March 31, 2010

The nurse said Mom is is doing really well and was worn out from her therapies. When Amelia and I talked to Mom, she was in good spirits even though you could tell she was tired. She is still rambling quite a bit but Johnny and i think it has much to do with her being tired at the end of the day when it is okay for us to call and not interrupt her therapies. Can't wait to see her this weekend!!!!

March 29, 2010

Talked to the nurse and Mom tonight :) The nurse said she is a lot less anxious than last week and that she is doing well. :)
Mom was excited to talk to me, Brent and Amelia as well. Amelia told her "Miss you MiMi". :) I love it. She is still rambling a bit and keeps talking about "Cathy helping me with this and Cathy and I are doing this and that". Does anyone know of any Cathy's from her childhood or lifetime that she could be speaking of? Despite the rambling, she is doing well and we are excited to see her next weekend. :)

March 28, 2010

Mom is adjusting very well to her new digs. The nurses tell us that she has done really well with all her therapies and is usually worn the heck out at the end of the day. In fact, when we called the other night at 6:30 she was heavily sleeping. We usually get to speak to her in the evenings and she seems in good spirits and is ALWAYS excited to talk to us. We of course tell her to keep up the hard work and that we miss and love her VEEERRRRRYYY much.

We are very proud of you Mom!

mwuuaahhh love you!

March 24, 2010

We left out of Baton Rouge at 6:30ish am and called to check on Mom about 7. She slept through the night and was out of bed and starting the routine. :)

Oh, for those who want the address to send her letters or whatever it is:

Touro (W6 Brain Injury Rehab Unit) ATTN: Gaye Rosado
1401 Foucher
New Orleans, LA 70115

Also, you can call the nurses station to check on her if you like 24 hours a day and possibly be able to talk to her if it is between 5:30pm and 8:30pm
504-897-8334

More details on the place tomorrow for I am SUPER tired tonight. But, Johnny and I talkd to the nurse this evening to find out that she did really well the routine and therapies today and were able to talk to Mom to congratulate her for doing so well on her first real day and tell her how much we love her. :)

March 23, 2010

I picked Johnny up at 6:15 and we picked Mom up at 6:30. They had her all ready to go...she had taken her meds and eaten her breakfast. We loaded her in back of the car (child locks on the door and window with Johnny sitting back there with her). I was soooo worried about her anxiety on the trip but to our surprise....she was calm the ENTIRE 5 HOURS! She did SO well with the drive! She did the ramble talk and "where did so and so go" but nothing too bad. We kept her busy with seek and finds and she stayed so calm.
Touro was very thorough and is EXACTLY where she needs to be. She is in the brain trauma unit so she is surrounded by people in similar conditions and Dr.s and nurses spealilized in it as well. They get the patients up at 6 or 7am every morning and give them their showers like in a normal routine and they can not return to their rooms until 4 that evening....like they would a job. They treat getting better AS their job. This is intensive rehab, designed specifically for brain injury and they will adjust her meds accordingly with brain injury type drugs. We met her Dr personally and watched him give her a series of test and answered questions for us.
She did really well with all of this....until it was close to us leaving.....she freaked out! They had to restrain her with a vest while we left to go get her remaining toiletries...she was trying to get out over and over and wanting to leave. We tried to calm her down when we got back 30 mins later and she did somewhat. We explained her needing to be there and she would almost cry and why again and then seem to understand....and then 5 minutes later forget and then the whole emotional topic would have to be explained again. This was tough on all three of us. We left her at 7:30, finally grabbed us some food and then drove to Baton Rouge to stay with Mom and Dad Dooley. Phew. We HATED seeing her and LEAVING her in that anxious and scared state but we know it is the best place for her to be able to come home sooner and have the best brain injury recovery.

We love you Mom and we really hope you know we want the best for you!!! Hang in there!!!!

March 21, 2010

Saturday she and I walked the hallways and did our game playing and her seek and finds. In the beginning she was arguing with me quite a bit about where she was and that she needed to be at work and that the room wasn't her room and someone stole her keys etc. sigh. But once I raised my voice and told her that I have ZERO reason to lie to her and she needs to trust me and Johnny...she did less arguing but still some lol. We had a good time until from 1-3:30 and then Johnny got there and they had a good evening too. They did their normal routines of walking the hallways, eating dinner in the main dining area (Mom had a long conversation with another lady there and she was smiling the whole time). He put her to bed that night and at 1:00am she decided to wander the halls and give the nurses a scare. She apparently she got up and walked down the hall, walked into the laundry area and couldn't get out so she sat down and waited for them to find her I guess. They were looking in closets, rooms, and even had a nurse circling the building outside to find her. WHOOPS

Sunday: Mom and Johnny had a great lunch and dinner together....she ate ALL of her dinner and was less anxious too. He had her walking the halls and having a great conversations. The nurses told Johnny how far she has come thanks to all his hard work with her and mine....but really....it was all Mom.
Goooo Mom we are sooo proud of you.

