Off to a great start!

We are off to a great week. Monday was so much fun! Dad and I got ready and in the van and headed to the McCormack Center for his regular blood draw. So we get there and the sign on the window says "blood lab" closed. Yikes - so they sent us over to the main hospital - and you know me - miss full of energy, I talked dad into us just walking over instead of getting back in the van and out again and then back in again. So we go trucking over and we have this hill to climb - yikes! By the time we reached the top I was chanting "I think I can - I think I can". Dad was cracking up. We finally got to outpatient services. . . and then my niece, dad's granddaughter Michelle, who works at the hospital as an MRI Technician came to hang out with us before he had his blood draw (see her picture here). No word yet on the results - still waiting.

Then yesterday we gave him a shower and he just gets so relaxed and loves it! Then in the afternoon - he had several visitors...one couple from his Power Company days! He and mom enjoyed baby sitting their great grand daughter Brynna too for a little bit. Today he had another great day... nothing exciting just hanging out.

That's all for now. . .we are still continuing to do at home therapy things and like dad said. . . let's just give it some time during these winter months to see where I go

A Special Visit

Dad was excited to have a special visit Saturday evening from his nephew Nate! Nate was in for the weekend because the Mountaineers played Thursday evening - so he made time to come by with his mom and dad to see his Uncle Shug. As soon as dad knew that Nate was coming he called us and said - come take a picture for the blog. He wanted everyone to know Nate came to see him - he is so proud of Nate. He recalls all the time taking Nate to practice when he was just in Midget League football. And Uncle Tommy and dad were talking about the days of watching Nate play football when he was very young. I doubt dad missed many of those games up thru high school. And now, he just loves to watch Nate when they show the Mountaineers on tv. We all enjoyed the visit - especially my boys who love going to Morgantown to see him play.

Dad made it out to church today and enjoyed it. He has some sensitivity on his bottom and it does make it a little difficult to sit in that chair for long periods of time. We are trying to get that all healed up for him. Tomorrow we will go to the McCormack Center for a blood draw to check his INR.

Thanks for checking in! Keep praying for dad's continued health and progress.

Great week!

Dad has had a great week. He so enjoyed watching the Mountaineers on tv Thursday nite trounce the Auburn Tigers. What a game. He got his third shower this morning - after Pam cut his hair and shaved his neck - mom and I wheeled him back to the water hole. What a great Saturday - a haircut, shave and shower. Then he settled into his recliner for some therapy - watching college football all day! He's looking forward to getting out to church tomorrow cause we haven't left the house this week. Blessings!

Loving His Showers!

I can't tell you how much dad loves his shower! He got his second one today and it was as wonderful as the first he said. He was even able to use the bathroom this time while he was on the chair. . . no, we didn't quite have our timing right and he missed the "hole" in the toilet, but hey, it's a start. And dad felt so good to just be able to go to the bathroom - cleaning up the bathroom floor was better than his brief! ha ha! If we had just gotten to the bathroom a little quicker - I could have gotten his chair wheeled right over top of the toilet and lined up with its hole. But guess God wanted us to have a little humor in the bathroom today. . . we laughed and laughed! It sure is going to be good to get on a regular schedule with dad so that he can really use the bathroom fully - shower, potty, grooming. We're getting there. After his shower, he spent the day in his recliner - working on his arm exercises and giving mom a hard time as usual. He is looking forward to watching his nephew Nate tomorrow night when the Mountaineers take on Auburn. GO WVU!

Blessings!

A New Day - A New Experience - the shower!

Dad loves his new shower. . . he was so nervous about the whole thing - but it ended up working out great and he feels so great he said! He wanted to thank everyone who has put in so many hours to help make it possible. . . my brothers! It was worth the wait he said!

Dad also wanted me to say hi to Aunt Annie - she is online now and reading the blog - hello!

Dad is in great spirits this week. His Doctor has decided to have him re-evaluated by another physicial therapy company to see about a more "long-term" approach to dad's recovery. What a great doctor and what a relief to dad that there is still room for future improvement. We'll let you know how that works out.

Gotta run! Blessings to all - we love ya!

