Jennifer's SCI Blog

Day Twenty-Two = Fifth Treatment

Day Twenty-Three = Therapy

Day Twenty-Four = Therapy

Day Twenty-Five = Therapy and dinner at Pizza Hut with Mia and Woody and both of their therapists, Andy and Tom.

Day Twenty-Six = Sixth Treatment

Day Twenty-Seven = Weekend trip downtown to Jimo’s, McDonalds and the Boardwalk on the Pier with Mia and Woody

Day Twenty-Eight = Weekly trip to Holiday Inn

Day Twenty-Nine = Therapy

Day Thirty = Therapy

Day Thirty-One = Therapy

Day Thirty-Two = Seventh Treatment

I have to apologize for getting you up to speed with a “Readers Digest version”, but the last 10 days have been quite a struggle for me.  When we reached the half way mark, I must admit that I was ready to go home.  Jenny hasn’t waivered and is determined to complete what she came here to do.  She is feeling additional signs of improvement, but it is very hard for her to articulate exactly what they are….she just says  that she feels differently on the inside. She is certainly noticing a difference in her core strength and is experiencing tingling in her right foot.  We’re very excited at the possibilities as these stem cells continue to grow.  The Beike web developers have approached Jenny about doing an interview for them to post on the Stem Cells China website later in the week, so I’ll keep you posted once that happens and we have a celebrity amongst us…     

We have decided to treat ourselves on the last few days we’re here….after her final treatment next Monday, we’ll be checking out of the hospital and checking into the Holiday Inn for our final three nights here.  Once she is released on Tuesday, we’re free to leave the hospital, just not the country for a period of three days.  Both of us are looking very forward to touching down in LA next Friday.

Day Twenty-One

Sunday again, and it’s time for another trip to Holiday Inn.  The weather had taken a turn colder, so we opted to set out while it was still daylight, bracing ourselves for what would probably be a chilly walk back.  Dinner was delicious and we ordered some chicken quesadillas to go for tomorrow’s lunch.  As soon as we stepped outside to venture back, it only took me a second to realize it was way too cold for the 4 Chinese block hike back.  I immediately spun her around and asked the bellboy to round me up a cab.  Jenny was extremely hesitant, but I convinced her, for a change, that we could do this.  Together with the cab driver and the bellboy, we managed to get her in the backseat.  Of course, her chair hung out the open trunk, and since we go nowhere without a business card with the hospital address on it, we were set when I received a nod from the cabbie as to where we were headed.  We held on for our first official ride without an escort from the hospital….look at us, fearless.

We arrived safely at the hospital and who do you think was standing outside the front door but Tom, her therapist….it was 7 o’clock at night by this time and he should have been gone hours ago.  If that wasn’t a god thing, I don’t know what is.  Smiling as he saw me emerge from the cab, there was no hesitation with assisting us to get her out of the cab.  We were so thankful as I clearly didn’t think all the way through this cab ride process.

Day Twenty

Typically, therapy happens on weekdays, but this week was different.  Since she was off yesterday, she had to spend her Saturday doing the therapy routine.  Fortunately, Tom had agreed to change things up a bit during her PT and start working on her abs and increasing her core strength.  When I came into the PT room, you can imagine my surprise when I saw her on all 4′s and Tom was right behind her.  Pictures are worth a thousand words…

Despite how it looks, this position is very difficult for her to hold, especially when he lets go of her hips.  Today, she was able to hold it for about 5 seconds each time.  By the end of that day, she said she could certainly feel something going on with her ab muscles, not to mention how much stronger these exercises are making her arms.

He wraps ankle weights around a pole and has her lift 40 lbs for 3 sets of 30, while I stand by and do arm curls with 2 lb weights and I’m tired after that.  She never complains about the workouts themselves, only if they become monotonous.  She’s tired when she’s done, but it’s a good tired I guess.

This is a new exercise as well.  He has her lift herself up off the mat, again increasing the mucles in her core and and strengthening her arms.  You can tell by the determination on her face that this is no trivial task…..

Day Nineteen

It was Jenny’s day off and I think she was surpised to hear me say that I had arranged another trip downtown with two other families.  Sara and Danny and their son Harvey from Manchester, England and Pamela and David and their son Sam, from Ireland had been talking about taking a trip to Jimo’s earlier in the week and since they had heard about our downtown fiasco, suggested that we go with them.  Jenny and I agreed that we would be more comfortable going as a group and decided to tag along to the infamous Jimo’s.  It was our understanding that it was “like a mall”, perfect for souvenir shopping and famous for allowing you to barter your price.