March 20, 2010

Friday was a great day and evening. She and I ate our lunch together and she ate almost all of it. We played games after that in which she was with it!! She wasn't missing a beat with beating me :) She got upset with me when I insisted on taking her to the bathroom and informed me that she can do it by herself "thank you very much". lol. That evening we ate dinner in the main dining area and she wasn't anxious very much at all. Amelia and Brent came by to see her as wel as Johnny and she was smiling from ear to ear.....she LOVED it. She and I walked the hallways, played more games and did manicures and pedicures. It was really fun and an great mom and daughter night. :)

March 19, 2010

I will post today's lunch date and tonights girls night in tomorrows post....tired. I just wanted to log on and let everyone know that...SHE WAS ACCEPTED TO TOURO and Johnny and I will be taking her on Monday or Tuesday. Oh, and she had a good day and night guys.
Post again tomorrow afternoon....thanks for the prayers and crossed fingers everyone!

March 18, 2010

Today was a much better day....much much better. She ate a good lunch with me today (and yesterday....I didn't update yesterday...oops) and was less anxious. She answered questions correctly and was just all and all more with it. I guess that medicine was all it was. whew. She walked well again today and was able to focus and play cards :). This evening was a good evening for her and Johnny (despite a few arguments and eye rolls from Mom over not getting out of the wheelchair lol).

HEAVY SIGH...we still don't know if she has been accepted to Touro yet. They were still requesting info again today and supposedly we will find out tomorrow. Please put in your prayers this evening for her to get in (and us to find out tomorrow and not be so stressed about what happens if she is denied).

Still so proud of you Mom! We are wanting the best for you and trying our hardest...love you sooooo much.

March 16, 2010

Oh goodness today was another doozy but I do have a funny story to share later in this update. Mom was so impulsive and out of it again today...we could not play cards bc she would ask for the "naked Ace" and just could not grasp the concept you had to have three of the same card to lay down or that you didn't discard. She would just keep saying "okay" and keep doing whatever she was doing...this was with anything today...like getting out of her chair etc. "okay" while still continuing to do it. argh. Ok funny thing: The speech therapist asked her how old I was and she said, "ohhh around 5 or 6 I think" and then she asked her how old Amelia her grandaughter was and she said, "she is 2". The therapist said, "Now Gaye, how can you have a 5 year old daughter and a 2 year old grand daughter"? Mom's response? "SIgh> I guess I should have watched her better". LOL.
Johnny's evening was a little of the same but she did walk the hall for him twice, eat a good dinner and do their routines. She is starting to get back to herself again slowly. WHEW! No news from Touro yet. They requested a little more information today and supposedly good news...so we are praying and crossing our fingers and toes. We encourage you all to do the same. :)

March 15, 2010

Today was not such a good day. She was soooo out of it and we assume it is the medicine. She was not making sense and barely knew who and what was going on and was super impulsive. We couldn't even play our card games or memory games so we just colored. I called the Dr and had it discontinued and he said it will take her a few days to get back on track. She did eat a good lunch for me and a good dinner for Johnny and is looking better so hopefully she will get back to feeling better soon too. We have not heard anything back from Touro other than they are requesting all kinds of things from her file....not sure if that is a good thing or bad but it feels like a good thing...so we will see.

March 14, 2010

Johnny took care of Mom all day and said she seems to be having a little more trouble with balance and with cognition....we are wondering if it might be her new medication causing this. She also has a loss of appetite and just seems to be more confused so I will be calling her new Dr. tomorrow to let him know. Also, I will contacting Touro tomorrow hopefully we will find out everything tomorrow....as in if they will be accepting her and how transporting her will be done. On one hand, she would be less anxious if Johnny or myself brought her but on the other hand, what if she tries to open the door while driving, or grabs the wheel, vomits, seizures, freaks out...anything. It makes sense to have someone used to transporting and possibly CPR certified. We have so many questions for Touro that I can't even type them all right now. If I get a chance tomorrow I will type some of the questions .
Bye for now.

