KevRider

So this week I can't claim to have noticed any specific improvement in motion. I'm moving very well now, which in turn makes it pretty hard to identify such improvements. I still get a little wobbly when tired. What has been noticeable is an increase in stamina. I can now apply myself more ardently to a project task until I get tired an then I go off for a cup of tea. ( How British) Last month I would be done for the day. Yesterday I worked pretty hard harvesting potatoes , had the tea, and then went on to walk 20 mins at 3mph on a 5% gradient. I'm definitely starting to build a little stamina back and I recover from exertion quicker 🙂 There's a price to this! This week I 've been digging up potatoes. My back muscles certainly feel that. After two days of this I pulled up with some very taught and achy muscles all along my left side. This of course was the side that was paralyzed, and I think I'm bringing on line muscles I probably haven't used in over a year. A day off and hot bath soak with salts helped and the next day I was good to go again. It's good to feel useful again as Deb was having to handle more than her share of the load to this point.

145/83 BP was a pleasant reading this morning, a bit lower than my average 152/88 ( Remember I have prescribed hypertension) my doctor likes higher BP to push thru my constricted veins. So a natural drop in BP suggest a possible clearing of veins. The push for normal movement continues but I can't claim to have identified any specific improvements. This weeks specific project is to harvest the marihuana plants. We are lucky that in AZ we have legal marihuana and I 'm far enough away from a dispensary that I am allowed to grow a few plants for personal use. The THC was very useful in the period following rehab, as it vastly reduced spasmodity. In fact the first time I used it I got up and walked away almost normally. It also helped muscle relaxation at the end of the day. I hardly use it now , having only smoke twice in the last month. These days we are processing our plants more for THCA.

A week of working on projects and some heavy stuff, like lifting those fence panels in to place to finish the north stall running pens, and pounding a few T bars into place, left me a bit tight and stiff at the end of the days. I think I probably got it about right as I was ready to go the next days. Trying to notice returning function is harder now as the returns are pretty subtle. Some time its more a realization that some thing has gone. This week I had a feeling of pressure around my occiput and near my ears, a little like a blocked eustachian tube. The feeling of pressure sent me running for my BP machine. It turned out 149/81 which was fine as my doctor is happy up to 160/100 as I have prescribed hyper tension. Then as the week went on the feeling would return now and again but I realized that the old headiness I would get, and was permanent in rehab, had disappeared. In fact I can't recall the last time i had that headiness/dizziness! Walking wise, I get a bit staggery when tired, typically at the end of the day. Then the other day as I felt a bit staggery, I then applied a bit more concentration to my muscle movement, like when I was in rehab and every step was a mental & physical challenge. A little concentration and the gait was much better. Then I realized that most of the day now, when not tired, I walk without really thinking of it! "Winter is coming' night are very chilly but days are still sunny as we enter Fall, and the harvest is changing with more winter squash (see header pic)

So this week i haven't had any notice improvements. Though perhaps my stamina is still improving. I have kept up my morning run back from the barn today additional incentive to get back quicker as we were down at 42F. I'm still following the morning ride with some project work. This week it was getting the barns north side stalls ready for winter. Our predominant wind is from the south west , so for the with we move the horse to the lee side. To prep the running pens I had to take fencing down, and gravel and rake the area. then replace the fencing. I'm still not a strong as i was 2 years ago, when I would have done it all in one day/ So now I break project into 3 days of tasks. Also this week the horses needing trimming so where as i might have done both in a session i do a pair of hooves each day over 4 days. Very slowly increasing the incline on the treadmill. Now its 20mins at 3mph at 5% This week we started re-watching Game of Thrones ----- " Winter is coming!"

Well this week I can't identify any actual improvements. Of course they can be so subtle now I have to pay attention to spot one. I do catch my self slipping back to my safe walk and find myself having to coach myself , like "Come on a bit faster" as I continue to move more as I used to. This week I have been involved with installing a big drum composter. The screwing of nuts onto bolts was an exercise they used to have me do in rehab, and I found I was flashing back to that as i had to do it a lot in this project. It certainly showed up a slight deficiency in fine motor skills in my left fingers. But I'm sure the practice did some good. The final lift of drum onto stand and its adjustment was a heavy lift and I paid the price in some stiffness yesterday. still a lot of motion in the assembly and no headiness to talk off and it was very satisfying to be back doing a real project again. 🙂 Here we have the stand up and leveled. Below the final product. I am so overdue for a hair cut!!

