Friday December 30, 2005

Friday December 30, 2005 Zack returned to therapy yesterday after having a Christmas break for a week. He had enjoyed himself hanging out with friends and even let Dylan go to Puzzles one day to play games with him and Rick. Now as I packed his lunch he also packed school books (history, science and literature) in his backpack. As we drove to Frazier he told me that all his friends were still out of school and it wasn’t fair that he had to go back. I reminded him that he had his Neuro Psych Exam next week and it was important that he work on his cognitive skills and not just be on vacation right before the evaluation. He talked about his previous girlfriend Marissa and her visit this past Wednesday night. She had brought him a Christmas present and he remembered that it had “been good with her”. When I picked him up at 3:00 I went in to talk with Leslie (primary speech therapist). I was anxious to hear how he did with his school books but she said they did not get to them yet. Instead they had played several card games that were word based and he did quite well. He caught on to the concept of the games but still had difficulty with some of the language portion. When we got home he had time for a short nap before we all headed to Iceland for the “Jaha friends and family annual pond skate” (they rent the rink for several hours). Zack’s therapists were not keen on the idea of him ice skating, afraid that he might fall and suffer another head injury (which at this point would be tragic). I had assured Leslie that this was a controlled environment, that Zack would wear a hockey helmet and that I would be skating with him. Zack was the first one in our group with his skates on and didn’t seem to have any trouble balancing (of course we weren’t on the ice yet). Once I got the girls ready and Buddy gave us the go ahead we headed onto the ice. Several of Michelle Jaha’s friends took Logan so I could stay close by Zack. He skated with ease and kept asking me why I was following him. I was grateful when his friend Rick arrived so that I could relax my guard a little. We were not on the ice 10 minutes when I saw Logan crying and was told that she had fallen. I took her off the ice and examined the huge goose egg on her forehead. Of course she had fallen face first and hit, of all things, her head on the ice. That was it for her. The skates came off and we applied ice to her head. After a few minutes of TLC
I told her I had to get back onto the ice to watch Zack until her Dad got there. Fortunately, that was our only mishap. Zack seemed perfectly at ease on the ice, at times skating backwards, and never losing his balance. Still I was relieved when he decided to go upstairs to play games. We enjoyed eating pizza and talking with other friends of the Jaha’s (many of whom had been praying for Zack’s recovery). It was about 9:30 when Zack came to me and said it was time to go. I mentioned that it was still early but he looked at his cell phone and said, “It’s getting late and I have school tomorrow”. I smiled at his responsible attitude knowing that he was tired and agreed to let Rick take him home. When we arrived an hour later Rick was watching TV and Zack was sound asleep.
Friday He got to sleep in until 7:30 because I didn’t have to go to work. Scott took him to Frazier and I took advantage of a rare moment to read. The other kids were still asleep, the house was quiet and I picked up the book I had started a month ago (given to me by Janet Smith, Zack’s 8th grade Science teacher). I eagerly read “What to do about your Brain Injured Child” by Glenn Doman and finally am forced to put it down after three hours when Logan decides I’ve read enough. The book is fascinating and full of information on how to treat brain injury but I am drawn to it’s concepts by the beliefs of the writer. Glenn Doman founded the Institute for the Achievement of Human Potential,
world-renowned for their work with brain-injured children and their pursuit of perfect programs to make them well. He probably knows more about brain injury in children than anyone alive yet he believes that every mother in the world knows more about her child than he does. He believes in parents, teaches them how to fix their children, because he is sure that parents get better results than any professional. I am reminded about what Dr Kraft told me at Frazier Rehab. It has only been recognized in the last five years or so what makes the difference in recovery of patients of the same age and type of brain injury. Those patients with “family support” recover more completely. A mother’s touch is powerful medicine for the brain injured child. Our instincts have told us that for hundreds of years and now there are reliable studies to back up that fact. His book explains how they came to the realization that you can not treat the symptoms of brain injury but instead must treat the injured brain and the symptoms will spontaneously improve as the brain is healed. When someone with a brain injury loses the ability to walk, it doesn’t matter how many methods are used to train the legs, without treating the brain they will never regain the ability to walk. It is not a problem with the legs but