March 12, 2010

Mom had a great day today! My friend Missy came with me to see her and Mom really enjoyed our visit. She is walking so great and she was making good sense today. The therapist said that she had a fantastic day!
This evening was girls night so Johnny left when I got there at 4:30 when we started our manicures and pedicures. It was dinner time after that and she ate a really good dinner in the dining area and then it was off to playing cards (yes she beat me again). She walked the hallway 3 times with no help tonight!!!! She is there...I am telling you....she is there! So proud of you Mom! She was pretty worn out after that and it was off to bed after brushing her teeth.
Whew...big day....a good day and night :)

March 11, 2010

So, let's see Mom got denied to Willis Knighton for a 3rd time. ARGH! The reason...because the Dr. that is assigned to Mom that makes his rounds to the nursing homes/rehabilitation places said that she needs to be at Touro a specialty brain institute. This is the same place that Dr. Nanda mentioned when we went to his appt the other day. It is a great place but the problem is....it is in New Orleans 5 hours away. Sigh. Here is the website.

http://www.touro.com/content/braininjury.htm

Johnny and I talked about it and after thinking long and hard....we decided to try to get her in there. It sucks that she will be that far away but we want her to get the best possible chance to get better. We would be able to visit her every weekend or almost every weekend. We are not 100% that they will accept her but we will know Monday or Tuesday. We were thinking that we would rather her be a specialty place for a few months rather than a nursing home for a year or longer....and at this point I am not sure of what places would take her due to her impulsivity. Please check out the website.

We will keep you posted.

March 10, 2010

What a big day for Mom and Johnny both! He took her to her Dr. appt in which they evaluated her meds and added one to help her be less impulsive and not looking for Amelia/other people. So we will see....her follow up is in 2 weeks. Johnny said the Dr.was really nice and I spoke to him on the phone while they were there and he seemed thorough and really nice. Mom was pretty darn anxious there and looking for Amelia in front of him...which is good for him to see first hand. So, we will keep you posted on how she responds to the medication.
This evening her and Johnny did their routines (since routines are good for her) and so they laid down for a bit after the appt, worked on the puzzle, ate dinner, did the teeth brushing, dance steps and walking (which she did FANTASTIC again tonight).

Everything was faxed to Willis Knighton and waiting to hear back tomorrow....

March 9, 2010

Today was another good day guys! When I got there she was playing Wii bowling and having a good time. Again, she was excited to see me and she ate a good lunch accompanying a good conversation with some nonsense talk thrown in. We went and played our normal card games and memory games before heading off to her therapy. The therapist say she is doing GREAT!
This evening she ate a good dinner with Johnny with only minimal anxiousness. She didn't argue when she is told someone isn't alive anymore like she usually does...she understood. PROGRESS! She walked the entire length of TWO long hallways with zero help before getting tired!! Major progress! She is doing soooo good and Willis Knighton will probably come and evaluate her tomorrow....hopefully...and hopefully accept her.
Also, Johnny will be taking her to her new Dr. tomorrow (yes, they were able to fit her in this week) and hopefully that will go well too.

She is doing so well! Keep your prayers coming guys!

March 7, 2010

I was able to get her a new Dr. and an appt asap (as in this wednesday at 1:30). Johnny called Willis Knighton personally and they almost said they were not even going to come out until he stopped them and pleaded his case, her progress and they will be coming out one more time with new info providing her progress. Fingers crossed and prayers please!
She was playing Wii when i first got there and doing a little better than the last. Her face lit up when she saw me....followed by a "Hey Baby"! She and I had a great lunch (in which she ate ALL of her meal) and great conversation. We played cards and memory after that and she did great. Her evening with Johnny was equally great and her occupational therapist said she is doing FANTASTIC!

Sooooo proud of you Mom!!!!

March 6, 2010

Johnny took care of Mom all weekend on his own since we were out of town and said that she had a great weekend and mainly talked nonsense when she was tired. She ate good meals and walked by herself holding onto the rail and walking behind the wheelchair. Toni and Rod came into town to visit her in which she thoroughly enjoyed. Her memory is improving a little and she is doing sooooo well guys! Now, if we can only get her into a good place where she can continue to shine and impress us.

March 5, 2010

The Dr. Nanda appt went well as far as him saying she was doing well and that he thinks there is no reason for her to not be 100% in like 6 months. He provided no help with the Willis Knighton and in fact almost acted like that isn't where she needs to be. He managed to avoid my 3 mentions about it and Brent's 2 mentions about it. His suggestion was for us to contact her Dr. to have a neurological test done as well as review her meds. Here lies a problem....her Dr. is no longer there and they have not filled his spot. Also, none of the other Dr.'s there are accepting new patients. The referral Drs are either self pay or don't have any openings until June. That Dr.s referral is 65 and older only. She has to have a certain type of Dr. so it makes it difficult. I am still working on finding her one and trying not to become utterly discouraged bc of it and the fact that she is getting booted from her current residence too. ARGH. We might have to ck into out of town neuro places again but don't want to bc we want her to be close....yet want her to have the best care. sigh. If anyone reading this can help or has suggestions or connections....now is the time???? I am still waiting for some call backs and Johnny is checking into having Willis Knighton come out yet again and obtaining information on one of the out of town places.
Please pray, cross your fingers, wish us luck....all that good stuff....we will keep you posted.