No it was the other way round. I think my headiness which feels like a light drunk is directly linked to my balance. When i first got home 4 weeks post stroke , it was with me all the time , EXCEPT when i would get in the saddle it would go away . that was consistent. Now if tried a tight roll back it would come back but I wasn't doing much of that . My problem was more I was riding like a novice and bouncing in the saddle!! It has taken a year to get back in the saddle. That's a phrase we use , in that a novice rides on the saddle and a good rider is in the saddle. I think that's controlled by core muscles around the waste and it took time.

LOL yes they are.

My recent attempts to push for normal seem to be paying off. Most of my motion lately is normal, though I still have to concentrate on doing it. Often the first couple of steps may be slightly lacking, but then i push a little, focus and its back again. This recently re-learned motion gets me into new areas of balance challenge. But only small ones which trigger a little headiness for just a moment and I seem to be learning how to re-balance and haven't been anywhere near falling yet. Control of my left arm ahs improved so much I have decided that my riding is good enough to restart training. I had just started the half pass when I stroked. So we started again last week.:) I also felt strong enough to do some heavier work, re-arranging some heavy fence panels. Veggie's keep growing and bed is processing and storing some, others are still going to friends , see pic below:-

Those who may have read last weeks blog will know i'm pushing for normal. Generally its been working great! i'm estimating about an 85% rate and it feels good when I get it right as for a few minutes I fell no deficits. The slight down side it that occasionally on rougher ground i lose a little balance. and may stagger slightly for a stride or 2 it challenges my balance and may induce a little headiness. but I have not taken a fall yet, and believe that balance challenge is probably good neuro plastics learning anyhow. My horse came up lame 5 days ago so no riding for a few days, but took him for a quiet walk yesterday an he is sound again. Quarantine while... pottering in the garden and hoop house and walking regularly on the treadmill where i have increased the grade to 4.5%. I t seems to make me flex joints more than being flat. Hers a pic of a greens bed which is supplying Arugula and lettuce for salads. The pic at the top was flowering sweet potatoes which are harvested as close to the first frost as I dare Cheers Kev

This week its been harder to note specific improvement. Rather I seem to have realized that I may have to push beyond habits i've fallen into. I had started , and continue to run back from barn to the house every morning after feeding the horses. Yet I realized that I walk in a very steady and cautious way which has now served me for several months. One evening my wife was calling me to the bathroom to take meds and I realized I use to walk much faster in such circumstance. I increased stride and speed and had no problem! t wasn't like when I push to relearn a muscle use. I t was more like the natural movement was there waiting for me to return to it. I am making a resolution to day to try to move , in all things, like i used to. If nothing else I think it we redefine where my limits are. As Cober says; Quarantine while we continue to work in the hoop house every day which also stretches and challenges my balance. Is pretty much in full production in there. The first of the cucumbers have just arrived and out in the garden egg-plant abounds with sweet peppers coming soon. We are producing so much at the moment that time can't process it all so we have been feeding 5 other house holds. We pakage it up put in on a table in the garage and they come and collect it as we are still maintaining a high level of isolation. Thats it for this week.

Improvement these days is in subtle increments and easily over looked. My fist consistent walk of the day is over to the barn to feed the horses and I always use this to gauge progress. This morning I was most of the way to the barn when I realized I was thinking about something completely different and just walking naturally. Most of the time since the stoke I have to concentrate on every step I take. Another thing I added to my routine is I now run back from the barn , a distance of some 50meters. it actually feels more like my old self when I run as opposed to walking. Additionally when I do my daily treadmill exercise, I started increasing the incline just to 3% but a good start. Otherwise the week has passed in Covid isolation in the usual way. Ride it weather permits and gardening to follow and finish the work with a cup'o tea. For those more observant you will notice the beards gone. I started growing this in rehab after the stroke as my muscle spasmodity was so bad I was dangerous with a razor. LOL All for this week Kev

So this week I engaged in more work around the house and garden with some significant results. I offered to help with vacuuming the house. The to and thro motion of this induces a strange headiness as I transferred weight from one foot to the other. Later my walking changed to a longer stride and during my first walk of the day, which id from house to barn to feed horses, the walk felt vary natural and indistinguishable from my pre-stroke walk. It still gets a little wobbly as the day goes on and I become tired at the end of the day. We have also been doing a lot of harvesting and i have bee a lot more active in this. The bending and pulling seems to be bringing more core muscles on line , though I pay for my efforts with muscular stiffness the next day. Also the other day I was harvesting potatoes with a fork and found i could actually balance on my left leg and drive the fork into the ground with my right and balance all forces concerned. Had I tried that a couple of weeks ago I would probably ended up on my *beep*. I still tire more easily that before but my stamina still continues to improve. Picture below show potatoes harvested. That's a few meals there. Lead pic is white egg plants, zucchini and winter squash.

