They Call Me Galvez

The statistics of English are astonishing. Of all the world’s languages (which now number some 2,700), it is arguably the richest in vocabulary. The compendious Oxford English Dictionary lists about 500,000 words; and a further half-million technical and scientific terms remain uncatalogued. According to traditional estimates, neighboring German has a vocabulary of about 185,000 and French fewer than 100,000, including such Franglais as le snacque-barre and le hit-parade.

English really is a beautiful language.  There are so many way to express yourself with words, but I have always had a hard time verbalizing my thoughts.  I’ve always been considered “the quiet one”.  Early in my recovery I had trouble speaking with a weak voice and numbness in my face.  My voice is getting stronger, but the numbness is still there.  I attributed the weakness in my voice to a weak diaphragm and incoordination of the muscles responsible for speech.  I still have numbness in my face, also probably affecting my speech, but I’m learning to adapt.  I can’t belt out Def Lepard songs like I used to, but my speech is now strong enough to give an hour lecture in a classroom without a microphone.  I have come up with some pretty funny exercises to strengthen my speech. 99 bottles of beer on the wall is a song I used to sing to myself on the toilet.  I made up a game with my brother called krazy karaoke challenge where you pick a song for another person to sing and the other person picks a song for you to sing.  It was a product of being bored and nothing good on TV.  You can’t be shy playing this game because the game is all about humiliation.  Barry Manilow and Whitney Houston were some of the artists we picked for each other.  Imagine two guys singing really cheesy songs to each other at the top of their lungs!  Hilarious!  We’re still working on rules/scoring, but a guaranteed laugh.  It’s best played one on one, but I’m sure teams could be pitted against each other.

Anyways, I’m gearing up for a “surfing” trial again.  I still feel like I will catch my elusive wave on my feet this summer.  When I do catch it, I will be singing “We are Champions“… OK, maybe in my head!

I’m soooo ready to hit the beach again.  Next weekend, I’m giving it a shot again.  It has been over 3 years since I caught my last wave standing up.  I can’t do it by myself, but it is only a matter of time.  It has been a while since I’ve done anything by myself.  Surfing gives my that brief escape from everything.  At least it used to.  Just sitting on the board in the lineup and waiting for the right wave to come along was so chill.  I used to go before work.  Now, it is so methodical.  I have to concentrate on paddling on the board without falling off, popping up on the board, the speed of the wave, my foot placement on the board, the speed of the pop-up, my balance on the board, etc… It was just starting to become automatic catching my waves, but now I have to learn everything all over again.    It is almost like the “reset button” got pushed, I gotta start over with everything.  This time around I know what needs to be done.  There are very few things that I used to enjoy doing that I can do now.  Surfing is one of the thngs that I still have a shot at.  It is one of the few things that connects me to the old me.  Although things are not as easy as they were, I’m still determined to catch my wave for myself.  I need to know the old me is still there.

It seems like change is the only thing constant in life.  I’m always gearing up for something.  Just when I feel like I’m getting comfortable doing something a new challenge pops up.  That is life.  It sure does make things interesting.  As much as we don’t like it, it is necessary to evolve or improve.  Challenge is what makes us stronger while complacency inhibits our growth.  The past 3 1/2 years has been a huge challenge, but I have found out more about myself then ever before.  I’m not afraid of failure and therefore am always testing my limits.  I’m doing things I never dreamed I would do.  It’s still a little weird for me to hear the accolades from people that admire what I am doing.  I graciously accept their compliments, but my reasoning for doing what I am doing is out of necessity.  I have always shied away from the spotlight, but I realize that I need to step forward and start taking a more active role.  I have to jump out of my comfort zone again.  I have accepted a position as an advisor to the Brain Science Foundation.  I’ve actually gotten more involved with a variety of organizations.  I am meeting amazing people that I normally wouldn’t have met if I didn’t have a brain tumor.  I still testing my limits, but I’m finding that they tend to stretch when you test them.  I think it is time to stretch my limits again.

My name is Eric Anthony Galvez PT DPT CSCS. In September 2005, I was diagnosed with a golf-ball sized meningioma brain tumor between the brain stem and cerebellum, and have been unable to return to my career as a PT just yet.  However as a physical therapist, it is engrained in our practice to be good teachers, and I have published a book, Reversal:  When A Therapist Becomes A Patient, regarding my unique experiences as a young adult brain tumor/rehab patient and healthcare professional. It stands out in the market because it contains:

1.    The humorous and entertaining perspective of a young active male brain tumor patient presented in a conversational tone.
2.    The logical perspective of a patient with a medical background when faced with difficult medical dilemmas
3.    Multiple perspectives from the loved ones closest to a patient
4.    A real time format that is easy to read and validates the authenticity of the situation
5.    A book soundtrack available exclusively on iTunes
6.    The perspective of a first generation Filipino American patient vs. the views of his overprotective traditional Filipino parents

For more information about me, please explore www.ericgalvezdpt.com.  The new edition of Reversal:  When A Therapist Becomes A Patient is available for pre-order at masskickers.com.  The new edition features 4 new chapters, 2 new essays, a new conclusion, and updated chapters.

Order the book here:
http://www.store.masskickers.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_4&products_id=2&zenid=93su7fd2u5bvi7ps817c3j8q42

The previous edition focused on year one of this remarkable story, but much has happened since the book was initially published.  The latest edition therefore features years two and three, with all net proceeds donated to the mAss Kickers Foundation.

Please help me spread awareness about brain tumors and the plight of young adult survivors by reposting or forwarding this message to people who might be interested.  This “blook” is very different from anything out there!

