Jan 13 to Ja 26, 2014

Mon Jan 13^th: Felt kinda crappy. Body was tight and I couldn’t do much all day.

Tues Jan 14^th: No BM last night so up with Darcy at 4:45 and on the can ‘til  5:45 with very little to show for it. As you are aware the usual is I have diarrhea in the morning put Depends on and nothing happens. Normally I wouldn’t go to Parkwood but I took a chance and it was a good thing we did. Stephanie stretched me a bit on the mat and we did some sit-to-stands and she did a lot of work on my arms. When my arms are away from my body with my palms turned down on the bed and my left arm away from my body she had me doing kicks. Funny, I can’t kick both of my feet at the same time You know, sitting on a chair and kick you right foot forward and your left backwards, I can’t do that. When I kick both legs go in the same direction. Once all the  sitting was done  it was time to walk.

Got up with Stephanie holding the belt and me with the walking stick. I try to pick up the left foot so I don’t stub my toe as much. We did some work on the mat and did some stuff to keep my arms away from my body which seems to lower my tone. After that it was up walking. Walked I about 30 feet but since I am trying to lift my foot we rest as soon as I trip on my toe. Then up and side walking tot right for 20 feet then to the left. Another rest then up again only this time walking sideways without the walking stick. Believe it or not I was walking without a stick and with no one holding onto me. It was quite scary when I found out that Stephanie was holding on. Seems I do better without the walking stick as it takes my arm out of the equation.

Wed Jan 15^th: Family Dr. order an Electromylogram (EMG) on my left arm in London. An EMG is a test that is used to record the electrical activity of muscles. When muscles are active, they produce an electrical current. This current is usually proportional to the level of the muscle activity. An EMG is also referred to as a myogram.

EMGs can be used to detect abnormal electrical activity of muscle that can occur in nerve damage to nerves in the arms and legs.

As I am experiencing unexplained muscle weakness in my right arm, EMG helps to distinguish between muscle conditions in which the problem begins in the muscle and muscle weakness due to nerve disorders. The EMG can also be used to detect true weakness, as opposed to weakness from reduced use because of pain or lack of motivation. EMGs can also be used to isolate the level of nerve irritation or injury.

The Dr. had requested the test on my left arm when actually the right arm was where the problem was. It was nice of them to test the right arm even though it wasn’t on the requisition.
The results showed there were no problems with any of the muscles. This leads me to believe that the problem is occurring further up in the nerves coming from my neck. I will be seeing the surgeon next Tuesday and he will look at the MRI  that I had in December that may shed some light on the problem.

Thurs Jan 16^th: Well I have a new problem. I had a little red spot on the side of my thigh a week or so ago. It grew to about the size of a quarter and opened up and was really quite ugly. The area turns red and then opens up and there were a couple of other red areas and I was concerned that it was spreading. Of course, Dr Steen starts thinking it is the beginning of ‘Flesh Eating Disease’, woke up at 4 AM to worry about it. Tried to get a Dr appointment but he wasn’t in today. Decided to go the emerg to make sure they could stop it. I figured I’d get an emergency room Dr but they called my Dr office and he showed up. Took one look at it and said it was a Staph infection and I should put Fusidin on it and he gave me antibiotics, 4x500 mg a day for 7 days. Now that much anti-b may mess up my tummy but we’ll see. Good service at the hospital in by 2:45 out by 3:30.

Oh yes, therapy in the morning. Stephanie did her thing loosening me up and doing sit to stands. She had me put my good right foot on a 2 inch step and then stand up using mostly my left leg doing the work. That was a bit of a struggle. Got up and walked about 50 feet had a short rest and walked another 40 or so. A rest. Walked sideways to the right and then to the left and all this without a walking pole...a rest then a forward walk for

Fri Jan 7^th: Darcy is cleaning out the closets and I have the double breasted suit that I was married in in 1973. In the pocket was a yellow rattail comb, Darcy’s charm bracelet and a tampon. I have no idea why the last item was there. As for the charm bracelet, Darcy thought the girls had lost it years ago. We found a shirt made by the Arrow Shirt company in Kitchener. I think they closed in the mid-seventies. Lots of neat stuff, 5 suits, 62 ties. Let me explain about the ties. When I played rugby I was the Captain of the Brantford Harlequins for 5 years, captain of the Niagara Rugby Union Rep team and Captain of the Ontario Rugby team and when we played touring teams or rep teams from other provinces we exchanged ties...I just kept them all, ‘til now...some of them were very ugly.