Well with Arizona been a Covid hot spot we continue our isolation, now almost 5 months. Days slide one into the other we have to mark them with meals to help keep track, Spaghetti Sunday, Wednesday Pizza and 'Friesday'. Can't complain to much were almost set up for it. I think about 60% of what we are eating comes off our land. We have plenty y of space to ride in the morning, in fact we have over 2miles of track on our own property. My stamina is slowly coming back. Used to be when I rode it was about it for the morning and I needed to sit and re-coup. The last few days after riding I have energy to do mini projects like we are trying to re-seed one of the horse pastures or working the green house. My headiness is mostly absent nd seems to be associated with balance. It comes back with new post stroke movement, like bending over and reaching for tomatoes often triggers it. I have become award that bad movements are left as somewhat of a habit. For example if i step off with my right leg I tend to swing the left thru like back at rehab when learning to walk again. So I'm triyng to take my first step with the left and subsequent steps then seem to follow more naturally. Other than that another quiet week.

I hvan't the experience or gear to drive him. My arms may b well enough to work him at the walk if Deb saddles for me. The trot would be a bit painful i think. The ine is like 4yrs

Well on Thursday last I was moving a bail of hay , which had fallen weirdly and jammed in position. I lifted with my legs but had my elbow bent slightly. Just as it started to move I felt my forearm muscles tear like breaking old sting. The felling was sickening , both mentally and physically! So that led to 3 days off nursing the arm. Its been getting better each day but is still to tender to risk riding. I did get back to the treadmill. On a better note I have been lengthening my walking stride back to its old level. The monsoon is on us here with heavy cloud cover through the night which keeps the temp up around 68F which is warn as we are at 5,600ft and night are usually down at 50F. Days are cooler with cloud like 80F -compared with 100F for a clear day. We are looking at thunder storms to day and lots of rain hopefully 🙂 Harvest is abundant. We are harvestin about 10lb of tomatoes every other day along with some quash and greens. This week the grapes joined in 🙂 Cheers Kev

Some we eat with salads , some we give to friends. Deb roasts a lot with onions and garlic . Its then frozen and used later for soup base , with spaghetti and s pizza topping.

So actually had to go out this week! We get our income form a few rentals and we had a tenant leave so we had to go out to assess clean up needs, which included taking a traitor of junk to the dump. So some interaction with others hopefully at a safe distance, wearing masks and gloves. It felt good to be out and about but I was somewhat nervous in the interactions. Its good to be mobile enough again that I can do a lot of tasks required .,but I must admit I hired 2 guys to help with the heavy loading. Got lots of riding in the mornings this week and kept up regular walking on the treadmill. Noticed that getting out the small car was done naturally as of old compare with the way i got out for the first few weeks where I had to pull my self out with me arms. so still seeing small improvements. The garde is coming on, supplying squash, lettuce nd tomatoes. The latter suddenly coming into full yield. We have so much that we give lots away to our friends. Below yesterdays haul.

Have to admit that's just a decorative windmill , it does squeak a little. Our actual pump is electric solar.

I think this it the Northern Mocking bird but far from sure. There's a par nesting in the tree i just shot that as we were sitting having tea outside. The windmill is purely decorative. We have an electric well which is powered by solar, a bit more modern 🙂

This week is one of those gaps in the weather pattern. Usually spring is windy by mid mornings so we have to ride very early while its still chilly. This week however we have had lovely sunny mornings with no wind so been riding a little later. My left leg is still a little weak but its finally strong enough to posh him side ways so I've actually got back to the traing I was doing just before my stoke, the half pass. Done correctly the horse moves both forward and side ways, crossing his legs over at the front and back with his head turned in the direction he's going. He s far from perfect at the moment but he's getting the idea. My movement in the saddle is improving but giving me a few stiff muscles as it seems i'm using them in a new way. I've also noticed an improvement in balance, especially when i step out the bath tub. What was a transfer of weight I used to rush to get both feet on the ground is now done at a more leisurely pace. So it nice to keep improving even if slowly, The traing moves take a goodly amount of effort so Deb and I have been indulging in a tea break most morning, just enjoying the garden, and regaining energy before doing the treadmill. We keep the place a little wild with lots of local wild flowers to encourage pollinators. Arizona is having a massive increase in Corvid19 so we are still isolating. That's it for this week! Kev

