Howard Falkinburg

Serial casting is a process where you gradually stretch a joint with a series of casts to hopefully prevent contractions. I have braces for both elbows, ankles, wrists and fingers. Our plan is to serial cast my left elbow, left wrist, both hands and fingers. You could practically immobilize my whole upper body. My OT… Continue reading

I took an active role with directing my care within months of my injury. I spent 12 of the first 15 months inpatient at Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital. Everyone from my speech therapist to my OT hammered this in my head. Unfortunately, too many people with SCI’s fall into a passive mode regarding their… Continue reading

I am blessed to have technology and people as supports for me beyond family and friends. I’ll rummage through them in no particular order.  I have two phone mounts for my iPhone with different neck lengths. The short one clips to the arm rest of my wheelchair providing me easy visual and touch access to… Continue reading

We have a weekly Group at Hope Network, hosted by speech therapy, for individuals the CSI. I call us the “Quad Squad” since we are all quadriplegics. One gentleman is hard of hearing. One other just doesn’t talk a lot. So it is me and “Steve” that carry the group. Steve and I banter back-and-forth… Continue reading

Well, guess what? I was readmitted to the hospital on July 2 after my blood pressure bottomed out because of a UTI. I never shook the infection from my last hospitalization.  The infectious disease team said my infection was resistant to oral antibiotics. The doctor said the kidney stone lodged in my kidney is causing… Continue reading

Here are a few updates to keep you up to speed. My move to Sojourners has been delayed to mid-June due to supply and chain issues. The room needs maintenance done but the hardware store lacks supplies. I toured the room and it’s larger than my current one, particularly the bathroom. The window view is… Continue reading

Baclofen is a muscle relaxant medicine commonly used to treat spasticity and spinal cord injuries. A baclofen pump was surgically inserted next to my abdomen February of 2019, with a catheter attached to the spinal column to deliver the medication. It’s the size of a hockey puck. Dr.Yablon has managed the pump for me for… Continue reading

There are several conditions associated with spinal cord injuries. A few of the common ones are the clonus, spasticity, and muscle tone.  A clonus is a neurological condition that creates involuntary rapid muscle contractions. This results in uncontrollable, rhythmic, and shaking movements. Mine happen primarily in the hands and feet, which are triggered when being… Continue reading

Almost two years ago I had a supra pubic catheter installed when I had a mega kidney stone surgically removed. An SP catheter is a tube that carries urine from the bladder through a hole in my stomach below my navel and to a bag strapped to the bottom of my leg. Prior to this,… Continue reading

The road of my recovery has been challenging. My injury happened from an auto accident in a parking lot on October 23, 2018. I was driving around 15 mph, then was blinded by the sun and hit a light post. My forehead hit the steering wheel then suddenly I could not move. I tried reaching… Continue reading