A Post from Sister Mary

In Jenny's recovery, there is a long road ahead and much need for love and support. But it is, of course, Jenny and her interminable spirit that is making the progress, doing the work, withstanding the challenges, and pursuing all the aspects of her rehabilitation with tenacity and determination day after day. Jenny's sister, Mary, is visiting her once again from New York, and posted to her CarePage about all of the changes she is witnessing in Jenny in this most recent trip:

October 01, 2007 at 04:13 PM MDT

Hi! This is Jenny's sister Mary writing...I'm visiting Jenny for a week to help celebrate her birthday and she asked me to guest blog for her to let people know all the progress she's making...

I think one of the biggest challenges for Jenny is to recognize all the advances she has made. She makes steady improvement in small ways on almost a daily basis. But because the increments are so small, it is hard for her to remember how much she has accomplished. She takes prior accomplishments for granted and forgets how much she has progressed from her injury date.

Since I haven't seen her since she first checked into Craig in July, I was in awe of how much independence she has recovered in these two months...When I last saw her, she was still a prisoner of her neckbrace, couldn't move on her own at all, and was completely dependent on others for all her needs. Her only way of controlling her environment was through asking others to help her. She had some movement in her upper and lower body, but none of it was functional.

When I arrived at Craig from the hospital, she was not in her room. She had left a message for me that she had gone to the laundry room. I headed out and met her part way. I was so moved when she was able to give me a hug! Although she still needs assistance getting in and out of the wheelchair, she is able to direct and participate in that process, using her recovered strength to help shift her body into position for transfer.

She can put her glasses on and off, feed herself using an adaptive apparatus, respond to e-mail using her voice activated software, and get herself around the hospital and beyond. You can't go anywhere with her in the hospital without a staff member or fellow member stopping to greet her. I don't think she realizes how much everyone here cares for her. The restoration of some of her prior independence seems to give more confidence to her movements. She still has many challenges and can become discouraged, but overall, she continues to show great strength of spirit. Her sense of humor continues unabated...

Today I saw her standing for the first time since the accident, practicing getting up and sitting down with the help of some equipment. Later, in physical therapy, she was able to kneel and balance herself with minimal assistance, do the equivalent of a baby cobra (yoga folks will know what I mean), and roll herself from her side onto her stomach. During her occupational therapy, she worked on getting dressed, and although she could not get a shirt on completely by herself, she was able to start the process. Even in the few days I've been her, I've seen her improve so much, that I am amazed. It is hard to believe that her accident happened only three months ago.
Well, Jenny just got back, and we're due to go out and run some errands! I just want to take this opportunity to thank everyone for the support they have shown to Jenny and her family during this difficult time...

Mary