Did you notice that I only posted 7 times in February? And not even all of those were my words. Not only am I going to need to re-learn how to cook...but I am going to have to get blogging back into my schedule. I have however returned to my wild book reading days. Reading a book a day rather than blogging. Hmmm...more about that tomorrow.
The better portion of last week was spent visiting with various doctors and therapists. None of whom came to the same conclusions. We had one who said to go back to work. Carry on with life. Do all the things that you used to do. That directive was quickly followed by a different doctor with a "are you kidding me?" And a "what did they do to assess you?" And "That doctor was not qualified to do that."
Back to square one. Well. Not really. It was pretty much decided by someone with big girl panties. That Michael would have a month of intensive cognitive therapy. And then he would probably go back to work the middle of April.
And let me tell you about the cognitive therapy. It seemed so silly. But it was really telling. The therapist showed Michael a picture of an alien. The aliens name is Joff. Then she flipped the page and there are about 10 aliens on this page. And Michael had to find Joff. Simple, no? Well. Then she showed him another picture of an alien. This one was Delton. Then she flipped the page and he had to find both Joff and Delton. Next we met Megoy. And then Kriptick. Michael was doing okay identifying his new alien friends. And then he met Plick. Apparently his brain really didn't want to think about any more aliens.
Aliens. Schmaliens. And the brain promptly forgot Kriptick. Megoy. Delton. Even though he went on to meet 7 more aliens. He couldn't keep any of them straight. He was on overload. On the fritz. And the circuit blew.
And I think that the therapist thought smugly to herself that doctors really don't know what they are talking about.
On the next day we met with a neurologist. We were referred there after our little visit to the ER on the day Michael was discharged from the hospital. Because he might have had a seizure that caused all of his confusion. Evidently they really have no idea if he might have had a seizure or not. But if he did, the law states that he cannot drive for 6 months. When the neurologist told him that he could not clear him for driving yet, I think that for the first time, Michael was actually depressed.
However, they are going to do a test next week. They are going to do an EEG...and if they get an excellent reading, they will clear him for driving. A slow. Baby step. New driver type okay. No free ways. Not at night. And a gradual increase to what he was used to.
This EEG test. It's at 7:30 in the morning. Next Wednesday. He has to get up the day before. On Tuesday. Have no caffeine. And not take a nap. Stay awake all night. So that he can fall asleep while they administer the test.
So...here is my question to you all. Help me think of things to put on his honey do list. Things he can do in the middle of the night to stay awake. While the rest of us sleep. What would you have your husband do if your house was already clean. And all the laundry was caught up. Ideas? Anyone? Anyone?
.jpg)
Posts
35 comments:
What is with therapists and aliens??? I had a therapist ask my kinds oncew 'What would you do if you met an alien?'
The kids all stared at the therapist, then at each other, then at me, then fixed the therapist with that 'What have you been smoking?' look.
Whatever you get him to do, it probably needs to keep him on his feet. Sitting down will probably result in him falling asleep. Couldn't you save up a few days of dust, laundry and dishes?? :-)
I know, get him to do some baking for Madalyn's class. Or, get him to cook a weeks meals in advance that he can freeze. That should keep him awake and busy !!
I really must proof read before I hit the post button...
'my kinds oncew' ??
Well, I'm sure you realise that I meant 'my kids once' !!!
You could make him blog surf and come up with a rec list of blogs he thinks you will like.
Or make him archive all of your past comments.
Color code the kid's crayons.
Arrange the legos by size and function.
Alphabetize the salad dressings in your fridge.
I am, of course, being a dork here, because I have no idea and am therefore being silly. I usually read, but that may be sleep inducing.
Do you have and spring cleaning tasks that require enough focus to be engrossing? Washing and sorting the kids' stuff into sizes maybe?
Oh Kat, I've missed you!! I'm so glad you're back - even if it's just here and there!
As for Michael and his night time escapades - I'll have to think about that and get back to you. I sadly have trouble staying up past 11 pm myself... in fact, I have to write a blog post and get it out in the next 30 min before I turn into a pumpkin.
Sending good thoughts your way!
Gosh...that's a tough one. I would watch TV but that's just me.
look for Aliens ofcourse.. :D Just being sassy.
I'd figure that he'd need to do both things that kept his hands working and a few things he likes. For example I LOVE to read but I do get sleepy doing so maybe not the best busy idea. How about sock sorting? Have him write you a love letter. Or start him on a journal about his ordeal? My DH can sew so I'd put him on that, but he's a freak.. ha.. How about sorting pics of the girls by age or season?
thats a tough one. Jeff would just play games on the computer. Maybe he could blog for you?
I hope that things continue to improve more and more.
when was the last time he spent the night with his parents...:)
just an idea...
i took an EEG a few times when i was a little tyke. each time they couldn't get me to sleep. the last time they got mad at me because i wouldn't sleep. like i was intentionally screwing them up. t had nothing to do with having nodes on my head and chest and not being able to move in an ice cold dark room on a hard couch with this creepy guy who breathed funny and kept ordering me to go to sleep and i was only 9.
good thing Michael's not a 9-year old girl.
Wow! Stay awake and no caffiene? He could stay up all night playing MarioKart? How about staying up all night beating highscores on other games? Is there anything he likes that he has a hard time tearing himself away from? Maybe send him on a scavenger hunt? You could hide things all around the house and he has to find them? Hide the hooligan kitties? Good luck! Glad to see you back!
OK, I can't even get my head around the house already being clean and the laundry done, so I'm afraid I'm of no help with that question. I do want to let you know that y'all have stayed in my thoughts, and that I'm glad to see you post again. =)
Does any room in the house need painting? That could take up most of the night.
As for the alien test....I think I'd remember about as many as he did, before I got them all confused! That's a lot to remember.
