Ma Latest

My mother is currently at a rehab unit attached to Baylor Hospital in Dallas. She used to work at Baylor for many years training new PTs. Some of her former students are still there and come by to visit her.
She is very frail, but mentally much sharper than I had anticipated. She is very strong willed, and deeply resents losing her independence. I understand that she was a handful when she was first admitted to Doctors' Hospital in Dallas. At Baylor, they still have to put a loose harness on her to keep her from falling out of bed, and to keep her from getting up, and falling. She very much resents this, but she cannot make it across the room without assistance. She puts in long days in OT and PT rehabilitation, and I would imagine that she does not make it easy for the staff, since she knows their jobs and is used to being in charge.
Her head injury still hurts, and she is on pain medication. She rests her head on an especially soft pillow since the injury is right on the back of her skull. She still wears a pronounced dent in her forehead from an operation to drain fluid.
The doctors now say that she did indeed have a small stroke, in fact, a continuing series of very small strokes that no one notices until the symptoms appear. She had a couple of them while I was there, the doctors say. Her speech is a little slurred, but so far, no paralysis. She was supposed to be released to a supervised care facility after New Year's, but the doctors have decided to keep her in the rehab unit for another week. After that, she will go into managed care, and then we will decide whether or not she can go home with a live-in nurse, or stay in a managed care facility. It will depend on what she wants and what Medicare will pay for.

My brother and his wife Diane are doing a splendid job of looking after her, visiting her daily and keeping track of her care. The staff at the rehab unit of Baylor have been wonderful to her and to us. The doctors have been elusive, and sometimes working at cross-purposes. It is a lot of work to keep them on the same page.


Michael and I have decided, with Brian and Diane's consent, to proceed with our vacation plans. This is the first vacation we've had together in 3 years. We will leave on January 2nd and be back January 13th. We will stay in touch with Dallas just in case. If necessary, I can make another trip to Dallas around the end of the month before classes start.