Tanja met with the physical therapist and then with the occupational therapist in the morning. It went well but it’s an indication of the journey ahead. Tanja is moving her arms much more than 2 days ago and considerably more than last night even. It’s awesome. But she is starting from a very low baseline so there remains a long way to go.

“Sobering,” was Tanja’s assessment of the OT meeting. It’s partially because, of course, nobody wants to say anything falsely hopeful. So when the OT tells her that her neuro orders state she is not to pick up anything heavier than a gallon of milk, her eyes light up and she says, “Will I be able to pick up a gallon of milk?”… and the answer is a safe prevarication.

But, to stick to the facts: she is noticeably stronger by the day. In fact, she was moving better at the end of OT than she was at the beginning. That’s pretty great.

There has been a ton of management today—of the meds elevating her bp, of the fluid loss caused by the management of the bp meds, of the side effects of those meds, etc. Jordan, the RN, is just so competent and patient and kind. It’s wonderful.

Jordan ordered food for Tanja and she actually ate a little soup and two or three bites of mashed potato. That’s a big step up from yesterday!

Then Jordan washed Tanja’s hair and got most of the dried blood out. And I combed it out as Tanja slept.

Now it’s quiet, Wren and Oak have gone and Tanja is asleep again. It was a good day.