Sat Jan 18^th: I was not feeling all that well. Think the antibiotics and the infection were catching up with me.  A lazy day, did some stretches and my normal routine before bed.

Sun Jan 19^th: The usual Sunday but not feeling all that energetic but went for a coffee at McD’s. Haven’t felt like riding the bike for a while and that means I really am not feeling well. Haven’t been on the bike since Friday, Jan 10^th...grrrrrrr!

Mon Jan 20^th: Starting to feel better but not good enough to get on the bike. The quads are all toned up which makes it hard to walk. Went to the pool and did quite a bit of walking. If I could only take the same size of steps on land that I take in the water, I’d be walking around the crescent with the dog.

Tues Jan 21^st: Off to Parkwood for a swim in the Parkwood pool. Stephanie was going to show us what to do in the pool or if what we are doing is ok. Got there at 11 as usual and then I remembered I was supposed to be there at 10. However, there had been a mix up and the pool was double booked at 10 and we couldn’t go in at 11. Did the usual stretching and did some walking. When I walk for a short distance, a knife gets stuck into the lower left side of my back and that becomes the show stopper. Did 3 walks of 15 m and then on the fourth, Stephanie took my walking stick away. Walked about 15 m with no aid, that’s all by myself with Darcy hanging onto the belt....yeehaw. Seems with no stick in my right hand it relaxes a bit, nothing to squeeze the life out of.

Another problem is the left ankle. The ankle won’t bend and it is difficult to pick up the toe. I can’t speed up the walk as I must make sure I don’t trip on the toe. The weak left leg doesn’t help either. When the leg gets tired it is very hard to pick up the foot to take the step.

Interesting situation at home with the hydro. We have been connected to the neighbours for a month now and they finally started to trench in the new line. Didn’t realize how deep they went with the trench. They had a tough time digging through the frost. The furnace started making funny noises and every time it came on the lights would go brighter for about 30 second and then flicker for a few minutes. I lost the internet connection as the modem had gone dead. Darcy checked the surge protecting powerbar and it was burned out. She replaced the bar and the  modem came back to life. The TV also started acting strange. Every time the furnace came on the TV would go off and then come back on. We called The PUC and they came out and checked it out but they said everything was ok. They did mention that we had half our normal power which could explain why the furnace fan had trouble getting started.  

Wed Jan 22^nd: Woke up in the morning with severe spasms. When I moved, my legs would seize up and feel like they were cramped up. They would go straight and all the muscles would tighten up, very uncomfortable. Felt a little nauseous but put that to the 500 mg of antibiotic I took at 7 o’clock.

The PUC was working in the backyard again and the furnace was still not working properly. We turned the thermostat down on the furnace and turned up the one for the gas fireplace. That means the rest of the house gets cold. They said the power would be back to normal in the afternoon.

Time to go swimming at 11. Got ready to go and the lift in the garage wouldn’t work. I really wanted to go. Parked the chair and with some assistance, I walked down the 3 steps and walked to the car. Had a good session in the pool and Rosa once again worked my left hand.

Now how to get into the house. We parked the chair at the top of the steps and with some assistance. Karen on one side and Darcy on the other, I climbed the steps and got into the chair.

I haven’t been on the bike for over a week so I did a short easy 15 minute spin. Remember all those spasms this morning. We found out why. My Tuesday night pills were still on the table. I can’t imagine going any length of time without the antispasmodic meds. It wouldn’t take long and I’d be one big knot. Going to stay up and watch19 year old Canadian, Eugenie Bouchard in the semifinals of the Australian open...go Genie go! Grrr...she lost in straight sets to Li Na who went on to win the tournament. As the announcer, Chris Everet, said as Genie walked off the court, “There goes the futre of Women’s tennis!”

Thurs Jan 23^rd: A little tirued from watching tennis but some of the tone seems to have gone away. I consulted Dr. Steen and he figures I may have had a bladder or a prostate infection and the anti-b got rid of it thus reduced tone.

Felt good when I got to Parkwood. Stephanie stretched my legs and back. I don’t know how she does it but it feels great. I asked her to come to Tillsonburg 3 times a week and I’d pay her mileage, but she declined. After stretching, it was walking time. Did 4 walks of 15 m each with one walking pole and Darcy hanging onto the belt, just in case. Had a little rest between each. Did 2 walks sideways, left and right with no pole. Stephanie didn’t give the pole back and I did 2x10 m without it. Since I did the stairs at home Stephanie took me to the flight of 5 steps and I went up and down 3 times, a physio in front and a physio behind holding on to the loops in the belt. They don’t help unless I’m on the way down. A good day because the legs were tired but not too tired to do a 10 minute and a 5 minute session on the bike and only a couple of sit-to-stands before bed.

