Sorry about the decline in the number of posts. I've recently started grad school and due to an increase in my work load, any posts have been through my facebook page. A lot has happened over the past few months and here is a quick overview.
1. School
Last fall I started grad school at Johns Hopkins, studying Bioinformatics, which is essentially combining computers and microbiology. I learned a lot that first semester but I feel more comfortable switching to Biotechnology, which had most of the same requirements and cool electives. Biotechnology is more centered around bench work, small in-person labs, and I really enjoyed doing lab work. In class we're going to do bacterial cloning and a bunch of other fun experiments.
Poor billy...
2. Work out
I've actually been fairly faithful to my work out schedule lately. I keep a calendar my sister gave me for Christmas on the wall, writing down whatever exercise I do on that day's square. It's not a perfect system but so far it has worked.
This is from the calendar she got me. A cat yoga calendar... you know me so well.
It doesn't take a genius to realize that I haven't written anything in a while. I've been busy, my attention taken by school, physical therapy, and art. The first priority for the past few years has been working on my bachelors degree. I am proud to say I have earned my degree in Biology! They even wrote a little press item on the graduating CSU students and my 6 year journey to graduation.
Peter was in a traumatic car accident on Dec. 29,
2009 when his family was driving down the freeway and their car spun
out of control, braking suddenly for stopped traffic. He shattered
two of his vertebrae, broke both arms and suffered extensive internal
damage, ultimately requiring a wheelchair and rigorous rehabilitation. He went through several surgeries and regained motion in his legs and
was eventually able to start walking with a brace and walker. Despite
wanting to resume his education at CSU, health problems made it
difficult for him to be successful on campus, causing him to return home
to North Carolina. There, he resumed his CSU education online. Since
then, he is recovering more and more and has made such great progress
that his wheelchair now serves as a bed for his cats. He is set to
graduate this May with a degree in Biology. He also has applied to
several graduate schools and is interested in Bioinformatics, the
merging of genetics work and computer programming. In the future, he hopes to work in a lab doing research.
I'm glad simply to have made it this far, physically and academically, though I've a long way to go still until I'm satisfied with either. Physically I've been improving by leaps and bounds. And by that I mean I can actually jump (even if it's not very high).
Who knew I could jump higher than the average house!
I'm currently up in Baltimore for another round of Boot Camp, the two weeks twice a year where I get pushed by spinal cord specialists to improve the best I can. The exercises are tailored to my injury and how much recovery I've made. This generally includes some work in the pool, work on balance, strengthening, using treadmills, or all of the above. Today was the first day and was mostly tests, evaluations, and deciding which exercises required more work and which were too easy. According to their tests, since last Boot Camp I've gotten stronger, faster, and better coordinated. The real work starts tomorrow and I know after 3 hours of grueling work I'll sleep like a babe.
Well... maybe not.
Finally, I've been busy painting. This past Christmas instead of buying gifts for people I gave each person a painting instead. This has started me on a painting rampage which continues today. I work mainly with acrylics on canvas and have come up with a few nice pieces. I've also begun Art Journaling, a combination painting and scrapbooking, layered with inks, stencils, stamps, stickers, and million different mediums.
Sawfish, Spotted Eagle Ray
Crying Robot, Green Coffee Cup, Red Coffee Cup
Blue Coffee Cup
Green Coffee Cup
Red Coffee Cup
Blue Coffee Cup
Painting outside on a warm day.
Dragon on a teacup.
Winnie the Pooh art journal page.
"What day is it?" asked Pooh.
"It's today, " squeaked Piglet.
"My favorite day" said Pooh.
"Life is art, live yours in Color."
The first layer of an art journal page.
You have no idea how much I love turtles!
What happens when I get bored and have only highlighters and sharpies.
Darth Vader Art
A Whale in Love
A City in Flames.
Dragon on a cliff.
The Peacock, done in highlighter.
If you like the art, are a fan of my recovery, or just like turtles, 'like' The Turtle Walks on facebook. I'll start keeping the blog updated but my facebook is where I spend most of my time online. Also check out theturtlewalks.tumblr.com
Spinal Cord Rehab Boot Camp - Week 2
Highlights: I'm no longer using a cane to walk! Plus parties and artwork!
