of the call button to tell them he was done, and with his balance problems, he over-corrected and fell to the side opposite the cord.

We will have another meeting with these same staff members in probably a month's time.