June Update

Catherine with Mom, Sister Neta-Bess, Grandma and Grandpa Armstrong, on 6-1-98

Catherine, Mom, and Sister Neta on 6-1-98

After going to church last Sunday (May 31st), Catherine rode to Camp Verde for a picnic. She did well with the hour's drive and with seeing so many people.

For the last 3 weeks, Catherine has been leaving the hospital after therapy in the afternoons around 3 o'clock, until mid to late evening. Last week she was able to spend her first whole night at home. Back in April 4th's update, there was brief mention of limiting the "foot drop" in Catherine's right foot. While she was still in a coma, her right foot dropped nearly straight out (foot and toes pointing straight down if she was in the standing postion) in spite of efforts to prevent it. The family was told at the time that it would likely be permanent, preventing her ability to walk even if she recoverd. Now that she has recovered, it has been difficult in therapy and when standing, because the muscles and tendons couldn't stretch enough to allow her foot to bend normally. On Monday afternoon, while still at home, Aunt Berta noticed her right foot was flat on the floor while being walked across the room. Aunt Berta was excitedly telling Catherine, but because Catherine hadn't been aware of any change, she was afraid it was because she was on carpet. Catherine asked to be taken to a hard floor and it was still flat on the floor! Aunt Berta had to take pictures of it to mark another milestone in Catherine's progress.

Tuesday night Catherine went out to dinner at her boss' home and got in her jetted tub for a nice relaxing bath which she hasn't been able to enjoy very often of late. On Wednesday her occupational therapist said she stood by the sink with the most balance that she's had while brushing her teeth. She had an appointment with a doctor in the late afternoon and he asked her how she would feel if she never got any better than she is right now. That made Catherine very angry. She told him she was going to get better. Her mother reminded her that they haven't accepted any medical diagnosis yet, and have looked beyond that to complete healing.

Thursday found Catherine and her friend laughing and having fun. It was good to see her feeling better and lighter. That evening she went to a bridal shower. On Friday, Catherine had her best day! She walked in physical therapy with her walker with weights on her ankles to smooth out her spastic jerky motion. She had the best session with that process that she's had. She also did well in speech therapy and was teasing and laughing with her therapists. She told her mother that she had done so well because she had a good attitude and she had found that it does make a difference.

Of all her 4 limbs, her left arm has had the hardest time of all returning back to normal. It had been drawn up and has never been able to extend totally out. So she was fitted with a special brace for her left arm, and is supposed to wear the brace all night. But because it is bulky and difficult to manage, they are trying it for a few hours during the day and a few at night. There was another family/staff meeting on Friday afternoon and it was decided that Catherine can go home next Tuesday and come in daily on an outpatient basis. She will continue with 4 1/2 hours of her therapies daily. Her doctor said she had put his prognosis to shame.

Joe and Cynthia happy to be clearing out  Catherine's hospital room.  6-9-98

Catherine leaving the hospital  with the help of a nurse.  6-9-98

Penny Hawkes giving Catherine a send off  for home.  6-9-98

As mentioned last week, Catherine is now home and settling into a routine. Catherine has been sleeping very well at home. This is one of the prayers on her list that God has answered. Since she has a second phone line, they dial the number of the 1st line into the phone so that in the middle of each night when she awakens, she can press the "redial" button to call her mother to take her to the bathroom. (It's their version of a nurse call button.) In the morning after getting Catherine breakfast and ready to leave, her dad takes her to the hospital to start her therapies by 9:00 am. Mom brings her a lunch and they have an hour break together. She has another hour and a half after lunch and then she's home by 3:00 pm.

The family is looking into equestrian therapy as it is supposed to help with balance. She has been getting on the computer some, but it is a struggle to hit the keys she wants. They are trying to teach her to crochet in order to use her hands more and to improve the motor skills. (So many muscles to retrain!)

Catherine's sister Joy and her 2 children came up to visit from Phoenix on Friday, and that evening, Joy was going to drive to town and Catherine wanted to go with her. She was explaining that they could drive her mother's vehicle because her wheel chair was already in the back. Her dad interrupted and said "NO! You're not going." Catherine looked dumbfounded and said, "Did you hear that? Dad just told me no and he never tells me no!" It's expected that she'll definitely be feeling those 'harsh reality blues', hearing 'no' more often etc. There seems to be more to "settling into a routine" than meets the eye.

Amber helping Catherine tend the wedding guest book of her cousin.  6-20-98

Last week was a busy week. Sunday (6-21) was Fathers Day and Joy Daulton's birthday, so after church we came home and had a barbecue. It was our first family barbecue with Catherine and we were all very thankful to be together again. On Monday, Catherine had been watching videos of herself from 2 years ago, in which she was singing and cutting up. She decided to take it to the hospital to watch with her speech therapist as an example of what her voice had sounded like before. Upon viewing the video again, the realization of how different she sounds and the animation that she has seemingly lost,  hit her and made her a bit depressed.

Monday night we had Bible Study at our house and it was the first one Catherine has been to since the accident. Tuesday morning at 4:45 Catherine tried to call me on the phone (remember the 6-13 update?) and hit a number instead of the redial button, accidentally overriding the number in the redial memory. When she tried to dial me directly she didn't realize that she was dialing the number of the phone in her hand, resulting in a busy signal. Her frustration escalated as she yelled to no avail. She finally called her sister, Neta Bess, long distance who helped her figure out what she was doing wrong. She was crying when I came into her room and said she had almost called 911. I couldn't help laughing and asked her what she would have said to them. She said she called Neta even though she didn't know what could be done from so far away, because she didn't know who else to call and she was desperate. Another "crisis" past.

Wednesday was our first time to the stables for her horse ride. She loved it and said she would like to continue after she is back to normal. We went to Phoenix on Thursday after her morning therapies were completed. We had decided that a break, with a change of atmosphere, would be good for her. Both her brother Steve and her sister Joy live in Phoenix, so she got to see her 2 nieces and her nephew. She also went to the mall with her siblings and had a nice outing. We returned in time to get ready for a wedding on Saturday.

Upon arriving home from the wedding, her Aunt Angie and Uncle Drew and their 2 children were here from Texas for a visit. This will give her something more to look forward to each day for 2 weeks while they visit.

This morning, Sunday the 28th, Catherine spoke to Amber Dutton, who was in a car accident and in the hospital and rehab for 6 months. After hearing of her experiences and all that was involved  for Amber to fully recover,  Catherine was very encouraged and said that she felt so much better about her recovery. Talking to her gave Catherine a better perspective of the time frame required to get her muscles strong and to obtain her goals.