Discharged from therapy causes sadness

Today when we took dad to therapy - I was expecting to get his next week's schedule for at least his physical therapy - since we had not been re-evaluated on that recently - but to my surprise, after I dropped him and mom off, the therapists came out and asked for a meeting with them in 15 minutes and they proceeded to tell mom and dad that they didn't feel dad was making significant enough progress in therapy to justify to medicare the continuation of his sessions. UGH! It's very difficult to hear those words - especially because not all patients heal at the same rate as others and as we all know - dad's stroke was so not typical. But none-the-less, it is what it is... and no arguing on my part was going to change anything. I was a bit dissappointed that they didn't schedule an appointment with me to share this - today was the first time mom decided to go along with us and so she shooed me away after we arrived saying she would wait with him til they came out for him - then she would work out while he was in therapy. Well instead, they came out 15 minutes late and announced they needed to see her to talk about the future. Oh my, what a day. So I took dad home and we talked about everything and then prayed about it and then that's when he broke down and bawled - he cried for a long time. I went to get mom at the wellness center because she stayed to finish her workout and when we got back he was still crying and saying he was a failure. I told him it was okay to have a day of mourning but tomorrow - to turn his sadness over to God. It's all in God's hands now - none of us know the what the future holds, only God does but I do know that he saved him from this terrible stroke and we do see that dad is getting healthier now not sicker. We will trust in God and keep our faith in Him - now that all the therapists are out of the way. . . who knows, maybe it will be time for a second miracle in dad's life. But whether dad ever walks again or not, I know that his life here on earth will still be used mightily by our God - our plan now is to continue to work hard on therapy at home, start using the shower (ironically the shower chair arrived today). . . and wait and see what God has in store for the days, weeks and months ahead. Thanks for your continued prayers and support! We love you all!

One Year Anniversary today!

It is hard to believe that one year ago today, we were waiting in the family room at Winchester Medical Center, seeing what would be the outcome of dads major stroke earlier that morning. One year has passed. . . wow - so much has happened in that time. Mom had her heart surgery, dad has been through 3 different rehab facilities and we have seen many trips to the ER for various things. But today, at the one year anniversary, I am happy to share that dad and mom are on the road to recovery and the future holds promise!
Today, mom, me and dad met with a microscopist/nutritionist from Toronto, Canada who took a blood sample and analyzed our blood to see how healthy we are and what we can do to improve our health. I am so excited with the results! I only wish I could have done this test prior to our August health initiative to compare the difference. Back in August, dad was having high blood pressure bouts again and he was also suffering from painful swelling and gout in his ankles. So we started a nutritional program, consisting of healthy water and nutritionals. We weened him from some of the toxic pharmaceuticals he was taking as anti-inflammatory drugs and we replaced them with healthy, all-natural nutritionals. Dad does not have any swelling now or joint pain, his color and appearance is so much healthier, his blood pressure is good, and praise God, we are even beginning to reduce the amount of Coumadin necessary to thin his blood because of the positive effect of his healthy program. The only area dad needs some improvement on is is liver - otherwise, his immunity is good... and his free radical - nutritional - and plasma scores were okay, but need to continue on the program to keep getting better! Dad is also doing well at therapy these days- he is working hard from home too. The key thing we have to remember is that the health issues that lead to dad's stroke did not happen overnight - and restoring his health isn't a quick fix either. But with time and patience and determination and the will. . . dad will get stronger and stronger. Mom's blood looked great too - however, she has a pretty distinct mineral deficiency that we need to work on so that's not too hard.

Thanks to all of you who are reading this blog today and who have shared this year long journey with our family. Your support and love has helped carry us thru. . . and our hope in what the future holds through our Saviour Jesus Christ is what gives us the strength and courage and determination to keep fighting and never give up on dad's goal of being mobile again some day. This journey is far from over - and we look forward to the days ahead as we watch how God unfolds the next chapter of our lives.

Go Mountaineers!

Even though they couldn't watch the WVU Game Saturday on tv, dad and mom were listening by radio! They were so proud of their nephew Nate who had the best game ever! His interception kept Syracuse from scoring the go ahead touchdown. And his defense was just awesome throughout the game - dad had his #12 t-shirt on (Nate's number) and his WVU pants! He was very happy to say the least. Sunday he got out to church for the early service and then later in the day took a Sunday drive with my sister Pam. Mom has been really pushing him on this "Constraint Induced" therapy. . . she has him eating things with his left hand and she is really keeping him focus on the "at-home" therapy stuff. He had a good day at therapy today - he was so tired when I picked him up. Then we did our blood draw. Tomorrow both mom and dad have to get the "shingles" vaccine. Then he has therapy again Wednesday and Friday. I'll try to keep ya posted. . . thanks for checking in and for keeping dad's progress in your prayers. . . it will be one year this this Thursday to the day that dad suffered his stroke. It's hard to believe!

