He got dressed up in one of his new collar shirts (from Rush of course) and put on jeans ... he was so excited to be out of his athletic pull-up shorts. We took him in his wheelchair down to the main entrance to the hospital and then he got into the car on his own and buckled his seat belt. You'd think he'd done it yesterday. It was so nice to have the whole family in the car and look back and see both boys in the back seat, it's been a long time. We didn't take the wheelchair or walker with us, Todd just assisted him while he walked from the car into the restaurant. Here's a short video of their walk: http://youtu.be/HnLHhAXoy78
We discovered a few things we hadn't even thought about. For the past 10 weeks, Jake has been sitting on soft surfaces, his bed, a padded wheelchair or a padded therapy table. The chairs in the restaurant are wooden and after about 10 minutes he was really antsy and uncomfortable. Luckily I had a blanket in the car, so problem solved, but he'll need to adjust to sitting on hard surfaces again. He was also given a tall, heavy glass to drink out of, while in the hospital it's always been reusable water bottles or plastic cups with lids and straws. He did well, but was a little shaky, just another one of those things we hadn't thought about, and I expect there will be many more to come. Overall, he had a great day and did amazingly well. We were so proud of him.
Todd and I have really been struggling for the past week if it's time to go home or if he needs a little more time in the hospital with inpatient therapy. He is not yet "independently mobile" so will need assistance/support getting around the house to make sure he doesn't fall. Staying another week or so might get him closer to that goal. On the other hand, going home will be so good for him mentally and that alone could help him heal/progress. The other concern is going from therapy 13 times a week for OT/PT/Speech to 1-2 times a week. We're wondering how long it will take to get him more independent with such a drastic cut in therapy hours. Ultimately, it's up to his therapists and rehab team, but at this stage, they do listen to our input. If we wanted him to stay longer, I think they would seriously consider it. After a lot of prayer and conversation, we decided to go with their recommendation and will plan to take him home next week.
Based on how things went today, we decided it was time to go ahead and tell Jake that he is going home on August 14th. Pretty much every night when he is exhausted, he has a breakdown about wanting to go home. He is at the point he really needs a date to look forward to and after taking with his therapists after the out-trip, we are pretty confident that date will stick...but, just in case, we told Jake that it's possible plans could change and he may be here a few more days. As excited as he is to go home, I think he tuned out that part of the conversation. :-)
It's all both exciting and scary the same time. We will have spent 75 days in the hospital with daily support from an incredible team of people. Transitioning back to home/school will be an entirely new phase with a new set of challenges, and we'll continue to take it one day at a time.
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