April 1 visit with Lance - no fooling

Hi All,

My mom (Aunt Alma) and I visited Lance today and spent about 3 hours with him. It was a good visit with lots of activity and therapy. Lance was napping in his new wheelchair in the lounge area (by nurse’s station) upon our arrival. He was nicely dressed in his own clothing and sporting a new hair cut (see photos). Mom awoke him and he was groggy for a bit but eventually it registered that he had visitors and not only us -- but many of his new “people” at Northeast Care Center came by in a steady stream during our visit. Dr. Victor Zelek arrived first -- minutes after we did -- for his initial visit with Lance. Dr. Zelek is a neurofeedback practitioner. To learn more about neurofeedback and Dr. Z, listen to his podcast found here: http://www.northeastcenter.com/podcast-neuroscience-005.htm

While mom and I waited in the lounge, Dr. Z met with Lance in his room. After meeting with Lance, he told us he would start “brain mapping” Lance tomorrow. While sessions can vary, he likened a neurofeedback session to a video game with out the joy stick. That is, one uses their brain to “play the game.” One example he gave was a bowling ball rolling towards the pins (on a computer screen). Depending on the brainwaves, the ball either moves towards pins -- or not. The idea is for the brain to figure out how to get the ball to the pins. I’m probably not doing this justice so you might listen to the podcast for more details.

Lance’s counselor (I think his name was Sean) stopped by next. He had an Irish accent and was very upbeat and energetic. He stressed to us that, “it is a FACT that the patients who get the most visitors leave Northeast sooner than those who get few visitors. So our visits are important!”

Next, we took Lance for a 20 minute stroll downstairs exploring the artwork on the walls and beautiful facility but his speech therapist Meg found us and brought us all back to his room for a session. She worked with flash cards, had him work on swallowing apple sauce (which he didn’t like and he made that clear), and she asked him to smile, wave, close his eyes, etc. Some tasks were harder than others for him. We thought she was perky and informative. It was only their second session together so they are still getting to know each other, she said.

A nurse came by for meds next and then we went to his “OT Class” with him. This is a kind of group therapy class. Today, they literally discussed the meaning of life and what gives their life value. The rest of the group went to sports but he hasn’t been cleared for that yet so we headed back to his room. We had to get on the road so we tried to make him comfortable (that is, adjusted his chair – as he wanted to recline back some) and we gave him the TV remote (since he was pointing to it). And we asked the nurse for a box of tissues – as he had none. We had the feeling he would nap upon our departure – unless others came by. He was weepy to see us go but we promised to return soon. I hope you will all visit him as soon as possible. It a much more uplifting visit than those at St. Vincent.