I know that it's been a few days, but there hasn't been much to write about since Jake didn't have any appointments the past couple of days. :( We both have been quite bored these past few days, but hung on to our sanity--barely.
Jake was visited on Wednesday by his Staff Sergeant from Afghanistan who was visiting all the Vermont soldiers that are down here. That's about the most exciting thing that happened that day!
Late Wednesday and most of the day Thursday, Jake decided to do things on his own again and went cold turkey off all of his meds. :( He said that he hasn't been experiencing much pain lately, and knows that the plan is for him to get off all medications, so he thought it would be wise to get going on that plan. Bad idea! He had a very hard time sleeping that night and he was sick to his stomach the next day and had bad headaches. Finally, in the late afternoon, he asked for his pain meds. Within an hour, he started to feel better and realized that going cold turkey was not a good idea. That was the excitement for Thursday.
Oh, we did have another excitement on Thursday--the bad storm. It rained all day long--even into the night--and it was a hard rain. The wind was blowing quite hard also. As I looked at the weather report on the internet, I saw that there was not only a flood warning and watch out for us, but also a tornado watch. YIKES!! It was quite the storm! We were glad that we didn't have appointments to go to so that we didn't have to go out in it. It's not fun pushing/wheeling a wheelchair when it is downpouring and the wind is blowing hard.
When we went in to see his primary care doctor this morning, Jake explained to her what he did about "cold turkeying" the meds. She got a smile on her face, shook her head, and told him that it was not a very good idea to do that. He laughed and told her that he learned his lesson. So, the plan is to gradually decrease the dosage of his meds--one at a time. The plan started today, and so far, things are going well. She also gave us good news that as soon as she receives the paperwork from his nurse case manager (for him to go home for good) that she would sign it right away. She said that she wants to get him home. :) We really like her--even before she stated that! Our hopes are high right now. :)
Jake also had an appointment with the audiology department for a hearing test. With the blast, he was experiencing some ringing in his ears. So, they wanted to make sure that his hearing was okay. He passed with flying colors! :) The ringing has stopped also--which is good news.
While at the hospital, we stopped by the PT office and got an appointment scheduled for a reassessment for his physical therapy. We had to wait for a referral from his primary care doctor (because he was gone for 30 days) before we could schedule any appointments. During this reassessment, Jake will discuss with the Colonel about having aquatic therapy. Hopefully the Colonel will agree and get it scheduled for Jake. We also need to go back to the hospital on Monday to schedule another OT reassessment. This is to determine whether Jake can handle all his ADL's (daily living skills) by himself or if he still needs an NMA (non-medical assistant--me).
When we returned back to our room, his nurse case manager called and gave us some good news and some more hope. He finished the paperwork for the CBWTU (going home for good) and was making a call to them today to discuss Jake!! YIPPEE!!! He said that as soon as he has a report date and time, that he would call Jake back. So, we are waiting to hear back from him. This is where we have to use our patience--the waiting game. That's the excitement for today.
The weekend starts now. It should be a quiet one, but you never know!
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