27th June 2013

Steven continues with his new regime of treatment at a specialist “brain” hospital in nearby Elche. We make the 60km round-trip there twice a week for 2 hour sessions. Here they are teaching him to walk correctly. But to do so he has to “tell” each part of his body what to do. For example he has to “tell” his left foot to be flat to the floor and pointing slightly outwards, with his toes spread forward when walking. But to do this he also has to “tell” his knee to lift higher than normal, and at the same time “tell” his hip, leg, and arms what to do. He’s managing to do this, and it seems to be helping but it is very tiring. He is also being given simple mathematics to solve, and also Sudoku and Rummikub, all designed to keep the brain active. He doesn’t seem to be as angry as in the past, he actually beginning to recognise when he is being stressed and tries to control his feelings. But, he seems to be getting more forgetful and has taken to programming his mobile ‘phone for his daily routine. This forgetfulness is probably due to all the extra work he is doing at physio’ sessions, having too much to concentrate on. He and we are determined for him to regain as normal life as possible, and he and we will try anything that may help. Best regards Terry

29th May 2013

This is getting to sound like a recording on a loop, but there is little change in Steven’s overall condition. At the risk of repeating myself, it’s a long slow process. There are improvements but so small. Steven’s left arm is getting stronger, he being able to carry a fairly heavy shopping bag. However he can only do this with a bent arm. When his arm is as straight as it can be he has a lot of pain at the elbow joint. He can raise both arms high above his head, and he can scratch his back between his shoulder blades with his left arm. His left leg can now be raised almost normally, and he can bend his knee to his chest. Steven can put his shoes on much easier now because he can move his left toes a little easier. All this is showing his limitations, and then it’s just pain management. The car insurance people seem to think that because Steven can walk easier, everything is coming along fine. They seem to fail to understand the brain injury, which was extensive, and we have to keep reminding them of this. Steven still has major problems with sleeping, then rousing himself in the morning. He cannot multi-task in any shape or form. He cannot control his body temperature. He always feels hungry, but has to force himself to eat, because he doesn’t want to eat. Even he finds it difficult to explain how he feels. We still think the best expression from Steven was when he described that half of his body feels wooden and doesn’t belong to him. He has to think before he speaks to be able to formulate the words, but sometimes he mumbles or has to stop and think again. Yet strangely he seems to be more intelligent in both words used, and ideas. Beginning next week, he starts a new regime of treatment at a “brain” hospital in nearby Elche. He’s already started on a new course of pills to control his depression on the run-up to this new treatment. We all have a lot of confidence that this summer will bring about the big change we all so desperately want. Best regards Terry

29th April 2013

Hiya all Yet again another long gap between reports. In reality, not a lot has changed. Steven has now finished his physiotherapy at San Jaime hospital, since they believe that there is nothing more they can do for him. If that is their expertise, then fair enough. But they say that he can walk properly and unaided, strictly speaking that is the truth. But in a physiotherapy room, there are flat surfaces, no obstacles, and no people to interrupt his walking. In the real world it is impossible for Steven to both walk and manoeuvre. He cannot even walk and talk at the same time, in other words he can’t multi-task. Recently Steven visited another private hospital in Elche for a new assessment, but concentrating on his brain injuries and mental capacity. This assessment proved everything that we’ve been trying to tell the San Jaime hospital, the solicitor, and the car insurance. Steven requires more therapy, but concentrating on mental agility, memory, and co-ordination. All this information is added to his Court case, as we continue to visit the forensic doctor at the local court in pursuance of his injury claim. We have all just returned from a 9 day holiday, a cruise from Barcelona, to Madeira, Tenerife, Lanzarote, and Malaga. Our first holiday for several years, and in my opinion well deserved. Steven coped admirably with the movement of the ship, however on sea days he sometimes had to walk whilst holding my shoulder due to the natural roll of the ship. On the minus side, on the ship, a lot of people were so focussed on what they were doing on board, they could see Steven the well built young man, but failed to see the walking stick, and so he was knocked several times, and often without apology. But overall, he and we had a good time, getting lost on the ship, and exploring the islands we visited. Steven took full advantage of the onboard massages, jacuzzis, and saunas. We all came back refreshed. Steven continues with his regular exercises at home, and massages now 3 times per week. This relieves muscle pain, and helps him sleep. Best regards Terry

16th March 2013

Hiya, It seems a while since we got in touch, so here goes. Not a lot happening with Steven's treatments. There are small improvements which seem so silly but are important. For example in the last few weeks, he's been able to move his little toe, left foot, he's been able to bend his left foot comfortably to put his shoes on (that's been a nightmare for a long time, such pain!!), he's been able to scratch his back with his left hand, he's been able to kiss his knee, and this week he was able to touch his left ear with his left bicep. All these movements are showing him that his body is okay, and that he can do certain things. His body is becoming more flexible, all he has to do now is gain the confidence to do these things "normally" and without thinking. His walking is improving slightly, but he still has difficulties with uneven surfaces, and people being near him. In other words his co-ordination is still not functioning correctly. His body has really paid for that 6 months of very little movement and a further 18 months of restricted movement. He still gets stressed very easily. If we say or do anything which he doesn't like, even simple arguing between me and Pauline he gets upset, and cannot cope. If he does something silly like dropping his walking stick, that upsets him. We try to tell him that sort of thing is normal, but he replies by saying it's normal to drop something once but not 10 times a day. He gets upset most days simply due to him waking up and realising that he is incapacitated because most nights he dreams that the whole episode is a dream, and waking up brings back the reality of it all. We too are like this and hardly a day goes by when we also don't feel tearful about the injustice of it all, but we cannot show this to Steven. Steven continues to go to regular physiotherapy sessions, and also twice weekly massage sessions. It is these massages which are making the most inroads into his improvement, they benefit him greatly. He's even learned the pressure points on his ears to relieve pain, very strange. It's now been over a year since Steven was given incapacity status by the local health authority, and yet he still cannot get any sort of pension until this decision is ratified by the national health authority, such is the state of Spain's economic crisis. And there is nothing we can do about it, thousands of others are in the same position. This makes us all so frustrated and angry, since the politicians and financiers who caused this economic crisis are still sitting comfortably with their gold plated salaries and pensions. Best regards Terry

