This is my last post before I dismantle my computer to move from New Jersey to Michigan.  The continuing care facility I am going to does not have Verizon.  Blogger.com that hosts this blog will not let me add a guest author (really me) with a gmail address to "Home After a Stroke."  Many people on-line have complained about this and not found a solution.  I hope blogspot.com does not care that I no longer have a Verizon e-mail account as long as I type in the same user name and password.  If I am wrong I will use September to try to start a new blogspot blog called&nb ..read more

Today I got a splinter in my sound hand as I walked down my front steps while holding onto a wooden railing.  Thank God I know how to remove a splinter one-handed so I do not need live in a nursing home to get nursing care.  My mother removed splinters by picking at the skin over the splinter with the end of a sewing needle.  This was painful and required delicate fingertip pinch.  A stroke took away my ability to grasp a needle between my thumb and index finger. My solution is to use a rasp which removes callouses on the bottom of the feet.  I trap the rasp on a coun ..read more

OTs evaluate how clients get on and off the toilet.  However, aides are the ones who deal with dressing and undressing during toileting.  Aides have large caseloads so they speed up toilet time by doing everything for their clients.  This assistance masks safety issues.   Small weight shifts while pulling my pants up threw me off balance.  I had to repeatedly twist my trunk so my sound could reach across the front of my body to get my underpants over the paralyzed hip and reach behind me to get my underpants over the affected hip in back.  ..read more

My moving company will keep my belongings in storage containers for 2 to 3 weeks until there is a truck heading to west to Michigan.  The facility I am moving into will put a few pieces of furniture in my apartment so I will have a place to stay while I am waiting.  However, my car must be filled to the max because I need supplies to take a shower, do laundry, and make breakfast until the moving truck arrives.  I turned to rehearsal to make sure I can pack what I need in my car.   The purpose of rehearsal is to make me feel awesome when I tackle a new task.  My 1s ..read more

I thought the hardest thing I have ever done was to recover from a stroke.  A very close 2nd source of stress is moving to Michigan.  My single spaced To-Do List shows what I have to do in the next 4 weeks.    I have a 2nd To-Do List for selling my house.  ?     In the 1st year after my stroke a gratitude list helped me deal with stress.  Each day I wrote 3 to 4 word phrases describing events that gave me 5 seconds of happiness.  Reading that list at the end of the day changed the way I felt about how my day had gone.  I hope writing a gr ..read more

My dreams have changed over the years.  As a young woman my 1st dream was to get married and have a family.  But I was not able to have children and my husband did not want to adopt.  Thank God I got a scholarship to a master's program in occupational therapy. That degree allowed me to support myself without needing to work two jobs after I got divorced.  This helped me achieve my 2nd dream of financial security as a single woman. My 2nd husband liked to travel so my 3rd dream was to see the world.  I have precious memories of Paris, London, New Orleans, Prince Edward ..read more

Hand tests begin by asking clients to pick up objects from a table.  Stroke survivors would discover their affected hand can be useful earlier than they think is possible if hand-to-hand transfers were added to adult hand tests.  A small amount of finger movement done close to the body can make an affected hand functional.  If you pick up an object with your sound hand and open your affected hand 2 inches to receive the object from your sound hand, you may be able to do the tasks shown below.   A hand-to-hand transfer allows me to do 21 bimanual ADL ..read more

Yesterday was a gorgeous day.  I took time to sit on my patio because I have never forgotten how depressed I felt when I was kept inside for 3 months after I had a stroke.      I had a stroke in March so I did not get to smell the blooming trees and flowers, feel the sun on my face, or feel a breeze.  Yesterday the sun was hot but there was a cool breeze.  I got to hear the breeze rustling through the trees behind my house and feel the wind blowing my hair around.  I craved these sensations when I was home-bound. I also got to watch white clouds in ..read more

For a month I have worked hard to get rid of many possessions before I move to an independent living facility in Michigan.  A friend has loaded up my car five times with things to donate and put other possessions on the curb on four garbage days.  This friend has expressed remorse about some of my decisions to get rid of stuff.  Today I realized why I have been steadfast and relentless about my decisions to get rid of so many possessions. For 18 years I have been living in a spacious home that makes me happy.  I would be depressed if I saw boxes stacked against the living ..read more

I am getting ready to move to an independent living facility in Michigan and have spent the last three weeks giving nice things to charity and throwing others in the garbage.  Living in 9 different residences in 5 different states over the years has given me plenty of practice with the process of letting go of objects.  Early moves when I was in my twenties taught me to think about getting rid of belongings that my husband and I never took out of boxes since the previous move.   I am also motivated to let go by the high cost of facilities for old people.    I use ..read more