It’s been a very busy couple of months for me. I will finally close on my house next week. It’s been an exhausting and frustrating process, to say the least. But it feels very fitting to close out the year and, thus, that chapter of my life by closing on my house.

For the last couple of months, my weekends have been filled with getting my house cleared out (22 years worth of stuff) and working on endless transcripts as well as trying to find time to be with Mike, clean, cook and do other needed tasks at his house.

I had the best of intentions to get Christmas cards sent out but last weekend was the first chance I had and it felt too overwhelming. I told Mike we need to let go of the traditions and expectations this year. It would only be a rushed effort and not heartfelt at all. And frankly, it’s just not a priority. He was very disappointed but understood. He is known by his friends to always send out Christmas cards.

As I told him, “people understand”. That’s my mantra lately, and it comforts me.

There are literally not enough hours in the day for everything that needs to be done. I did manage to get a tree up with lights but no real decorations.

***

One thing Mike has been enjoying these last few weekends is going to Colonie Center. There’s an area with railings and he can practice walking using only a light touch as a safety net should he need to grab onto it. Luckily, the mall hasn’t been too crowded for this time of year, which is really kind of sad. It shows how online shopping has affected local businesses. It used to be you couldn’t get near a mall the weeks before Christmas.

I know I’m biased but I think he’s doing great! He’s very determined to walk without a cane and wants to practice. With the wintertime adding another obstacle, the mall is the best place to go.

Luckily, his friends have all pitched in to bring him to the mall and the movies so I can continue working at my house and on my transcripts. But I did manage to bring him a couple of times after church. It makes him so happy.

But with every step forward he takes, it seems another setback looms. Sunnyview informed us that Mike needs a “therapeutic break”, in their opinion, which is basically a nice way of saying they’re discharging him from therapy.

First, they said he’s plateaued, not making progress (which is completely and absolutely not true).

Then, when I challenged them on that and even sent a letter of support for continued therapy from Dr. Jaycee Barry, Mike’s private therapist, they said their program is only meant to be short-term, 12 to 16 weeks, and that Mike was told that in the beginning (also not true).

So which is it? Are you discharging him because he’s not making progress or because the 12 to 16 weeks is up?

Let’s see. He’s gotten a total of 1 hour per week of PT from you guys and 2 hours per week of OT since mid-August.

But you say he’s not making progress?

Wouldn’t that mean he needs MORE therapy??!!!

I’m out of my mind with this. (I don’t know where we’d be if we didn’t have the means to hire Jaycee to work with him.)

And what are the measures of his progress or lack thereof?

(Of course, I asked that question.)

I was told they will be happy to tell me on 12/31 when I attend a session with him.

Excuse my Latin, but Sunnyview is a farce.

How can you do a one-size-fits-all program for people who are there for a range of very different and specific issues?

And Mike being on the younger side of patients who suffer from lasting and debilitating effects of stroke, having been physically fit and healthy beforehand, now given a short-term program and discharged before he hits a full year post stroke.

The window is still open for his recovery but Sunnyview is slamming it shut anyway.

He had a business, a very active daily routine, a full life to get back to. That was his whole identity. Isn’t your mission to help people return to that, or get as close as possible to it?

But in your one day of evaluating him for less than 30 minutes (and probably a day he was having back pain), you’ve determined he’s a lost cause and your answer is to throw him out of the program? (Because that’s the way I see it.)

A program that didn’t even give him more than 4 hours PER MONTH of physical therapy and 8 hours PER MONTH of occupational therapy.

Sorry, folks, for my bitter and angry words. Sunnyview has this great reputation but, honestly, we have not seen any of that with Mike. And they are supposed to be the premier place to go for rehabilitation? I’m trying not to choke as I laugh.

***

Mike attended my bible study group last week and really enjoyed it. He even asked for prayer for his challenging relationship with his older son. I am so proud of him. He looks forward to attending more in the new year.

He is enjoying Pastor Paul’s sermons this Christmas season. He was in awe of the story on the Immaculate Conception and how Mary and Joseph both reacted to that news.

***

While I haven’t had the time or energy to do the traditional things that go along with the Christmas season, that’s okay. I’ve told Mike we both need to give ourselves a little bit of grace right now and just get through the rest of the year.

Christmas is really a celebration of miracles, of God sending Jesus as a salvation for all of us.

A time to celebrate family, friends, love and hope.

A time to be grateful.

I am filled with gratitude for the strength God has given me to get through these last eight months, to be a rock of love and daily encouragement for Mike.

I’m very grateful for our family and friends who have helped support us throughout this time and have been there helping me move and clear out my house. They’ve made this time a lot more bearable. It kills Mike that he can’t help but he is so thankful that others are stepping in to take that on for him.

Merry Christmas, everyone. And here’s to a 2026 full of health, happiness and love.