Month: October 2021

Tuesday, October 19

This morning was a “step back”. We walked a full kilometer on the sagrato and my posture was good 90% of the time, but I never got a cat-like stride for more than a few meters at a time; in other words a session I would have been quite pleased with two weeks ago today was a disappointment. I napped for almost two hours after lunch but in 23 minute sections, so when I finally got up I felt refreshed. The evening walk was with Natalia to San Giovenale. I think my legs may be back to a recovery symptom called limpness, because the walk was difficult (although compared to similar walks in May and June it was elegant).

Wednesday, October 20

Movement around the house during my morning routine was so encouraging that when Roman suggested we walk Via del Duomo I agreed with only minor reservations. But limpness was still present once we were outside, and VdD with its slight incline wore me out in a single lap, so we finished up with five laps on the sagrato, also more difficult than it has been for a month or more.

I’ve been sleeping well at night, but naps yesterday and today were deep, needed, and restorative.

The evening walk would have made me proud several weeks ago, today it just felt difficult, but the shakiness and robotic gestures of this afternoon melted away during the walk so the lesson there is not to complain when expectations are not perfectly met.

Thursday, October 21

Legs are extremely limp today (a recovery symptom). The strange thing about limpness is that while it hits my legs particularly, they are also stronger than they have been for a long time.

During the morning walk on the sagrato Roman told me that the important thing is that twice a day I walk a full kilometer (two in total), that it’s nice when there is no shuffling and my posture is good, but not to fret when the gait is less than perfect. Good advice. That said my posture was pretty good and my feet were pretty quiet. 

We returned home at around noon with just enough time to change shirts and gather stuff for a lunch in the country with mostly Californians. Victoria drove, Susan helped me in and out, up and down, Sher cooked a delicious meal, Buck shared the house, terrace, and garden he built with his own hands. I ate spaghetti. No small feat that eating of pasta; it requires coordination and flexibility that I don’t have much of today. I’m having another “step back” day – feeling generally uncomfortable and not moving at all freely. But the company was good, and it was a nice escape into the countryside which is very beautiful around here.

I took two short naps between arriving home and Natasha at five, and by the time we left for a walk I was feeling pretty shaky (not tremulous, shaky – an invisible discomfort), but walking quickly calmed that. The journey to San Giovenale and back was way less than perfect, but still leagues ahead of what I could do last June.

Typing, which is kind of a bellwether, is pretty awkward and jerky, but manages to be more or less accurate.

Friday, October 22

Slept straight through last night without so much as warm milk as an aid, only waking briefly at 05:30 to adjust room temperature. When I finally got up close to nine, I felt spry and spritely, movement was more fluid than in a long time, and I imagined a similar day spreading out before me. Well, the morning walk was fine but didn’t win any awards, and, as is often the case, walking around the house is a bad joke. But inwardly I still feel spry, so here’s hoping that earlier spiritedness is a harbinger of something more sustainable.

The session with Katrin focussed on head, neck, and shoulders. Fine with me. And it feels like she planted a time bomb.

Then after a day of not feeling great (sinus headache mostly but also awkward gait) the evening walk up and down Via delle Costituente – with strolling couples, babies in trams, and dogs aplenty – was a total surprise; A+, double meow, and a purr.

Saturday, October 23

I slept extremely well, and although I logged in eight hours without a significant break, I could have slept another hour or two when Roman signaled it was time to hit the trail. However – as is often the case the day after physiotherapy – I am hyper-relaxed (or hyper-limp, a recovery symptom, I can’t tell which) and that was reflected first in movement around the house, then later in the quality of my walk on the sagrato. Roman kept reminding me that the noisy shuffling was due to limpness not rigidity, and therefore not a cause for worry, and he is right. But that there was not one cat present in the piazza this morning seemed an apt metaphor for how my walk felt.

I napped before and after lunch (in 23 minute chunks) and finally became uncomfortable resting after about an hour. When I got up I could barely move at all.

Yet when friends inquired as to how I was, I answered honestly that I felt great. And I did. It was a wonderful morning.

