on the road again

I could barely open the car door.

It took pretty much all the muscle power I had in my left arm – plus a somewhat shaky step backward that added my body weight to the effort – to yank it open when I decided to try driving a couple of weeks ago.

I’ve had my driver’s licence for fifty-four years and I don’t recall ever having a problem getting into a vehicle.

Until now. Then again, I’ve never had a stroke before.

Three months this weekend, my whole left side became useless as a result of two small blood clots in my brain. I spent six weeks in hospital and I’ve been back home for the other six. Without exception, healthcare providers and members of my community say my recovery has been astonishing so far.

I graduated from not being able to walk at all to shuffling with a walker within a couple of weeks. Now, I can walk cane free. I’m a little unsteady on my feet, but I’ve been a ‘tippy’ for several years so I’m accustomed to being off balance. (Some folks would say I’m unbalanced in more ways than one!)

My left arm and hand have regained most of their functionality, but, like my left leg, are weaker than they were. Thus, the issues getting in (and out) of the car. I exercise daily to rebuild my strength, but progress seems excruciatingly slow – to me at least. I sometimes doubt I will ever achieve my goal of riding my motorcycle again. I haven’t given up yet, though, and I’m using the same approach to getting back on the bike as I did when I first started riding in the fall of 2021: one step at a time and lots of practice.  It worked then and I’m hopeful it will work now.

Driving the car is step one.

I’ve had ‘a standard’ since I first learned to drive at age sixteen. That makes driving again after the stroke a little more difficult than it would be if I had an automatic. The left leg does a lot of work when you drive a vehicle with a standard transmission; it’s used to operate the clutch pedal every time you shift gears. Pushing the pedal in is no problem. Letting it out slowly to ease smoothly from one gear to another strains my left quad, which tires quickly as a result. When the muscle gets fatigued, it also gets weaker. That causes me to be less able to lift my foot slowly off the pedal. We all know what happens then – bunny hops and/or stalls. Same as on the bike when you miss the friction zone.

I’m mindful of not doing anything that might subject myself and/or others to unnecessary risk. So, mostly, I’ve been  driving around town (Almonte is a small place), to and from the grocery store or over to see friends, while gradually increasing the length and duration of my sorties. The first time I went out of town onto an 80 kph road, I was surprised to see how slow I was going – 50 kph! – when I glanced at the speedometer. I immediately picked up the pace. My brain and body are re-acclimatizing to driving and the door is getting easier to open. EasIER not easy. This week, I’ll be driving myself to Perth (about 35 minutes away) for my physiotherapy and occupational therapy appointments.

In other recovery related news, I’m taking 100 mg of magnesium every night before bed and I acquired a grounding sheet at the suggestion of fellow rider and FB-page-follower Gord Giles. The combination seems to be working as I am sleeping soundly through every night – yippee.

Besides doing strengthening exercises, I’m walking, spinning (on my road bike recently resurrected from the basement and made stationery as above) as well as having massage, acupuncture and chiropractic treatments.

I may also be going for a ride (a la backpack) this weekend, weather permitting.

Phew! No wonder I’m exhausted.