This is how we eat ice cream in the Lohr family. One spoon, one container, taking turns for bites (Savannah struggles with this concept) eat it till its GONE!
I realized that I really haven't explained many details about Jack's therapy. I know there are many of you who would like to know exactly what Jack is doing and the rationale behind why it is supposed to help him.
Jack's sessions are for three hours, Monday through Friday, from 8:30 to 11:30. The therapists explained that for children Jack's age, a half day is plenty since their attention span is not that of older children. By 11:00 I hear him down the hallway (I am in the waiting room) saying, "all done" and "bye-bye" to the therapist. They are so good with him and just explain gently that it isn't time to go yet. By 11:30 he is so ready for lunch and a nap.
The therapists strongly encourage parents to stay in the waiting room since the kids get so distracted when the parent comes into the treatment room. Basically, they want the diaper bag with a snack, change of clothes, and diapers and I don't really see Jack until he is done. I understand exactly why they need minimal distractions. Jack really needs to stay focused on what he is doing in order for the therapy to be successful. The couple of times the first few days when I peeked into the room, Jack saw me and he got right up out of his seat and ran to me and said, "bye-bye? binky?" I felt so bad saying no and redirecting him to the activity. Now I really know to stay out of sight. I suppose it is just like when I do dentistry on the kiddos. I require that the parents stay in the waiting room unless the child is under three. The kids tend not to listen and they start screaming and whining when their parents are in the treatment room. Even when in the past they have cooperated beautifully when their parents aren't present. So I understand the need to have the child alone. Jack does very well with it, no tears yet!
Jack has one on one time with an occupational therapist for an hour and a half and then he switches to a physical therapist for the second half of the morning. (Interestingly, the physical therapist does mostly occupational therapy activities but I don't want to question her ability to do these things however Chris and I were surprised) Each therapist has outline treatment goals and has created a treatment plan "homework" each weekend to do with Jack. They send us home with a typed out sheet listing the activities, the duration, and a place to check it off and make comments. They also send with us a huge tote of the toys necessary for the activities. Homework has been going pretty well but Chris and I did slack a little bit today. Tomorrow we will hit it hard!
At therapy they are working on so many things, here are some of the things off the top of my head:
1. Weight bearing. Jack does not bear weight well on his right shoulder, elbow or wrist well. As you move distally down the right extremity, his weight bearing ability gets worse. This makes climbing, crawling, and repositioning himself a challenge. We have worked on weight bearing by having Jack lie down on his belly and weight bear on his elbows with his elbow at a 90 degree angle to also bear weight with the shoulder while looking at books.
2. Grasping and holding objects. Jack cannot open his hand by himself. He can slightly open his fingers but his thumb is much tighter. The therapists work with Jack to grasp and release objects like Matchbox cars into buckets. They water flowers with a small watering can that Jack has to hold and lift, and pour requiring wrist action that he cannot do on his own yet. They help Jack grasp the handle to a toy vacuum and help him to vacuum the floor. He works on grasping the handle to a stroller to push a doll down the hallway. They have toy cars to practice holding onto the steering wheel. They also practice holding larger objects, like balls, with both hands and arms.
3. Range of motion. Jack has very limited range of motion in his shoulder. They blow bubbles and catch one on the wand and make Jack reach with his right hand to pop the bubbles. The work on stacking large blocks and making Jack reach up as high as he can to knock over the blocks with his right hand.
4. Running, jumping, climbing. Chris and I have really been working with Jack on his jumping, climbing stairs, doing squats, and running. Jack can run pretty fast, but his form is not quite normal. His jumping has really improved but now with his cast on climbing stairs is a challenge because he used to hold onto the wall with his left hand. His balance is thrown off and we haven't been making him climb many stairs the last few weeks.
Overall, Jack is tolerating therapy much better than what we thought. His personality hasn't changed a bit. He is still full of laughter and so talkative to EVERYONE! Chris and I are so grateful that Jack is such a fun, happy little boy. He has such a great sense of humor and he always makes his sister laugh too.
If there is anything I want in my household as my children grow up, it is laughter. I want our kids to be happy and to live life to the fullest, realizing their potential and not focusing on obstacles or challenges given to them. I want to try to teach my children to avoid complaining (something I really struggle with) as it doesn't solve the problem and really only makes you feel worse.
On this Mother's Day I feel blessed to have two beautiful, healthy, happy children. Last night, Chris and I were trying to watch Field of Dreams (I think we must miss Iowa or something!) for just a few minutes before the kids went to bed. I was nursing Savannah, and Jack was climbing all over me like I was a jungle gym. Chris was leisurely laying on the twin bed with plenty of personal space. Jack kept making Savannah laugh and she kept spilling milk all over the place. (Sorry if this is TMI for anyone) There was a tiny part of me that was annoyed, thinking, "Jeez, what am I? A milking cow and a jungle gym all in one." Jack was laughing, Savannah was laughing and I pushed that thought out of my head and I laughed too. Someday I will remember feeling like my body was never really mine, it was my children's and I will remember this feeling with fondness and love. Chris looked over at me and saw me with these two munchins attached to me, and said, "boy, your children sure do love you." And I know he is right.
Happy Mother's Day!
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