Sitting at my desk is the coolest spot in the house, and after the walk when I always get a change of clothes, I opted for too light a choice of shirts. So, after a half hour, I went to find a cardigan. While threading my arms through the sleeves I accidentally pressed the alarm bracelet I have been wearing at home. By the time I understood the warning signal from the main unit was sounding, it had already entered a mode in which pressing the cancel button didn’t seem to do anything. So, I raced back to the studio to grab my phone, as I was told that someone would call me to verify the alarm, then raced back to the unit in my bedroom to lean on the cancel button to see if that would have any affect. It caused the machine to show different patterns of the three indicator lights, and eventually the red alarm light went off. No one called. In the meantime I had raced back and forth with my legs ultra-limp trying to prevent a false alarm. I’m not sure what the takeaway is for all that pointless fuss.

Because I felt awkward and tired all afternoon, I anticipated the evening walk to San Giovenale to be a disaster, and was pleasantly surprised when it wasn’t. I did make the mistake of asking that we do Piazza Gonzaga (which is macadamized) twice, so the final fifty or so meters were a tired mess, but everything until then… a short meow, not too loud. 

The church bells rang as we arrived at cliff’s edge.

Sunday, October 24

I slept four hours, was up for one, slept four more. During that wakeful hour I felt like I was moving on the edge of wonderful. When I got up for real, walking was a shambles which turned my expectations for the morning stroll towards the negative, but we exited early, and were on the sagrato by 09:30. The walk was pussyfooting from the get go, and we added two laps to total almost one and a half kilometers.

We got home shortly after eleven and changed me into “house clothes” (I have several costumes that are changed throughout the day, sort of like a character in Downton Abbey) when I remembered lunch at Maria’s, so ten minutes rest, a quick change into going out clothes, and down to the street for a pick me up.

Lunch was hosted by the three Gagliano sisters, Maria, her twin Concetta, and Sabrina. Susan was also invited (having prepared an Italian thanksgiving meal for twenty-six only yesterday). We began with eggplant parmesan, moved on to a frittata with potatoes and onions, peaked with salmon lasagna, wound down with a four-cheese plate with savory jams, and finished with Neapolitan cannoli. I indulged in a half glass of pinot noir. 

I arrived home with time only for a ten-minute nap when Natalia arrived to take me on an evening walk. Back to the sagrato. I was not exactly drunk, but I could feel the wine. The first seven laps, my legs were like jell-o, and I kept saying that I had not felt so unstable in a month. Then exactly at the start of lap eight everything evened out and we did four near-perfect laps to finish with twelve.

Monday, October 25

The bean counter in me suggests reporting that I am sleeping well, there is only a normal amount of drool on my pillow, my voice is clear most of the time (and I can sing much of the time), the right arm tremor is at a minimum (as is tension), and posture improves (at least in fits and starts). Walking – always better outdoors than in – is all over the map.

We did eleven reps on the sagrato this morning, good cat-like steps when we weren’t talking, some occasional scraping when we were. The evening walk was unremarkable in either direction, positive or negative.

We stopped at Blue Bar on the way home. Antonny played a few songs on his guitar. When he riffs or plays his own music he is truly extraordinary. I wish I knew a producer.

Takeaway for the week

The importance of accepting where I am at – I only have the material at hand to work with, if I can’t accept what I have, no work can be done.

Tuesday, October 12

Aside from pleasant times with friends and gorgeous weather, nothing of note happened today. Walking, both morning and evening was like a cat on dry leaves.

Wednesday, October 13

The town was empty this morning when we went to the Duomo for my exercise routine, and the weather was bright and beautiful. Walking took three laps to warm up fully, then the remainder flowed in a manner befitting any self-respecting feline.

Lasagna for lunch, then a half hour nap that rendered me zombie-like and awkward. Pacing the hall twelve times woke up brain/muscle connections.

Shiatsu was, once again too brief (why does Michele have to quit at all?). He says my body is looser with every session. The work left me energized. 

Natalia stood in for Roman who is finally getting some time off, so we took a walk to San Giovenale without the conveyance of a wheelchair. We went to the wall, admired the view, and returned with no need to lean or grab a pole (which last spring I had to do every few minutes). To compare the walk to that of any living creature would be insulting to them, but I did it without being exhausted afterwards.

However, the combination of strenuous (for me) exercise and the energy derived from shiatsu leaves me this evening rather uncomfortable. So, I paced the hall for a while, twice, and I slept well.

Thursday, October 14

We did a full kilometer on the Duomo sagrato this morning in a manner that would make even the stealthiest of cats jealous. The grand finale should have been accompanied by bells, applause, or at least a piano, but all we got was one cat meowing. Roman speculated that the others were at work, I suggested they may have caught the high speed train south in search of warmer weather. At any rate, at about our sixth lap, a lady who lives across the piazza stopped to compliment us on our persistence, to comment on my progress, and to wish me a good recovery. There are angels everywhere if you look.

