Recent Photos From Tom Bray

Current Hospital

Craig Hospital New Room 210 West!

If you want to send cards...etc. the address is

Craig Hospital Patricia Schmidt 3425 South Clarkson St. Englewood, CO 80110
(303)789-8254

E-mail's, cards and notes will all go in Pat's new scrapbook.

We know your love is here. Debra

Mailing List Subscription Information The Aunt Pat Mail List

Larry here with an Aunt Pat update, where to begin!

Monday afternoon I had a 4:30 with some team members, at Craig and we touched on several topics. As many of you, I have been reading the links posted by Mike and Betsy on head injury and Aphasia and I felt compelled to ask what type of Aphasia these three felt she had. Well wouldn't you know it, there were three different answers (lucky for us the treatment for all Aphasia is very similar at this stage).

As the web sights would have it there are two main headings for Aphasia : A)Broca (located in the frontal cortex) is characterized with patient symptoms of not understand conversation - which prevents producing speech. B)Wernicke (located in the posterior part of the temporal lobe) also characterized by the lost of ability to understand - however one can speak clear nonsense, or sometimes referred to as a "word salad". These two regions are connected by a bundle of nerve fibers. When these fibers are torn by any trauma to the head (in Pats case it was spiral shearing) there is yet another disorder created called Conduction Aphasia. With time this bundle of nerve fiber repairs itself, if the damage was not to extensive. With Conduction Aphasia the patient can understand language, however their speech does not make any sense nor can they repeat words.

Pat understands everything that is being said and is starting to respond more everyday. It was just this morning that Pat greeted Laura with the conversation started of "I wonder if -----word salad---------we women will----------". Laura commented how Pat continued to talk up a storm until they went of to class. Brother-in-law Tom had just asked me tonight if we noticed any change in Pats desire to converse since the Dr. changed her meds and gave her a talking pill.

It would appear there is a little more trouble with her vision. Yesterday I gave Pat her afternoon shake, sat down in the chair in her room and motioned for her to come closer, (she was about 10' away). Pat wheeled over without any hesitation, she leaned over to me squinted with her right eye and proceed to ask me "are you my hus------------". I looked at her and repeated the question to see if I had it correct, "am I your husband" with that she recognized my voice and planted a wet one on my lips. I can only imagine she was not sure who she saw and did not want to kiss the wrong guy. Don't you know they say the vision should get better with time also. Time is our friend.

Pat had a hearing test yesterday and her hearing is equal as well as normal, best we can tell at this time.

Chuck Richardson stopped by this afternoon after he finished a job. When I arrived Pat was in mat class and Chuck was watching. We both thought she was doing great, stretching and working out in this group session.

Enough salad for now

Remembering that Time is our Friend, I would like to take this time to thank all our friends for your PLS

Pat & Larry

P.S we would like to do a wrap up on the Patty' Mac Twister Open with a little pictorial. If you have some great golf pictures please send them to Mike & Betsy within the week.

UPDATE FOR THURSDAY 11/4 FROM LAURA

But the conversation did not stop there, as she handed me her glasses, she said, " In my opinion....( followed by some words that I could not make out, and finished with)..women today".

I don't know about the rest of you, but I can only imagine what thoughts she is trying to share with us. Pat has been working so hard in her therapies! She starts out the day in P.T. and walks around the floor with a walker for about a half hour. Her legs are getting so strong, and her flexibility is increasing every day!

Her speech classes are so beneficial also! It is amazing how small words are such a struggle, and then she can say the word recognize with no problems. She has been reading flash cards with simple words like brush, hammer, and mirror. This week is the first that she has pointed to body parts when she is asked! Jennifer was really excited!

Pat's cousine Mark, from Hawaii is due to visit Colorado tomorrow. I mentioned it to Pat today, and she had a huge grin!

That is all for now. Laura