Homework

Today's therapy sessions for Ryan went pretty well! Ryan started off with physical therapy, having a full assessment done. His therapist determined that they'll work a lot on balance, lower body strength, and gait. During the assessments Ryan and I both noticed a lot of areas where he has improved from even a week ago. He still has a lot of hesitation in his walking, especially when he turns around or is looking other directions, but it's incredible to see how quickly he's come from not being able to even sit up in bed (a month ago!) to walking without assistance!

Next up today was occupational therapy. This therapist introduced Ryan to some exercises he can do to increase his strength and fine motor skills with his left hand. It was really neat to see putty being used for exercises! :) A lot of these exercises were really difficult for Ryan, but he pushed through and is already noticing a slight improvement in his left hand. He is now assigned to do a whole set of exercises with the putty every day at home so they can focus more on other things during his therapy sessions. His next occupational therapy session will include a driving assessment to see where Ryan really stands with driving skills (this assessment will not be performed with him behind the wheel of an actual car...). 😉

Speech therapy rounded off the morning. We found that Ryan actually passed the standardized assessment that he took last week with a "functional" score, despite deficits in some areas. But his therapist pointed out that the test he took was far from "in-depth," and she was able to justify working with him further to the insurance company based on some of his deficits. They worked on a lot of language exercises and Ryan received some homework from her, as well.

Ryan was also able to visit a little with the co-worker that found him on the 27th of June. He was so grateful for all that she and her husband did to help him, and it was good for both of us to hear first hand from her the experience of finding Ryan. She said that when she first saw him, she thought he was dead. He looked so peaceful sitting in the recliner, but very white. Then her husband realized Ryan was still breathing, but she guessed he was only breathing about 8 times a minute. They hadn't been able to find a pulse in his wrist, but they did find a faint pulse in his neck. How grateful we are that so many people followed the promptings of the Spirit and found Ryan before it was too late!