Monday, Day 5:
On Monday I used the Therastride, a very useful (if uncomfortable) machine. The harness holds you over a moving treadmill and with the assistance of some therapists it allows those that haven't walked in a very long time a chance to step again. I no longer need much of any direct help though my therapists are still there to assist my legs and hips as needed. The harness takes a little of my weight off the ground so I can focus on walking correctly, instead of focusing on simply not falling over.
An old picture of me on the therastride. This was back when I needed someone to help with both legs (I only need help with the left leg now).
Another machine they've had me use before is a vibration plate. Depending how far apart you put your legs, the more the device throws off your balance. The last time I attempted this, a few boot camps ago, I could barely stay on at all. Now I'm able to work my legs halfway out, which is a medium difficulty. Either way I still end the session just as wobbly.
Your whole body feels like it's buzzing after you step off the vibration plate.
A large part of our focus these two weeks is on my hamstrings (the muscles behind the knee that allow most people to bend their legs back) muscle groups that have slowly been returning. In previous boot camps I focused on getting these muscles to contract at all. Now I can get the muscles to contract consistently but they're still very weak. I can get my leg to bend in the pool and when I'm lying on my side, though bending the leg on land is still a work in progress. Still, to see my leg act like it's supposed to in the pool is encouraging.
These are the hamstrings.
Tuesday, Day 6
On Tuesday we went to a lower floor to the children's gym to use the split belt treadmill. It has two rotating belts instead of just the one, with adjustable speed on both belts. This allows me to work on the timing of my walking. We had planned to use it the first week but it was having mechanical issues. This week everything worked fine with each leg getting its own individualized workout.
Harder than it looks to have two legs at different speeds.
Wednesday, Day 7
One of the strangest experiences of my two weeks but also one of the best was the "Bro-Party". There were a few other early 20-something guys there for bootcamp so someone decided to throw a "bro-party", a tradition one of my fellow patients had started at a previous boot camp. While doing our various balance exercises, we listened to "bro" music, wore cool sunglasses (I got the leopard print) with fake mustaches, while playing Gatorade pong (we're in a hospital, gotta keep it PG). It was one of the strangest experiences of my two weeks but I had a blast! My team ended up winning so that was an extra bonus.
Me at the bro-party with shades and a fake mustache. Brotastic.
Thursday, Day 8
Another group of us got into a dance-off playing Just Dance for the Wii. It was me, a young girl using a walker, and an old guy in one of the standing machines they have around the gym. It was hard to come to a consensus on which song to play, though mostly because all 3 of us were so indecisive. I don't remember who ended up winning as far as points but we all looked extremely silly so it's a draw in the end. But we had fun and I got to spend some of my exercise time dancing (badly) to some of my favorite songs.
We were not nearly this coordinated.
Friday, Day 9
The last day, like the first day, is always reserved for evaluations and tests to see how I've progressed over the two weeks. I did make significant improvements, walking slightly more even on the Gait Rite, the machine that takes a digital image of your walking pattern. I also improved my times in all the walking tests they had me do. I can attribute most of this to my therapist teaching me how to use my brace so that I get more spring in my step, which propels me forward.
They also gave me a home program of exercises that I can do from my room, such as spelling out the alphabet with my weak leg (this practices strength and coordination). It's full of exercises that'll keep me busy and challenged hopefully for the next 6 months.
AFTER I GOT BACK
When I got back to North Carolina I started putting into action the suggestions of my therapists. One suggestion was to get shoes with more ankle support. I'm pretty sure they were talking about hiking boots but since I have a sense of style I got a pair of Chuck Taylors, the old school high top Converse. Though I wasn't expecting these to make any difference, I found myself walking better and better.
I began walking so well that I decided to leave the cane at home. That first day was kinda rough but after that I just kept going. It's now been 2 weeks since I used my cane at all!
No I didn't break my canes. They're in the corner collecting dust!
Artwork
I've been in kind of a winter funk and hadn't felt like writing for the last couple of weeks. I did however channel that weird mood into artwork. I've post some of my paintings up here already but you may not know I also enjoy drawing. I was given a giant sketchbook for Christmas and have been slowly filling it up ever since (plus more paintings). These are just a few examples of what's been filling my time instead of my blog (sorry internets!). I have dozens more and I will post more in the coming days. Enjoy.
