Dr Martin Stephen, the High Master of St Paul’s described how it was not enough to sit back and let British National Health Service doctors cure him of a stroke after it turned him at 56, from a “healthy professional” into a “lump of flesh on a hospital trolley”. The key to recovery, he discovered, was acting quickly and not waiting for the doctors to help. Fortunately for Stephen the experience of his father in law had blazed the trail.
The first harsh realisation was that something very bad had happened. The second was that nobody in the hospital was going to tell me how to get better (the only advice I received comprised vague noises about the need for “rehabilitation” and “exercises”). The third realisation was a consequence of the first two: I had to get out of hospital and cure myself.
Bizarrely, I owe my recovery to my mother-in-law. Her husband had received almost no help when, in 2003, he had suffered a stroke in his seventies. So she had gone on the internet – as one does at 74 – and found that major strides had been made in America in treating stroke victims. Research there showed that damaged neural pathways could be re-routed, and that a diminished signal could be sent through the outer lining of an otherwise dead nerve. The key was speed. After three or four weeks, the brain seemed to start a permanent shut-down on these pathways.
Stephen had three weeks to save what was left of his life. What he did next will horrify every modern married man. He adopted a daily program contrived by his formidable mother-in-law. She ensured that he did the following:
1 Bounced a tennis ball 2,000 times against a wall (missed catches didn’t count)
2 Wrote out the alphabet, one line per letter, for two hours
3 Recited the poems of Andrew Marvell for two hours with a cork between his teeth
4 Marched up and down the stripes on the lawn for two hours, without touching where the stripes met
5 Played the F15 flight simulator game for two hours
Although every bit of this rigorous program helped, it was the video game that turned the tide. “The stupid game proved a turning point. Finally I had managed to achieve hand-to-eye co-ordination. … Sadly, not everyone has a mother-in-law like mine.” If there’s any moral to this story, it is that government can only help any individual part way. The rest is up to him. No one can ever do everything for you. Dr. Stephens wrote a book describing his experience in detail. It might be instructive to buy it if only to answer the question of where on earth a mother in law with that range of interests exists.
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I think I need to sign off and go rewatch “Zulu”
Ned
“Played the F15 flight simulator game for two hours”
Isn’t life wonderful? And, oh so, ironic?
Where else but on earth could playing an F15 flight simulator be part of the cure for a deadly disease?
What a mysterious universe we live in.
(Oh and just wait … back to the irony alerts … under the Baucus Health plan F15 Flight Simulators will have a tax slapped on them as “medical devices” *sigh*)
The British need to fire their government / Parliament / House of Lords and rehire their monarchy. Complete with beheading rights and the Tower of London for naysayers.
#3:
After they fire their government we can send them ours. At least the likes of Pelosi, Reid, Obama, the czars, Baucus(he would really fit in) and the rest of the moronic leftarded trolls. Toss in Lindsey Graham and Olympia Snow for good measure. I better stop before I go over the cliff.
and rehire their monarchy.
a – they never “fired” their monarchy. the Queen is still paid quite well
b – have you looked at how stupid the royals are? Charles believes in little green men.
Why do people respond to military drill? Why do we still after enormous technical changes practice close order marching and the manual of arms? Why do we polish brass?
The answer is because it works. The military is the most practical of environments. It has to be as it deals with life and death. The drill shows training in attention to detail, patience and cooperation, listening skills, acceptance of responsibility, and trust. Respect for tradition is not a mindless activity. The fact is that when groups of people have to be moved from point A to point B it happens faster and with less confrontational supervision once everyone has learned to walk together.
My troops in Deck Division once asked why they had to polish the brass. They pointed out that they could paint it red and it would look good and fight corrosion. So I took the question to my Executive Officer, Oliver Hazard Perry III. Hap Perry was about as wide as he was tall and you usually saw his tonsils first, because he was screaming at you. On this occasion he was patient with me and explained that the ship was more than a machine, it was a community with a purpose. Then he asked me a couple of hypotheticals.
