After a couple more weeks at Regions, I was transferred to Bethesda Hospital in St. Paul (about 2 miles away), which specialized in traumatic accidents and brain-injury rehabilitation.
The difference was night and day. At Regions, I was restricted; at Bethesda, the nurse said, “You can go wherever you want. Get a soda from the fridge, eat in the cafeteria, go outside—just let us know when you leave and return.”
I walked the halls, went outside on spring mornings, and even became the “engine” for my wife’s second cousin who had MS and was in the same hospital. She needed help getting outside to smoke; I pushed her wheelchair, and we had great conversations.
Bethesda context (1996):
Bethesda was a long-term acute-care hospital with a strong reputation for brain-injury and rehabilitation services. It offered exactly the structured yet liberating environment I needed.
The neurologist evaluated me with wire-twist puzzles (a problem-solving test). I solved one in under 5 seconds. He was impressed. I joked, “I was in a snowmobile accident—I’m brain-damaged, but I’m not stupid.” He laughed and cleared me for home with supervision for the first week.
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Chapter 5: Home and Early Recovery – May 31, 1996 Onward
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