First let me tell you that Tink is walking in the water! She hasn't figured out how to make her legs walk in rhythm yet. But she can sure stomp in place!
The therapists are working with her in tandem - one in front and one behind with a stationary sling positioned above a little treadmill. They move her little legs in time, counting for her and playing music to interest her. She can move her front legs fine but the back ones just can't get the timing. I got to watch for a bit on Tuesday afternoon.
The PT therapist says she is doing very well and expects that she will start to pick it up this week. She can hold her butt off the ground now, but she just can't get her legs to cooperate. But that is a great big leap forward and I am thrilled!
Peter had said earlier that her thought she could come home in a couple of weeks, the therapist thinks that was a little hopeful, but she is sure that Tink will be walking in another week or so even if she is a little unsteady (just like her Mama
). I had her with me for the evening yesterday - they wore her out so much she sleptmost of the time, but I got my snuggles in.
OK, my strength is fading, but I do want to tell you that I am doing so much better than before I went away to another hospital for pain management. We tried many things in the week and a half, some holistic, some invasive and nothing was working. I'm not going to list them all here. Some things are better left alone. But, in fact, I was worse by Wednesday night last week. I was ready to call it quits. I can have a pump inserted in my back, but I really didn't want to do that.
Wednesday evening I spoke with my spine surgeon who has stayed by me for many years (wasn't it wonderful of him to go all that way to check on me?). We talked about the last procedure which was very chancy and required opening my back the length of my fusions for access for the procedure. He is a strong believer in the power of prayer and healing and we prayed together that God would either allow this procedure to work for me or give me the strength and understanding to endure what would lie ahead.
All I'm going to say is that I went in to surgery at around 3:00 in the afternoon Thursday and woke up around 5:30 with absolutely no nerve pain anywhere in my body. The surgeons came in a little while later with big grins on their faces and told me that when they opened me up, my spine was straight (a miracle), I had no dicernable nerve swelling anywhere in the spinal column and all the herniated disks in my back were resolved. They did nothing but sew me back up and give me something for the surgical pain. So what do you think of that?!
I think God loves me and was listening the previous evening.
It seems that when situations are as much as I can bear, relief is always near. He did promise to be near us, so all I can do is give Him praise and never ever stop giving thanks. I know some of you may not believe in God or His promises but I do, and I have to let you know that I believe without a shadow of a doubt that whatever His reason, He showed me grace and mercy and I have no pain in my back today. I will acknowledge nerve pain in my knee, but the doctors all agree that this kind of nerve pain is self-resolving within 3-6 months and it has improved markedly since it began right after surgery. It's annoying, but bearable.
Now, I just have to work with people PT (unlike Tink's therapist) to strengthen my legs and back after years of assistive devices. Argh - but it will be so worth it to lose the wheel chair, walker and maybe some day even the cane! Whoo Hoo!!!!!!! Ok - gotta go lie down for a little while. I wore out my brain.
THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR THOTS AND PRAYERS FOR BOTH TINK AND ME.
