The Lishman Journal – Days 40-45

Before I start, please may I say……………..HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY To………………………… J

Sunday brought me visitors in the shape of my sisters and mother, so lovely to all be together, an all together very rare occurrence these days.  But I have jumped forward.  Sunday morning is washing day.  So after remembering the washing machine controls (although nearly forgetting the powder!), in went my clothes and then I turned to the tumble drier………….horror, remembered it doesn’t work now the repairman has been!!!!  They removed the door latch so we can’t even jam it shut now and use it……….thanks sooooo much Mr White Van Man!  So had to persuade one of the staff to go upstairs and borrow/use theirs, but get them back again before the inmates took a fancy to them…….

It has been quite a week here at the Lishman. Strangely enough it all started on Monday…………The day dawned bright and early, too darned early.  WARD ROUND DAY and my Half Term Assessment (yes, it has been 6 weeks already!).  Feeling like a school boy outside the head master’s study all morning awaiting “the call” and eventually was “invited in” at 11:40.  Imagine if you will, about 12 people (the whole multi-disciplinary team), sat around in a circle ALL looking at you………quite daunting but soon settle in and concentrate on the Consultant who directs the meeting and basically you have a 1:1, just with others looking on.  So all in all, not too bad and got all the way through with NO seizures.  Wonderful time!

Tuesday came all too soon BUT, lunchtime brought a real treat!  Leoni, David T and Elsa were baking PIZZAS all morning and brought up 6 plates groaning with the most delicious varieties for us to tuck into.  DEEEEELICIOUS!!!!!  And then an equally lovely treat, Laura Cordell and hubby came to visit after her assessment for the Lishman waiting list. (She's ON IT!).  What a wonderful visit! And my heartfelt thanks for the parcel of goodies she brought me!!!!  I was speechless then and I still am.  Too much to list here, they must have been a stone lighter on the way home!  THANK YOU LAURA!!!

And then came minor disaster……….Leoni was whisked off to A&E once more, this time for a fetching black and white photo of her rather full colon……….enough of that though, it’s dinner time somewhere or other!J.  An unfortunate side-effect of morphine, so now she has to come off that and hope to control her pain with alternativesL.  Good luck and I’m certain we’ll find a private supplier in Camberwell somewhere! ;-)

Wednesday was CRAZY DAY.  The lunchtime session with the Nail Bar saw me

fall into a “mad moment” and I succumbed to her charm, a hand massage and………(see photo)J.
   Wii Olympics evening was a really doozy.  THREE hour marathon with the combatants Leoni, 2 Daves, Annie and an audience of 1 (me); of laughs and spills, arms flying, skydiving off a table, golf clubs swinging and nearly taking heads off, swishing past ears, certain young ladies showing skills with swords whom I certainly would not wish to meet in a lonely alley on a dark night, wakeboarding to cool off, then table tennis in the tropical sun…….oh and the most entertaining language! J

Thursday was FRANCIS KING day.  But firstly I waited to see how many came out in the morning with arms hanging off after the previous evening's antics………………remarkably NONE!  Totally amazed but it turned out to be ME that suffered.  At 2am I had been woken up by my left arm shouting VERY loudly at me.  Having gone to the office looking for pain meds, I awoke some time later in bed after apparently collapsing outside the office and having one of my series of seizures.  Wasn’t a happy bunny at breakfastL.  And then Francis came for his follow-up with our therapist, Rosa, plus a meeting regarding his complaint about the food issues here.  Coincidentally(?) or not, we now have a new housekeeper who started Monday and a new way of food ordering where WE get to choose from the whole available menu as from next week.  Not ideal ordering a week in advance for those who want/need visual stimulus to decide, but much better choice for all concerned.  THANK YOU FRANCIS!

Thursday afternoon, the Wednesday “Fate Karma” took effect.  I was due to have physio on Wednesday but she had been unable to see me so postponed until Thursday.  And so the healing hands of a most amazingly fabulous physio were available to heal my shoulder pain just when I needed it.  Don’t know HOW she does what she does, but by golly it sure WORKS WELL!  Pain free in about 20 minutes!

Our weekly Community Meeting was a great one as the Ward Manager attended and we ended the hour hopeful of REAL change for the better now (possibly even a HOT BREAKFAST at weekends??????? Maybe!) J

Annie went home for her (very) long weekend so we were a tad subdued until Leoni decided to find Eddie Murphy doing his “stand-up” comedy on her iPad and the whole dining room was soon a-wash with floods of tears, laughing at the antics and my ears burned bright red at the language……………………honestly they DID!!

And so today, my therapy went well and I am delving deeper into my emotions that need sorting out and recognizing.  Whether they caused my FND or not, the CBT really DOES help deal with issues I’ve had for a long time and to look at them coolly and calmly with a professional guide leading the way.  We have also been able to persuade our therapist to hold an FND Group session next week.  This could be really interesting….or a total disaster, we shall see!!!  And then she is going on a 2 week holiday in March to re-charge and dump all our crap in the ocean! J

Oh and I forgot, Thursday’s lunch was just THE BEST meal EVER!!  Steak pie just stuffed with large diced chunks of the tastiest beef, followed by the most delicious syrup sponge pudding and custard (although to be fair, it tasted more like lemon sponge to most of us).  We all thought for an hour we had been transferred to the Ritz.

And so, up to the present.  Leoni and I sit, alone in the dining room, 1 lady having been discharged yesterday, one gone home for the weekend, Annie snuggled up at home with her little ’un, both Daves swapping Valentines something or others with their other halves at home also and the only others here holed up either in their rooms or the TV room.  1 hour to supper and then bed beckons with open arms……………….so tired again despite my little power nap before dinner.  How did I ever work????

Weekend a-coming, hope you all are looking forward to something special and we’ll meet again soon  HUGZ XX  and one last HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY to one and all XX



P.S. LEONI HAS NOW BEEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :-)
Yay Leoni!!!!!