We arrived coincidentally, as the exact same location that we finally arrived at with our previous driver, only this time, we parked on the street and not in the underground parking garage.  It certainly didn’t appear “mall-like”, but once we made our way inside, we could see the attraction.  The building you see to the left is actually the ground level entrance, there are two floors above it and 3 levels below ground, and all of them are reached by escalator only….not conveyor belts, real escalators….with moving stairs.  With two strollers and a wheelchair, I could tell it was going to be interesting.

There were so many people inside, concrete floors, hundreds of stalls.  Most of them were maybe 4 feet wide and 6 feet deep, just big enough to walk into and see their goods for sale lining the walls.  As soon as you touched something to pick it up and look at it, they were calling you “friend” and had their calculator ready.  They shoot you a price on the calculator, then you take the calculator and enter the price you’re willing to pay.  Jenny caught on very quickly and had bartered her way and won on a few designer purses and billfolds in no time.  If it was up to her, she would have stayed on level 2 all day, stall after stall of purses, she was loving it.  The other two girls were the same as Jenny, only their passion was shoes….and purses, of course.  Myself, I never have been a huge fan of shopping for either, but it was certainly entertaining to watch. 

I was in the market for the traditional Chinese kimono, and Charlie (the driver) knew exactly where to find them, 3rd level down.  With two strong guys to hold Jenny in a wheelie as we went up and down escalators, moving around in Jimos was a snap.  We located the area where many kimonos were displayed and I began searching through all of the beautiful prints…….again with their ever common size 3.  I found a beautiful Chinese robe and bartered my way down to 100 RMB, I was so proud of myself (that’s about $13 US). 

Of course, no trip uptown seems to be complete without a trip to McDonalds.  After we refueled on America’s favorite burgers and fries, we were off to the electronic store, where both of the families were in the market for a Wii.  After hours of bartering there, searching through boxes of games, deciding on which attachments to purchase, they finally settled on their purchases and apparently got quite a deal…..$2,000RMB (about $350 US).  Everyone was pleased with their purchases and I for one was completely wore out and ready to go back to the hospital.

Day Eighteen

Thankful for a smooth night and facing another day or more therapy….it was sunny and about 75 degrees in Qingdao China.  This day would be different in that we had a birthday present to buy.  Today was Woody’s 42nd birthday and Mia had invited us down to their room at the end of everyone’s therapy for a small celebration with cake. During her lunch break, we headed back over to our favorite market, Lottemart, to pick up something for him and a few groceries.  Thankfully, we’ve figured out a way around the conveyor belt method once we discovered the elevator in the middle of the mall, so the walk to the grocery store is a little less stressful for me….now if I could just figure out a way to get the bags of groceries back to the hospital without having to carry them…..

We were bound and determined to find something in that market that we recognized and luckily, we succeeded.  We discovered the Korean Food aisles and a few things that resembled something from home.  We found actual Ritz crackers, Chips Ahoy chocolate chip cookies, A&W Root beer, and rotini pasta that looked like normal rotini pasta.  Ironically, right next to the Korean aisle was their “pet display”, full of dog and cat toys and treats….go figure.  We searched the other aisles a little better this time and managed to find real MNM’s (my favorite), Hershey kisses and there in the same aisle, the perfect gift for Woody – a six pack of Snickers bars.

Mia had mentioned that she “ordered a cake” and while we anticipated what Chinese cake would taste like, we were surprised to see Woody still in bed when we arrived for his “party”.  He has received his second spinal treatment the day before, just as Jenny did, but his did not go as well.  He had experienced some complications with headache and blood pressure issues and needed to stay in bed.  He tried to join in his own party, but you could tell, he really just needed to rest.  We stayed just long enough to cut the cake and give him his gift.  As for the cake, surprisingly it was frosted with what appeared to be Hershey’s syrup…..interesting.

Day Seventeen

Finally, the stem cells that they extracted from her bone marrow aspiration were cultured and ready to be implanted.  We were very excited for this one, as they say your own stem cells go to work faster because your body recognizes them.  The procedure went off without a hitch, although the toughest part for Jenny is laying flat for the six hours following the actual procedure.  They put an IV port in her foot prior to the treatment, allowing a bag of sugar water to drip through to prevent dehydration.  This same IV port is what they use to inject the Valium just before they begin, to help relax her and keep her body from any “sudden moves” during the intricate injection.  She always returns groggy and cold and I’m always thankful for her speedy return.  Another bag of fluid is hung upon her return, we’re assuming another bag of sugar water.  It is extremely important that she not lift her had as her spinal cord fluid “levels itself” off.  If she does, she has been told that one of the side effects would be an extreme headache like she’s never had.  She isn’t allowed any food or water two hours before the procedure and no water for two hours after and no food for four hours after…..after the Valium wears off, you can image how well “Miss Impatient” does, asking every five minutes “What time is it now?”