a problem with the brain. I can relate to this with Zack’s visual perception problems. He sees perfectly, it is not a problem with his eyes, but rather a problem with the way his brain perceives what his eyes are seeing. I feel empowered after reading the book and take it with me when I pick Zack up from therapy Friday afternoon. Again I go to talk with Leslie to see how they did working with Zack’s school books. He told me that the reading was very hard but he did pretty good. Leslie showed me what they worked on in Biology. She had him read a paragraph on photosynthesis but again his aphasia was a barrier. It is difficult for him to explain the process of photosynthesis when he can not understand the word flower. He knows what a flower is but associating the word to the object is the struggle of aphasia. She would have to break apart each sentence if there were words he didn’t grasp until he understood what they were. Then he could explain the process. The knowledge is there we just have to discover where it is stored and tap into it. It is a long and tedious process but one in which we will eventually be successful with continued therapy. Zack is very bright and has a great attitude but his aphasia will keep him from being successful in the classroom so that is the focus of his therapy. Leslie then explained that his current insurance benefits will run out at the end of January and he is not expected to be ready to go back to school at that time. I will need to petition for additional insurance benefits in order to keep Zack in therapy. At the end of our conversation I show Leslie the book I am reading and promise to let her read it when I am through. Then I talk with Dr. Perri about Zack’s Neuro Psych exam next week. He said that Zack is pumped up about it and I explain that he knows he can’t return to school until he has this evaluation. Once we get the evaluation we will have a meeting with Dr. Perri to review the results. I told him that I knew Zack had taken an aptitude test at school as a Freshman and I would try to get a copy. It would be helpful to compare it with the Neuro Psych results. I also show Dr Perri the book, tell him it would be good reading for him as well and head to the car. Zack is mildly irritated that I had kept him waiting until I explain that it was important that I have these conversations with his therapist. He says he is very tired and just wants to go to sleep. He asks if his friend Rick is still at our house (he doesn’t want to hurt his feelings but he is going straight to bed, whether Rick is there or not). We listen to music for awhile and then Zack turns down the radio and says, “Mom you want to know what I’ve been thinking for awhile? I need to get a job. All of my friends have money and I need some.” I ask him what kind of job he thinks he could do and he says he doesn’t really care as long as they pay him to do it. Then I ask him when he would go to work. He says he would work from 4:00 to 7:00. I ask him if he is tired and he yawns so I ask him when he would take a nap if he had to work after therapy. He says, “I don’t know Mom, you’re making this too hard”. I point out that there are several of his friends who don’t work and they manage to have money so we would figure out a way for him to earn it at home. He smiles, yawns and says “As long as I get to sleep”. After we get home I have to wake him at 6:00 to get ready to leave. We are going to the Dwinnells (his friend Dan’s house) along with the Raines (his friend Andrew) for a Christmas gathering. Both families supported us through difficult days at University Hospital and continued regular visits when Zack was at Frazier Rehab. Now it was time to come together under more pleasant circumstances and celebrate our blessings. Zack enjoyed the company of his friends (as well as all the other kids) and we discussed Zack’s accident, recovery and prognosis. Steve Dwinnell is working with me on a book so he had specific questions for both Scott and I. He wanted to know who answered the initial phone call from the police and what the drive was like to the hospital. Scott still gets very emotional when he talks about that night. He says he would rather get a tape recorder and sit down alone and re-live them at another time. This strong construction worker, with the quick wit and teasing personality becomes weak with raw emotion when he thinks about Zack’s accident. It was a wonderful evening and the time to leave came way too early. When we arrive home at 10:30 Zack heads to bed and Scott and I sit in the living room talking about his progress. I tell him about all the things I have learned from the book I am reading, especially the important role of parents in the recovery process. He says we have known that from the beginning purely by instinct. When you love your child so much it is hard to fathom how much more God loves us. We continue to seek His healing hand for Zack. His word alone can unscramble the words in Zack’s head. We ask that you pray with us in full confidence of His power so that He may be glorified through Zack’s recovery. Remember 1 John 5:15 “This is the confidence which we have before Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hear us.”