1) Suppose Lord Louis Mountbatten was coming to visit your ship, would you paint the brass?
Answer: No, Lord Mountbatten was a sailor and he would expect to see a clean but functional warship.
2) Suppose Lady Mountbatten was coming to visit, what do you do?
Answer: Paint the brass XO?
3) What are you going to do now?
Answer: Polish the brass XO.
Note that the Exec gave me, the junior officer, ownership of the ship in his example. That showed both good pedagogy and good leadership. Since our ship was the USS England, named as usual for someone who died heroically in this case an Ensign at Pearl Harbor, the use of Mountbatten was appropriate. Lord Louis was a great naval hero. He perfected the Maneuvering Board that is used to solve navigational problems and his character was the basis Noel Coward’s Captain Kinross in 1942′s In Which We Serve. He was killed by the IRA.
Some people have the gift, I’ll call it leadership, and it sounds like the Mother in Law had it. People can do amazing things with the right help.
I remember when my dad bought Pong. I’ve been in love with video games eversince. Every weekend was spent at the mall in the arcade. I loved “X-Wing Fighter” when it came out and played it all summer one year. Fantastic game for me and was way ahead of it’s time even being an old DOS game. Now it’s WoW whenever I can. For the Alliance!
I think it is in part just the problem of any large organization. It is a function of Jerry Pournelle’s iron law of Bureacuracy: Any organization will come to be run by those who’s concern is for the organization, not for what the organization is supposed to do. That is why small is better. Also, why we made a mistake in thinking civil service would be more efficient than machine politics. Now we will serve both masters.
I saw the danger in a private rest home, where my 92 year old father developed sores on his feet. They didn’t know enough to really do what was needed. They just followed doctor’s orders. He only showed up a couple of times a week, and didn’t really look for problems.
At least with a local company, the owner may live somewhere in the vicinity. When the federales take over, no one will be in charge.
My father has gone to live with my brother. There, since his wife is “retired” (along with everyone else in her department who was over 50), she has “time” to watch him 24/7. He is recovering, and happy the dodgers lost.
I think it takes someone who loves the person they care for. It can’t be just a job, or you miss what needs to be done, if you only follow the rules.
My mother-in-law is practically a sage (she’d rather just be called a good christian) but most of all, a very loving and lovable person.
They threw the grenades.
Dr. Martin, the High master of St Paul’s, a grenadier on the publicly (mandated) option, nice.
Hmm. Does this at all diminish the aphorism “Behind every great man is a surprised mother-in-law”? No, I don’t think so.
OT: Who are they kidding Big G v Big Street, what do Pernell’s rules say about that?
“The bonuses are offensive,” Obama senior adviser David Axelrod said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week,” adding that banks must do more to support lending across the country and should stop their lobbying efforts aimed at blocking the passage of new financial regulations that are being prepared in Congress.
“They ought to think through what they are doing, ”
Has Mr. Axelrod thought through what he is saying?
I love that heel-snapping, arm-swinging style of marching. Years ago I was at the changing of the guard and when the unit being relieved marched out through the gate I ran ahead after them, over and over, just to watch them pass again. Just like a little boy.
My wife was convulsed with laughter, made the usual cracks about men and boys. Probably true.
LIFEOFMIND: Dang while a young Marine I said the same thing to my Gunny…….I shined a lot of Brass after that LOL His answer was…It’s the Navy way… then I shined galvanized trash cans cause that was the Marine Corps way….I just shined cause I learned that questioning Military tradition only led to more shining.
Cohesive unit manuvers on the battle field are taught on the parade grounds. That and Esprite de Corps and Gung Ho. Makes the ship look squared away too!
On topic My mother-in-law woulda pulled the plug >Grin<
Ashen, LOTRO! Forget WoW. But then I’m big on graphics and attention to detail by the game designers. Turbine has done some amazing things with their game.
A little off the main topic but I’ll jump in anyways.