Day Sixteen

Dr. Tom Tao graduated from Guangzi Medical School in 2004, majoring in physical medicine and rehabilitation.

Tom is Jenny’s physical therapist, acupuncturist, electric wave therapist, standing therapist and her occupational therapist.  Needless to say, they spend alot of time together everyday.  Daily therapy is a very regimented process and somewhat monotonous.  While we can see the results, Jenny is constantly telling Tom that she’s bored, she needs something different to keep it interesting.  In addition to trying to change things up for her, he continues to teach her Chinese while she is teaching him English.  One of his favorite words of course is “Again”

All of this tailored therapy is designed to enhance the effects of the stem cells.  You’ll notice in the pictures below that they have increased the number of acupuncture needles.  I can tell she certainly feels them more because I hear alot of wincing when he’s putting them in, especially between her fingers.  Of course the electric waves cause the muscles in her legs to contract and release.  Tom is great and he is very patient with her, most days they get along just fine.  There have been discussions between Tom and her attending physician to step up the physical therapy to include push ups….that should be interesting. 

Day Fifteen

Katie Kemp, a mother of two from Denver, CO had been praying for a way to attend church while in the midst of a communist country.  Her prayer had been answered and Jenny arrived…..the two of them had been talking earlier in the week and decided they would orchestrate a prayer meeting for all of the families on the floor.  Together, they printed up a flyer and slid it under everyone’s door late Saturday night.  Katie’s husband Adam went and purchased oranges, bananas, and muffins to serve and they had decided Jenny would deliver the message.

Jenny and her bible study group at home had been studying a book called “Love to Pray” by Alvin Vandergriend.  Jenny read aloud some excerpts and scriptures from the book, everyone fellowshipped, and had a great breakfast.  They had a great turnout, about 10 families, and everyone shared their stories, listened to some great music on the CD player and prayed together.  The nurses and staff continued with their daily routine, as if we weren’t even there….I’m still not sure they even understood what was actually going on.  It wasn’t until this morning that Katie mentioned that she had prayed about it and thanked Jenny for answering her prayer and the two of them decided they would try it again next week.

It is a blessing that there are other English speaking families here as well.  I’m not sure what we would do if that was not the case.  We have realized there are families from Austria and Norway that do not speak English, needless to say Chinese, and I’m not sure how they are expected to communicate with the doctors and nurses.  The one thing every family has in common is hope…..it is so obvious in everyone’s eyes.  Everyone asks the same questions, where are you from, what are you being treated for and have you seen any results yet.  Proudly we answer, USA, spinal cord injury and ABSOLUTELY.

Jenny has been giving me a hard time, saying that we need to quit complaining and that we need to find something positive to write about on the blog….here you go Jen.

(more…)

Day Fourteen

 The itinerary was set and the driver arrived as scheduled (he’s the one on the right).  We had chosen four destinations for the day’s journey at a total cost of $400 RMB ($60 US):

Jimo’s Market (souvenir shopping)

McDonalds (lunch)

May 4th Square (large public square, more shopping)

Seashore Sidewalk (boardwalk of shops along the beach of the Yellow Sea)

 We left at 10:30, successfully transferred her to the backseat, secured the wheelchair in the trunk (even though the trunk wouldn’t close and just flopped in the breeze) and headed out for a 45-minute drive downtown.  Traffic was intense….just getting out of our “suburb” and onto the highway, we passed Century Park where there were several Chinese weddings going on.  In China, it is traditional for the brides to be dressed in Red and easy to spot, and the cars associated with the wedding have ribbons attached to their car doors and the flowers arranged in a “V” shape on the hood.  It was beautiful Sunday morning and there were alot of weddings taking place in and around Century Park. 

Once we were on the tollroad headed for downtown, traffic became even more interesting….vehicles here do not stay in their lanes so I’m not sure why they even paint lines down the middle.  There are only two lanes indicated and three lanes of cars all nudging extremely close to one another, close enough to reach out and touch them, in an endless game of “chicken” for their position in line.  I’ve never seen anything like it before.  But I have to say the scariest moment was when we were taking an off ramp to leave the tollroad and a huge bus was entering the tollroad using our off ramp, heading straight for us…..unbelievable.  Jenny and I held on tight and prayed we would arrive at Jimo’s safely.