Fri Jan 24^th: Damn nobody to take me to the gym.  I am not doing the things that got my legs strong in the first place, that is, biking and the gym. Last January I was doing 40 minute bike sessions regularly and even did an hour ride on the bike. Now I’m only doing 15 minutes total. Better be a slow build up or I’ll set myself back again.

Darcy took me to the pool and we did the normal work out but added some arm exercises with the foam barbell and dumbbells. It is quite interesting how hard it is to push them under water and it does give a good workout. I’ve started standing with my back against the wall and my heels as close to the wall as I can get and then arch my back as much as I can. I sit a lot so I am in flexed position which causes my spine to be in a ‘C’ shape. This means when I stand to walk I am in a bent forward position. I try to sit up straight when sitting at the computer but it is difficult, as everyone knows how hard it is not to slouch.

Sat Jan 25^th: Holy snow. One of the few times the weatherman was right. Guess we are in for it for a couple of days. Must be bad, Karate class was canceled. It’s very good that my neighbor does plough the driveway. There was no way we were getting out of the house until it was ploughed. Seems global warming is causing the extremes in weather and we’ll have to put up with crazy conditions ‘til April.

Sun Jan 26^th: A very quiet day with pinnacle of excitement being a coffee at McD’s with the Sarge. Had a call late Thursday evening from Dr. Fehlings’ Office, the neurosurgeon that did my neck. I had an MRI in December and perhaps that will shed some light on what is going on with my right arm. Seems he is very busy as the nurse stated that we had to guarantee that we would be there on Tuesday at 1:30. Darcy said ‘yes’, dependent on the weather. She wouldn’t accept that. We had to say we’d be there. Darcy spoke to the Sarge and he said he would drive us. Couldn’t ask for a better driver as he taught driving at the Police College for 2 years.

Not doing much painting, just playing around with practicing trees and clouds and other landscape stuff. Waiting for a couple of instruction books from Amazon.

How am I Feeling?

I am very concerned about my right arm, it is getting worse. Have difficulty shaving now. Since I don’t have as much control with it, I cut myself more often now. If I read the medicalese of the MRI, there may be some narrowing of the channel where the cord passes through at C4 and C5. Note that is my interpretation of the report.

I am also getting a little down about being a quadriplegic. I figured if I worked hard things would get better. That doesn’t seem to be happening. If I walk too much or bike too much I really suffer the next day or the next couple of days. Even if I sit too much there are problems. I haven’t found that middle of the road yet. If I don’t do anything it’s even worse as I start to lose everything. Perhaps some of this melancholy is the January blahs that I’ll just have to get over.   

I went and looked at these short video clips of me when I was in Toronto

  and I really have come a long way.

 

Thanks for listening...

Dec 23 to Jan 12, 2014

Mon Dec 23^rd: Monday started at about 1:00AM when the stomach cramps started. I didn’t really know what was happen. By 5 the pain was quite intense. Got Darcy up and we were heading to the hospital. After a struggle getting dressed, I was getting into the car and felt a BM happening. Got back into the house in a hurry and on the ‘can’ just in time, and oh what a relief it is. The PSW left at ¼ to 8 and back on the ‘can’ before 8 o’clock. It seems I overdid the laxatives. 3 tablespoons of Milk of Magnesia plus Senokot plus Restoralax plus Ducoset plus lactulose perhaps is a little too much. Didn’t take any on Monday morning and no suppository Monday night as I figured there’d be nothing left...but there was...continued...

Tues Dec 24^th:  ...a BM in the morning.  Enough about poop...it’s Christmas Eve! Did some stretching but no walking. Need to do lots, the old adage is more than true,’ if you don’t use it you will lose it.’ To my Brother-in-law’s at 4:30 for the annual family get together. It was a good night. We played our card game for presents. I got an oversized remote that is 20 cm by 10 cm with very big buttons. Marlene put on a great spread and I made it ‘til 10 o’clock after a beer and some Baileys.

 Wed Dec 25^th: Merry Christmas...Christmas morning with Meghan. It was quiet as the noisy one is in Australia...miss you Kelly. 

As you know I get cold but now I have an electric throw that goes from my feet to my chest and keeps me nice and toasty while working at the computer...thanks Darcy!   

