30th of November

7.23am Monday morning. I have sent out requests to other neurologists and neurosurgeons who have assessed Jaana before to get a more complete risk/reward profile. As with everything there are always risks, so I think it is prudent to get as much information from resources not having anything to gain financially by their opinions. However though, get 10 people in one room (specially doctors, I have learned...) and you will get least 10 different opinions. Anyway, we are not in an immediate hurry, so we will take our time and get the best possible solution for Jaana. It is very encouraging though, that there is a method which seem result in vast improvements.
Kids finish school on the 11th already and it seems like they have already to slow down the pace with various activities such as plays and football games. It is also independence day here today which gives them 2 more days off.
Christmas is coming closer even though, as a European, it is hard to get the spirit with beaches and swimming pools.
The new bbq terrace is now ready and there will be suckling pig, tenderloin, chicken and rabbit on New Years eve.

13th of November

5.16pm (CET) Friday afternoon. I am writing a very late entry from Cannobio. I am on a short trip dealing with a few things back in Europe. Among others, I visited a centre called XCell Centre in Dusseldorf, Germany. They specialise in stem cell treatments, and are very positive that this could help Jaana. Since this is a rather new method (a few years), there is not so much statistics as from other treatments, but the result they have so far is very very promising. The most effective way to would be to take Jaanas own repair (or adult) stem cells from her bone marrow, purify them and then place them close to the effected areas in her brain. This procedure will generate the absolute best results and can do remarkable things. At this centre, they also treat other deceases (diabetes ...) so visit their web site should you be interested for friends or family. This could be a major break through and with significant improvements, even though a full 100% recovery of Jaana is less likely. As I miss my old Jaana immensely, I will put our hope and faith in this brilliant technology and pray it will a pivotal point in her recovery. After a successful direct placement, she would have to rest for just a week, but as it was explained to me, result will come very quickly, if all is well.
Kids are doing fine and Parmi as doing a marvellous work in keeping the home and family in order!

4th of October, 2009

10.15am Sunday morning. All good and well. Parmi came back two days ago from a one month plus vacation in Indonesia. Her travel back seem to have gone ok, but UK immigration had her for questioning for 20 minutes. Anyway, all fine now so no problem.
Jaana has been having therapy for some weeks now and is performing well. There are still long way to go before she walks, but everyone is impressed by her strength and she is still making progress. Many have the assumption that the window of opportunity for recovery after is shut after 12 months, but I can definitely confirm that she has made more progress after 12 months than before.
Kids have a good time in school. In two weeks they have mid-term break and me and the kids will head for New York for 3 days then onto Orlando and some parks. They are very excited and we are very much looking forward to the trip.
The picture is Jaana on her birthday 6th of September, with a friend of ours at lunch in Barbados.

13th of September, 2009

6.28am Sunday morning. As many of you already know, we arrived back in Barbados safe and sound. We had a good trip without any complications and Jaana has now started her therapy again. Her therapists noted the fact that her strength was of no problem and was even a lot better than before, but she needs to practise the techniques of walking a bit more. This includes moving your weights properly, moving your hips and controling balance etc. Yesterday she took two steps completely on her own walking up the stairs holding on to the railing. I might be too optimistic (certainly more than doctors and therapists), but I think she will walk with some aid again within 6-12 months or so. To do this she will need to focus a lot on what they teach her, but she certinaly has all attributes to succeed.
Kids are back to school and were happy to see their friends again. Ludwigs class had a lot of turn over though so he had many new faces in his class. Camille and Jonathan were more lucky and many of their friends were still there.
Parmi and Anna are still in Indonesia and will remain there until beginning of October. Jaanas mother is down here for another week help me out and I do have some more assistance cleaning etc.

19th of August

4.55pm Wednesday afternoon. Summer is coming to an end. Two months past very quickly! We all have had great fun and met, talked, dinned, lunched and drunk with and enjoyed a lot of friends. Jaana has been, as all of us, very happy with this. Her long summer vacation with no scheduled rehab is soon over. The summer exercise of not to use the wheelchair has made some good I think. time will tell.
The kids have had the best summer in a long time. they have been waterskiing for the first time as well as fishing, boating, exploring, eating ice cream, playing with dear friends all in all, just a great time.
For myself, I can say that my mission of gaining a few kg (more) from drinking wine and eating too much good food, got executed to perfection! The Westmoreland gym is waiting upon my return...
A good friend of mine took a lot pictures which I am now awaiting and I will post asap.

25th of July

6.03am Saturday morning. Jaana is in good spirit and looking forward to some visitors next week. weather has been a bit so-so last week, but good enough for her to spend some time in the garden looking at and smelling some of the lovely scents around.
Kids are still enjoying themselves and go from one fun thing to the other (wish I was their age as well). Camille has been playing with the neighbours kids a lot and today I think they go sailing.
Parmi and Anna are preparing their one month holiday in September. They travel straight to Indonesia from Italy and come back to Barbados at the beginning of October.
Apart from that, all phones are now back in action so no hinder there.