The drilling is a large part tradition as well; maintaining links to the military past. In the 18th and early 19th century, major battles were set-piece affairs observed and commanded by generals who observed from good points of observation (think Waterloo). The distictive regimental uniforms showed who was who on the battlefield and allowed generals to know how they were faring and when and how to change their position to best advantage. The evolutions of the drill allowed large bodies of men to traverse a complex battle space quickly and effectively. Today’s ceremonial affairs are a salute to those days.
The brass, I think, adds to the pomp but is as much a part of that old military standby – discipline
The story is absolutely a commonplace – if you go to the hospital, don’t go alone, or you probably won’t come out. I just saw the same situation – my elderly mother went to the hospital for evaluation, which took several days. If she lay abed that whole time, she would probably never walk again. But, the rehab people only visit orthopedic cases on weekends, nobody was going to get her out of bed and walk her around – except me.
Not to mention a dozen errors and omissions in her medications and treatment. And all of this at a putatively good hospital, and all the individual personnel quite dedicated and competent. The *system* sucks. All of this technology is not integrated. It’s an old saw in the philosophy of medicine, but the *patient* is not treated, the *disease* is treated.
I look in vain for any mention of this in the so-called “health care reform” bills. “Outcomes tracking” is maybe the first inch on a long road that needs to be walked to improve the science and practice guidelines.
Glenn Reynolds: If They Politicize Football Why Expect That Liver Transplants Will Be Different?
I’ve done something similar to regain some vision and the ability to write after losing both to ocular melanoma. Once my brain recognizes a pattern I’m usually okay, but my brain simplifies things by playing old images when it’s tired. A white bar of soap on a white sink? I won’t see the soap until I touch it, then it’s suddenly there, a little blurry and not quite rectangular, but recognizable as soap.
Wish I had a MIL like that. Hope I’m around to become a MIL like that — a worthy goal.
In Hawaii’s Health System, Lessons for Lawmakers
But perhaps the most intriguing lesson from Hawaii has to do with costs. This is a state where regular milk sells for $8 a gallon, gasoline costs $3.60 a gallon and the median price of a home in 2008 was $624,000 — the second-highest in the nation. Despite this, Hawaii’s health insurance premiums are nearly tied with North Dakota for the lowest in the country, and Medicare costs per beneficiary are the nation’s lowest.
Hawaii residents live longer than people in the rest of the country, recent surveys have shown, and the state’s health care system may be one reason. In one example, Hawaii has the nation’s highest incidence of breast cancer but the lowest death rate from the disease.
Forget the monarchy, bring back Cromwell. He’s the only one with enough nerve to execute most of the current batch of Parliamnentarians.
“YOU HAVE BEEN SAT TO LONG HERE FOR ANY GOOD YOU HAVE BEEN DOING. DEPART, I SAY, AND LET US HAVE DONE WITH YOU. IN THE NAME OF GOD, GO!”
Oliver Cromwell Addressing the Rump Parliament, April 1653.
I saw the same syndrome with my mother, in the hospital last week. She’s 81; has Alzheimer’s and pancreatic cancer.
Because of the “sundown syndrome,” she was fighting everyone, especially late in the day: punching, kicking, biting. And doing this all night long.
I asked my (overwhelmed) dad if she were getting any sedatives, and he said he thought so: but she was only getting a one-fifth dose of dilaudid every two hours, which apparently the docs and nurses told him had a “sedative effect.”
Well, for cryin’ out loud. I took the charge nurse aside in the hallway and ascertained the foregoing, then asked her, “What has she got on the list as a SEDATIVE so she can get through the night peacefully?” The nurse said the docs had authorized Atavan.
Well, for cryin’ out loud. Let’s DO it, I said, and got Dad in the picture. He immediately agreed, emphatically and profanely. They gave Mom a shot, and she went off to sleep in five minutes flat. Had a quiet night, finally.
