……I was sitting here at my computer and Colin was sitting across the table from me sitting at his computer. He dropped his computer mouse. He bent over and picked it up. We were tired and ready to go to bed for the night. Darn, it dropped again and he picked it up. The third time, I thought he was being silly, but this time was different. As he bent to pick up the mouse he slowly fell out of his chair onto the floor. I saw it happen in slow motion. Was he playing a joke on me?
He looked up at me and said ” I think I am having a stroke “! And so I went into action. I refuse to relive the details, suffice to say it was beyond real, more like a dream. A doctor was called, someone who had a car was called and someone else who was a strong person. Colin would need to be carried outside of the RV, transported to the lancha and carried onto the boat and met on the Mazatlan side by the Red Cross ambulance. I functioned on auto pilot. I did not go that night but made certain that he had bilingual friends with him and money. I spent the next eight hours online researching strokes and everything related and making plans.
I made arrangements for friends to care for the girls, feed them and let them out and give them some love. I had no idea when I would return from the hospital. I was broken to see Colin laying there totally paralyzed on his right side. He had no idea that he even had appendages on the right side of his body. And so began the beginning of our new life. Fortunately he could communicate. It was a horrific time when he realized what had happened to his body. A struggle to overcome and to start to move forward.
Sadly Colin sustained a serious third degree burn during an excessive session of electrical stimulation by the Isla physiotherapist. It has taken many weeks to start to heal. Something that was not needed. Fortunately came to us on the Isla and here at Las Jaibas. An extremely nasty wound.
So here we are just past the three month mark. Some say that is the defining moment in stroke recovery. But now it seems that the six month mark has become that defining moment and even up to two more years past that.
Colin really does enjoy this part of his treatment.
Colin’s recovery began 12 hours later at 10:30AM and I was there to push and push and push. I will always regret not understanding more Spanish. Certainly a priority in such a situation. Never a day goes by right now that I am not leaning new words. I have learnt how to use my iPhone and do copy/paste and so many other things. My eyes were red and burning and often tearing. I was using both iPhones and a laptop and doing my best tech wise but I was such a failure. It was almost impossible to communicate. I also became unable to walk properly and my feet so swollen that one day I walked barefoot all over the hospital. So many were offering to help. Our Mexican friends and family were there for us 100% – someone even had a friend come visit Colin to make sure he was doing alright. Essentially we were alone. And I certainly needed my Canadian and American friends. They were there for me. I spent the 30 – 40 minute Didi ride to and for the hospital everyday texting. One night a lovely Mexican lady who picked me up at 9:30PM suddenly handed me her cell phone. Her daughter who spoke English was there to chat with me. The driver understood that I was upset because my husband was dying – yes that night they told me that they might have to do brain surgery the next day or day after. She sensed that I needed to be distracted and just chat. I will never forget that when we got to the Isla Embarcadero, how she shut off her car and came around to help me out of the car and then she just held me in her arms for ever so long. I really wish I could reach out to her again but she did know how much she meant to me.
We recently added many supplements to help with the healing process as per the new doctor’s recommendation. More blood work in two weeks.
The past 3 months have been quite the journey and Colin has never never stopped pushing himself. He exercises every moment that he can. We did have physio come to the Isla six days per week for one hour. We moved here to Mazatlan on June 29th. We saw the new stroke rehab specialist on July 2nd and he kept saying that Colin needs to take time off and let his body rest. Colin has fours hours of physio weekly at a clinic with a variety of equipment and one on one direction and likely does 3 -4 or more hours per day here in the RV. He never stops. Sometimes I find new exercises for him and videos. Colin is very analytical and if a part of his body is not working he figures when needs to be done to get that part working. Even when he is just sitting his mind keeps working thru the various movements and all these things combined have got him to where he is now.
Small, medium and large length socks. I think he has over 250 pair! as well s a new shirt everyday results in lots of laundry for me. So nice to be able to dry it all outside.
Colin has come a very long way in the past three months. We have no idea what comes next but he does have three more months to work on getting his body to function properly. As well as the physical aspect, his mind is working overtime creating new pathways around the hole in his brain. Colin is trying to create new pathways to make his right hand and right foot and ankle to function 100%. Because he will only accept 100%.
July 22, 75th birthday dinner, first non medical outing.
Looking forward to next three progressive months. We would like one settled on the Isla at the six month mark – October 28th.
