Friday, September 5, 2008

Gluteus medius

During our morning classes we were encouraged to talk about how we were feeling about our own patients. One day I complained about one espially difficult problem I had with a young preteen girl. She had a an unusual limp when she walked and I could not figure out what muscle group was causing it. She was brought in during our class and was asked to walk across the room. With a few steps Dr Benet said who can tell me what muscle is weak. None of us new Pts knew. Then it was explained to us that it was the gluteus medius. And that it was very difficult to get a patient to concentrate on that while we were working.

If the gluteus medius is paralyzed is there no other muscle thast can take over. Everyone said no except maybe surgically. From then on, as lomg as I was at Warm Springs I dreamt about that limp and that muscle.

But I forgot I promised to tell about FDR coming. The first night he was there he ate in our dining room. He walked in on the arm of his son and it was evident that it was a huge struggle for him. He sat down at the head table and again struggled to undo the knee braces so he could put his feet under the table. You could hear the inaudible voices in all the patients heads saying ' if he can be president, think what I can do.

He gave a speech. And after dinner he struggled again to do by himself what normally was done for him. He was the best treatment for all the patients and you could see the look in the faces that they were all going to work harder.

We were all introduced to him and he had a few kind words to everyone, patient or staff. I remember he asked me about now being an American.

When he first arrived he got out of the car driven by the secret service people, got into his own convertible Ford, I think, and he backed out, drove up over the lawn and disappeared. He was the only one allowed to drive on the grass. And you could hear him laughing as he fled through the trees.

6 comments:

Emiana said...

Wow! Great great great. Keep 'em coming!

Anonymous said...

What an amazing life you have led!

hello haha narf said...

not sure why it pleases me so much to read that he laughed while driving on the grass, but it really does.

Katherine Bennett said...

Around Southern California we have a PBS program hosted by Huell Howser where he goes around the state and sees places and talks to interesting people. In the episode about Ronald Reagan's ranch, they talked about the fact that he never got to drive himself--he was always driven places--and how at the ranch he had great fun driving the jeeps around the property. Must be a presidential thing (and in Roosevelt's case, a mobility thing as well).

kels. said...

While reading this entry, I could see it all in my mind, and even hear the laughter as he drove away!

Anonymous said...

I remember seeing some great video footage of Roosevelt in the pool at Warm Springs -- and I found it! Definitely worth watching: http://tinyurl.com/5duwls or http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/presidents/video/fdr_09_qt.html#v110