Asbestos

Bob did very well in physical therapy today. He continues to impress the therapists with his strength and willingness to work hard. Bob was put in a standing position again today and although there was talk of giving him baths in a shower, the therapists chose to delay that a bit further until he is more steady on his feet. His right side continues to be paralyzed with little or no improvement.

Bob is writing well.  His left-handedness is a huge advantage. Bob copied the picture of a car that my mom's friend Tethi drew for him. When asked to identify a cat or dog from pictures, he could not do it. Same with pictures of an airplane and a car. So as for cognitive understanding, my mom said there are periods when it is evident he understands everything very clearly and periods where he understands nothing. My mom said they hold hands when Bob is sitting down for physical therapy. She jokes that it's just like being home watching tv. He gets the joke. My mom sometimes reads emails they receive to Bob and he recognizes some of the names.

Today marks one week of the stroke. A lot of progress has been made, and we must look at the big picture. It is a long road to recovery. There is a time to be optimistic and a time to be realistic. Right now, we just don't know how much he will recover. I'm not there to see first hand all the strides he has made or all the dark areas that aren't filled in yet. I'm going to be optimist and think that the best is yet to come. Bob used to joke that the glass wasn't half-empty or half-full, it was half asbestos. Take a moment. Let it sink in... That's a hallmark Bob joke. He is a closeted optimist, though. I know he was an optimist on the inside, even if he always thought the worse was going to happen. Why else would he have worked so hard after his heart attack at changing his lifestyle? One has to be optimistic about life to overcome the widow-maker. He will conquer this challenge, too.

Thanks for reading, please leave comments if you have any questions or just want to offer up a woo-hoo for Bob. And keep the positive thoughts and prayers coming.