Update!

We got home Tuesday night after a fairly stress free trip. I managed to stay ahead of the snowstorm that was forecast. It was good driving with only one bad stretch with slush and snow through the pass on the Paulson. I think we were both in bed by 8:30!

The next morning we had to be on the road by 8:00 to get to Nelson to see DH’s doctor at 9:00. The snow had caught up with us and fallen pretty heavy during the night. We had a good appointment with the doctor and have set up a plan of action.

As you can see from the photos we do enjoy life and believe a sense of fun and adventure is a necessity!

Basically it boils down to three things:

1. Work on DH’s physical strength and stamina. To do the treatment he has to be able to do 3 – 1 1/2 stretches of physical activity without pain flare ups six days a week. Luckily his doctor and the physical therapist in her office are on board and ready to work with him. We think a combination of walking, kinesiology, yoga and stretching/strengthening exercises will have him ready by March. The treatment has been proven to improve patients conditions with neuropathic disorders. In America they are using the treatment for soldiers with PTSD. They have also had credible results with patients who have been in accidents and had brain injuries. The videos and interviews on both American and Canadian tv have been very positive. Montel Williams has MS and speaks very highly of the results he has had using the PONS machine. He believes in the treatment and results strongly enough that he bought in to the company. There is discussion that the treatment could have effective results for patients with other neuropathic diseases (eg Parkinsons). From all of the research I have done and read it should be effective for my DH. The improvement is physical, physiology and cognitive ability has been noticeable. Montel Williams claims that he was using canes regularly and is now snowboarding in the back country. One woman went from a wheelchair to running marathons and playing golf again. Maybe I’m crazy, but the $30,000.00 price tag for Hope seems reasonable. So everything of value is listed on different sites for sale. The lawyer knows to get this deal settled and I am trying to figure out how to save each and every penny we have. As I keep saying; life is an adventure and we never know what challenges we will need to meet! As DH says “onward and upward” to the top of the challenge.

2. We have to get $30,000.00 to pay for the treatment in to the bank by March and enough money to house and feed us for 14 weeks in Vancouver while the main treatment is happening. That could be pricey since Vancouver has a severe shortage of rentals but we might find something on Air BnB. We will have about half of this if we ever get the house deal done. Our other option is to move to Vancouver while the treatment is going on. This might be reasonable since we will also have to do follow up appointments as well after the intense training. Neither of us is keen on this idea since we do not enjoy being in the city. DH has been here in the Slocan Valley for 35 years. His friends and “community” are all here as well as the golf course he helped build. As for me I do not like driving in the city and while my quilting community is here, my kids, grandkids and great grandkids are in Alberta so I know I can find a community wherever I am. This will take more thought and discussion to resolve.

3. We do need to make the decision about housing soon. Our lease here ends March 15 and is not renewable. The Golf Course rents the suite on Air BnB in the summer season and already has bookings for March just after we move out. We might have an option since we learned of a place just being built that DH knows well. He knows the young man building the place (and his quality of work). DH says it is likely up to his standard of building. Apparently the property is on the sunny side of the valley so that could be nice. We will be looking at it tomorrow.

So there is the update. Sorry it took so long to write but I really needed time to absorb all of the information, consult with DH’s doctor and physiotherapist to formulate a plan. Now we are good to go and will keep you posted. Who knows? Yoga might be good for both of us to learn! I do Tai Chi but only tried yoga once. I had issues with my heart so never did keep up with it.

Hope you week is going as well as mine and you have had time to do something you love! 😉 Carol