Check out the “Book Video”

Thanks,
Eric AKA “Galvez”

I had the oppurtunity to attend the young adult survivor conference at Camp-Mak-A-Dream in Gold Creek, Montana.  The name is deceptive because anything associated with the word “Camp” for me conjures up images of singing kumbaya, roasting marshmallows, and eating hotdogs.   I didn’t know what I needed to bring with me to a “camp” for young adults.  I honestly did not know what to expect there.  What I found was something I haven’t experienced since I was diagnosed with a brain tumor…  people like me to talk to face-to-face that understood first-hand how much it SUCKS being a young survivor.  It was the first time I’ve felt comfortable talking about my experiences.  I haven’t participated in support groups since I was diagnosed because I thought they weren’t for me.  It’s much harder for me to verbalize my thoughts.  I’m sure there were people there that felt the same way.  We shared laughter, tears, and were able to be ourselves.  The conference held different workshops ranging from “Getting and keeping a job after cancer” to “Dealing with Loss”.  It was nice because all of us were isolated from everything in Montana and only had each other to hangout with.  I felt like I really bonded with people there.  It was kinda cool because they flew us in, and nobody knew each other that well, so everyone was “forced” to get to know each other.  The highlight for me was climbing “the butte” the last day.  The  “butte” is this huge hill with a great view of the mountains.  It took us a 1/2 hour to climb it.  I’m convinced that we couldn’t have done it without each other.   Our mantra was “don’t look back till we get to the top.” The climb was really symbolic of how we were there to support each other.  Some of us had doubts about getting to the top, but we were there to pull each other up physically or mentally.  It could have been really easy to turn around halfway up and be satisfied with the view, but you only get to see one side of the “butte”.  The 360 degree view from the top was truely amazing!  Although I didn’t know what to bring with me to Montana, I definitely left with more than I brought.

Got some cool stuff in the works.  Tomorrow I get to go to Montana for a young adult survivor conference hosted by Camp-Make-A-Dream.  Should be pretty cool hanging out with other young adult survivors.  I don’t think I’ve met more than 5 young adult survivors face to face.  Looking forward to it.  I’m excited because I’ve never been to Montana and I haven’t been outdoors in a long time. Let’s see I know Glacier National Park is in Montana and… uh… don’t know too much about Montana!  I’m just looking forward to the fresh mountain air!  I got some stuff in the works, so this will be a nice get away!  I get to go back in July with First Descents to try kayaking.  That will be fun.  I’m making sure I’ll be ready for that!  I gotta take a wheelchair with me on this trip because I still walk really slow and I don’t know how much walking will be involved.  Dude, I really hate that wheelchair and I’m starting to hate the walker too, but they are necessary evils… for now.  It will be so nice to get away for a few days.

I just borrowed my friend’s Wii Fit.  This thing has a lot of neuro-rehab potential.  I had been using the Wii earlier in preparation for driving, however games like MarioKart promote unsafe driving responses in me because of my competitive spirit…  it doesn’t translate well to real world situations… hahaha! (i’ll bump you off the road or shoot a turtle shell at you if you get in my way).  I have been playing on it for a while now, now I am convinced it can be integrated in a home exercise program for rehab patients.  The Wii balance board is an excellent tool to objectively measure center of gravity.  It gives great feedback standing on the platform.  I was impressed with the accuracy of the findings and the feedback given by the virtual “trainer”. The aerobic running simulation (performed in sitting) promotes a normal arm swing and rotation with walking.  I’m experimenting with the yoga poses and strengthening exercises.

I have been using the Wii remote in my ataxic left arm in tall kneeling to play tennis, bowling, boxing, and baseball.  I do this for a few reasons:

• increase use of my left arm
• add dynamic balance challenges on my knees
• core stability by maintaining good posture

Games like Guitar Hero could be used for fine motor control

This would be a great way to involve a patient’s family in their rehab.  Although, I think there would be major safety issues if a patient is not ready for it or not monitored.  Keeping track of scores or outcomes, is a great way to keep objective measures.

At the advice of my OT, I went to get my eyes checked by a neuro-opthamalogist.  He determined that I have slight Esophoria and hyperforeia in the left eye that is causing mild double vision.  The double vision has been improving, but now we know what to do to work on full recovery. Vision therapy.  Apparently because I have been reading more frequently, it has unknowingly improved my double vision.  There are exercises I can do to improve the strength in my eye muscles… never thought about strengthening those.  As for PT, the vestibular therapy has helpped a ton!  I can really see my physical therapy background playing a larger role now.  I am much more confident weight bearing on my left leg, but now I really have to work on my confidence walking without anyone holding on to me.  It’s much harder than I thought because everyone around me hangs on my arm when walking.  I’m notiing I’m having trouble stepping forward and weight bearing on either leg.  Baby steps… I can now do a lap by myself in the hall way at my place with the cane, but I gotta sneak out to do it.  I can do it, just worried if I can do it when I’m tired.  Walking… I wanna work on my cadence.  Gotta think of a good song/rhythm to walk to…  keeping busy… the new edition of Reversal should be out soon.

Hosted two workshops at Midwest Asian American Student Union spring conference at U of M. I also got to attend a workshop by Wong Fu Productions. Was really interesting. They are a part of a world I have no idea about.  Turns out those guys have ties to San Diego… pretty cool.   Hope to connect with them in CA.  Anyways, I’ve pretty much been on the run since I’ve been back in MI.  So many people to meet up with.  High school, college, grad school… whew… tiring!  I think I lost my camera so no goofy pictures from me   I go to Toronto on Thursday for a “Galvez Family Reunion”  should be a lot of FUN.  We will be conducting “cousin interviews”… hee hee  There is snow here.  It is cool when it is snowing, but not when it collects and turns in to dirty snow… brown, black, or yellow.  Especially yellow snow.