hello! Its sarah here,cats sister. First of all huge congratulations on the pregnancy wonderful news for you both. Its great for you and Matt and Cat and Seymour to be sharing the same crazy adventure of pregnancy and parenthood together. What beautiful bambinos you will have! I found your link via Seymours blog. I admit that I am not a great communicator via the "t'interweb" as I call it but I have been inspired by your account of your dads stroke. I have just spent the last hour reading it beginning to end and it has had me laughing and crying in equal measures! I am also a physiotherapist here in sunny Huddersfield and have had experience of working with people post stroke both within the scary acute early stages when the world is tipped on its head, and throughout the ongoing rehabilitation phase as people try to rebuild their lives. Of course I have only lived this this experience as a therapist doing my best to help people achieve their best despite the frequent limitations of the health and social sevices. I am not at all suprised by your negative (but also positive) experiences of our NHS. On the whole I'd like to believe that most of us working within the health service do our best but I am all to aware of nightmare nurses and apathetic and uncaring "carers". I also recognse what a big con the Patientline system is! I'm glad to see that you have had positive experiences with both physios and OTs. As a physio I have found stoke rehab to be both challenging and immensely rewading. Stroke can be a such a heartbreaking, cruel, frustrating and random illness that I dont think that anyone can be prepared for it. This of course applies not just to the individual but equally to family and loved ones. I recognised in your blog the many varied emotions of fear, frustration and guilt. I know that I dont need to tell you that these emotions are normal and that if you didnt feel them that this would be abnormal and I know for a fact that I would feel likewise. Your worry, love, encouragement and compassion were also plain to see. I believe that this love and encouragement will help your dad to recover just as well as any medication or input from doctors and therapists. It is often a long and difficult road to recovery post stroke but "miracles" happen every day. I have seen people severely debilitated in the early stages with little function make amazing recoveries. It is, of course, a very different experience for me as the people I see are "patients" and not my dad. When I first meet a patient we have no "history" as such and our relationship starts on that day. I only have a reported history of who that person was before, their character traits, personality and abilities. I guess that when I first see them that they are not who they were and that they are at their worst. This means that any little gain is seen is as a huge encouragement and positive. The difference for you is that you have experience of who that person was before and how much they could do before, therefore these little gains do not fully compensate for who that person was before. I'm sure that there will be much heartbreak and frustration on the road ahead but from what I have read and heard your dad is making a good recovery and getting the love and support he needs. I admire you for the strength and courage that you have demonstrated and shared with us on the blog and for helping me to see it from your point of view. I would definitely recommend all physio's and health professionals to read your blog to give them the insight of your experience as a daughter and carer from the "other side" of stroke care. I think that you have been an excellent daughter and that your dad must be extremely proud of you! Good luck with the pregnancy and life in Bangkok! I will be following your blogs with interest. Take care xxxxxxxxxx
thanks for your posting. I'm sorry to have read it so late (too distracted by the pregnancy). It's also good to hear things from the 'other side' too.
I can say that the physios and OTs we met were all sympathetic, understanding, and professional. I confess I didn't really know what physios did before dad's stroke but now I have huge respect for you guys. I know my dad looked forward to his physio sessions at the hospital and the progress he made with the physios' and OTs' encouragement really brightened up his day.
Back at home, the job was a bit tougher because the stroke recovery was not as dramatic. But the physios we had were excellent in my opinion.
(Also just wanted to add that having had a lot of contact with hospitals in Thailand recently, I have renewed respect for the NHS and those that work there - it's a tough job, and like you say, I'm sure the vast majority are doing their best in difficult circumstances).
Hope you are well. I'll be carrying on with this blog now! Thanks again Sylv.
2 comments:
hello! Its sarah here,cats sister.
First of all huge congratulations on the pregnancy wonderful news for you both.
Its great for you and Matt and Cat and Seymour to be sharing the same crazy adventure of pregnancy and parenthood together. What beautiful bambinos you will have!
I found your link via Seymours blog.
I admit that I am not a great communicator via the "t'interweb" as I call it but I have been inspired by your account of your dads stroke.
I have just spent the last hour reading it beginning to end and it has had me laughing and crying in equal measures!
I am also a physiotherapist here in sunny Huddersfield and have had experience of working with people post stroke both within the scary acute early stages when the world is tipped on its head, and throughout the ongoing rehabilitation phase as people try to rebuild their lives.
Of course I have only lived this this experience as a therapist doing my best to help people achieve their best despite the frequent limitations of the health and social sevices. I am not at all suprised by your negative (but also positive) experiences of our NHS.
On the whole I'd like to believe that most of us working within the health service do our best but I am all to aware of nightmare nurses and apathetic and uncaring "carers".
I also recognse what a big con the Patientline system is!
I'm glad to see that you have had positive experiences with both physios and OTs.
As a physio I have found stoke rehab to be both challenging and immensely rewading.
Stroke can be a such a heartbreaking, cruel, frustrating and random illness that I dont think that anyone can be prepared for it. This of course applies not just to the individual but equally to family and loved ones.
I recognised in your blog the many varied emotions of fear, frustration and guilt.
I know that I dont need to tell you that these emotions are normal and that if you didnt feel them that this would be abnormal and I know for a fact that I would feel likewise.
Your worry, love, encouragement and compassion were also plain to see. I believe that this love and encouragement will help your dad to recover just as well as any medication or input from doctors and therapists.
It is often a long and difficult road to recovery post stroke but "miracles" happen every day. I have seen people severely debilitated in the early stages with little function make amazing recoveries.
It is, of course, a very different experience for me as the people I see are "patients" and not my dad.
When I first meet a patient we have no "history" as such and our relationship starts on that day. I only have a reported history of who that person was before, their character traits, personality and abilities. I guess that when I first see them that they are not who they were and that they are at their worst. This means that any little gain is seen is as a huge encouragement and positive.
The difference for you is that you have experience of who that person was before and how much they could do before, therefore these little gains do not fully compensate for who that person was before.
I'm sure that there will be much heartbreak and frustration on the road ahead but from what I have read and heard your dad is making a good recovery and getting the love and support he needs.
I admire you for the strength and courage that you have demonstrated and shared with us on the blog and for helping me to see it from your point of view.
I would definitely recommend all physio's and health professionals to read your blog to give them the insight of your experience as a daughter and carer from the "other side" of stroke care.
I think that you have been an excellent daughter and that your dad must be extremely proud of you!
Good luck with the pregnancy and life in Bangkok!
I will be following your blogs with interest. Take care xxxxxxxxxx
Sarah
thanks for your posting. I'm sorry to have read it so late (too distracted by the pregnancy). It's also good to hear things from the 'other side' too.
I can say that the physios and OTs we met were all sympathetic, understanding, and professional. I confess I didn't really know what physios did before dad's stroke but now I have huge respect for you guys. I know my dad looked forward to his physio sessions at the hospital and the progress he made with the physios' and OTs' encouragement really brightened up his day.
Back at home, the job was a bit tougher because the stroke recovery was not as dramatic. But the physios we had were excellent in my opinion.
(Also just wanted to add that having had a lot of contact with hospitals in Thailand recently, I have renewed respect for the NHS and those that work there - it's a tough job, and like you say, I'm sure the vast majority are doing their best in difficult circumstances).
Hope you are well. I'll be carrying on with this blog now! Thanks again
Sylv.
Post a Comment