My siblings had done a lot of research before selecting Silver Lake as the place where I would continue my recovery. It had an excellent reputation as a facility for respiratory rehabilitation, and they were famous for their ability to wean patients off their trachs. The first time a physical therapist came to see me, we practiced walking. I used a walker and made it from my bed to the door which was a big deal, considering how in the hospital I could barely get out of bed. When she left she said she'd be back the next day. It occured to me that if they weren't going to let me out of my room because of my MRSA, the fact that they had a state-of-the-art gym on the premises was not germane to my rehab. It seemed pretty ridiculous. There was only so much I could accomplish in my little room. I guess they figured that out on their own, because in another day or two they wheeled me down to the gym, but they insisted I wear a surgical mask. When I saw the gym I was sorely disappointed. State-of-the-art? There was one old stationary bike, two pulley system weight stations, two parallel bars set up about four feet apart for people to practice walking, some stairs and some occupational therapy equipment. That's about it. Everything I did, I did while connected to an oxygen tank. They had me walk the length of the hall that led into the gym and back. They had me do some leg strengthening excersizes while wearing ankle weights. Sometimes they had me climb the stairs. I found it all very pedestrian. After going to rehab every day for about a week, I was bored senseless. They came to get me every day at around 2:00. I started feigning sleep. It didn't work...they woke me up. The bottom line is, however, that although I look back and make fun if it, here I am all these months later and I can walk. I still have that little hitch in my gait because of the still-not-totally-resolved drop foot, but I am ambulatory nonetheless. And the strength has returned (to some extent, anyway) to my arms and legs. Despite equipment and surroundings that I found less than stellar, I was extremely motivated and accomplished a lot. For that I am truly grateful.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Gym Dandy
My siblings had done a lot of research before selecting Silver Lake as the place where I would continue my recovery. It had an excellent reputation as a facility for respiratory rehabilitation, and they were famous for their ability to wean patients off their trachs. The first time a physical therapist came to see me, we practiced walking. I used a walker and made it from my bed to the door which was a big deal, considering how in the hospital I could barely get out of bed. When she left she said she'd be back the next day. It occured to me that if they weren't going to let me out of my room because of my MRSA, the fact that they had a state-of-the-art gym on the premises was not germane to my rehab. It seemed pretty ridiculous. There was only so much I could accomplish in my little room. I guess they figured that out on their own, because in another day or two they wheeled me down to the gym, but they insisted I wear a surgical mask. When I saw the gym I was sorely disappointed. State-of-the-art? There was one old stationary bike, two pulley system weight stations, two parallel bars set up about four feet apart for people to practice walking, some stairs and some occupational therapy equipment. That's about it. Everything I did, I did while connected to an oxygen tank. They had me walk the length of the hall that led into the gym and back. They had me do some leg strengthening excersizes while wearing ankle weights. Sometimes they had me climb the stairs. I found it all very pedestrian. After going to rehab every day for about a week, I was bored senseless. They came to get me every day at around 2:00. I started feigning sleep. It didn't work...they woke me up. The bottom line is, however, that although I look back and make fun if it, here I am all these months later and I can walk. I still have that little hitch in my gait because of the still-not-totally-resolved drop foot, but I am ambulatory nonetheless. And the strength has returned (to some extent, anyway) to my arms and legs. Despite equipment and surroundings that I found less than stellar, I was extremely motivated and accomplished a lot. For that I am truly grateful.
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