Howard Falkinburg

Howard’s Morning Routine As a caregiver for Howard, a resident with a spinal cord injury, each day presents a unique set of challenges and triumphs. Howard’s journey is marked by resilience and determination, and my role is to provide unwavering support and assistance in navigating the complexities of his condition. I will outline what a Continue reading

I have fantastic news regarding my foot wound. The doctor pronounced it healed. Just like that. One moment I’m afraid of losing part of my foot and the next moment I’m being discharged because it healed. I asked about the infection and she said MRIs occasionally misreads results. I never had any symptoms of an Continue reading

The fun never stops for me! I developed a pressure ulcer (also known as wound) on the outside of my right foot in early March. It practically happened overnight. The culprit was a pair of new Ankle Foot Orthotics (AFO’s) I was breaking in. See picture #1. Lovely. I broke them in, all right. More Continue reading

I occasionally listen to a podcast called Savvy Psychiatrist with Dr. Monica Johnson. She covers a variety of mental health topics and the episodes are only about 20 minutes long. She recently covered a topic that resonates with me called Political anxiety. Other terms that could be used are political or political fatigue. This entails Continue reading

Courtney Day is an awesome full-time therapy aid at Hope Network. She’s also going to school to become an occupational therapist. This is her recent class project, which I share with you on this post. I was touched that she asked me to do this and the final result. It’s hope she got an A Continue reading

Prialt treatment update For the past couple of months, I’ve been getting periodic increases of Prialt. This is a pain reliever but my case it doubles for spasticity relief. There has been noticeable improvements with my spasticity and functioning. I have more movement with my arms and legs. Last month, I walked 647 feet with Continue reading

This winter in West Michigan has been quite mild compared to other winters. Winter can still be a struggle, especially when dealing with depression. I’ll use examples of this past weekend. Plan ahead of time! Don’t just wing it. My worst weekends are those that I have nothing planned. A little structure goes a Long Continue reading

I was inadvertently placed into a role of a Parental Guidance counselor recently. It’s hard for me not to put my social work hat on. I was talking with a residential staff who confided that her 10 year relationship with her partner recently ended. She has primary custody of their daughter who is in first Continue reading

I go on weekly therapeutic recreation outings to improve my emotional, social, physical well-being. It has helped reduce stress and build confidence in my ability to reconnect with society being wheelchair bound. This wasn’t a problem prior to my injury. I had a wide variety of interests and opportunities to participate. Golf was my favorite Continue reading

I achieved a significant milestone yesterday. I was able to power on and change the channels on the remote control from my wheelchair. First time ever. I had to maneuver the wheelchair and raise it a few inches. I stretched my left arm to pull the remote closer and reposition it. Then Booya! This new Continue reading