The Dream Team is Going Home!

Lea Ann has been cleared to go home even earlier than anticipated. Her therapist have run out of drills for her. She is checking out tomorrow morning, Thursday, Arpil 10th. Here are some pics of Lea, Jake, and Debbie--The Dream Team! Lea Ann has been progressing so well, she will be getting some more company in the coming weeks--in-laws, siblings, and all 3 of her Friga nephews. You know she is getting along pretty well if she can handle Bryce, Ryan, and The Jack Attack, all at once! Thank You, Jake and Mom, for taking such good care of her through this ordeal. Such trying times can be as difficult on the family as on the patient. Congratulations Lea--you are truly an inspiration to us all. WE LOVE YOU!

From the weekend...

Lea Ann had some visitors this weekend...Trish, Caitlin, Dawn and Macey...Brian and Amy Carroll (Jake's friend and his wife) came up too. We have found out that Lea is also being diagnosed with epilepsy. They can't be certain she actually has it, it is more likely she had seizures induced by the stroke. However, the only way to be certain is to take her off the seizure medicine and wait and see if she has another seizure (which she could actually have epilepsy and not have another seizure for several years). This means that along with the blood thinner Cumodin, she will be on the seizure medicine Keppra for the rest of her life (they believe). We are being told that we should seek a second opinion at the Mayo Clinic, however, because Lea Ann is such a rare case. As her doctor said, "when you hear hooves stomping outside you should believe it is horses not zebras." In Lea Ann's case though he said she is a zebra. Therefore we will be working on taking her to the Mayo Clinic to decide if she should be on the blood thinner or not.

PT -Lea Ann did defensive slides (aka the duck walk), learned how to jump again on one or two feet, did wall squats and finally pulled her therapist around using resistance bands. Today was a WORKOUT!!! She actually had to stop a little early because she got a little light headed.

Though Lea Ann will be going home on Friday (Woo-Hoo!), we will not be posting her home address/phone number to the blog, for safety reasons. Since this is an open blog and anyone can view it, we thought it best to keep that information off the website--gotta watch out for the weirdos out there! If you really want to send her something after Friday, contact a family member for the address and that person can make a judgement call. And of course, you can continue to keep in contact with her via the blog though, since we will be updating it until she is fully recovered.

Trisha, Lea Ann, Dawn, and Caitlin (Macey on the pillow)

She's Gonna Be Famous Too!

Lea was asked if she would appear on a TV special for Stroke Awareness Month (May) to talk about her experience--how she was perfectly healthy and was even embarrassed to go to the hospital the night of her stroke and seizures, but because of early detection and her healthy lifestyle, she is making an amazing recovery.

More pics from Jake!

I'm a personal fan of the "ol' lady with the cane" look! Jake said she played kickball this weekend, walked ON HER OWN, and wiggled her toes! Thought we'd share more pictures of her "remarkable" progress!



Lea Ann and Liz
Casey, the therapist, with Lea Ann

Lea Ann dribbling in therapy. She better hope Coach Jackson doesn't see her looking down at the ball! Eyes up, girl!

She's Goin' Home!

They are releasing her next Friday, April 11th! That means our Over-Achiever will only have been in the hospital 22 days! Must be a record! She graduated to an "ol' lady cane" she said, and only has to use it for stability when she gets fatigued. They have taken her on some outings and to her house to help her ease back into her world and point out potential problems. They have also reduced her seizure and headache meds. She's in good spirits and anxious to go home. She's so thankful for everyone's prayers and encouraging words and hopes to thank everyone in person soon.

This weekend through this morning...

Debbie called for a quick update Monday evening. Lea Ann took 55 STEPS with her hemi-walker this day, which is a BIG accomplishment! She continues with the headaches, so they started her on a steroid every 6 hours to try to get the inflammation down a bit to help ease her pain. Headaches have kinda been interfering with her PT since she can't give 100% when she's hurting. She's taking a pain pill every morning now just to avoid the headaches so she can concentrate more. Her mom says she's tired, but working really hard. They've been weaning her off her seizure meds and today was the final day. The best thing I heard was that Lea Ann has been throwing her right arm above her head today. She was doing it while I was talking with Debbie on the phone...trying to show off, I think! :o) Tony and Kem went to visit Lea Ann this weekend and had a great time. Lea Ann even sat down for a game of Sequence with them. But one game was enough for her. As she mentioned, her attention span isn't up to par just yet. I can only imagine how drained she is after a full day of her routine too. Tony was truly amazed at how far she's come since we seen her in ICU. He said she doesn't remember much in the beginning. She doesn't remember being in ICU. She remembers coming to the hospital and remembers why she came in and she recalls tensing up before her first big seizure- and the rest was a blur. But they had her on medications and she was pretty well asleep most of the in-between time, so it's no surprise. He said this weekend she was able to finally move herself into her bed from the wheelchair with no assistance and was even able to lift her right leg into the bed! She normally had to slide her left foot under her right leg to help lift it into bed, but she moved it all by itself this time. He said she struggled the first time, but by the time she did it again, she had less difficulty. The third time was like second nature. It really helps the family to be able to see her progress first hand. Talked with Debbie today, Wednesday April 2nd and Lea Ann was up waiting for the next round of therapy. Said she took 85 steps Tuesday and they have now officially graduated her to a cane walker. What strides! Debbie said their goal today is to teach Lea Ann how to get up if she ever happens to fall. So, of course, the ol' "I've fallen and can't get up" quote came up in the conversation... Debbie said Lea Ann had a really good day yesterday and is "up, rarin' to go" this morning. Jake sent some pictures to show everyone her accomplishments so far. Lea Ann continues to check her blog, so keep the comments rolling!

Note from Lea Ann

Note from Lea Ann, as dictated to Debbie and posted by Nikki:
I finally got a chance and the energy to check the blog. I can't say how much I appreciate the thoughts and prayers from friends, new and old. I keep saying it just takes a stroke to realize how loved you are. I'm getting stronger everyday and the cards and flowers mean so much. My attitude stays positive as I see small improvements everyday. I even walked 30 steps with a hemi-walker the other day. I couldn't ask to be in a better hospital with better therapists. Please continue to keep me in your thoughts and prayers because I can truly say they have helped me get as far as I have. Gotta go--I'm getting tired. It takes all the energy I have to focus for a little while as my attention span has been affected. Love Lea Ann