RENAISSANCE - Post Brain Haemorrhage

In the first month after we got our father home, we were persistently looking for alternate treatments to help heal him.    One possibility that seemed to work, atleast in some ways was Acupuncture .    Literature available on it is a galore, so are the practicing acupuncturists.    Everyone and anyone apparently is an Acupuncturist.   The most reliable seems to be doctors trained in western medicine who are also trained in Acupuncture from China.    We found one such very reputed doctor in Chennai.    His clinic was far and highly wheel chair inaccessible.   The thought of taking our father everyday to that clinic seemed like a mini nightmare. While still on a hunt for a good Acupuncturist, serendipitously we were told of an ‘Acutouch’ doctor who was in the same area in Chennai as us.   Never to let any opportunity to slip by, we paid a visit to the Doctors home clinic.   The house located on a rather quiet st...

We seemed to have had some progress in the 10 months since the hemorrhage, but nothing significant to change our father’s everyday comfort.  At our wits end on the next steps in rehabilitation, my sister contacted one Dr. Vishalakshi Raman who specializes in Cognitive Rehabilitation.   The Doctor suggested we pick couple of puzzles and games, match it with music and repeat the games everyday – at the same time, with the same music.   The right brain which is receptive to music apparently would get activated and would learn to associate that music with that particular puzzle or game.   This stimulation is likely to help the right brain learn some of the activities of the left brain.  So we picked up some games last evening.  The first one we tried was placing the shapes in its appropriate spaces.  My sister and I watched him with breathless expectation.  All the achievements throughout our father’s life did not match the triumph ...

Intense and consistent physiotherapy is a huge part of stroke rehabilitation.   So we look out for physiotherapists to come home twice a day.     Finding a good nurse, yes, we thought that would be some challenge.   But finding a good physiotherapist, didn’t know efficient ones were rare finds.   In span of week we changed almost 10 physiotherapists.     One of the biggest issues turned out to be our father’s weight.   He was a big boy, weighing almost 80 kgs and with a height of 5 feet and 9 inches.   They just could not lift him.   It would take the physiotherapist, our nurse, our driver and one of us (my sister or myself) to make him stand.   However it all came down to our driver.    The physiotherapist would give directions and our poor driver would hoist our father.    So our main criteria - a physiotherapist who would not make our dear driver slave away.   Apparently that was too much to ask for. ...

It has been 10 months and 5 days since the hemorrhage.   We have come a long way but time has stood still.  Questions on his progress and our responses to them surprisingly haven’t changed.  Scary. Q : A well meaning person – How is your father? A:  Me- Oh good Q : A well meaning person – Does he recognize people? A:  Me – Yes, he always could. Q : A well meaning person – Is he talking? A:  Me – no, he still has the tracheostomy tube. Q : A well meaning person -  um! But he is eating orally yes? A:  Me – No. Silence Q : A well meaning person -  Can he walk? A:  Me – No. Q : A well meaning person – Does he sit up on his own? A:  Me – No. Q : A well meaning person – Does he leave the bed? A:  Me – No. It has been 10 months. Question / Answers - funny.  Really situation – sometimes scary.

While discharging our father from the hospital almost 4 months back, we had some sleepless nights and endless discussions on finding good home nursing.   After much looking around and talking we found two male nurses, one for the day and one for the night.  The night before the discharge, both bailed on us.  The reason – our father was not ready for home care.  Apparently the nurses differed from our neurosurgeon on the timing of discharge. We managed to have a lady come in on the first night at home.  She was slightly disoriented and was tired most of the night.  I sat vigilant watching her more than watching my father, and was constantly guiding her on what to do.  Decided to call it a night with her, the thought of monitoring her each night was unbearable.  Like a breath of fresh air an experienced nurse showed up in the morning.   She fixed everything – arranged the chaotic room, drew up a chart for medicines and feed, and too...

When a dear friend first sent the TED talks link for Jill Bolte, I was fascinated to say the least.  The biggest preoccupation next to my job and my relationship was my experiments with meditation.   Was ever hungry for information on spirituality, read voraciously, watched videos obsessively and ofcouse discussed passionately.   But predictably, practiced meditation poorly.   This video by Dr. Bolte has remained one of my favorites. Coming back to it after our father’s hemorrhage has been like watching it for the first time.   Don’t know exactly how, but I plan to implement what I learnt from this on my father. 

Being argumentative and opinionated (like most Indians), I would not let a major political, economical or social development go by without discussing the issue at an enervating length with likeminded friends. On Monday this week, the Supreme Court of India in its landmark decision ruled against mercy-killing for Aruna Shanbaug , who suffered a massive brain damage due to a violent sexual assault almost 37 years ago.    The activist journalist who visited her in the hospital felt Ms. Shanbaug was ‘brain dead’, and petitioned for ending her life.   The hospital staff of KEM (King Edward Memorial Hospital), Mumbai who have nursed her for all these years however think her as not vegetative and brain dead.   Ms. Shanbaug is said to respond to touch, food, and music. The time frame and magnitude of our father’s condition and that of the others we have seen and heard about in the hospital doesn’t come anywhere close for comparison with Ms. Shanbaug’s situation.  ...