So I was trying to figure it out: Mom was in a hospice unit, with only seven patients and several nurses. Not understaffed, no big push on to save patients’ lives: so why didn’t it occur to anyone to give her atavan?
My only guess is that they inure themselves to suffering, and this sort of thing becomes routine to them, so they almost shrug it off; and unless someone prods them, they don’t take ANY initiative with the patient. Probably some hypercautiousness is part of it, too: they might figure that they could get sued by a distressed family if they were found responsible for keeping a dying person “drugged up” and out of it.
I dunno. But you have to be a real sheepdog in this situation. God help anyone who’s dying alone — no one else will.
((
Mando – I’m thinking of Elizabeth. She is a brave and staunch woman who went through one war side-by-side with Churchill. Put her in charge instead of just agreeing to whichever imbecile is the currently anointed Prime Minister. And really, is Charles any dumber than the rest of his peers?
Or since you are such a picker of nits, am I correct in thinking that you are a hot-headed young’un and don’t believe a female in her 80′s could make a rationale decision.
Amazing recovery for this gentleman. He is extremely lucky to have such a woman that cares enough for him to put forth the effort.
Have you seen the article NHS staff gets private care at ratepayer expense?!
Here is the golden oldie Mother-in-law. While they are the butts of jokes and of this song, most mother-in-laws get along well with their in-laws. After all, they have something in common with the in-law: someone they both love.
I think it was Mr. Free Market who said, “Charles is mad as a fish, but he is far better than anyone in the Labor government.”
I know of an autistic who as a child really benefited from video games.
If you follow the Milblogs you’ll run across reports of how the younger generations game control experience has made them deadly with the remote controls for military equipment: CROWS, UAVs, and field robots.
I rember that when they had the National Guard prep for riot duty in Dallas back in the old days, the Sgts had the troops sand off the Parkerizing on the bayonets and polish them up. When they did their crowd control drill with the bayonets thrusting on the step, it gave me the Huzz.
19. Sylvia:
How do you acquire content on the web, do you use a text to speech program?
I noticed a loss of muscle memory after about 3 weeks following an injury, iow, I was better able to perform some tasks requiring co-ordination immediately after the injury than I could a month later.
Obviously, if I had had a similar MIL, I could have done some excercises to reduce that loss.
“Treating Dementia, but Overlooking Its Physical Toll”
Dementia is a physical illness, too — a progressive, terminal disease that shuts down the body as it attacks the brain. The lack of understanding about the physical toll of dementia means that many patients near the end of life are subjected to aggressive treatments that would never be considered with another terminal illness.
My husband and I, in our just-post-college days, sat on natural gas drill rigs (OK, technically we worked in mudlogging trailers beside the rigs, both being bachelor’s degree baby geologists then). The best rig we ever worked on (multiple times) was run by a toolpusher (foreman) who went by “Cotton.” He was a taskmaster to his guys. He himself wore jeans and a(n un-embellished) t-shirt that started every tour (shift) as spotless, and any rig hand who wasn’t actively engaged in drilling at the moment was on some part of the rig with a can of paint, painting.
It was the cleanest, best-maintained, most organized rig in the Sacramento Valley, and the roughnecks tended to have all their fingers and teeth. Cotton demanded discipline and good order, and his guys, while they worked hard painting (and doing all other maintenance – but they had time to paint because he never let mechanical maintenance get away from him), were in less danger and were more efficient in their skills than on any other rig I ever worked. They liked being Cotton’s hands; they fought to stay on his rig.
I figure that’s why one polishes brass.
(OT for this post but OnT for drilling, I just found this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dxw03U0yLAQ) video of rig hands making pipe connections. Whew. Brings back memories… and makes me wonder anew how ANY of them kept their fingers.)
I can’t watch!
Think how many American Fingers the Enviros have saved!
(at a cost yet to be fully determined)
Our next door neighbor was a welder for Standard Oil.
As a kid, I saw up close the aftermath of an accident in which someone was killed by falling steel.