Life since the stroke

I apologize for the lack of updates as I have been recovering from the stroke. I am currently still off workas I am continuing to work on my fine motor skills and they continue to improve. When I think back to where I was versus where  I am today, well it is dramatic. I still have a long road ahead, but I am getting there. My left hand is still weak, I cannot tie my shoes, and  I face challenges every.single.day. However bleak and depressing that sounds, I try to remember what I CAN do. As I am my own worst enemy, that in itselfcan be a challenge!LOL
As Emmy started school in September, on school days I get up, shower and get dressed. I make Em's lunch usually with assistance as spreading butter/jam etc is still a messy and difficult task.  I drive Em to school and once home I am exhausted both physically and mentally. I usually have a short nap to help get through the day. In the PM I walk on the treadmill, balance & physio exercises. After that, I watch some Dr. Phil, pick up Emmy and figure out dinner. A day in my boring life. However I will take boring over the past 4.5 years of my life. A loss of a second trimester pregnancy, breaking my ankle, 2 seizures and now the stroke. I revel in boring, I rejoice in it.  I have an appointment in Vancouver  on November 03, and my hope is I will be cleared to return to work mid to late Nov if not sooner. However, that is up to the  stoke specialist I will be seeing.
 I still have many hurdles to get through and I don't want to set myself up for failure. So we will see what happens.

House O'Stairs

You know, there was always a reason I didn't love this house quite as much as Keith does. There are stairs EVERWHERE. Seriously. Since Thursday, I have been restricted to the living room and the kitchen, since every other room requires some stair tackling to get to. If you just think I am being lazy, come here, I'll break your ankle and you can see how awesome it feels. Or how sexy it feels to use a wheelchair commode since the bathroom is up 14 stairs. The same 14 stairs I fell down and got me into this mess in the first place. Life is fun.

On a much less whiney note, I have been offered a new job. Not only does this new job pay over double what I was making, it is something I have wanted to do for years. I start October 22, and although I won't be healed yet, the office is wheelchair accessible which means NO FREAKING STAIRS! Between my parent's crap, losing Maddie, and breaking my ankle, I seriously thought I kicked puppies in my past life or something. It's not been a stellar year.

The casualty of my injury was my ankle of course, and my former job that I have been working at for the past few months. There are 2 small flights of stairs to manoever which has kept me away. (Oh, and the throbbing pain when my foot isn't elevated. So, I quit this morning. I'm sure I am not their favorite person right now, but what could I do?

My blog is sadly lacking in pictures of my munchkin. Last week she was injured from her fight with the 4 year old at daycare and resembled Rocky, and then of course I broke my leg. However, I will take some new ones tonight.

Injured Jan

I'm broken. Well, at least my left ankle is. It's amazing how integral that one joint is for things such as walking. lol



On Wednesday, there was some crazy crap happening on my baby board. I had gone upstairs to use the washroom and on my way down, I either missed a stair or tripped, I don't recall. All I know is I freaked my child out and hurt my foot something fierce!



We called 911 since I couldn't move and off to the hospital I went. Diagnosis: Broken left ankle requiring surgery to fix. They sent me home (after they cut off my pants!) since there were no beds. For all those with scary visuals right now, Keith brought me some shorts to wear.

I returned to the hospital on Thursday for my surgery, and now here I sit, pretty much immobile. I have crutches that I need to practise with, but Keith keeps hiding them (so I don't injure myself further). I did manage to change Em's diaper today, without assistance, while on the recliner, so I'm not completely useless, just feel that way.