When I Get Out

Sometimes I forget that my readers don't actually know what's going on with me unless I tell them.  My plans for after I leave here are in constant flux, but certain aspects of them have solidified, and it seems only fair to share those plans with you.

The UNC Hospital Rehab Center is going to put me on the curb at 11:00 AM Friday, June 22nd.  My sister should arrive shortly thereafter to collect me and take me to my new apartment.  Hopefully her car has room for all the stuff I have collected here in my hospital room in 6 weeks.  And Buddha Bear.

He takes up some space

Once we arrive at my apartment, Jessica has told me she is prepared to stay with me for a total of five(5) days(!) which is amazingly good news.  I was extremely happy when she told me that.

My priority once I get to my apartment will be to get it set up so that it works for me, and I can function in it.  I need to get the furniture placed where it does not obstruct my wheelchair, and I need to figure out procedures to do all the things I need to do on a daily basis.  In medical circles, they call these ADL's or Activities of Daily Living.

I don't know if this is going to work

One thing I plan to do on a daily basis is eat, but I'm going to be busy figuring out how to survive in the real world, so my friend, Kelly, thought it would be nice to setup a food train for me.  You may have seen these before, only this one is for a paralyzed man instead of a new mother.

Here it is: http://www.takethemameal.com/meals.php?t=UXFX3954

No pressure

Feel free to sign up, but don't feel any pressure.  I probably won't starve to death either way, but it's something nice you can do to help out that would be appreciated.

I will continue to write my blog when I get out.  I enjoy writing it, and I will continue for as long as I have things I want to write about and time to write about them.  There will probably be an interruption when I leave the hospital.  And depending on my schedule outside, I may not be able to post every day, but I'll try.

I expect that I will go back to work at some point, but I don't know when yet.  I imagine that once I get myself a solid daily routine that I feel comfortable with, I will start to get bored, and once I start to get bored, I will start to want to go back to work.  That's how I see that happening, but I think I have a lot to figure out before it happens.

For instance, I'm going to need to get a car.  Yes, I can drive a car, but I'll need hand controls.  I'll want to pick a car that makes sense for me, and then get it modified.  Then I'll need to learn to drive it.  Getting a car isn't the first thing on my agenda, but obviously it's important.

I'm also expecting to start outpatient therapy at some point.  I don't know where or when yet.  I also don't know how often that will be, but I imagine I will continue working on some of the skills I learned here and do some strength exercises.

I expect to get my permanent wheel chair a week or two after I leave the hospital.  I'm looking forward to that.  It should be a lot nicer than the one I'm in now, but I expect that I won't feel comfortable in it right away.  We'll see.  Hopefully I like the one Todd picked out for me.  Later, I'm going to buy some fancy lightweight wheels for it.  They're going to make it so much nicer.  Todd said I should use the factory wheels for a little while so I appreciate the difference the lighter ones make, but I already know it's a huge difference, and I may not be able to wait long.

Beyond that, I don't know what I'm going to do when I go home.  I'm hoping to go to a Railhawks soccer game with Sue and Mike at some point to test my ability to tolerate outings and to experiment with handicapped seating.  I'm going to investigate all the restaurants in my neighborhood to make sure their sanitation grade is good.  I'm going to meet some of my neighbors and see if they want to be friends with a cripple.  I have no idea what else I might do, but at a minimum, it should be interesting.