Physical Therapy is going well. I'm feeling good. Still not 100% and they say it'll be a while before I'm back to the way I was pre-stroke but in some ways I'm better than I was pre-stroke. I rest more. I am learning my limitations (a lesson I think that will take a really long time). Tommy, as he has always been, is super helpful throughout this entire process. We've started taking nightly walks around our neighborhood with Shadow to help build endurance. Me wearing my bright pink heart monitor and us taking readings every block or so to make sure that my ticker isn't running overtime and Shadow rabbit hunting.
When I say rabbit hunting, she is not really hunting them, to catch and kill. We have her on a harness and leash and she is the funniest thing to watch because as we are walking in a straight (or as straight as two uncoordinated people can walk) line down the street she is "on patrol" checking the yards on BOTH sides of the street to see if there is any living animal she might be interested in "going after". I call it the drunk prance because it is in no way similar to the way she normally walks. She is on full alert and on her tip toes it seems and she is maneuvering back and forth from side to side looking at both sides.
She LOVES to rabbit hunt. When she spots one, she will immediately stop and stare. Then for a long few seconds/minutes, she will stare down the spot, which is good because half the time it takes Tommy and I that long to figure out what it is that she has spotted and locked in on. Then starts her slow creep. Tommy usually humors her and with his super strong grip (Shadow is the strongest dog I've ever felt on a leash when she is after something so he has to hold her leash when we walk.) will give her some leeway. Which usually means he lets her get from the street up to the sidewalk but not into the actual yard. So she creeps quietly towards her rabbit. And then its as if she knows she is almost at the end of her leash and when she gets there she tries to lunge at the rabbit but it turns into this really funny kangaroo hopping that makes me laugh so hard. She hops a few times and then circles back to us with the saddest, begging eyes as if to plead with us to go play some more with her new friend. By this time the poor rabbit has darted off and we continue our walk.
We also play catch a lot at our house. I know it sounds silly but we have a kids bouncey-ball (about 10" around, just smaller than a basketball) and a couple tennis balls. We play catch a lot. Shadow is really good at fetching too so she even helps me. I throw the tennis ball with my left arm and hand (helps so many muscles) and she will fetch it and return it to me. Then I throw again and we repeat the process.
My arms are getting stronger but they have even further to go still than my legs to get back to pre-stroke condition. I have gone from lifting the 3 pound dumbbells at OT to the 6 pound dumbbells. It wasn't an overnight change, we've been working our way up. I laugh every time because again I keep imagining my 5 foot nothing super-strong cousin as she lifts her 25+ pound weights. Here I am, I have a good 6 to 8 inches on her and I can't even do a quarter of the weight she does. It's all about perspective. Just because you are bigger, doesn't mean you are stronger or better. It just means you are not there, yet.
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