UgHHHH

A quiet week. Its been very windy so have passed the time more indoors. Arizona is having a major relapse with the Corona virus so we aren't going anywhere for a while. Perhaps even a long while! I was entertaining my self with planning a trip to the UK and Paris which we have been intending to take with Deb's parents for their 50th Wedding Anniversary next June 2021. Then yesterday we heard the Americans won't be allowed to fly to Europe! At the rate we are going we could still have that problem next year! My activity this week has been little beyond my usual 20 mins a day treadmill, so it hard to notice any improvement. So since we have just passed my stroke 1st anniversary I thought I'd give myself a reality check. My headiness (like beinga bit drunk) which was with me in rehab constantly has all but disappeared and is only around when I initiate a sudden move. My walking still takes a major effort both muscles and mental focus but most people don't notice any thing. I can even balance on my left (previously paralyzed) leg for several seconds Here is the pic from rehab when I could not walk at all, I hated this rig!! So I need to keep sense of relativity and gratitude. I 'm pretty lucky to be alive!! BTW title pic is me and my therapist in the pool at rehab a year ago.

So Wednesday around again so soon.! This week seems to be an odd job week. Which is in itself a good thing. These projects are quiet tiring as my stamina is far from what it used to me but I can balance, climb ladders (carefully ) and am dexterous enough again to handle power tools. Its also the anniversary of my stroke so its been a year. This time last year I was making a bucket list as I was not sure I would last much longer! I made Monument Valley & Carlsbad Caverns before the virus grounded me. Well onwards on day at a time. Project 1; was due to Deb having to go to the Post Office so often for little parcels, so she purchased a larger mail box and then I had to install it. Project 2; the solar system started overloading as the A/c kicks in ., but only in the hottest part of the day. So the system is mounted in a small shed , some 300 m away. So I fitted a wind turbine on the roof and put Styrofoam sheets of insulation on the wall and ceiling. The metal shed was very hot even at 9am this morning so hopefully it will help. Were hitting the mid 90s now. I've never figured out why in the middle of a semi arid deserts we see toads I 'm surprised the AZ sun doesn't roast them. Meanwhile getting in some riding and daily treadmill for 20mins.

Its kind of sad when the most interesting topic of my week was applying for Medicare. I was covered by Deb ACA before but as she approached her 65th we have to convert over. One of the affects of getting older is that our health insurance just doubled! That seems a little crazy and even more so from some one who was brought up with Universal healthcare. Meanwhile our Blue Cross insurance still has not settled my bills form my stroke. 'Reduce your stress.' they tell me at Mayo then had me a bill for $208,000 because the insurance denied the claim because they air lifted me out of net work. Well after nearly a year of claim review I got it down to $2,400. I made the decision that dealing with these guys every month was more stress than it was worth so I have decided to pay it myself but over the coming year at $200 per month which I can easily afford. Medicare part a and B and drugs part D and supplemental insurance! Why is it so complicated? Just the people to administer this must drive the price up! Enough! This weeks improvement realization is that I lift my 28lb saddle up as easily as I used to. When I came back from rehab , my left arm was so week that I could just get it on my horse but would often knock his saddle blankets out of line. The other day I realized I could lift and suspend for a while above his back before descending squarely on his blankets. Too windy today to ride, but have a good week of chilly but sunny morning to ride. The tomatoes are coming on line typically 5 per day and increasing. First squash also and of course lots of greens. Doing a couple of hours a day pottering in the garden. Arizona has a substantial increase in the rate of Corvid infections, so Deb and I are still maintaining a very strict isolation protocol. Days are Ride, Garden, treadmill and TV punctuated by zoom meetings with friends. They now sip into one another; almost forgot It was Wednesday!

Little to note on the physical recovery this week. I haven't noticed any improvements but advancements are slight at this stage. On the other hand I have noticed a reduction in my ability to contain emotions across the full scale. This has been true since my stroke but seems to have been exacerbated by events around the Black Lives Matter protests. So I have been a bit down this week. I went looking for some comic relief and found on Netflix 'Douglas' which was a show by an Australian comedian which was funny but I found hilarious. also found it hard to contain to the point on laughing so hard I had trouble breathing! The virus continues to climb here in Arizona so Deb & I are still isolating, the days are generally coffee, breakfast , ride, garden, Treadmill, lunch, Tv and dinner then sleep, Repeat ! The weather did a first yesterday and froze after June 1st. killing a lot of outside plants it took out a bed of squash but weirdly left one unharmed. That was a major set back! By contrast the hoop house is growing into a jungle providing lots of greens and tomatoes are starting to come in strong. Tending the plants challenges my balance and can induce some headiness but for the most part the early headiness has all but disappeared.