I napped for forty minutes after lunch, and remembered upon waking why I used to set an alarm for 25 minutes; forty is too long, it leaves me stupid. So I did ten laps in the hall and had a reasonably productive afternoon.

Evening walk to San Giovenale was as awesome as this morning’s – quiet, good posture, long strides, and even though we repeated Piazza Gonzago thrice on the way back, I didn’t have to stop at all. I feel clear-headed and taller. Fine, let the recovery continue!

Friday, October 15

There was a cold wind in both Piazza del Duomo and Via delle Costituente this morning, but Via del Duomo (which connects the two) was calm and sunny, so we decided to leave the wheel chair at Marino Moretti’s studio on the Piazza and walked the Via instead. Two laps. Cat-like steps most of the time, no breaks. It felt triumphant. Muscles were not quite as relaxed as I would like, as it seemed that I didn’t feel quite safe walking an active street with a long incline, so that will be something to address this evening.

By the way, I slept well again last night.

After lunch I napped for about twenty minutes and woke without zombie effects, but as is always the case when I wake on my own after sleeping on my back, both arms shook for several minutes. That never happens if someone else wakes me or it I’m jarred back to waking reality by an alarm, only when I wake on my own. Weird.

The evening stroll was equally triumphant. Regards walking, I’m on a roll. Roman has been telling everyone that next week we will walk all the way to Piazza Cahen. We shall see. He’s usually right.

On the other hand, muscles have continued to be tight most of the day; not painfully so, just distracting. And on the third hand, my spirits are high and I continue to feel unusually smart. (Watch out!)

Saturday, October 16

Today is a market day, and there was a chill breeze, so we opted for walking Via del Duomo again. When we arrived at Marino Moretti’s studio at about 10:45, there were very few people on the Via. When we started our second circuit a few minutes later, it was rather crowded, and by the time we finished it was mobbed. Hence, what began as another triumph was gradually eroded until at the very last my steps were in a high state of confusion. Lots of people scatters my calm and concentration, both of which are needed to walk really well at this point. So a short nap followed immediately, and because it was short, it refreshed.

Muscles are less tight than they were yesterday.

A series of short naps followed lunch, naps so satisfying that at each iteration of the alarm I was amazed that 23 minutes had already elapsed. And the big discovery was that I could nap for a bit more than an hour in 23 minute chunks without waking up a zombie.

A theatre in Tampa has expressed interest in one of my plays. It is one I last looked at three years ago, and since I have a Zoom meeting with them tomorrow, I thought I should read it beforehand. Well, let’s just say I seem to have learned a lot in the three years since. They want to develop the play and that’s a good thing.

Our evening walk to San Giovenale went well, but I wore out at the end. Still, it was without any breaks, and much of it was cat-like.

Sunday, October 17

Once again I slept soundly getting up only once around 03:30.

The morning walk was complicated. We tried Via delle Costituente first, but although initially empty it quickly filled up with crowds that stood around rather than walked. Valerie had joined us at Bar Sant’Andrea, so Roman suggested we walk to the Duomo for a few laps on the sagrato. Via del Duomo was already packed, Valerie is shorter than Roman, and it meant starting my walk on a long, uphill grade (however slight), so while the walk was not a disaster, I never really found a rhythm or pace. Then we paced the sagrato, some with Valerie, some with Roman, for another six laps and wheeled home via Bar Brozzi (which despite the thick crowds was completely free of customers).

For my fellow travelers; restless leg syndrome has once again all but disappeared. Either it’s a PD symptom that has gone away (at least for now) or it is finally responding to the calcium/magnesium citrate supplement that I’ve been taking at lunch and bedtime. A reluctant swallow reflex has returned in small measure; present but not nearly to the degree of several months ago. My legs are generally stronger than they have been in well over a year. And for today at least, typing is smooth and largely accurate (or was until this sentence!) Two steps forward and one step back is real, just remember that the step gained is also real.

Monday, October 18

Our morning walk on il sagrato was embellished by the presence of 22 sports cars: Lamborghini, Ferrari, Porsche, and one Austin Martin. Not in my wildest dreams can I imagine having (or even driving) such an automobile, but I have to admit that they are beautiful creations. And they made the ten almost perfect laps (one full kilometer) race by like one of those magnificent machines on the autostrada.

