“YOU MUST BE BETTER— you’re going home! At least the medical stuff is over!” A friend told me that after I returned home after being gone about six months. I had my first severe MS (multiple sclerosis) flash/ attack in my 48 years of diagnosis. It weakened my already weak legs and arms. I was in two hospitals and two different rehab places. Finally, through intense PT (physical therapy) and OT (occupational therapy), I was discharged and grateful to go home.
People returning home from a hospital stay or a rehab facility, particularly after surgery, may benefit from having a discussion with a social worker or healthcare practitioner about any extra services that will be needed. Such services, which may include home health aides, therapists, or visiting nurses, can help ensure that people resume living independently.
I was going home. I was so grateful I was stronger and better now. I could be in my own living room and kitchen! Being home meant I was stronger and healed now. Right?
Not really. I have learned that just because someone is released from the hospital or rehab facility does not mean they are 100% better but are judged medically ready to be discharged. Going home does not mean the healing is done. There are new health challenges to deal with, and they take time to do safely. A person has started healing from an acute medical procedure or situation, but the day-to-day living tasks might take a bit of a gradual adjustment.
Jeanie Duby, a licensed physical therapist assistant (PTA/L) and Therapy Program Manager at Rosary Care Center, met me about two weeks after I was discharged from my second rehab facility. She gave me some wise advice: “You have been away from home for almost six months. Give yourself time to ease into your recovery. It may take you three months to adjust, but be patient!”
When a patient returns home, their healing is far from over. It is continuing. Jeanie explains, “When someone comes home, family and friends might assume they will be able to pick up where they left off and do activities of daily living (ADL) pretty soon after they return. But it does not happen that quickly. When people return home, they need to use energy-conservation techniques to regain their stamina slowly and safely. For every day in the hospital, it might take three days to recover fully.”
Those words comforted me. I was trying to “hyper adjust,” as I liked to call it. I was working hard and fast to get back to my normal home life. But that was not realistic, and I felt relieved from Jeanie’s wise comment. She was right. I needed to do my recovery work but at a slower pace.
Jessica Vaculik, RN, Sisters of St. Francis Wellness Clinic nurse, was a gift. For years, I always set up and organized my prescriptions, but I decided to take advantage of the help she could provide. I wanted to “sync” my meds as much as possible so they all would be ordered at the same time. That could eliminate the pharmacy calling a few times a week to remind me my prescriptions were ready for pickup.
With Jessica’s help, we sat together and changed my prescriptions so they were the convenient doses, and changed to a mail-order pharmacy. It really speeded up the process when she called the doctor’s office and announced she was a nurse. Her calls went through faster than mine did, and I gladly accepted the seemingly seamless organization of prescriptions!
There was a team of medical professionals who came to my home the first two weeks I returned, and I had much to do when they “eased me in.” I made numerous calls, scheduling my doctor appointments, getting my AFO (ankle foot orthotic)—a brace—adjusted, medical tests, and updating my medications. The PT and OT professionals were great and even suggested some exercises I could do at home. I do them, too!
Patients, family, and friends need to allow time and patience to work toward a person’s solid, healthy recovery. This idea of slow healing does not seem to fit with our speed-loving American culture, but allowing a person to naturally, slowly heal well is important. We do not want a person to fall or reinjure their recovering body. Patients must be aware that they need to be cautious when they first try to do things like shower, walk across a room, carry an item, etc. There may be a difference in what a person thinks they can do and what they can do safely because of their hospital stay: loss of stamina from being in bed and less mobile, medications that make a person sleepy or relaxed, and overall loss of muscle stamina and function from being in bed for an extended period of time.
The person is healing and getting better at home. It is an environment that is more welcoming or “normal” and cozy to continue the process of healing. But, being home can be quite traumatic since a person remembers what they could do in the place where they live. Their mind might want to do something, but their body is not quite ready to do it—like taking a shower, lifting a pot on the stove, or transferring from a chair to a bed.
I found that taking my time, following the advice my therapists, aides, and nurses gave me, was the best pill on my journey to healing. Another resource? Ask a healthcare professional for a bit of advice on how to do things the best way. Many times they suggest taking our time, being safe, not fast.
Our culture likes speed. Coming home, I prefer safety.
Sister Karen Zielinski is the Director of Canticle Studio. Canticle Studio is a part of the Sisters of St. Francis of Sylvania, OH’s overall advancement effort and has a mission of being a creative center where artists generate works, products, and services in harmony with the mission of the Sisters St. Francis. She can be reached at kzielins@sistersosf.org or 419-824-3543. ✲