Colin has been sleeping on a recliner since he came home from the hospital May 2 ( the doctor pushed him out of hospital as he did not want Colin to catch any of the ” bad stuff ” that was going around the hospital. I sleep in our bedroom and the girls at the beginning took turns, one with Colin and one with me. The next night they switched. Now they both simply sleep with Colin. I of course continue to get up to check on him at least twice per hour.
They love the heat, but not for more the 3 or 4 minutes. Too hot even for them.
Contessa,
All I can say is, BIG HUGS and GOD BLESS…
Such a great summary of the last 3 months.
I did get a chuckle seeing Colin’s trademark socks.
With Colin’s progress and continued dedication, I’m certain the next 3 months will have him mostly back to his old self.
Wow you’re amazing with the updates in all that you have going on! 💕
So nice to see that Colin is making progress His positive attitude sure helps! Hugs to the both of you.
Contessa, See if you can find someone down there that has a “Softwave machine” that can give Colin softwave therapy. Using some sort of gel bag will help the hand get stronger as well. get a push board for the foot. My mom had a stroke last Monday, and thank goodness I opted for Mayo Hospital but the Reunion Rehab place in phx is the worst I’ve ever seen.
Oh Kay, I am so very sorry about your Mom! Was she given that special miracle stroke drug that needs to be administered within so many hours of a stroke. They did not give it to Colin because his vitals were so low and they thought it might kill him. Now of course we know that 50 is his regular pulse rate. Too bad.
He does have a thing that we bought for him to use here at home as a foot push thing. How hand is getting stronger and he could stir coffee a few days ago. Today he said that it’s the first time that his foot does not feel like a huge club foot. So some progress but ever so slowly. He has decided that he will be well by mid October and I certainly hope so.
Sending your Mom many positive thoughts of healing energy and you the vies to keep being able to cope with it all.
Hugs,
Contessa
PS will look into a softwave machine. Never heard of it before.
Once again you and Colin have our deepest prayers wishing for continued improvement. Although Colin is suffering with all the stroke bring he is doing great with such determination and will continue for you to push when necessary as it is a very long road. But you too are suffering with the love and care for him. May you both slowly improve. As I told you before my wife Kathy suffered a massive left brain hemorrhagic stroke 28 years ago and although now not able to take more than 1 or 2 steps, she is alive and we are together. Take every day as a blessing and enjoy the memories you two have and will have. God Bless.
Thank you for this. Always good to hear it again. It has not been an easy journey. Thank you for being a special blog reader.
Glad to hear Colin is coing the hard work required for an optimal recovery. We wish him well and look forward to seeing the two.of you when we return this winter. All the best! Tom, Mandy and Bucky
Thank you Tom. Progress remains day by day. We hope to be back on the Isla by the end of October, one way or the other.
amazing couple! I am so in awe of both of you! Can’t wait to give you each a hug next month!
Wonderful update Contessa. Take care of you too, please. Hugs to you both. (Keep up the great work Colin!)
Dear Contessa,
Jan and I are thinking of you and your sweet girls. We know how quickly life can shift in an instant, and we’re holding you close in our hearts.
We’re hoping and praying for Colin’s full recovery — healing takes time. And Contessa, we’re thinking of you too. You and Colin have always been such a beautiful pair, and you are both so very dear to us.
Sending love, strength, and all the hugs.
With care,
Paul and Jan Walker
Lovely to hear from you. Things are difficult for us. It takes so much time to do the simplest of things. We continue to have RV issues. Trying to get a new blog post written but also relying to old emails ( I have 730 in my inbox ). Hoping that you can help us in December when you come by bringing us down a few items.
Contessa —> ” I will always regret not understanding more spanish ”; one of my suggestions is, try listening spanish radios & watch spanish TV as much as possible, training your brain with images & sounds helps a whole @ lot. At the beginning things will not make much sense, but little by little words, expressions etc will ‘ stick to your brain’. In my case when I moved to the US my English was nonexistent, I needed to work & have no time to go school ; the way I learned the language was ‘ on the go’ while working & interacting with people. Radio, TV listening + a Spanish-English dictionary were my tangible tools. My original goal was learning 10 words @ day, learning the sound, the spelling, the meaning + make sentences with them. It was hard work but…I made it !! Hey, if we could make it through nursing school means we have some marbles up in the attic 🤪 😁.
I am working my brain daily with Spanish as I have no choice but to make it work. I use a lot of Spanish to English translate but somehow I am just figuring it out visually. Must be the French in me. Not a good listener but more of a seeing things written out type of person.