My afternoon naps are getting shorter as my walks grow longer. I got a little peckish around 4:30 this afternoon, and felt more symptomatic than I’ve felt in weeks, so Susan fixed me a peanut butter and jelly (actually jam) sandwich and within twenty minutes I was restored. Roman calls a P&J la merenda Americana.

We walked Costituente, also a full kilometer. That posture was good and my gait relatively shuffle-free is hardly worth mentioning anymore, it is almost automatic.

Tuesday, October 5

It threatened rain this morning, so instead of walking the Duomo sagrato we walked Via delle Costituente, a street somewhat longer than the sagrato and with a slight incline. I’ve always been aware of Orvieto’s being a hilly town, but with my ambulatory problems it has become mountainous. However, I’m pleased to report that even going uphill there was very little scraping and shuffling.  Bravi, feet and legs! 

Getting up from sitting is, I am finding out, not absolutely even. For at least twenty minutes after a nap, movement is compromised, and standing from a sitting position goes back to needing help from arms. And every now and then habit takes over and I grunt and strain and use arm power. But if memory serves, I was already having difficulty with this three years ago while working on the first draft of Colloquia, so it’s not just muscle recovery, there is a brain component, as well. Were it just atrophied muscle, the problem would have begun with the first signs of injury to the Achilles tendon in June of last year.  Bravo, brain!

The evening walk found us back on the sagrato. The piazza was almost empty, twilight was happening way too early for my tastes, and the air was autumn fresh with a hint of moisture. I walked pretty well.

Wednesday, October 6

It’s rainy and chilly today, so I ordered a caffe latte chiaro instead of a cappuccino chiaro. Chiaro but not chiaroenough. Now I’m suffering the after effects of too much caffeine (I’m sensitive). But we walked Via delle Costituente again today with similar results as yesterday. And beyond the caffeine poisoning, I generally feel lighter and more agile, though I doubt it’s apparent to anyone but me… and maybe Roman.

One of the most common symptoms of PD is drool; an excess of saliva, especially at night. As I understand it, it’s not that more saliva is being produced, rather it’s that the automatic swallowing mechanism is short circuited along with a lot of other automatic muscle functions (in that sense, shuffling is like drooling with your legs) so the saliva collects and overflows onto your pillow. There was a period of maybe a bit more than a week last spring when the drooling stopped. It was heralded as a powerful sign of recovery, only to return in all its swampy, puddly glory, so I hesitate to declare myself drool-free. Let’s just say that the symptom is once again in suspension and has been for more than a week. Here’s to hope!

Another common symptom of PD is dyskinesia, or unwanted movement. This often manifests as an arm tremor (internal, external, or both) or as restless leg syndrome. A different variety of dyskinesia is also a recovery symptom, a variety that can be willfully stopped and is often rather pleasant. Again, I don’t know this for sure, but after I cough (especially if I cough lying down) both my arms tremble (as distinct from “tremor”) and can go on that way for quite awhile until I stop them. Which I can. The tremor does not respond in that way. So that may be another sign of recovery.

I include these “signs” for those of you who are, or connected to, fellow travelers as a way of sharing. 

Thursday, October 7

We are finally getting much needed rain, and that puts my walks into a large, private parking garage located across the alley in the neighboring palazzo. Our morning schedule was a bit different, too, to allow Roman to shop without getting drenched, and I took an early nap of about a half hour (to make up having not fallen asleep until four) so the walk was affected as the brain and muscles were not in great communication for the first three-quarters of it. But we got the lay of the land, and feel more prepared for fall weather. Otherwise, I felt rather spy this morning. Even during the walk, turning at the ends of a lap was so much easier than usual, as is getting into my office chair. The little things add up!

Another symptom of PD that has bothered me for at least three years is what I called “walking in orbit” – I always felt like I was falling forward and catching myself just in time. This would sometimes lead to losing control of speed. This would happen whether I walked alone or held a friend’s arm, indoors or out. I just walked the hall at home to stir the blood and realized that I have not experienced orbit for at least two months. The little things.

Evening walk on Via delle Costituente was flawless!

