Monday, September 8

Just after lunch, we had a scare when the nurses at Ren rehab thought that Tommy might be having a heart attack. His symptoms included pains in his chest and arm, not to mention his "deer-in-the-headlights" look and muteness once he was surrounded by a flurry of staffers hooking him up to an oxygen tank, putting nitroglycerin under his tongue, and other stuff. So off they sent him to Beebe Hospital in an ambulance (with me riding in front and Janis following in her car). Thank goodness, after Tommy had an EKG, heart-enzyme workup, chest X ray and other procedures, the doctor there determined that his heart was fine and that the symptoms may have resulted from Tommy leaning too much on his walker during morning therapy. We were all back at Ren rehab by dark, and after some hot vegetable soup with fresh parmesan-tossed corn I'd brought him from home, he was his old self. It'll be "therapy-lite" for a couple of days, but after that the old man should be as good as new.