He's Home!!

As we drove away from the hospital this morning, my dad wrote on his notepad . . .

"Like MLK said . . ."

Free at last! Free at last! Thank God almighty, we are free at last!

He's so glad to be out of the hospital, and we are all so glad FOR him. ELEVEN days in the hospital. That seems like eternity to me -- and I wasn't even the one stuck in a hospital room for a week and a half.

I'm so glad he's home. DEEP BREATH. Big Sigh. He made it, and so did our family.

Dad cannot talk at all for a while still, and he made the comment that not being able to speak seems much stranger now that he's out of the hospital. I agree. I think this part of the recovery process -- learning how to communicate without speech -- could be the toughest part of all. We can already tell that it's going to be a lot harder than anyone envisioned.

Right now -- and through at least the 23rd of April -- he's writing down everything he wants to say. No speech while he heals. Then, with his first speech therapy meeting, we are hoping he'll get an electro-larynx, which will allow some speech. It's not great -- we got a sample of how it works at the hospital -- but it's better than nothing. In time and once his throat is totally healed, the doctors are hoping to put a small device between his esophagus and his neck which will allow more normal, clearer speech. Natural speech. All in time. Right now, he's developed a callus on his hand from writing everything down when he 'talks'.

Can you even imagine? I asked him today -- does it feel a little like you are trapped in your own head? Not being able to speak at all? He agreed that it does feel exactly like that.

Just imagine. Every single little thing you want to say -- any little comment, little noise, little grunt or groan -- NONE of it working. He says that when he talks, he can still hear it in his head. Today he thought he was whispering -- swore he could whisper to me -- but when I leaned in close to try and hear him, all I hear was the sound of his teeth and his tongue as he tried to talk. Not even a whisper. But he hears it in his head Imagine.

Funny enough, during the 11 days in the hospital, we did find a way to communicate on the phone. It involves a lot of talking on my end -- all yes or no questions -- and some button pushing on his end. Hey, it totally works. I figured out a LOT of what was going on down at the hospital by asking those 'yes' and 'no' questions, believe it or not. I somehow managed to decipher a pretty complicated set of instructions the doctors had given my dad, all in beeps and questions. It's kinda funny . . . but the telephone is such a part of the relationship I have with my dad, it's really no wonder we found a way to make it work.

Anyway . . . he's home. We are all glad for that. It's still not 'normal' -- but it's better. We'll get back to normal at our house in about a week or so. My dad's 'normal' will take a bit longer . . . but all in time.

Thanks again for all the well wishes and the HELP from all of you, my friends. It's so very appreciated and valued more than you can know.