We got a wonderful phone call today. Caregiver support called to do an assessment on us. Apparently our AW2 passed our name along as a couple who deserves caregiver support because of the amount of care I am required to give my husband. It is a very comprehensive process, but the lady with whom we spoke believed that we are definitely eligible. She is passing along our information, and they should roll us into the next step of the process. Basically what this will do is pay me a stipend for the amount of care I must give my husband. Since I am not able to work away from the home as much as I could if he was not injured, this will supplement. She said I should get paid the rate of a Certified Nursing Assistant, and the number of hours for which I receive compensation will be determined by the level of care that they deem necessary for me to give him. In other words, if they determine that he requires 25 hours per week of continuous care from me, then that is the amount for which they will compensate me. She said that basic activities of caring for him that I do simply because I am his wife will not count. It is only compensation for the time that I must spend helping him with daily living activities... i.e. walking, eating, taking his meds, bathing him, etc. This process requires doctor's appointments and recommendations, phone evaluations with me, and eventually a home visit to determine if I am competent enough in his health care needs, aiding with physical and mental difficulties, and dealing with the stress of it all to be technically listed as his official caregiver by the government. If we make it through this process, a tremendous amount of stress will be lifted off me. These are all things I must currently do, but now there is the possibility of receiving some assistance for them. If we qualify, they will do quarterly home visits to determine if we are still eligible, and an annual comprehensive re-evaluation will be performed. Please pray that we make it through this entire process. It could be a much needed relief for us.
Other than that, today was a normal day for us. Nothing much to report on. Yesterday was rough for him. The pain was primarily in his back, so we assume it was from the front that came through our area. When a front comes through, he gets the feeling in his back all over again of having those shattered vertebrae. Some days are worse than others, but the bad ones keep him from even rolling over in bed. Luckily he was able to make it from the bed to the couch yesterday. He spent the entire day on the couch, though. I wrote throughout the morning, did some VA related research, worked in the yard, cleaned the house, and then wrote some more. All the while he just laid there. The more time that passes, though, the less guilty he feels about those days. He used to feel so bad for not being able to help me, and I'm sure I didn't help the situation any. It was so long before I understood that he just physically could not do it. Now, though, I check on him every 30 minutes or so, get him whatever he needs, and continue on with what I'm doing... singing and dancing my way through it to try to give him a little sunshine. It makes me feel special... needed and important.
He and our Jack Russell mix, Russ, are konked out right now on the couch. I'm going to clean up the kitchen, try to get a little work done on my book, and pray that tomorrow can be a good day for him. It looks like it will not be quite so scorching hot, so I may try to get him out for a little walk on a hill to reverse that atrophy.
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