Yearly Archives: 2013

So, it’s been a few days since my trial which went great! We were so pleased with the results and the possibilities that this could offer and allow me to do as far as therapy goes, without the spasms. The physical and occupational therapists were also impressed. It’s really a no brainer for me that opting for the surgery is the only answer. I will be having this tomorrow morning, hopefully spending very minimal time in the hospital. I cannot wait to come home, heal and start to feel like myself again.

We also had our new furnace installed. That could have not happened sooner! It really stinks being a quadriplegic and not really having a thermostat in my body that matches everyone else.

Melissa and I went to a couple’s retreat this past Saturday which was a lot of fun and beneficial for the both of us. It consisted of only couples dealing with disabilities in one form or another. There were seven in our group and I think 35 couples overall, the others being parents who have children with disabilities. Again, it was great. We get to me some really cool people and hopefully made some good contacts.

That’s really about it for now. Pretty much just taking it easy today in lieu of tomorrow morning and however many days afterwards it takes to fill normal again. I’m really confident that it’s not going to take much at all, but who am I?

Sorry it took me so long to inform everyone of the results, assuming you cared. Hope you all are going well! Melissa or I will put the post up tomorrow if possible to give an update of how things went.

Take care!

Tomorrow morning we will be waking up around 3:30 AM or so in order to get to the hospital by 6:30 AM. I’m going to get this baclofen trial a go again. Last time they forgot to tell me to stop taking my blood thinner in advance, which I did this time. Hopefully there’s nothing we forgot this time because I think Melissa and I would go crazy. If not completely mad.

So what do I have to look forward to? A gigantic, very nice and flamboyant man picking me up out of my wheelchair to put me into the bed. I knew that he and I did not see eye to eye when he asked if I saw Magic Mike and when I said no, informed me of what was missing out on. Sorry but I think I’m doing just fine without it! Either way, he’s a really nice guy and he did a lot for us last Monday despite the circumstances. He was very helpful, which I’m grateful for. After all of that is said and done, I get to have the needle in my back! Yippee! What a wonderful Monday.

So, here’s to tomorrow going smoothly! Oh yeah, we will be getting our furnace Wednesday. Hopefully before the big storm hits, which will probably turn out to just be flurries anyway. Although I would rather a blizzard!

Take care everyone! I will touch base and let you know how it went.

Well, we have not officially lived in our home for even a week and we are needing to make a major upgrade/replacement. A few seconds before the heat would kick on, I would small gas. Not good. Yesterday I finally figured something was up and Melissa called UGI to have someone come. Apparently this was a much bigger deal than I thought because she said someone would be here within 30 minutes. Much to my surprise, they actually were.

The gentleman from UGI indicated that whatever machine he was using was detecting carbon monoxide and basically the house was unsafe. He shut off the gas to the furnace and then turned the furnace off as well. Fortunately we are still able to use the gas to cook, keep our water warm, etc. We needed to have someone else come take a look at whatever was happening with our furnace, which we did, and they indicated the issue could not be fixed and the entire unit needed to be replaced. We freaked out. Thank god we purchased a home warranty which will cover a huge amount of the cost.

We are however, living without a main way to heat our home. Thank god family has come through yet again. Cousin Nate let us borrow a few space heaters which worked wonderfully last night and today. Melissa did hear from the home warranty company and the new furnace has been approved and hopefully will be installed between this coming Monday and Wednesday. We are keeping our fingers crossed for as early as possible.

So that’s our latest excitement. That and I started experiencing excruciating pain in my neck again. Hopefully this will pass. Also, my baclofen procedure has been rescheduled for this coming Monday so we are definitely looking forward to that.

I hope everyone as well!

So my morning got started at 4:00 AM today to get ready for my baclofen trial. We were to be at the hospital by 6:30 AM but we were running behind and got their closer to 7:00 AM. Really no big deal there.

I get checked in, taken upstairs to where everything is going to go down, get transferred into a bed from my wheelchair and got changed. Then they started trying to insert an IV. Wow. Total failure. I think they tried four times. I think they were trying for probably the fifth time when the Dr. showed up and told us he was unable to do the procedure because I was taking a blood thinner. He was well aware of this but never told me to stop taking it days before the procedure, as they should have. He apologized and took full responsibility.

