progress update
Today JC gets his 4th stem cell injection, spinal. We have a pee cup beside his bed and he will not be moving anywhere this time and was warned that if he got up to pee our friend Louise would be down here holding the cup while I held him down. He opted for the sleeping medicine to save Louise the trama. By the way Clarence, Louise was kind enough to offer your Tim Horton’s mug.
He is sleeping now.
I wanted to give a progress report, because we have reached our halfway point.
When we arrived I wanted to record certain tasks on video to watch the before and after stem cells, but JC did not want me to do this. I think he was nervous that everything would stay the same and to see that would be very depressing. Stupid me I listened to him. There has been changes that I would have loved for everyone to have seen the before.
We do have his physio progress documented on video.
— he has to go up about 5 steps and down 3 and repeat arms in front and arms out to the side. When he first did this it was very awkward and he had to use the rail. It gradually got better and today he walked the stairs, no problem.
—he has to walk on the treadmill, no holding onto the bars. This was totally impossible before the first stem cell injection but after the injection he could walk without holding on but he still stumbled once in a while. The doctor has increased the speed everyday and today he was walking very fast, still no bars without one stumble.
—he has to stand on one foot and balance. This is very difficult but has improved and he now can balance but only with eyes open never closed or he will fall still.
— There are so many exercises to help with balance and coordination and each has gotten better. He works very hard at everything he does and should be very proud of himself, I definately am.
My little tests are my scale of his improvement:
walking while holding on to a full glass of water
walking one foot in front of the other( like sobriety test)
trying to run
getting around in the dark
When we first tried each of these he was totally unable to do the run and one foot infront. The glass of water he could do but he had to really concentrate and it still was off balance. These have all improved. JC finds that even when he walks now his legs don’t drag as they used to and his hands have stopped that Parkinson’s like shake.
He can not run but he does have the gallop starting.
The water test was done with little concentration and with great balance.
He was never able to move around in the dark without falling and having to be picked up but since the 1st injection has had very little problem.
Today he did the toe heel toe heel, sobriety test perfect. Before I would have never thought this possible. Before he would not even attempt this because he knew that he would fall. This is proof to me and to him that these stem cell treatments are working.
Jc had always hoped that this treatment would work, but was skeptical. Since day one after 1st injection he has felt improvements and I have seen it with my own eyes, he is getting better. We are half way through this wonderful journey and can’t wait to see the progress from the next injections. JC is very pleased with everything up to this point and says that he feels like he did a couple of years ago, which is a miracle in itself.
19 comments May 9th, 2007