18th of July

1.57pm Saturday afternoon. All quite on the western front. The Molens are in holiday mood and nothing big to report. Life is spent between eating, drinking, swimming and gobbling down ice cream. Kids are playing with friends and having a ball.
Only thing though is I took a dip with my iPhone which now is not working (yes, not smart I know) and the lightening hit the house the other day and took out the house phone. Therefore, it is a bit trick to get hold of us. You may try on my old mobile +1-246-234 8932. I will report back when all is good. Meanwhile, all good and take care

9th of July

10.51 Thursday morning. We all made it to Italy safe and sound. The trip was no problem and Jaana is in a good shape. She was very happy to see the renovated house and is enjoying a new environment. She (a bit reluctantly, sad to say) spends an hour or so in the garden per day, as her favourite activity is laying on the couch and looking around.
Weather has been beautiful so far and the kids are having a blast. Between jumping into the (rather cold) lake, eating gelatto, playing in the garden, having fun with our dear friends kids, sailing they come into eat. Wish I was 12 again...
Parmi and Anna are also finding their way around the new place. They are a bit cautious as Italians in general speak less good English than in Barbados (where one can get understood, but the dialect is rather thick).
Anyway, summer holiday has started and I hope you are all enjoying your share of it! Happy summer from Cannobio.

22nd of June

8.15pm Monday evening. Camille and I just returned from Italy yesterday after a full week of unpacking and putting things in order for the summer. Our friends the Chiaritos have helped and arranged most of the things regarding the restoration, so it was only the furniture missing turning the Villa into a home. I showed Jaana some pictures I took and she is very much looking forward to and Italian holiday. Now she as only a few days left of therapy work and we leave.
As many of you have asked, our address is:

The Molens
Villa Lucrezia
Via Casali Amore 2
Cannobio
Piemonte
Tel: +39 0323 71263

We are all looking forward to meet all friends and family over the summer period. As things will take some time to put in order, I have told everyone that I will decline requests to stay at the house, even though we would love spending time with you all. There are plenty of hotels of all different price and qualities in Cannobio and neighbouring Cannero Riviera.

As soon as I have Internet up and running in the house (phone and Internet should be installed this week) I will post some pictures.

6th of June

7.07am Saturday morning. It is getting rather warm in Barbados and we are happy soon travel to Italy for the summer. Jaana has not seen the house at all since the renovation started and I know she is quite excited to have a good look. Her life is ticking along day by day with small steps forward. There has been a few doctors and psychiatrists over for visits in addition to her regular therapy, but as usual it is her own initiation and will to get better which is more important.
Yesterday was Ludwigs 14th birthday. We did not have any big party as such, as he is getting a bit older any prefer a quite day with friends and family. Today we are going to the cinema though with a bit of food before hand.
This week they have all been off school, as they have an assessment week after. This week carries no normal school lessons, but rather one week full of test. Therefore, this week "off" was not been as exciting as it could have been, due to my orders of 3h/day behind books. We shall see shortly how it all turns out.
In a week, I will go to Italy with Camille to receive 3 different containers with stuff from storage to be put in Villa Lucrezia. It will be 5 days of a massive amount of carrying sofas/tables etc, but all in preparation of the whole family arrival. When we get back to Barbados, it will only be 2-3 weeks before we all go.

17th of May

7.10pm Sunday evening. This weekend we had an old friend of ours here, Hakan Malmros. He guarded Jaana from the first our when she got ill in Singapore, but has not seen her since December 2007. It was great to hear his comments about Jaanas progress. When you only see one small step at a time, it is hard to see all the progress made. Anyway, Hakan was very happy to see Jaana and she to see him. Hakan was so glaf to see her smile, laugh and enjoy every day of life when he was here. It was a superb thing for all of us.
The kids have a few weeks left then there is a half term break and at the beginning of July they are off school. I might be traveling to Italy in the middle of June to prepare stuff. We are all very much looking forward to spend time in the "new" house.
Camille had a busy weekend with birthday parties and play dates. Jonathan went surfing and Ludwig had a lot of homework to do.

26th of April

9.11pm Sunday evening. As you can see from the picture Jaana was quite happy of our return home to Barbados. During the Easter trip the kids and I did, Jaana was very busy with her usual stuff, but also with extra yoga and different outings. She has slowly improved and is now very capable of holding her own weight when she is walking. Her balance is still not very good, but again improving. Verbal communication is still a tough spot and we have to get by with other means for the time being.
As it looks right now, we will be spending our entire summer vacation in Italy. The house is almost finished and I am working hard on the logistics to get it ready for end of June. This would allow us to spend all summer until beginning of September with our dear and very close friends, the Chiaritos.

