Increase in medication

I forgot to post an update a couple of days ago about Randy’s medications. Last week I had called the Neurology clinic to ask if the Amitriptyline could be increased because he still has had no relief with his headaches. The nurse called me on Monday to say that the doctor okayed Randy to increase from 50 to 75 mgs, so we began increasing the medication on Monday night. He said he has felt more tired the last couple of days, but still no decrease in headaches. I keep hoping that this medication is going to be what works for him.

Today, Randy worked on cleaning and organizing this side of the bed. We have set a bookcase for him to set all of his stuff on. He has too much stuff!

Later, when he and his mom went to pick up Cass from school, they stopped in and talked to our neighbor (who works at the school) about starting to volunteer there. They are going to start helping out with the Friday newsletter, getting it all ready to go. Since there is no school this Friday, they are going to go in tomorrow for the newsletter for this week.

Randy worked on his eye exercises and his leg exercises. He also spent some time this afternoon studying more for the class he is taking. The final exam is coming up here soon, so we shall find out shortly how he has done with the class.

I was thinking today how much he has improved over the last 4 months. It was just a little over 4 months ago that the accident occurred. In the last 4 months, he has gone from being in a coma, to the process of coming out of a coma, to re-learning how to walk, to getting to come home. Even just in the time that he has been home, there have been great improvements. When he first came home, I had to follow him everywhere, still kind of holding on to him to make sure he didn’t fall. Tonight, as he and I went for his evening walk, he was walking without his cane (at least for a little bit). Big improvement!

Along with the improvements, we have also seen negative changes. When Randy first came out of his coma, for the first little while, he was very polite like he often was before the accident. As time has gone on, mood swings have began to appear. They can appear at any time, with no notice, and at times, they can be severe changes. In dealing with them, it helps to remind myself that it is due to the injury and in part, also due to his frustration and anger that he is feeling at not being himself and not getting to do all of the things that he wants to do, such as going to work, driving, working out in the yard on Cass’s playhouse. I admit, though, that there have been times that I have been very tempted to just leave him at the store for awhile (at this point, though, he would probably really like that being that he doesn’t get any alone time and misses the freedom of being able to be by himself). I know that the mood swings will pass as his brain heals and his abilities return.