25th January 2013

Steven had an operation on his left elbow again. Originally the surgeon was hoping to do keyhole surgery, but having started the operation he found a cyst amongst the tendons. This was no doubt a major "help" towards the pain Steven was experiencing, as well as the excess calcium built up since th last operation. The surgeon therefore had to open up a bigger wound, and actually followed the first scar of the earlier operation. Wasn't a long operation, and Steven was immediately allowed home to recover. Within days he was able to use his left arm with more comfort, with only operation pain to contend with, all other pains were gone and with improved mobility of the joint. Steven has proved to be an excellent healer once again, and the bandages, dressings, and stitches were soon removed. Steven's physiotherapy sessions have been reduced, hoping that Steven will work more from home, which he does, by exercises and simply caring for himself as much as he can. He has started regular massage sessions, which are helping with all the misplaced muscles on his left side. Work continues on his neglected teeth, and the brace is certainly making a difference. The Sativex drug has finished, and although it no doubt helped with the relaxation of muscles, and pain management, Steven didn't enjoy taking the drug. He and we were told that the drug did not have all the properties of marijuana, but Steven said he did feel "spaced out" whilst taking the drug. This wasn't forecast and was just another adverse reaction from a drug. Overall the Sativex did make a difference. Steven continues to feel positive about long term recovery, but, having had a second operation on his arm, his worry now is, will other operations have to be repeated?? His walking, though improved, is causing pains to back and hips, so has returned to using his walking stick, and this has helped. Hopefully this will be a short-term measure. Best regards Terry

18th December 2012

Not a lot of changes with Steven. There are improvements so small but important. His biggest problem is the pain which is permanent, being caused mainly by false brain signals. He's tried many pills, but they either don't work or due to the amount taken, have side effects. So, following a team meeting with the main Doctors, Steven has been prescribed Sativex in a spray form. If you Google this you will see that it's the active ingredients of marijuana, and is only prescribed as a last resort. But there are many issues with this drug, and is still illegal in many places so it took time to actually get it authorised. He obtained this today so we await the results. Also the physio' team are suggesting that Steven reduce his time at the hospital. They say this is to remove the comfort blanket of hospital, and give him more confidence, and encourage him to exercise at home even more. On the face of it, this sounds a good idea, but owing to the slow process of bureaucracy here, Steven feels he is once again being abandoned and forgotten about, and this has upset him deeply. If only the banks, court, insurance, and social security just contact him to say what was happening, he would feel as if he was a person and not a number, but we're getting no information at all, and that's with the solicitor having the same problems. It really is a big thing when Steven gets upset, he doesn't eat nor sleep, and can get depressed and moody even with his close friends, thus slowing down a fragile recovery. Of course it doesn't help us either when he's in this state, it depresses us as well. Steven has continued with his dental treatment, he's had 3 teeth out, about 12 fillings and now has a brace on his lower teeth, total cost about £2,000, and more to come. We will try to claim this from the insurance because there's no doubt most of these problems were caused by being unable to clean his teeth for over 6 months. Today we learned that Steven is to have another operation on his left elbow. The calcification has returned making movement difficult, and more pain. This operation will be early in the New Year, with the pre-operation checks starting this Thursday. Steven is remaining positive. We have just had an amazing long weekend where his big brother Mark came over from UK, and with Paul, it’s the first time they were able to stand together for a very long time. They even went on the go-karts, but Steven had to stop early due to the vibration causing pain, however he did enjoy what he did, and was pleased that he was able to “drive”. This is yet another victory for him, showing that with continued progress, one day he may actually be able to drive a car on the open road. Nothing is stopping him achieve his goal of the return of normality, even if it does take a long time. Best regards Terry

20th November 2012

Over the last weekend was the first anniversary of Steven leaving hospital. It was Steven who unknowingly reminded us of this, after a friend had said to him that he looked completely different to when he last saw him a few months ago. In that year he's made remarkable progress, and it's only when people see him locally and make comment, that we realise the differences to his looks and demeanour. We see the very small differences that other people can’t see, but other people see the accumulated result of all these improvements. One day whilst walking with Steven, and approaching someone coming the other way, Steven did a shoulder shuffle without changing his pace. A very small but important change, he's learning to do more than one thing at once. He did this without thinking, and without falling. At physiotherapy one day, he fell on his backside, hard, on the floor, missing the protection mats. This jarred all his muscles on his left hand side, and put them into spasm, so he's been unable to go to Tai Chi for a while until it all settles down. Steven has learned that, though he can read, he cannot read out loud, because he can only see and say about two words ahead, but ordinary silent reading he's fine. Not a huge problem, but it does show how he can't do some things together with something else. This is how he is with his Spanish/English translation, he used to be very quick, but now much slower. Things that we take for granted, he's having to re-learn everything, and there's the frustration. I honestly don't know where he gets his patience from. Best regards Terry