Friday, October 8

The morning walk (on Costituente) and the wheelchair trips to and from, were, in total, absolutely wonderful. The walk itself took some warming up, but by the third lap it was pretty regular. Then after lunch I took a short nap and woke shaky and physically awkward, right down to typing. This seems often to be the case, and more so when the nap is short rather than long. I followed what my body wanted and paced the hall for twenty minutes, this for the first time before I fell on July 20. There was no weaving or staggering, nor any sort of loss of control, all of which were present before I fell. The form is not as good as when I walk outdoors, but pacing makes me feel much more solid.

Pins and needles (a recovery symptom) continues to be a daily occurrence. 

I had a session with Katrin, physiotherapist, late afternoon. It seemed pleasant and benign but she warned that there may be kick back. There was. During the evening, all movement became harder, and…

Saturday, October 9

…this morning even more so. We walked the Duomo sagrato, and muscles and brain warmed up after four laps, but everything required more effort and afterwards I was so tired as to be insensible. Katrin also said things would get better after they get worse. I can only hope!

A post lunch nap (profoundly deep) left me rested but with the typically degraded brain to muscle connections. Pacing the hall for thirty minutes helped. I’m not quite where I was yesterday, but much closer than before.

Call me il gatto. The evening walk on Via delle Costituente was as silent as a cat’s. I still have a ways to go before I can call my walk graceful, but posture was strong without reminders from Roman, and we dodged lots of people both directions, which would usually scramble my concentration, without negative effect. Meow, purrrr.

Sunday, October 10

This morning’s walk was not perfect, but relatively solid. I slept little last night, so was very tired by the time we returned home. (Today, Natalia joined Roman to learn the care giving routine so that he can take some much deserved time off.) An hour’s nap helped, and I wasn’t quite as stunned by it as I usually am. On the other hand, I slept forty minutes after lunch and woke totally stunned.

Evening walk, meow, purr, only the encounters with a large group of tourists who, in both directions, were disinclined to make room for us to pass interrupted otherwise perfect laps.

Monday, October 11

Monday was illuminating and complicated – and long – so I will put it up later as its own file.

Tuesday, September 27

Left ankle is still sore, the pain continues to move around, but is not as sharp as it was. Met my ex-neighbor, Giancarlo at Palace Caffe afterwards, and even though I was feeling pretty symptomatic and off-kilter from not really walking, we had a nice conversation. Rested briefly before lunch, worked at the computer after, then napped for about 40 minutes and woke feeling more symptomatic than I’ve felt in weeks. And atypically so. Typing very erratic, overall discomfort with muscles; not tight really, but “on alert”. Movement not slow, but “confused”. Tremor barely reads, if at all, but really shaky after my nap. Very strange. Difficult to get out of a chair. Voice is only half present. Generally a feeling of wanting to escape my body. 

Late afternoon found me feeling much better with really intense pins and needles in arms and head. Evening walk was also distorted by pain in left foot and ankle, but we managed six laps – very slow, mostly shuffling. As weird as I felt this afternoon, I feel good tonight; the body and brain are doing their thing.

Wednesday, September 29

Early walk today with what was at first a very sore left ankle. After a few minutes, Valerie passed by, and with the help of her company we managed to do eight laps with occasional pain and very little “perfect feet”, but at least there was movement. It honestly felt that without the ankle pain it would have been an exceptionally good walk this morning. 

Typing is smooth. Took a forty-five minute nap at 15:30, and woke barely able to walk. 

Shiatsu this afternoon was thorough and, as ever, powerful. Michele did some very specific work on the left foot, and it paid off later while walking. He said that the legs have grown stronger and that the upper body is good and loose. 

The major shift for me is that I no longer expect Michele to “fix” me, rather that shiatsu is a part of the healing process. That allows me to let go and enjoy whatever comes along, although I admit to still being disappointed when he enters the final stretch. I always want a session to last longer. 

The evening walk was damn good given that for the first two laps the ankle pain was pretty bad, but we ended up doing nine.

Thursday, September 30

Good walk this morning, very little ankle pain, very little shuffling, only one cat (black, with fur like velvet). Otherwise, feeling moderately symptomatic, but part of that is due to a dislodged contact lens at 02:30, after which I only managed to sleep two, then another three, hours. 

I read more of Recovering from Parkinson’s, sections on stimulating the striatum, a part of the brain associated with how dopamine is distributed, among other things. It refers to research by Andrew Newberg and Mark Waldman into how brain health is affected by meditation in all of its expressions, from prayer to mantra repetition. I was inspired to chant, but when I tried the cough would come back, so I repeated silently along with a 40-minute recording, followed by 22 minutes of silent repetition on my own. I came out of it with symptoms greatly reduced. 

