Kate Does TIRR Volume 1 Edition 5

I figured it was time to add to my blog. I took some time off because I've been perpetually exhausted. From fighting to open up my lungs to getting rid of my bronchial pneumonia to making the move back to TIRR, I've been pretty busy for a girl who lies in bed all day. But since this blog seems to be so popular I decided I should write something. (It's amazing how quickly my boring school blog blew up after I broke my neck; but maybe that's the secret to a good blog. Just get really injured and everyone will be interested.)

A quick update: I've been back at TIRR about a week and a half now and man am I tired. These people just don't understand the concept of sleeping in (says the girl who in college woke up between 5 & 6 every morning to ride her bike before classes). The therapy is going well; I am doing mat exercises, pedaling away on an auto bike and riding the tilt-a-whirl table that made me pass out the first week I was here. Also, I am vent weaning!! If all goes well I'll be off the vent by November 18. That means I'll be breathing on my own again, which is actually much harder than you think. But I've learned that about most things we take for granted. Even sitting up requires a coordination of so many different things that I never thought of just to be able to sit for a minute. But I'll leave that topic alone for now. I'll just preach to everybody later since I am not in a preachy mood at present. (You just dodged a bullet!) 

Now that we got the boring medical stuff over with let's talk about some of the stupid stuff I have done. Thing number one: I might have accidentally called my resident a fake doctor. He was in here during my admission assessment (that super fun thing where they poke me all over and I can't feel a thing...seriously they need to learn the definition of paralyzed) and we were talking and for some reason that I can't remember I said "Dr. Davis is my real doctor." Which is technically true because residents come and go but Dr. Davis is my permanent doctor that is in charge of my health while here at TIRR. Of course the resident, being a man, took my words the wrong way. He responded, "What does that make me? A fake doctor?" Of course I denied this but the damage was done. Thankfully he is a rare doctor that doesn't take himself too seriously and has a great sense of humor. Now whenever I see him we just joke about my poor word choice. Stupid thing number two: I might have called another resident a fake doctor. So this time I was talking to the weekend doctor and her resident so I told them the story above. Well, I didn't realize until he told me that her resident was a second year resident as well. In essence I told him that he was a fake doctor just like the first one.  Which is totally not true. They passed medical school and they could probably save my life if I started dying. However, they are just not as experienced as the head doctors. Adding insult to injury, this was a really cute resident that everybody has been talking about when he's not around, of course. (Wow. I really hope nobody from the hospital tells either one of these residents if they should happen upon this blog. But they are both attractive in their own right....Platitudes, gotta love 'em.) Stupid thing number three: I might have implied that my tech is a lesbian. Since I have been here for a collective total of about two and a half weeks I decided it was time to find out a little more about the people who help me. In this vein I asked one of my favorite techs about her relationship status and past history. So while I was questioning her I found out she had been married once. I proceeded to tell her, "When introducing yourself should lead with that." She then asked, "To a guy?" Me, being me, of course misunderstood. I thought she was asking if I was asking if she was married to a guy. Since she was asking with great incredulity, I asked if she was married to a girl. This of course led to lots more questions and laughter because I had totally missed the mark. Apparently she thought I was saying that she should introduce herself to guys she meets by saying she was married before. The confusion eventually cleared up but once again my mouth led me into another faux pas. On a different note, my tech is very much single and ready to mingle. I am now accepting applications to date her. Just don't tell her. 

So those are three majorly stupid things I have done so far. Some more kind of cool things: I am getting a power chair (isn't that a scary thought? I'll be the menace of the fourth floor. Crashing into people, speeding down the hallway at a brisk three miles per hour and causing general distress in my wake.) Plus the possibilities are endless:  I plan to play Mario Kart where we tie balloons to our chairs, race against each other and bang into each other hard enough to make the others lose their balloons. I have had a lot of visitors, which I absolutely love. Seriously. If you're thinking of visiting me, please do not hesitate to do so, even if you think I won't remember you or don't know you. There's no time like the present to make new friends.  Just let my mom know you'd like to visit, and she can let you know when I am not in therapy so we can chat. Feel freeh to bring gastronomical gifts.  (Put down the dictionary. You don't need to know what gastronomical means. I'm just kidding about that. You don't have to bring anything. Just yourself and a good attitude.)

In my power chair. Like my socks?

Sitting on a mat

Trying to type on my iPad. Did you see my Facebook post?

Well that's it for now. But in the next edition I'm going to talk about some of the cool stuff that has happened since my accident.