There is more to this story that I will share later but right now, that’s about all I can write without getting completely frustrated all over again. The good news is I believe I will be going back next Monday to try again.

I will keep you posted!

So we finally moved into our house yesterday! I’m so thankful for my family and all of the help they offered with the entire ordeal. Everything went great and as of right now, everything is really coming along, getting unpacked and it already looks like home! It’s a good feeling but we definitely miss my Mom and and the old house. We are so pleased despite the mixed feelings. It’s not like she’s going away; at least we hope not! 🙂

Without any real time to take a breath, tomorrow Melissa is going to accompany me while I do a baclofen trial for my ever bothersome spasms. We have to be at the hospital around 6:30 AM, meaning we will probably get started around 4:00 AM, if not earlier. Fortunately this is not an overnight stay, at least it’s not supposed to be. I will be admitted, giving local anesthetic, followed by an epidural to administer the drug to see how my body reacts and if I am a candidate. I forgot to mention, prior to any of the actual testing, a physical therapist will evaluate me and my spasticity prior to receiving the baclofen. Then, he or she will check in with me every so often throughout the day to see how things are going. They said this generally takes 10 hours, give or take I would imagine. We shall see!

Both of these things are very exciting times in my life! The trial could potentially be life changing, just because how bad my spasms have gotten and how they have altered my life, and obviously purchasing and moving into your first home with your family goes without saying!

I hope you all are well and I will check back with you soon!

Please check out my wife’s new blog! She has done a great job so far and I love reading it, especially called the great stuff about me! 🙂 Here is the address- www.sciaaronmelissa.blogspot.com . We have also had the privilege of getting to know another couple dealing with life and an SCI. Here is Dana and Mike’s web site – http://www.lovelikethislife.com/ . You don’t have to be living or dealing with an SCI to just appreciate the stories, information and sometimes life lessons you can that are offered. They are definitely worth a read! Feel free to pass along information!

If anyone out there is looking for a new TV show to start watching, I highly recommend this. I would never in 100 years would have guessed I would enjoy this as much as I am. This is coming from a from a man who loves Sons of Anarchy and The Walking Dead. I just heard so many great things about it and I’m really happy we finally caved in and started watching. I would be curious to hear what other people think.

That’s all for now! Just a random thought.

Our house is finally coming together, although we have not yet moved. Our days living with my mother are limited, and that makes me sad in certain ways, but also is very exciting because of the new chapter in our lives that we are starting. After all, I am almost 31 years old, married, with a stepson and living at home with my mother. Who would have guessed? I never imagined this is where I would be in my life at this stage but then again, it’s almost getting to the point where this seems somewhat normal, if that’s at all possible. August will mark four years since my injury and everything I knew before hand has either changed significantly or is no longer part of my routine. Some days are easier than others. Some days bring more joy than others. Some days I really struggle to be anything than miserable and I hate it. It’s not fair to anyone. Not myself but more importantly, not to those that love me and sacrifice so many things on a daily basis just for my benefit. That’s why I’m hoping this new chapter of ours will allow me to get a new start, if for nothing, only for my own mental health! Besides, my wife and stepson deserve my absolute best. Not that the time that has passed with them was horrible on my end, at least I hope not, but I could have definitely done better. I guess everyone can always do better, but I’m really looking forward to this fresh start. So anyway, sorry for this long and rambling post, but I wanted to say hello and give you a small idea of what’s going on. I really appreciate any of you out there who still follow these little blurbs about what’s going on in my life. It means so much. I know I keep saying that I’m going to write more often, but this time I mean it! I promise! I hope that all of you out there are well. Talk soon!

As of Friday, January 11, Melissa, Brock and I are proud homeowners! We are very excited with all of the potential that this home has to offer. It is in fine condition and ready for us to move in however, we are looking into some home modifications so we are unsure the exact date we would actually make the move. Thankfully my mom is in no rush to get rid of us, at least it doesn’t seem so anyway! 🙂 I would love to post some pictures of the house but I need to figure out how to do that. As easily as I move around with computers and now a decent amount, I just cannot figure that part out! I will work on it. Either way, we will be taking before and after pictures so at some point hopefully we will be sharing those with everyone.

I know it’s been a while since I’ve touched base so I hope that everyone had a very nice holiday season. I also hope most of you are avoiding the flu although that seems practically impossible.

Thanks for following! We will touch base soon.

Aaron