Good to hear from you!
Wow, I can't imagine . . . introduce him to blogging or facebook, Xbox?? :)
Let one of your daughters go out on a date (just teasing).
Do you have friends that could take shifts? All night shopping?
Good luck with the activity list!
Good to see a new post from you...I was a little worried :( I'm sorry about the trouble with Michael and the aliens...I'd probably get them all mixed up too...I've never been great at the "memory" game. I will say an extra prayer for his EEG. And as for any ideas on how to keep him awake...gosh, I don't know...maybe cook?? (But, you know I'm quietly whispering sex right?? I'm laughing, because that's truthfully the first thing that came to my mind...hey, I'm honest, don't think I'm bad, k!??)
Maybe consider not cleaning the house and have him keep busy doing laundry and/or dishes if that's not too much.
To be honest, if he hasn't joined FB, that will keep him busy all night if he's as social as you. :)
Oh, I'm always checking to see if you've updated your blog, thanks for keeping us posted and it's good to see you back.
Rhonda
First off, prayers, prayers, prayers!
Don't let him read...let him fold tons of clean laundry!
Hmmm ... are you going to stay up with him? I would talk, play games, organize the pantry or bookshelves, goof around on the computer, watch a movie. But I would limit each activity to a half an hour, set a timer, then move on to something else. Variety and a timer. Hope it works!
Glad to see ya back in the blogging world!
HMMM AN ALL NIGHTER??? I have no good ideas. I will be saying many prayers for the things to go the way YOU want them to GO!
maybe wash all the laundry, but not fold it, have him do that. Find every sock thats ever been lost? look for lost dust bunnies under the couch? along with the 50 cents you lost two weeks ago that fell thru the same void the socks did? Tell him to count every scrabble tile - with how many of each letter in alphabetical order!
have fun and I hope all goes well!
Aw man! All night? My husband would be so excited, he'd be on his Xbox and the computer .. but if I knew it was for a test the next day, I would be up with him even though I'd drag all day. Because I wouldn't trust him enough to stay up all night by himself =-)
I have an itty bitty control issue, huh? Hope all goes well next week!
Hmmm...
I have no idea. I do think folding the laundry is a pretty good idea. If it was me that had to stay up all night, I'd be on the computer... doing some online shopping!
Play old board games you may have played (or played now as adults) such as monopoly or scrabble. Or card games. Games that you usually do not play. Heck, even Candyland. Right now, it's all about just doing repetitive tasks and remembering. Fun stuff, silly stuff that gets you through the night.
Oh, Kat. I miss your daily posts. I wish things were getting back to normal faster for you. Unfortunately I don't really have any advice because I can't really get my husband to do anything when he's awake let alone when he's asleep. ;)
I'm so happy to read an update from you! And things seem to be progressing, even if it's a slow process.
As for staying up all night...uh, I have no idea but he definitely needs to keep moving and stay busy at something.
It's all about the aliens.
I'm sorry there are no clear answers. That's so frustrating.
Staying awake all night is NOT fun when you HAVE to do it. Sheesh. I'll try to think of some good ideas of things for him to do. Puzzles, movies, books...hmm...
I've really missed you. But I'm glad you're enjoying reading.
You've been missed!!
Wow. This is a tough one. Maybe a Lord of the Rings or Star Wars movie marathon? LOL
He should start a blog...get addicted - and then he won't want to sleep!
I can imagine how this whole thing has turned your lives upside-down.
How are YOU feeling by the way?
Well, MY first step would be to stop cleaning and doing the laundry so he could focus on that ;) Since my husband doesn't really DO honey do's I don't have good ideas for you...
BUT I am glad to hear that you're posting again. I was digging in my inbox to find your email the other day to check to see how you were doing. Obviously I never quite made it there (sorry).
Rhea had a good idea with the puzzle. Get one of those super large ones that have a couple thousand pieces in it. If that doesnt work, have him organize the dvds and videos into categories (drama, comedy, kids, etc) and reshelve them in order. While he's at it maybe entering the info into a spread sheet so you can track what you have. When he's done there, have him organize your reading supplies (alphabetically by author , then by title....series books need to be in the order you'd read the books). That should keep him busy for a while.
No tips. Maybe you could save some house work for him. Or he could watch a movie, but that would make me fall asleep.
I was going to suggest an EEG. That's what we've had in the past to rule out seizures for Addison.
Here's to hoping it all goes perfectly!
Xbox. All night long. Good for developing hand/eye coordination and keeping the excitement level up.
Seriously...Scott can play Xbox sll night long. It's annoying...
And Aliens? They should've shown him pictures from the Starship Enterprise. Much more exciting than aliens!
Ooh, maybe you could get him to help you get caught up with you scrapbooks. or let him watch Clean House with Miss Niecy Nash. Oh wait, that's what I do when I can't sleep.
Do you have a Super Walmart nearby? Drop him off with a scavenger hunt list. No brand names or anything, just general descriptions of the item and he has to find them and write them all down, including the aisle number and which shelf it's on?
Then he could go to the entertainment section and count their cd's and dvd's for them?
How in the world did I miss this post?! It's full of all the things I've wondering and worrying about! My husband has been watching all the "That 70's Show" online in order. He seriously could stay up all night watching them. Send Michael over, they can have a man party. :)
Well I hope they clear him for driving. I can only imagine how that would feel to not be able to drive (Okay, now me- I'd be thrilled because I hate driving, but I know my Michael would be depressed by that, too)
How 'bout this? Don't clean the rest of the week! Then he'll have plenty to do. Oh, and make sure you put lots of 'up' music on his ipod to play while he works.
Big hugs!
The Wii, Facebook, organizing the pantry :)...those are all good ideas.
Good luck, Michael. We'll be thinking of you.
Post a Comment