Not such a big moment but the next photo Luke had to take of me attempting not so successfully putting on a jumper... he seemed to think it was funny!
The last photo is a really big moment... my first time on the tilt table in physio! The tilt table is designed obviously to tilt and stand you up. Today we got to about 60 degrees. After about 45 degrees some weight begins to bear through the legs, so I felt some weight resting on my feet. The biggest thing about "standing up" is the same as it was when I first was going from lying in a bed for a month to sitting up in the special bed at the RAH which the back sits up and the feet go down, and then in the wheelchair. Blood pressure. The body is so used to easily pumping blood around as you lie down, when the upper body comes up and the legs go down, blood pressure can plummet. Luckily today this wasn't a problem! I did have my binder on though, it's like a corset that helps with keeping blood pressure up. I was feeling fine the whole way up, as they inched me about 10 degrees at a time. My blood pressure only dropped a bit right at the end. If I can build up tolerance to standing, I can look into standing wheelchairs!
Inspiring stuff Elise, and we will follow your daily blog throughout the year. Hope that we can provide little rays of sunshine on your stormy weather days and maybe try and help you remember what Rudyard Kipling said in "If". At least you can revel in regaining the Ashes...!
ReplyDeleteThanks John, good to hear you're along for the ride! Go Aussies!
DeleteWow Elise, is this progress rate expected from the doctors or is this your own set progress rate. From someone who does not know any better, it seems just so remarkable.
ReplyDeleteHave you both finished with operations ? And Luke, how is your rehabilitation going. ?
Just a thought, but if you run out of things to write over the next 300+ days, if Luke does not mind, I would love to hear about Luke's side of things as well, about his first days after the accident.
Looking forward to you next entry......
Luv Vicki (nosy posy)
Hi Vicki, honestly I'm not sure, I'd say somewhere in between! Luke may have one more to even up his eyes, one is slightly higher than the other at the moment. Luke is going well, beginning to walk on crutches, short distances to start with. And the infection in his foot is clearing up!
DeleteAbsolutely, he is now thinking about what to write for when I get stuck one day!