30th of March

6.01am Monday morning. This weekend I had the two professors from Miami flown in to meet Jaana again. They were both quite pleased with her improved posture, her continued strength and glad to see that her mood had improved some what. They further concluded, as all the therapist and I have written before, that the major obstacle is the lack of initiation. There are some stimulating medication we will try, but it will take some time before we can certify any difference. Furthermore, Jaana got 300 units of Botox to ease up her left arm and shoulder. This should take full effect in a couple of weeks and last for 3 months again. This really does wonders for her as she can really work with her whole boddy during this time. Even Jaana's rehab has changed some what. She is now going to the therapist's office where they have special equipment twice a week. She seem to like to get out of the house a bit and see other views. Therapy is still on in her prepared room at home twice a week and then on Wednesdays she goes to a a 'Women Inspirational Groups' with the occupational therapist. In addition there is yoga and some other activities.
On Thursday I will travel with the children to Sweden. The boys will stay in Stockholm and Camille will go with me to Italy for 5 days to check out the house project. After that we shall return to Stockholm, pick up the boys and spend two days in London on our way back to Barbados. I think all the kids are looking forward to this.

10th of March

6.50pm Tuesday evening. As I just returned after a week in Europe, I can report that all is fine over here. Jaana has been working as usual and on Thursday, her neurophsycologist is coming in from the US. She is still on the same dose of Zoloft, which seem to help, even though she was noticeably more upset when I was gone. Anyway, all back to normal now until the kids to go Europe for a week around Easter.
My father left today after spending just under 2 weeks here when I was gone. He met many of our friends who all were very kind to pop by and make the period as short as possible for the Molen family. Jonathan had been surfing with one of his buddies and Ludwig joined in as well.
Finally, I have to as a proud father, express my delight that Ludwig has been doing extraordinarily good in school lately with some fantastic grades through superb attitude. I know if has nothing immediately to with Jaanas recovery, but most of you have written to me to get a family update. So there it is.

24th of February 2009

5.40pm Tuesday afternoon. It has been a month since the last post, and life in the Caribbean is going through a busy season. Jaana has been working on her therapy every day and has since she started with 100mg of Zoloft per day been less likely to cry. Saying that, she does have her bad moments, but in a more normal proportion. Her progress is still very slow, but small improvements can still be seen. She is much better in walking with someone supporting her and she is (another effect of the medication) initiating more actions.
Last week was mid term break, so the kids had the week of. The beginning of the week, we did some sports at home (golf, diving, tennis etc), Jonathan had a sleep over for a few days. On the Thursday we flew to Canouan with some friends and with their families. A fantastic, picture perfect paradise only 45 min away by plane. Some more sports and a trip with a catamaran in the Tabago Keys were all great. Jaana enjoyed the trip very much and so did Parmi and Anna, who neither of them had left Barbados for over a year. One can get a bit of island fever if one does not leave every so often.
Yesterday school started and things are getting back to normal. Next week I will be gone on a short trip, but my father is coming on Friday to stay during the week.
And for all of you following cricket, it is a big week starting Thursday. West Indies is hosting the England test cricket team and the Kensington Oval. After a huge win and a draw the WI are looking good.

25th of January

9.19am Sunday morning. So, now a few new things. Since a week back Jaana has tried a new form of medicine to get her a bit happier and for her to engage a bit more. It is still early days, but the result has been all positive. She has only cried a couple of times last week (before it could be a lot) and she is more willing to participate in the rehab. Hopefully this will be the right medicine for her as they all effect everyone a bit different.
The kids are chipping along in school, and Ludde is turning more and more into being a true teenager... Jonathan is the sporty one of all of us and Camille is still the little princess who is also letting us know what she wants. She complain that she has to do a lot of hard work in school. Her birthday is on Tuesday and the list is long with left over wishes from Christmas with some new things added. I have a feeling this list will haunt me for some time.
I got back from a very short trip from Miami yesterday, and today we are all heading out for Sunday lunch.
As promised, here is a photo of Jaana with her mother Ritva from just over a week ago. I will try to post a bit more photos for all of you, but you are also welcome to contact us for live Skype video and say hello to Jaana. For better quality and reliability, use Parmis Skype address (name: Parmi Partawiyana).

14th of January

6.30pm Wednesday evening. Well back in her routine, Jaana is starting her 2nd calendar year of rehabilitation. To get more out of the sessions, she will be given Wednesdays off, so that she can rest for one day. We did this in December as well, and she seem to like that idea. Jaana has expressed a bit concern over her short term memory, which she realizes is not up to par. There are some memory games and exercises to do, which we are, but only time will tell.
Kids are back to school. They will have a week off in February, when we will go to Canouan. It is only a very short flight, so I hope to be able to bring Jaana, Parmi and Anna as well. The kids are already looking forward to it. i have promised them to explore the nearby islands a bit more this year. It is so easy just for a weekend, and it does feel like you have been on a vacation.
Parmi and Anna are doing fine as well. They seem to run out and about on Sundays when they usually seem to go to 'The Boatyard'.
Nothing more to report really, but I will put up some of Ritvas pictures from when she was here in the next posting.

1st of January

12.17pm Thursday afternoon. Today we are all heading for the beach to meet up with two other families on the east coast of Barbados. Over there, the sea is quite rough so it is not advisable to swim, but are bringing some food and wine. Jaana is obviously coming along and so is her mother. It is a bit of an exercise for both of them; Jaana sitting up for a long time and Jaana's mother picking up the English. She is doing quite well actually, and by know Parmi understands Swedish.

With this we would all like to wish everyone of you a very Happy New Year with many smiles, good health and prosperity.

The Molens + Ritva