Countdown.....

Today when I came in Frank was in the livingroom, to my idea the place he hatest most of whole kalorama. Sitting between old people who don't speak, waiting endlessly for his lunch doing nothing. And no possibility to go somewhere else on his own. And since lunch was still not there we went out for a walk. Frank and I discoverd a statuegarden, how nice we thougt and went in to look. Now you must know that Kalorama has a very large department for demented and other psychogeriatric patients and the statues appeared to be gnomes, ducks and other rather infantile looking statues so we got the hell out of there stating that Frank is anything but senile or demented. He even could laugh about it.
He told me that he is a little anxious about his transfer to the SMK, he knows himself quite well, he does want to make progress but at the same time he wants to be left alone, reading books laying in bed. Sports and training was never much Franks favourite activity. So he realizes quite well that he has some tough month ahead. He asked all kinds of questions about what he could expect so I gave a short rersume:
Physical therapy is aimed at improvement of condition, standing, trunkstability, working to the goal of making transfers.
Occupational therapy is very much aimed at activities of daily living and wheelchair steering
Speech therapy can be aimed at learning how to read an work with problems of neglect
Psychological therapy can be aimed at learning how to compensate for neuropsychological disabilities etc etc.
So at first I expect there will be one or two weeks in which all the aformentioned disciplines will do there diagnostic procedures and formulate rehabilitation goals and than the show starts rolling. I think and hope that Frank will do fine, taking initative is one of his problems due to the stroke and I think a structured goal diredted schedule will compensate for his lack of initiative.
During lunch I made preparations for the big move on tuesday. I put all the books and DVD in boxes (and will you believe, I have two big boxes full of typical Frank stuff, books, cd's dvd's and probably one little bag with the rest of his stuf like clothes etc). So his room is now clean and boring again. I hope that he will have a single room in the SMK.
I forgot to bring Frank one of his favourite magazines which I received by mail so just because he's Frank I drove down to Kalorama once more tonight with his Knötel books (which I found at last) and that pleased him very very much, he really was happy with the books. So after a final cup of coffee and some spekjes (which I secretly gave to Frank and which he ated with very much taste, chewing and swallowing as if he had never had swallowing problems) I left, fearing for the worst (rehab will be to heavy for Frank), hoping for the best (working towards some form of independency) and anything in between. It are challenging and strenous times!!
Bedtime, goodnight.