Learning to Walk All Over Again: Part 4 When I awoke from surgery in the recovery room, I found myself still intubated with a breathing tube down my throat. This was alarming to feel at first, until I remembered that my anesthesiologist had mentioned that sometimes this happens, if there are concerns about lung function while coming out of anesthesia. I'm grateful she had given me a heads up beforehand as it made a tense situation a little less worrisome. Soon, the breathing

Learning To Walk All Over Again for the 3rd Time: Part Three I didn't sleep much that night before surgery. I wasn't nervous for the operation itself or the challenging recovery to come. But I couldn't stop my mind from running through the various outcomes that might come my way afterward, and how I'd deal with them long-term, if I needed to. As my mind did its thing on repeat, I watched the clock turn every hour... and I coped emotionally by eating every single snack we had

Learning To Walk All Over Again for the 3rd Time: Part Two At 8:30 am, my Aunt Mary and I started our 14 hour drive down to St. Louis, Missouri. I couldn't help but note the irony of the day, as October 21st was the date of our Federal Election here in Canada. (Don't worry -- we both took advantage of advance polling to ensure we could still cast our votes!) It felt a bit strange traveling down to the USA on election day, to pursue medical care that adults with Cerebral Palsy

Learning To Walk All Over Again for the 3rd Time: Part One. I've blogged often here, about my post-SDR "highlight reel" since coming home from St. Louis --old skills regained, new movements experienced and a steady stream of exciting progress made. These 'feel good' moments are easy to write about... and fun to celebrate as they keep my spirits bright on this long rehab journey. Yet, underneath it all, there have been significant setbacks to manage, too. I've struggled quietl