Mom got a cookie on Monday. Wait, let me back up a bit. I've got a little catching up to do.
On July 26, Mom had yet another stroke- her third this year. She hadn't even finished her home health care from the last one. She spent most of the next week in ICU again. The first 2 days were rough- she was quite agitated the second night, ripping out her IVs and trying to leave. I'm sure that was due to disorientation brought on by the stroke itself. They gave her Haldol to calm her down, which made her a zombie for the next week or so. Finally, she was discharged to another skilled nursing facility, and is still there. Since I figured it would be demoralizing for her to be back in the same place as before, I pushed to get her to a different (and better) one. It worked, and we're all happy about it.
This time we weren't as lucky as the last 2 strokes, where she was able to move her left side fairly quickly. Her left side is only very slowly coming back. She can move her leg a bit and walks quite a ways with assistance, but now has foot drop. She's been fitted for a brace, which helps tremendously with walking. Her left arm/hand may only come back later.
She had escaped aphasia for the most part the previous times, but not so this round. It's such a struggle for her to speak at times, that unless she's well rested and energetic, I don't know what she's trying to say. She's improving, as ever, though. Dysphagia is also something she'll probably always have to deal with, which is where I come back to the cookie. On Monday she was able to pronounce the word cookie, and so was given a cookie for reward- her first cookie, I might add, since July 26th. Yesterday the word 'excellent' was the accomplishment. She may come off the puree diet very soon.
Though her memory is affected somewhat, her sense of humor is quite lively- always cutting up with the nurses and CNA's. They all seem fond of her. This means a lot to me, and not only for the obvious reasons. Whenever I go see her, I am deeply affected by the faces of the other residents there, especially when they're gathered in the dining room. I can't help but wonder what stories they might have to tell; where are their families, or if they have any. I just can't imagine what how they feel or what they're thinking.
Today we took Mom to a cardiologist in Ocala to discuss the closure of the PFO (patent foramen ovale) in her heart, which could be responsible for passing clots. The best option for her is what is called a device closure, which she's opted for. The benefits far outweigh the risks for her and would reduce the likelihood of another event like she's been having. All 3 MRI's following each stroke have shown no change, nothing new.