Once an hour had gone by and the driver had already made one call with the map in his hand, I began to get nervous.  It was apparent that he didn’t know where Jimo’s market was.  Once two hours had gone by and he had literally left us in the running car, in the middle of traffic, while he went car to car asking for directions, we knew we were in trouble.  I believe we had successfully made it downtown, that was for sure, because there were millions of people there, but no Jimo’s.  Jenny was told by the translator that if we needed her, all we had to do was say the word “translator” and the driver would call her and we could ask her something if we needed to.  At some point, Jenny clearly said the word “translator”, but the driver did not understand or make the call.

As we traveled aimlessly looking for our first destination, the driver had the front seat windows down and the more congested the area, the worse the smell.  Words can not describe the smell here…it is less than desirable.  We determined in the car that it is a combination of body odor, bad breath, sweat, sewer and burnt rubber all rolled into one.  There were many times that we literally covered our noses with the backs of our hands just to get through the area.  We were trying to decide how we were going to make him understand “translator” when he took a right and down a very steep driveway to an underground parking garage.  We were certain that we were not at Jimo’s as we had been told it was similar to a mall and we were certainly no where near a mall.

Not to mention, a dark underground parking garage, with no visible signs for an elevator.  As Jenny stated,  if he thinks he’s pushing me up the driveway we just came down, he’s crazy.  He jumped out of the car and before I could as well to stop him, he was already unloading her chair.  I started waving my arms for him to stop unloading and just kept saying “translater, call the translater” and holding my fist up to my ear with my thumb and pinky finger extended.  Finally, he started dialing the phone and handed it to me and it was Amanda, thank god.  I put Jenny on the phone with her and she quickly described our uneasy feeling and our request to be taken back to the hospital.  Thankfully he understood our request through the translater, loaded the chair back in the trunk, and got us out from underground and headed back.

As he was finding his way out, we noticed a McDonalds in the distant.  We started pointing it out and he understood enough to pull right up in front of it, again, just stopping in the middle of traffic.  As you can see, there are four steps going up to the door, so Jenny was unable to get in there.  She quickly gave me her order and I ran inside to order us some food to go – it was 1:00 by this time.  A couple of cheesburgers, a Big Mac and some fries later, we were on our way.  He managed to find the tollroad and we finally felt certain we were headed for the correct location…..the familiar hospital.

The food was delicious and it certainly helped pass the time as we traveled our way back.  Once we arrived safely back at the hospital, it was time to pay the man.  Obviously, we were less than satisfied and had no intention of paying him the full $400 fare.  After further discussion between the translater and the driver, we ended up agreeing to pay $200.  We shouldn’t have had to pay anything, but I could tell that wasn’t going to be an option.  Amanda apologized profusely and said they would not be using that driver again.

I told Jenny that we wouldn’t have to worry about it because the only time I was heading back towards downtown, would be when we’re heading for the airport – after that fiasco, she agreed with me.

Day Thirteen

Have you ever seen a mall with an amusement park, including a roller coaster, inside of it?  I hadn’t….

We decided to spend the day back at the mall across the street for more shopping and now that we’ve found the elevator, it’s time to check out the second floor of shops.  Actually, this mall just opened on 9/30 of this year, so unfortunately, alot of the second floor and all of the third floor windows have “coming soon” signs.  What we were able to find though is a nail salon, which I was very excited about.  Although we had asked the translaters if there was a nail salon close by, we had been told that they do manicures, but not pedicures…..not the case.  It took about 3 hours, but I got my nails done and we both had pedicures.  Finally, something that felt a little like home.  Don’t get me wrong, the Chinese have nothing on the Vietnamese when it comes to manicures and pedicures, but it was certainly better than I expected….and very reasonable.  Jenny got ahold of my camera, so here you go….

Prior to leaving for the mall, Jenny had tried her best to arrange a driver to take us downtown for the day.  The infamous van with the lift was not available, but the translater had convinced her that they could hire a driver that could transfer her in and out of their “big car”…..I wasn’t too crazy about that idea.  Despite her efforts to convince me, we agreed that we would consider that excursion for tomorrow. and spend today shopping and getting our nails done.  When we returned from the mall we finalized the plans with the driver for tomorrow.  I’m not sure we’re ready, or should I say that I’m not sure I’m ready for downtown.