March 4, 2010

Today provides both good news and bad news. The good news: It was a great day with conversation with her. She seemed way more relaxed today and focused when we played cards....like she truly understood.what the rules were and what she was doing. YAY. This evening, the walked down the hall without help from Johnny and without holding onto the rail!!!
The Bad news? They are kicking Mom out of the facility! They are giving us 30 days to find another place for her due to her "needing constant care that they are not able to provide". The way they let US know? They told Johnny in a meeting of 8 people and him without them telling me about the meeting...even though the main director and the main administrator saw me at lunch and failed to mention such meeting. Anyways, so now we need to figure out what to do and where she needs to be. We have the the Dr. appt on Friday that perhaps will shed light on our situation...like get us into Willis Knighton??

Here are some questions I will be asking:
What are we to expect in the continued healing process as per rate that she has been healing?
Is everything working properly with her shunt?
Did her falls have an affect on her?
Are some of the things she says and does normal? give examples and make sure we are redirecting and answering her properly.
What are our options with where she should be....Willis Knighton?
Confirm Speech therapist thoughts on her brains inability to process memories and what we can do to help the brain fix that.

This is what we have so far. Pray that it goes well and please feel free to add some questions in the comment area and I will ck it before the Dr. appt.

Thanks and sorry to just now be getting these questions posted.

March 3, 2010

Today was another good day for her guys! She was playing Wii tennis again when I got there for lunch and not doing too shabby! Her reaction time is delayed but can certainly volley a few times back and forth. AWESOME MOM. :). When she got her lunch she told the nurse, 'how much do I owe you hon'? and the nurse replied, "not a thing". She looked at me and said, "Now listen...you are not gonna buy my lunch or my beers...you promise me"? I went ahead and promised hee hee.
Heather came to visit her and so we went back to her room and chatted for awhile and played some memory. She was doing soooo good! In fact, the occupational therapist said she was having HER BEST DAY YET! Soooo proud of you Mom. :)
This evening she did great for Johnny too. When he and she walked the hall like usual...he let her hold on to the rail and walk without him holding onto her...only keeping his hands in front and behind her in case she needed him....in which she didn't! She walked the entire hall holding onto the rail with no help. YAY! She said something to shock him too. She said, "I miss Maleia May" (their dog). Oh, and she remembered Jessica and Mark visiting the day before and the street she currently lives on! I am telling you...she is doing soooo good.
I will post the list of questions I have for Dr. Nanda tomorrow at some point and I would like you all to look that list over and add questions that I may have missed.
All your prayers and her hard work is paying off :)

March 2, 2010

What a great day it was for Mom! When I got there for lunch she was in the silver spoon area playing Wii tennis!!!!! This helps with her reaction time and she was doing pretty good with it too. We ate our lunches before heading back to her room to play memory and cards. She is still pretty impulsive and tries to get up several times during the visit....but it is MUCH better than it was before which was CONSTANTLY. The evening started out fantastic and the more tired she got...it went downhill. Johnny went to a brain injury support group (in which I am so proud of him for...Go Johnny) so it was a girls night. Well, in the beginning it was a big group. Amelia came with me and Jessica and Mark came by to visit with her too. Which she really really enjoyed. Then Brent came by to say hello and get Amelia. It was a good time....she does well with having company...she eats it up. :) SHe even walked with me to walk Jessica and Mark out to the front door. After everyone left, we went and had dinner in the main dining area. This is where it took a turn for the worse. She all of a sudden became obsessed with finding the baby..."oh no...we gotta look for the baby....where is she....where is Michael Jay (my brother who passed before I was born)....have you seen him"? Loudly asking people around her as her knee was bouncing with anxiety. Phew. It is hard to say that someone who passed away 35 years prior was already picked up by someone...or that I have already put them to bed. However, any other response results with argument and more anxiety. sigh Anyway, she would not eat much of her meal bc she worked herself up but she did drink a whole ensure so.... Anyways, we went back to the room, played 2 hands of cards and then she brushed her teeth before bed..as she was super exhausted. She was so sweet when we were talking as she was laying in bed. She is such a kind loving person and I am soooooo proud of her. Keep it up Mom. :)

March 1, 2010

Mom is doing good guys. Her anxiety is still pretty high but she is hanging in there. She has no problem with being given tasks...keeping busy. So, we have her walk the halls with us or play games and she does it no problem. She likes to be kept busy....bottom line. She is complaining a lot about her back pain and I wonder if it all this exercise she is doing now between the physical therapist working with her and Johnny and I working with her. Whew. Nothing much to report except she is better and better guys!