Updates

I got a call from Key Medica today. They had good news. My request for my wheelchair has gone into pricing, which means that it's been approved by medical assistance. Now all they have to do is figure out how much they're going to pay for it (which usually is the whole thing) and then I can start the ordering process. I'm not sure but I think it takes about 2 to 3 weeks to come. Exciting! Hopefully I'll have it by my birthday October 19. That would be the best birthday present ever.

I'm still taking my online environmental biology class. It is really difficult, especially because there are so many terms and lots of information to remember. I think I'm doing good so far and I'm going to stick with it even with everything else going on. This spring I'll be able to take a class at Normandale with my new wheelchair. It's been really hard not getting out of the house very often, so I'm looking forward to the next chapter.

Jenni

Leaving for A While...

My sister, Kristen, applied for AmeriCorps last year in the spring. After a long process, she found out a couple months ago that she was accepted. According to their website, "AmeriCorps NCCC (National Civilian Community Corps) is a full-time, team-based residential program for men and women age 18–24. Members are assigned to one of five campuses, located in Denver, Colorado; Sacramento, California; Perry Point, Maryland; Vicksburg, Mississippi; and Vinton, Iowa.

The mission of AmeriCorps NCCC is to strengthen communities and develop leaders through direct, team-based national and community service. In partnership with non-profits—secular and faith based, local municipalities, state governments, federal government, national or state parks, Indian Tribes and schools members complete service projects throughout the region they are assigned."

She is assigned to the campus in Sacramento, California and will be leaving October 7 for 10 months. I am very excited and happy for her and I think it's a great opportunity. Although I will be sad to see her go; 10 Months is a long time. She'll get to come home and visit during Christmas break, which will be nice.

Kristen will be keeping a blog of her experience. You can visit it and keep track by clicking here.

Jenni

"The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others."
-Gandhi

Others View

Other people's view may be distorted or untrue if they pass judgment on me by my looks. Some people only see me as a person with a disability. Maybe they look at me and wonder what happened or ask themselves how something like this could happen. Many people look at me and see my disability, my wheelchair, my ventilator etc. and they don't often stop to think about me as a person and the abilities that I do have. They stare at the disability versus looking at the person inside.

There people who just see me out and about and turn their head to take a peek. I believe it's curiosity of the unknown. They probably just want answers on what happened. Even though I don't like it, I think I'm starting to get used to all of the looks and stares that I receive. Maybe I'm just becoming immune to it, because I don't notice it as much anymore. I know not everyone does this but if I do notice someone staring, I simply give them a smile. It lets them know that I am a person beyond my disability.

I have many friends with disabilities who feel the same way. It's like a common thing that always comes up in conversation. Probably because it happens so frequently. It's part of our everyday life. I think it happens to many people who look "different" from the rest. Sometimes I want to put a sticker on my forehead when I go out that says "I was in a car accident", just to clear things up.

Jenni

Easystand Blog

Jackie, someone who writes for the Easystand blog, contacted me via e-mail asking if I wanted to do another guest post on their blog. (Here's a link to the one I did in 2008). She suggested that I repost the one I did on my blog about standing with the cats a while back. She made the post live on their blog today. Click here to visit it. I'm going to be doing more guest posts in the future.

Jenni

Getting Cooler

The weather is getting cooler and soon Minnesota will be entering fall season. The leaves on the trees will start to turn beautiful shades of yellow, orange and red; they will then die and make their way down to the ground where they will lay dormant throughout winter.

Lately, I've just been following pretty much the same routine day in and day out. I get all my cares done in the morning and then get out of bed into one of two wheelchairs (manual one if I'm going out somewhere and old power wheelchair if I'm staying home). When I stay home I go out into the other room and usually watch one TV show while I eat lunch, do stretches on my arms, and.cath. Then usually around noon I read some of my textbook for my class. After that I go on the computer for most of the rest of the afternoon.

On the computer I read and write discussion posts for my class, look at my Facebook, check my blog for comments and add to future posts and check my e-mail. Occasionally I'll chat with someone on Skype or Facebook in between all this. The reason I go on the computer for so long is because I can exhibit independence (something I've lost with my wheelchair). Using speech recognition software, I can navigate through whatever programs that I want all by myself. This is also usually when I get the most alone time during the day.

It's been really tough without a working power wheelchair. I feel myself getting bored more easily and sometimes a little depressed. It is more difficult to get outside and go out places. I miss going to school instead of just doing it online and hope that soon things will be back the way they used to be. However, with the weather changing soon it will be even more difficult to go outside, even when I get my new power wheelchair. Hopefully something exciting in my life will come along soon.

Jenni

"Leave yesterday behind. Let hope guide you to a sunny new tomorrow."

Word on My Wheelchair

For those of you following my wheelchair situation, here's an update.

Right now I'm just waiting on the order and letter of medical necessity from my doctor; I already received one from my physical therapist. Once it comes through, then Key Medical can submit those letters and the tentative order to my insurance company. As soon as they deny it (we already know they will because I have capped out on my medical equipment), then it can be submitted to Medical Assistance (M.A.).

M.A. has 30 days to either accept or deny it. If they accept it, then they can order it and it should take about two weeks after that. If they deny it, we can resubmit it but then M.A. has another 30 days. If they keep denying it, which is unlikely, then we can try to fight it. Hopefully, M.A. will accept it right away and then the ordering process can begin. That would be the ideal situation.

Another month or so doesn't seem quite that long, considering the length of time I've already been waiting. I think I've been through enough this summer and I'm ready for things to start going my way and to be back to as close to normal as possible.

Jenni

In My Dreams

Question: Do you ever have dreams in which you are not paralyzed?

Answer: Yes.

That's a good question. I often have dreams where I am either paralyzed or not or partially paralyzed. Sometimes I'm paralyzed in the beginning of the dream and not in the end and vice versa. A lot of times I'm shopping in my dreams. Not quite sure what that means; I don't shop that often. But usually in these dreams I'm not paralyzed and I'm picking out clothes or walking around the mall finding something to eat. I guess this is what I dream about most often.

My mom has had a continuous dream of me walking on a beach in hiking boots with a backpack ventilator strapped to me. She's also had dreams where I've been walking and my tubes are attached to my trach but the end of them are free flowing in the wind and aren't attached to anything.

I'm not exactly sure what dreams mean. I know there are many books and things online to help you decode your dreams, but I don't know what to believe. It's just interesting when I wake up and feel like the dream I just had actually happened. They can be so real yet so bizarre.

Recently, I had a dream where I was becoming a man, but I won't get too detailed with that one. That was weird. It would be interesting if what people dreamed actually became reality. I think life for everyone would be pretty strange, including me.

What do you dream about?

Jenni

Just Another Week

On August 23 I started my online class. So far I've had to read and do a few discussion posts along with taking a trial quiz. It's going to be a lot of work and a lot of things to remember like terms and stuff. I miss actually going to Normandale, but I'm kind of glad that I'm only taking one class instead of the two because it would've been a lot of work to take both. (I mentioned this before, but I had to drop the one at Normandale because of my wheelchair situation.)

I've been getting out of the house a couple times a week. Sunday we went to church and today we went out to lunch. It's still difficult to go out with more than one person because of all my equipment. Yesterday I went outside in my backyard and had my nurse take like 40 of pictures of me in the sun. I know, a little excessive but I was having fun. I put a couple of them below. Let me know what you think; I was trying to do modeling poses although I'm not sure if I succeeded. The ones above are of my backyard.



Jenni