The Home Approach to OT

Dad did not even have to be re-evaluated today after all. . . his occupational therapist had already decided that the best course of action was to prepare for some "at home" therapy for his upper body and ADL's (activities of daily living). I sat thru on some training - which I pretty much already knew. . . but the plan is to go another week or 2 with both OT & PT (physical therapy) and after that, mom & I will work on his OT at home. He will probably be re-evaluated for Physical Therapy at the end of the month -- another week or two. He seems to be improving in that area, so hopefully we will continue with that there. AND they did say that as he gets stronger with his sitting balance and as he makes some significant improvements at home with the OT goals they gave us. . . that he could be re-evaluated for OT to see if they could help him again in the future. I think dad handled everything well... we had talked about it a great deal this week and he agrees that we can make the same kind of progress at home as there since I have been trained in what he does now. One of the things they said would really help him is the "Constraint" therapy. We need to tie down or make him not use his good right arm... as if it was not there and force his weak left arm to do all the work - like feeding and drinking, etc. This will give his arm much more work and exercise. . . why didn't they tell us that sooner? Oh well, Dad is certainly not done getting better I can tell you that - he works very hard every day at his tasks and mom just told me on the phone that he ate a hotdog for lunch and held it with is left hand! Maybe now that the pressure of meeting the "therapists" and medicare's goals are off of him, he will be more motivated to do "at home" stuff. I know I say this all the time, but God is not finished with Shug Kisner's testimony yet so you just sit back, keep praying and watch as God's healing hand continues to guide dad back!

Another Try Today

Hey Folks - Dad had his Occupational Therapy Evaluation yesterday and he didn't quite make it across the finish line, but he gets one more chance today. Two things dad was unable to complete unassisted yesterday were to one) put his shirt on and off unassisted without and verbal cues from the therapist. . . and 2) lift his left hand to touch his chin. While these tasks would seem simple, it's the "thinking" part that causes dad to stumble on the first task. . . and probably just nerve damage to his mid arm section on the second. He starts putting the shirt on, but as he gets each step of the process done, he has trouble remembering what comes next unless you tell him. And the hand. . . he can get it so far and then it's just like the nerve damage won't allow the final extension of this arm. So he and mom spent the afternoon working on at least the hand reach, and this morning before we go to therapy I will let him practice the shirt on and off task again. Therapy is at 10am today. I know he would appreciate everyone storming heaven on his behalf at 10 am this morning if you get this message in time! ON A GOOD NOTE. . . they were impressed that his balance sitting and his transfer to the table seemed improved yesterday - so he did have some positive feedback too! I will try to send out results this afternoon. . . thanks for your prayers!

Plugging Away!

Dad is plugging away at life and still doing well. He had therapy on Friday and had a pretty good day. This week we could only get in for 2 days Thursday and Friday. He is going to be re-evaluated this week for sure - that already has dad nervous. He overheard the therapist telling me that we need to sit down and see what kind of realistic goals we could set for the next 30 day session if he makes it thru this evaluation this week - to justify continuing the therapy to insurance. Later on, he told me he didn't like the sound of what the therapist was saying to me - I guess he felt it was a sign that we are nearing the "plateau" of his recovery. And that may very well be what the therapist was indicating, but it is not necessarily "the end." I just encouraged dad - that even if we don't pass this time - we can be re-evaluated 3 months from now if he would make some significant progress to warrant therapy again and that we will still continue with the therapy things at home and never stop working toward his goals of more independence and walking. He seemed to be better after we talked, but I know he is concerned. They are so strict on guidelines of how much progress dad has to make each 30 day period and with him having that cold for about 3 weeks - that really set him back. But we are going to believe for the best and see what God does in dad's body this week - I've been asking him for some miraculous break-thrus!

Please keep us in your prayers this week - we are going to be practicing therapy tasks at home to prepare for Thursdays evaluation and I know dad would appreciate all the support that he can receive from his family and friends thru prayer!

Having Fun

Tuesday we took time to have some fun. . . first me and dad got in the van and went to watch my boys football practice. It was a beautiful evening to do that and he hasn't been able to see them play yet this year, so I think he really enjoyed that and the boys were thrilled to have him there. Then afterward, my sister Pam and her daughter Sarah and her kids stopped by and we all had ice cream. . . we took time out for a picture of dad and all the kids. He always enjoys his grandchildren and great grandchildren's company.

Today we have therapy and a blood draw. I also have a feeling we are getting close on a PT evaluation. But I am always nervous to ask or let dad know it's time so that he doesn't stress about it. . . if you would - pray today and this week that God would just strengthen him and help him to sit for 5 minutes on the table without assistance. . . that he would score high enough on his testing to earn another 30 days. This is so vital to his mental and physical health to continue - even though it feels like to him it is slow. . . any progress is progress! Thanks for flooding heaven with this request - I'll keep you posted!