18th January - They tried to make me go to rehab....

Just a little update to warm the winter months.....at the end of October my niece, Bill's granddaughter, turned 3. To mark the occasion a small party was held, however Ellie's birthday also marked the moving of Lucy & her husband to Lincoln meaning that all of Bill's 3 children have now left Cornwall.

This has been a hard adjustment for us all, leaving dad helpless & far away. Luckily, help was found in the form of Maureen, who had caring experience and was looking to move to Cornwall to be nearer her grandchildren. She has now moved into Pete's former room and, while she hasn't taken on the caring burden, she has made herself available to take Bill to appointments, cook a few meals now & then and just be there in case of any emergencies or accidents.

In early November I was lucky enough to attend a visit with Bill's neurological physiotherapist. Although it'd previously been suggested that there wasn't much that could be done, I was surprised to be told enthusiastically about the progress dad was making. It seems that on his initial visits, lying on a side and rolling to his back was a near impossible task and now he could do that with ease. He had also managed to learn to stand unaided and was working on simple training requiring him to stand up, pick up a rubber ring from a vertical post and transfer it to a horizontal post. The therapist explained that he had been unable to do any of these things when he first started in August & that he was making huge, if slow, progress. The next steps were to be able to stand unaided and twist to the left or right without losing balance.

I'd like to say here and now that Becky at Helston Physiotherapy Practice deserves a huge amount of thanks for her patience and hard work - it seems she really is a miracle worker.

Bill has been using an ancient exercise bike to pedal at home (he sits in his armchair and extends his feet), as this will help with co ordination and muscle mass- we bought him a small version with just pedals, but he found it unhelpful since it had a much smaller turning circle and tended to slip away from his feet.

I was due to head down to Cornwall today for my first visit of the new year, however due to snowy conditions in London and along the whole route home, I've been told to stay in London and go down next weekend instead (needless to say, I'm curled up with a nice glass of red wine as we speak). I hope to be able to update again after that, but dad certainly feels more confident and, in fact, he has been trying to start using his laptop again and was able to read some of the lovely comments you have all been leaving - he was really happy and grateful for all the support. Hopefully, before too long, we can get him sending short emails and surfing the net so his day isn't filled with awful cookery shows and daytime tv.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas & New Year.

Catherine

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thank you so much for the update Catherine. It is very heart-warming to learn of Bill's progress, and I hope it continues to improve.

I always have the blog's link on my browser's "favourite tabs", and I check every week for updates, so this was a great welcome surprise today.

Thanks again, and my warmest wishes to Bill and the whole family for the new year!

Serge, in Toronto, Canada

Unknown said...

Such wonderful news, am so glad your dad is making progress. Thank you so much for the update, and wishing you and your father and all your family a very bright and happy New Year.

Anonymous said...

Thanks Catherine, this is great news indeed! I was a 'friend' of your Dad on Facebook and I'm afrais I thought the worst when his page was closed. So this was great relief! I can only reciprocate what Serge and Kathi hacve said above. Best wishes to you, and of course Bill.
Paul - New Zealand

Anonymous said...

So glad to hear this news! Please pass on our warmest regards to Bill.
Māmari Stephens (Wellington, New Zealand)

Anonymous said...

Great news, thanks. And a happy and peaceful New Year to all your family.

Anonymous said...

Oh that is great news! I check back every few weeks and was pleasantly surprised to see your update. give him a hug from all of us.

Lia Bowling - Vancouver, Canada said...

Catherine & Bill:
I also have the blog's link on my "favourites", and I faithfully check several times a week for an update to Bill's well-being. I am extremely moved to hear of Bill's positive progress over the past 5 months; slow but sure wins the race, I think the saying goes.
Positive thoughts going forward.

You can remove the following info, prior posting
PS - I renewed the magazine subscription again, so I do hope that I have Bill's correct mailing address - the BC magazine is more interesting than daytime TV! You can email me if necessary at Magloe@Shaw.ca. Cheers - Lia

Anonymous said...

Great news! So good to hear from you again, and in such a positive way!! Pedal on Bill - you have friends all over the world cheering you on!
//Erika, from Sweden

Janell said...

Bill,
I was so happy to read Catherine's newest post and see that you are making progress in physical therapy. I hope you will soon be communicating with us again.
Have you seen the recently discovered WWI photos found on glass slides in an antique camera? The London Daily Mail presented them 2 or 3 weeks ago, with an article detailing their discovery. Fascinating.
Best Wishes,
Janell

Anonymous said...

Great news!! Keep up the good work Bill - yuo have a lot of friends out here from all over the world, wishing you all the best!!

Erika, from Sweden

Linda H near San Francisco, CA USA said...

Catherine and Bill!

Very happy new year, and welcome news indeed!!!!

Bill, this really is progress. I had sme reconstructive surgery on my feet at one point, and I remember the FRUSTRATING months of trying to bend my toes. (Who would have though one could break into a total body sweat attempting to move toes???!!!) Then one day... the therapist noticed just a bit of movement, the next day a bit more. Took a long time, but eventually they got me using my toes (and I had never been able to do so...) The work they do is AMAZING. So glad this is starting to happen for you.

Glad things are starting to settle for you and the rest of the family; things have a way of falling into place over time; enjoy your wine, Catherine, and Bill -- an extra 'carrot' for using the laptop-- decent programs on youtube and dailymotion!!! Have you ochecked out 'victorian farm' and 'edwardian farm' on dailymotion????

Continuing to hold you in prayer & good thoughts, and SO HAPPY FOR YOU!!!!!

peter said...

Hi Catherine, afraid I have not been looking at the blog so much recently, so a very pleasnat surprise to see that Bill is making some progress. Best wishes to all the family and hope to see Bill "online" in the near future.
Peter Bartlett, Munich.

Anonymous said...

I have never posted a comment before, but followed the blog avidly, waiting for news of Harry. I was so sad to hear of your father's misfortunes, and really pleased to hear that he is now making progress, albeit slowly. Please wish him the very best and pass on my good wishes for a continuing recovery.

Sylvia Fenton

Anonymous said...

Please let Bill know that he has so many people wishing him well. Happy 2013 to Bill, you and all your family.

Jackie

Linda H-F said...

Thanks for keeping us in the loop, Bill and Catherine. Glad things seem to be looking up a bit for Bill, and wish the extended family all the best.

Holding you in the most positive thoughts, with gratitude....

Linda H-F, near San Francisco, CA in U.S.A.