Cast Day

Monday, July 10th

Before checking in, I was already on the lookout for the other boy that will be going through the program with Des. They said they’d be the same age and they’re both left hemis. (Left Hemiplagia, or weak on the left side). It is such a comfort to know that there is another boy who will be going through the same journey as Des.

After checking in, we waited about 10 minutes before the Occupational Therapist came in and asked for Des. As she was giving her introductions, that’s when I noticed the other boy, who is a bit taller than Des, observant and with an AFO (Ankle Foot Orthosis) on his left foot.

As the OT was leading us to the therapy room, the boy’s mom and I looked at each other with anxious wild eyes and I said, “Oh my.” She replied, “I know.” and I motioned to her that a tear is about to come down and she said. “Me too. Me too!”

There are only a few moments that that has happened to me. For someone to know exactly what I was feeling or going through. To be able to make that eye contact and instantly know that you are both going through the same exact feeling of anxiety, hopefulness and crazy mama bear love.

We were lead to the room and there was no small talk. They quickly put the cast on Des first. The molding of the cast happend on a previous visit and they cut a slit on the cast so they can easily take it off on Fridays for their swim therapy.

So after they slipped the cast on they asked Des what tape colors he wanted for his cast. He chose green and light blue. Not my choice of colors really but hey, it’s not my cast. Within 5 minutes of getting his cast on, he was already on a chair working with his left hand. The picture below, he is putting the tiny cherries on the little holes on a board game. That face he has, that’s his incredibly determined face. That is the face of someone you cannot interrupt at all. I tried to get him to look at the camera for this picture and it was like he wasn’t hearing me. Today, his therapist mentioned that Des does get into a zone when working on something and they couldn’t distract him or get his attention. They said he works hard to get something done.

Desmond and his new buddy Silas, loved giving each other high fives, with their casts or leftys. The OT’s mentioned that with all the kids they have worked and partnered with, Desmond and Silas were such a good fit to be going through the program together.

On our way home, Desmond complained once or twice about taking the cast off. He didn’t whine or complain after that but I could see the sadness on his face. He was thinking a lot on our way home and my heart just didn’t know how to take it. When we got home, he was so excited to see his Mamu (grandma) and show off his new cast. We had dinner, he played, put on my apron and started scooting. This kid I tell ya.

One of his favorite past times is to draw. He was so determined to draw a smiley face here. Today he didn’t pick up the pen much or play with his Legos. He did try playing with his Legos for a few minutes but then realized he’d need two hands to detach parts. That made him sad so he asked to go to the park. I think our mornings will be filled with lots of park times. I just have to avoid spray parks or wading pools.  *sigh*

And so bedtime came. He didn’t complain about the cast but had a hard time falling asleep. He did figure out how to suck his left thumb though. Ha! The hard part really was he kept on waking up to get his blankets adjusted, he woke up asking for milk or water, he complained that his hand was stuck on his pillow as he was adjusting himself. Oh my. This happened at 1am, 3am, 5am, 6am, 7am…. so pretty much I didn’t sleep. Oh and did I mention that Samara woke up screaming because of her gums? Yeahh….

That was how my morning went. Oh Lord help me. We’ll see how this goes. I am thankful for my mom in-law and sister in-law who stepped up to help me. I am so grateful to havr friends who call and text to check on how Des is doing and how I am surviving. So far, we’re in the first days. I’m still alive and Des is doing great.

If you don’t hear from me anytime soon, please look for me. Hopefully, I’m not in the closet hiding or crying. I know this is going to be so good for Des. I am just daunted by the task of being Desmond’s right hand and taking care of a teething toddler.