I see a little more thought processes!
You know, since I started Bob on the Hot Dot's reading cards and the 6 sequence cards, I think I noticed a little more thought processing on his part. I thought he was now ready to do more than just "O" out in front a football game. I mean, yea, guys like football and he watches his share, but not all games and then those guys who sit around talking about football all day, when a game isn't on. I told him, "you know, Bob, how those sequence cards are causing you to follow the line of a story and get it in order, movies are like that too. He hadn't been able to watch anything like that, with a plot, because he couldn't follow anything. But, seeing what I believed was improvement in that area, he agreed and we have begun watching movies - not weird ones that keep flashing back and forth in time, that confuse even me, just normal movies..... and not tons of them that would just end up like the ballgames. I mean, any one thing that is nonstop, pretty much causes your eyes to glaze over and you go into a stupor, even me.
So, anyway, I believe this occasional movie therapy is doing something for him. Eventhough he doesn't get all the words right, and sometimes wants to just drop what he is trying to say, I'd have to say that he has went from one word (sometimes made up words) thoughts to reminding me to do something (just called from the bedroom to remind me to call my mom back, who called while I was getting him ready for nap). We talk around a little bit, have little conversations. I told our son that is more like he is retired and we are just having our lives (yea, I mean, minus those stroke things). I mean, most of those stroke things are here to stay, but it's nice to have someone to actually TALK to, even in aphasia talk. It gets lonely just having one word commands, that aren't even words.
I think some more of this is attributed to the fact that he is no longer "in hiding" for fear of someone he knows seeing him. We saw some of his co-workers at Frisches the other day and they came up to talk to him and he was very chatty (eventhough aphasic) and he's always loved being around people, so I think this is helping him to feel more like "Bob".
Another miracle. You know how they usually don't consider US? Well, last week we went to a train show, and I unfortunately, didn't realize I was taking him down a grade in the parking lot, and strained myself to keep his whl chr from flying down a hill. It was a long lasting strain, since once you got on that downward grade and began the snowball descent, there was no getting out of it, except just holding back and trying to control the speed. So, we were supposed to go back to an antique toy/hobby show today, and he said, we'd better not go. It was too much a strain for me to go back the very next week, while still sore. Wow. He really loves those shows too. I tried to talk him into it, but he said no, we needed to stay home this week-end!
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