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It was a strange feeling; offputting. And both Max and I felt it although we couldn’t quite talk about it. Mum had had a right hemisphere stroke and she had normal post-stroke symptoms – fatigue, headache, dysphagia, insistence she could walk if only the Doctors would let her, left side neglect and an inability to recognise…

Mum was chuffed the other day when a nurse referred to her as the hardest working patient in the unit. So I thought I’d document exactly what a day in the life of such a hard working patient looks like. I surprised Mum and Dad Saturday night after arranging with the ABS to work out…

Like most stroke victims, after the stroke Mum was left with difficulty swallowing. This difficulty swallowing is known medically as dysphagia: dys meaning bad or disordered, and the root phag- meaning “eat”. So literally “bad or disordered eating”. Since dysphagia is so common after a stroke, it’s one of the first things a stroke patient is…

Mum is now an iPad girl and this iPad girl in this iPad world has asked for some more photos to be put on the blog for her to view on her iPad. I’ve obliged of course and here’s a selection of extra photos that relate to recent blog posts on her rehab, OT, speech…

Dictated by Genny, written by Max. A heart is not judged by how much you love, but by how much you are loved by others – Frank Morgan. There is a real change of pace on the weekends – no therapies (or “T’s”) means there is time to unwind and relax before another big week…

We talk a lot about neuroplasticity these days but what is it? And what kind of outcomes can we expect for a stroke victim with the kind of severe right hemisphere brain damage Mum has? I admit I was hoping to put some more work into today’s post on neuroplasticity but I’ve unfortunately been very sick myself…

By Max and Ben A day without laughter is a day wasted – Charlie Chaplin For many of us, an afternoon playing cryptic crosswords without actually being able to see the words, read the clues or fill in the blanks sound like torture. For one ‘Genny Ensor’ this sounds like a perfect Sunday! Despite the…

By Benjamin and Max Be not afraid of going slowly, be afraid only of standing still. – Chinese Proverb Thursday evening saw Benjamin and I arrive in Brisbane for the weekend. After a quick visit to the hospital we were astonished with the progress Mum had made. What a difference a few days make! When…

Even without visits from her physio, OT, speech therapist and doctor, Mum’s weekend ended up being extremely busy. She had visits from loads of family and friends. She was very happy to see her friends Annie and Sally first up Saturday morning as well as Dad’s brothers Steve and Russell and their wives Lyn and Nola.…

It’s been an extremely busy couple of days for Mum since she transferred up to Brisbane. One thing about Prince Charles so far; it’s been all hands on deck since Mum arrived. She’s had speech therapy, doctor’s visits, OT, CT scans and physio twice a day since she’s been here (although today’s fist physio session ended…