Day Program - Weeks Four & Five

First off, I would like to apologize for taking so long to update the blog. No excuses...but we'll make sure to post weekly updates (at a minimum) moving forward.

The past two weeks, I have been busy with outpatient therapy here in Atlanta at the Shepherd Center. The highlights from the last two weeks are:

-Continued work (and progress) on transfers of all kinds. As noted before, a transfer is a movement from a wheelchair to another seating surface like a car seat, a bed, a sofa, a piece of fitness equipment, etc. Transfers are getting to be more fluid, efficient and faster...all good things as improving transfers is my most important goal in the outpatient Day Program.

-My take-home wheelchair arrived this past Tuesday. The wheelchair is a TiLite, model ZRA (pictures to follow). The new chair is lighter and more efficient than the loaner manual chair I was in for about 2 1/2 months. Plus, it's faster too...all good things!!

-Learning more advanced "dance" moves at a Shepherd sponsored Valentines Day party. With a little more practice, Courtney and I will be able to get down and boogie at weddings and the like.

-Playing in a group dodgeball game with other dayprogrammers and therapists. No head shots were aloud, but body and chair shots were fair game. It was fun, good exercise and worked on chair mobility.

-Continued use of a standing frame here at Shepherd. Again, these devices mechanically stand the user up so they are weight-bearing through their legs. A few pictures of me in a standing frame were previously posted on the blog for your review.

-Continued strength and endurance with cardio equipment and in group "pushes". I'm able to use a stationary handcycle or other hand-operated fitness equipment to raise my heartrate for up to 30 minutes a couple times per day. A large improvement...10 minutes use to be a struggle. But as noted above, stength and endurance are progressing nicely.

Those are the higlights from the last two weeks. Busy as usual in therapy with continued gains in strength, mobility and endurance.

We attended a Shepherd sponsored outing to the Philips Arena to watch the Atlanta Thrashers play against the Vancouver Canucks in an NHL hockey game. Unfortunately the home team lost in a 1-2 game, but we enjoyed touring the Arena and the CNN center.
The weather has been beautiful! Courtney and I revisited Stone Mountain to enjoy some of the fresh air and push around the paved paths.

Last but not least, I received another letter from a person I would like to call a friend....Lance Armstrong. He wished me continued success in my recovery. He also mentioned he and the folks at the Lance Armstrong Foundation(LAF) are keeping me in their thoughts and prayers. This was a little encouragement from a person that I greatly admire.

Courtney and I also have had to opportunity to continue sampling many of Atlanta's eateries with our friends. One of our new favorites is The Italian Restaurant, BRIO. The food is very good and reminds us of the great Italian restaurants home in New York. On Valentines Day, our treat was enjoying some cheese and chocolate fondue at The Melting Pot(a restaurant in downtown Atlanta).

Thank you again to our families and friends for your continued support and encouragement. In that light, Courtney recently became Shepherd Centers newest volunteer. She assists where needed and mainly focuses on helping others adjust, while I am in therapy. Courtney enjoys volunteering and the wonderful people she meets! It is a small attempt to pay it forward!
That is all that is fit to print!
Thank you,
Dana