My mornings and evenings are highly structured around walks and meals, but afternoons were spent sleeping until a few weeks ago when sleep patterns shifted again from a plentitude to a dearth. Since then, the afternoons have become five hours to be gotten through. So, now I have a pattern to follow; short nap, mantra repetition, instructional reading, Italian study, some writing. I’ve been deprived of much of my accustomed independence for most of the last year and a half, which is ideal for establishing healthy new patterns in how I use my time.

Friday, October 1

The morning walk was accompanied by live music on a grand piano set up in Piazza del Duomo. I treated myself to a cappuccino chiaro on the way to, and a spremuta on the way back. I saw friends in both directions that I’ve not seen in months or years, most of whom live in Orvieto. 

And somewhere in the midst of all that, was a period of easy communication of the heart – the real thing – something else not experienced in years and an essential aspect of the recovery from Parkinson’s process. 

The walk itself was good. Lunch followed, and a half hour nap followed lunch. I woke feeling strong and solid, but barely able to move, and with persistently itchy feet. Chanting restored some movement. Pins and needles are still periodic, ankle and shoulder pain is almost completely gone. The dull ache in the lower back persists, but is a universally experienced recovery symptom, so that’s a good thing. 

By the way, the red fungus on the feet (a recovery symptom, too) has cleared up, and my toenails (which for the past year, at least, resembled rotting parchment) are growing back with a healthy clarity. 

The evening walk was the best, so far; upper body starting to swing and sway, feet taking full articulated steps, posture erect most of the time. And there was a sizable wedding party in the piazza that serendipitously broke into applause as we finished laps. Fun.

Saturday, October 2

The pianist was in Piazza del Duomo again this morning, and again the walk was above average; though not quite as encouraging as the one last evening. I napped for about ten minutes before lunch and for twenty, after. Both were sound and felt like I’d slept at least an hour. 

Something I’ve been having difficulty with is getting up from a sitting position. The last few days I’ve been employing visualization just before I have to rise, and astonishingly, even imagining the action once makes it not only possible, but often makes it easy. When I forget, I go right back to struggling. I realize that that sort of ongoing visualization is what I often do during walking sessions, imagining each step before I take it helps it be silent and shuffle-free; trains the brain. 

Psychologically, the big retraining challenge is unworthiness. I’ve been aware for many years that in my adult life there was almost nothing I wanted that wasn’t offered me, and that my reflexive response is to hold it at arm’s length or not to notice it’s being offered all because I feel less than worthy to receive it. Or, a variation, that I see fulfillment as my taking advantage. Or, another variation, that I haven’t earned it; fulfillment comes too easily. This is true of everything, and is huge obstacle to accepting recovery. 

Sunday, October 3

It’s the third or forth day that legs, especially, have been limp (a recovery symptom) and I forget to factor that in to the quality assessments of our walks. Doing that takes them from just okay to quite successful. 

This morning the weather was stunningly lovely, the streets were active with guests dressed in beautiful colors, and the pianist was in Piazza del Duomo for the third day. We now exchange waves with both him and his wife (when his hands are not otherwise occupied). 

We stopped for coffee on the way with Roy and Deb (and I discovered that Diner is a Polish surname… who knew?) and Roman threaded his way skillfully through the crowds. 

It was a beautiful morning walk. So was the evening passeggiata. I discovered again how normal people throw their feet up and forward to introduce each step (whereas people like me have formed a habit of striking the ground heel first) and making that adjustment makes all the difference. Learning to sustain it is the next adventure.

Monday, October 4

A perfectly (new) normal morning walk, but without tourists, cats, or soundtrack it seemed rather dull. But the most notable development was that today for the first time in at least a year and a quarter I am able to lift myself from a sitting position using only my legs. Look, Ma, no hands! At the same time I feel oddly limp (a recovery symptom), but that makes the muscular recovery all the more remarkable. 

On the other end of the scale, my voice is very hoarse today, distractingly so. I am told that it will heal in its own time, not to push it or view it in a negative light. The strong legs afford me a lift in more ways than one. 

Also, as sometimes happens, in spite of feeling weird after a nap today, there was a period of absolute stillness, no tremor, internal or external. At times like that, I feel as if a full recovery is just a mental leap away, but I can’t yet figure out how to propel one. Perhaps my legs will provide a clue.

Several periods of intense pins and needles – mostly arms and face – happened this evening.