Monday October 10, 2005

Monday October 10, 2005 Zack slept until 7:30 but then Kyle wanted me to wake him up so they could say goodbye before they left for school. The kids are so happy to have him home and my fears that they would irritate him haven’t been realized. Zack is patient and actually seems to enjoy their company. He is ready to begin his new education at Frasier East. We arrive at 8:30 and fill out paperwork. Toni Waddell (recreational therapist and acting case manager) takes us on a tour of the facility. Then she asked Zack if he could get back to the lobby. He made it with only minimal help, which I would have needed myself. Then it was time for his first meeting with his speech therapist. He found her office on his own and I was very impressed. His speech therapist is Leslie Becker-Powell and I liked her right away. She directed her questions to Zack and he answered correctly (name, siblings, where did you go to school and what do you like to do). He got stuck on when was your accident and looked to me. She was mainly testing his memory and was interested when I told her Zack had fluent aphasia. She changed her methods and was directing questions that would highlight any deficits in this area. He did excellent on the math word problems involving time when she read them to him but reading them himself was difficult. She thinks he has a vision problem and said that his O.T. therapist would discover it. Leslie explained that there are 4 systems of language: reading, writing, talking and comprehension. Usually they find a patient is weak in one or two areas and strong in others. They have to discover the strengths and work on those to compensate for the weak areas. She also gave me a good definition of aphasia- the loss of language skills due to a brain injury. Zack kept looking around for the clock (she didn’t have one) so she told me Zack should be wearing a watch. They expect their clients to be independent, carry their own schedule, know where they are supposed to be and at what time and know how to get there. Zack was a little worried about the added responsibility, especially when he found out I wasn’t going to be with him everyday. I was downright scared until Leslie told me there would be aides to help him.. We moved to O.T. therapy with Suzanne and a student named Scott (Zack is always glad when there is another guy around). She had him do several letter and symbol searches and timed him. He thought he did very well and was proud of himself. She picked up right away on some vision difficulties that she labeled “perception” problems. She said 80% of people with brain injuries have vision problems. They will continue to evaluate him this week and then probably send him to a behavioral optometrist (never knew there was such a person). They use Dr. Wienberg who specializes in vision difficulties due to brain injuries. Once they address the problem we should see a lot of improvement in reading. Suzanne asked Zack if he noticed any differences since his accident and at first he said no. Then he said it was harder to read. I reminded him about his mixed up words and he agreed. Then he said he was tired a lot. We head to group lunch in the community room. There are only 4 other patients eating with us and 3 therapist. After lunch they have a group orientation where everyone explains how they got injured and offered advice to the others and how to cope with it. Zack leaned over to me and asked “How long are we here?” When I told him until 3:00 he made a face and said, “I tell you one thing, when I get home I’m getting in that bed”. We ended the day with review with Erin, a speech aide. She asked him what he did at certain times of the day and he is allowed to reference his schedule to determine the activity. Then he has to explain the purpose of that activity. He couldn’t remember what he did in O.T. When I told him what he did he said he still didn’t remember and then he said, “It’s like I’m retarded”. Both Erin and I assured him that it was only a lapse in memory due to the accident and therapy would help him regain it. It was heartbreaking to see Zack so critical of himself. We finished and headed to the community room to get his things. As soon as we got home he was ready to take a nap and informed me that he was sleeping in his room. Janet Smith (his 8th grade science teacher) dropped by with a bunch of snacks for the kids. She knew that we would have a lot of visitor and how those teenagers like to eat. When Zack got up we were able to sit down at our kitchen table and enjoy our first meal together as a family in over 3 months. It was wonderful (another great meal provided by one of the many people that have taken care of our family from the beginning). Zack’s friends start to arrive and we head downstairs to play pool. When it was time for bed I tucked Zack in and he was smiling ear to ear. He is so happy to be home that it doesn’t even bother him that he has to sleep in our room (on a mattress on the floor). He would like to be in his own room but he doesn’t argue about it. How’s that for another blessing…a teenager that doesn’t argue. I go downstairs and talk with Scott awhile before sitting down at my computer. I read postings from the weekend and answer emails. I find myself asleep with my hand on the mouse and decide that the world could wait one day to hear about his first day in outpatient therapy. I am in bed before 11:00 with a smile on my face. I am so thankful that he is home, that prayers have been answered, that we have so many people reaching out to us and that God’s hand has been evident in our tragedy since day one. We are learning to trust in our heavenly father like little children. It is hard because sometimes that adult need to control our situation creeps in and we panic realizing that we aren’t equipped to deal with this. Then God takes over and all is well. His perfect plan still unfolds. Please continue to pray for complete healing. Pray that young lives will be changed by hearing me speak at Christian Academy. I will address the Middle School at Chapel on Thursday Oct 13th at 10:00 AM
I will explain how seemingly innocent choices can change lives forever and the power of prayer. This is also the day that the entire student body has an opportunity to be out of uniform wearing T-shirts that say "CAL loves ZH Stay the Course". I am honored to be speaking and ask for your prayers that hardened hearts may be touched by my message. Again, pray that I remember to breathe.