Fri Dec 27^th: To the pool at last. Had a great workout. Walking in the pool is a treat. Today I really noticed gravity taking over as the chair lifted me out of the pool...the body just gets heavier and heavier, a strange feeling. 

I have proven Newton’s First Law of Motion which states:

 An object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force.

 

I did very little exercise from last Friday ‘til today. The body was all toned up and it felt like it just didn’t want to move00 so I didn’t move it much. I only did 2 x15 minute bike rides and the short walk and some sit-to-stands before bed. After getting moving in the pool, I feel like doing walking and going on the bike. I guess in my case the ‘unbalanced force’ is my brain giving me a kick in the ass to get going. A lot of you would agree that my brain really is an ‘unbalanced force’.

At 10:45 PM our power went out. Couldn’t be ice as all our lines are underground. Darcy looked out and all the neighbors had lights. We called and a couple of PUC guys came out to look at it. Since our meter was dead the problem is in the underground cable somewhere. They ran a big black jumper cable to my neighbor’s meter to our meter and we had power back on by 12:30. They will be back in the first week of January to do some digging. If I remember correctly the cable goes under all the gardens. In my younger days I put stone pathways around the flower gardens. They have plastic all around to keep the stone in the pathway. Should be fun when they dig that up. They said they will put it all back together in the spring. 

Sat Dec 28^th: Darcy wants me to do more walking at home. Got up from the computer at 10 and did an hour of stretching and weights on the right arm. 

Off to the pool at 12:30 for a 50 minute workout. Did lots of walking. I can take bigger steps in the pool due to the buoyancy. On dry land my steps are very short, about 6 inches ...oops 14 cm. In the pool they are at least 30 cm. Since my left ankle doesn’t bend, I get up on my toe when I stand on it and it is hard to keep my balance as I am on my tippy toe. I must learn to bend my knee and then I don’t go up as high and won’t lose my balance as much. Losing my balance is a good thing, I learn corrective stepping to retain balance, that carries over to dry land walking.

Not being a Grinch but if I hear James Taylor sing White Christmas in that monotone voice one more time, I’ll scream. His voice was great singing ballads, but horrible for Xmas carols.

Geez no BM at night so it will be on with the Depends in the morning.

Sun Dec 20^th: Yup on the can in the morning...on with the Depends. Stayed out of the pool no chance of an accident. Out for coffee at 10:30 with Vern. The Sarge has a bad cold and thankfully he didn’t show up.

Did stretching in the bed for half an hour. Lifted some weights on my right arm. To get the legs going did several, that’s more than 10 sit-to-stands and some 3-step walking hanging onto the bed rail. Legs were all warmed up and got on the trainer for 25 minutes, which was 7.6 k ...and the usual workout before bed.

Mon Dec 30^th: To the pool with Darcy. A good workout. Did lots of walking. They installed new steps at the pool. I am pretty sure I can walk out of the pool. I’ll try it with Yonna. Did a hard workout on the bike, perhaps a little too hard as my left glut was giving me some spasms at night.

Tues Dec 31^st: WooHooo New Year’s Eve party at the Clifford’s. Needed some exercise before eating and drinking all night. Rode 8.7 k at around 4 o’clock and to decrease the tone I took a ‘relaxing’ pill . Ate supper early as we arranged for the PSW to come at 6:45 to be at the party my 8:30. After the PSW dressed me I stayed in bed to rest before we left. Darcy tried to wake me up at 8:30 but she couldn’t do it...damn...missed the party. 

Wed Jan 1^st: Happy New Year. Headed to Ron and Stephanie’s in Simcoe for the annual New Year’s Day Frostbite ride. Coldest ever ride at -8◦. Five riders braved the cold and there was only one mishap, Helen fell and hurt her shoulder. Nothing broken but not a nice way to start the New Year.

Did a little walking at Ron’s just to get out of the chair. Watched a bit of the hockey game. Can’t imagine how 105,000 people got out of the parking lot with 10 inches of fresh snow...I like hockey but not that much. Interesting that there were 60,000 Canadians there.

Pedaled 1,050 K on the trainer in 2013 taking 68.7 hours.

Thurs Jan 2^nd: Woke up this morning and he right arm wasn’t working well. Could not get the arm up to brush my hair, had to have the PSW do it. I can barely shave, takes a long time, and must give the arm a rest after each stroke. Very difficult to shave the right side. 

