Being an invalid can be a frustrating experience for someone who’s been very physically active their whole life. For my father, it was indeed frustrating when he had a stroke that caused him to be half-paralyzed. Seeing his sadness prompted us to think of interventions to prevent him from becoming depressed. We constantly talk to him and treat him like we used to when he was still physically well. As much as possible we tried to make him feel he is of normal condition. Instead of hovering over him, we look for alternative stuff to make him mobile again.

The adjustments we made focused on alternative gadgets that will make it easy for him to move around and eventually recover. We bought a cane, stress ball, shaving reacher, a whiteboard and a marker for his requests, a tiny bell to call our attention, and other similar aids. We even bought him an art set and encourage him to paint, and booklets of crossword puzzle to make his mind still active despite his physical limitations.