First Day of Work (at home)

Published on by heiditeaLeave a comment

I’m going to try working at home this week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday to see how that goes for me. I got up early, washed my hair, fed the cats and ate breakfast at my normal “work” time then at 7 a.m. I made the short commute into my home office. I need to get used to sitting at a computer screen all day again.

I did okay until about 9 a.m. then had to step away from the computer and walk around a bit. At 10:30 I needed to close my eyes for about 15 minutes, so I set the timer on my computer and sat back in the chair. Ate lunch and walked for 10 minutes inside, then pretty much pooped out around 2 p.m. I TRIED to get a full 8 hours in, but couldn’t keep my eyes open after 7.5 hours. Then slept for an hour and a half.

Not sure how I’ll feel tomorrow, but it’s a start. I received a beautiful floral bouquet from a friend and that sure put a smile on my face and perked me up!

Support Group

Published on by heiditeaLeave a comment

Yesterday was a major outing for me and a major event for the state of Maine and anyone who has been effected by brain aneurysms.

Maine Brain Aneurysm Support GroupThe first meeting of the Maine Brain Aneurysm Support Group was held in Portland and by all accounts it was a great success. The Brain Aneurysm Foundation sent two of their most notable representatives to join us and helped us get the ball rolling. The medical community was also highly represented, which was most important.

We have been trying to get a support group going for years and it took getting the Brain Aneurysm Foundation directly involved, to get the local medical community involved…which was what we needed and had failed to do successfully in the past.

When I left the hospital after my brain aneurysm ruptured in 2006, I was given nothing but a book on traumatic brain injury, not an aneurysm, and sent on my merry way. If I hadn’t found an online community of other brain aneurysm survivors, I would have floundered and felt very alone. My doctor at the time had nothing in his office on what to expect while recovery from a rupture nor any info to assist newly diagnosed patients.

That is our goal with this support group: to assist those recovering, to comfort those who have lost, and to educate those who are newly diagnosed. And now, with the local medical community involved, our mere existence will be generated amongst medical newsletters and calendars and we hope to help many more people…and perhaps save lives through our Brain Aneurysm Awareness events.

It was wonderful to see new faces and hear their stories. Some more challenging than others and it makes us aware we’ll need to address many different topics throughout the months as each story is different. The brain aneurysm is what binds us and simply knowing we’re not alone in our struggles is what this group is all about. There IS a community of people effected by brain aneurysms throughout the state of Maine.

I was exhausted afterwards, but it was worth it. I wouldn’t have missed the first meeting unless I had to, because we’ve worked so hard to get to this point. For some reason the side of my face near my incision around my jaw and ear has been swollen the last couple of days and remained so last night, so I put ice on it for a time, then promptly fell completely asleep for the entire night. I needed that full-night’s sleep that’s for sure.

Puzzle Therapy

Published on by heiditeaLeave a comment

It’s done! It took me about five weeks to do it, but I completed a small 10 x 14″ puzzle I started a few weeks ago. I saved the hardest pieces for last and got it done tonight. Working on it put odd strains on my eyes and brain, but it will get me warmed up for more daily visual activities.

The puzzle was given to me by my sister, Rhonda, who just passed after Christmas so I was on a mission to complete it in her honor. It wasn’t easy, but it feels great getting it done now. I know why Rhonda bought it for me because of the lovely lady enjoying tea in her garden and she knew that’s what I liked to do as well. Not in the same outfit as the lovely lady in the puzzle, however.

Puzzle

I had a good day today even though I had trouble getting to sleep last night and woke up early. I did my low, low, low, low, low-impact yoga stretching with Lexie (did I mention it’s low-impact?), ate a good breakfast, showered, and wasn’t too pooped after that so I decided to work on my desktop computer to try and get warmed up for work next week and see what my limits might be.

Tackling my online recipe database was today’s project/therapy. If I screwed it up, it wouldn’t effect anyone but me and Dave if I messed up a recipe. I took a break for lunch and walked 30 minutes inside. Even made dinner and finished the puzzle.

My head is hurting at 8:40 p.m. and I’m hoping I can sleep tonight, but I feel good about today. We’ll see if I feel the same way tomorrow.

Still Here

Published on by heiditeaLeave a comment

I haven’t posted in a few days only because I don’t want this to be a blog about my daily ups and downs. That’s just boring and certainly doesn’t educate anyone else who may be going through similar situations.

My good days are good. I feel more energetic and there are no headaches, so I tend to do more. And by “doing more” that might mean an extra load of laundry on some days or walking five more minutes and perhaps trying to read more and maybe actually make a nice dinner. It’s not like I’m going grocery shopping, eating bonbons, going skiing and sipping champagne. Nothing quite as elaborate as that. In fact, after feeding the cats first thing in the morning and cleaning out their litter box, I have to sit at the bottom of the stairs to catch my breath and balance before walking back up the stairs.

But I still can’t seem to pace myself better on those good days and as a result I pay for it the next day by usually waking up with a headache and having no energy all day. Wanting to sleep is all I want to do. I know it will get better, but it’s still frustrating.

So, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it…like a have much choice. 🙂