I had an MRI scheduled back in December to look at the shoulder but I couldn’t do it. Perhaps now with the added incentive that we really need to know what’s going on in there and with the right drugs, maybe I could do it.

Went to the pool. The workouts there are improving as I can walk further unassisted. Still not the best steps but they are longer than on dry land which will hopefully cross over to dry land walking.

As you know I take a ton of meds. I am going to try to get off of Tizanadine which is an antispasmodic to try and control my muscle tone. A side effect is drowsiness which along with all the other meds that causes drowsiness, it is a wonder that I am ever awake.

Fri Jan 3^rd: Did the pool again and Darcy is gettin0g good at stretching me out. I am spending less time floating around and more time standing, working on the stairs and kicking in the deep end. I am doing more side stepping which helps strengthen my hip flexors.

Bad news no BM at night and we all know what that means for the morning.

Sat Jan 4^th: Yup up at 3:30 for a poop. I missed the first Karate Class of the season, I just didn’t want to take a chance of having an accident.

Painting is getting very frustrating. I must learn to clean the bush after every stro0ke particularly when changing colours...doh! Trying to paint water and clouds and it just isn’t working all that well or at least not the way I want it to work.

Sun Jan 5^th: Didn’t go to the pool as it is too much hassle getting to the referee’s room to change as there are referees in it on the weekends. Went for coffee with the guys, Did some painting and a bike ride. Nice easy day. The normal sit-to-stands and the night time walk from to bathroom to the bed. I find that when I ride the bike the walk from the bathroom to the bed is further but as they say a march of a 100 miles starts at about 90 miles.

 Mon Jan 6 to Sun Jan 12^th: This whole week everything started to go bad. I got muscle tone everywhere, my legs, upper arms, back and stomach. Having difficulty getting out of bed and need help sitting up. Saturday morning I would have fallen if the PSW hadn’t been there to catch me. I stood up to get into the chair and my good right knee buckled. Cindy, the PSW was right there to hold me up. The PSW’s had been on strike as they are paid only a few dollars more than minimum wage. I sent an email to let the Union know that as a recipient of services, I supported their strike action and hey I even got a phone call. 

Hopefully this muscle tone is something as simple as a urinary track infection. Haven’t had one of those in a while. Try to see the Dr on Monday. I also have a sore on the side of my thigh about the size of a nickel that is inflamed. We put polysporin on it and it does nothing. Its been there for about a week and just won’t heal. 

How am I Feeling?

I need to be organized like Sensei ML, Sensei Sara or Sensei Linda who not only have their ducks in a row, the ducks follow them in a straight line. Hmmmm...I guess I don’t know any organized males. I needed to send cards of appreciation to all the people who have been driving me to London. You guessed it, I thought about it on the 24^th. I did send emails but it just isn’t the same. Again thanks to Karen, Yonna, Steve, Robert, Linda, Grandpa, The Sarge, Dorothea and Brian. 

Darcy mentioned the other day that it probably was a good thing that I was out a lot before the crash or we would have had a divorce. Spending 24/7 with your spouse is good for getting to know them. Seems I have this very bad habit of telling her what to do all the time. Or as she states ‘ordering’ her what to do. I must learn to keep quiet but it is frustrating for me to sit and wait with my mouth shut when I see what needs to be done...I need patience, patience and Darcy probably needs a day or two away.

It is good that there is no more dysreflexia. Haven’t had an incident for a while now. Perhaps it is having the bowels working better that has resolved the problem.

0I am a worried about the loss of function of my right arm as that is the only arm I have and if I lose it, I’ll be back to having someone feed my...not a pleasant thought. The muscles are just getting weaker and the arm feels heavy and hard to lift. I am doing some weights on it but I need to get back into Therapy specifically to build it up again. Stephanie, my physio thinks it is neurological as I can lift it a couple of times and then it weakens. My brain is creating a very bad habit. When I try to lift my arm my trapezius muscle lifts my shoulder up. Once the shoulder goes up the arm can’t move any higher. It’s a catch 22, the deltoid muscles are weak and can’t lift the arm, my brain thinks by lifting the shoulder it will help. The gym doesn’t work for strengthening the muscles as the weights are too heavy. I need 3 and 4 pounders and the gym starts at 5. I can’t brush my hair and have difficulty brushing my teeth and I have to give my arm a rest between bites when eating. Can’t figure out what is going on. 

Note:  f you see some 0’s thoughout the blog, it is caused when I press the arrow keys with my index finger, my ring f|inger.

Thanks for listening...