Dear Friends:
Well ... today wasn't as good as yesterday but Paul had a fairly good day. When Dad & I arrived today Paul was already dressed and in his wheelchair working with the speech therapist who came in at 8:00 am. She was almost done. She said that Paul wouldn't swallow the popsicle today but he reached for it with his tongue. He is doing a bit better at controlling his tongue but we still have lots of work to do on swallowing. He had a good strong blow on the whistle today though. He wouldn't use the bell today and only did the buzzer some of the time. He wasn't able to answer any questions but when Dad told him to push it three times he did that. She worked to massage his tongue and cheeks a bit. OT was at 9:00 am. This was the same time that we were scheduled to meet with the lady from Brain Injury Services (BIS). The therapist took Paul to the therapy room while Dad & I talked to the BIS representative. She got lots of info from us and said that they can assign a case manager that will help us to understand what services are available in the area that deal specifically with brain injury patients etc. First their review board will meet the second Tuesday in April to see if Paul qualifies for their services and determine how soon he can be assigned to a case worker. Hopefully they will recommend him right away so we will have someone to help us when he comes home. The OT said that Paul did OK today until he was tired of her moving his arm. PT was at 11:00 am and we had another substitute today. She started by sitting him on the therapy bench and stretching his back and shoulder muscles. He did really good holding his head up today. They walked about 40 feet but he didn't help much ... he was probably tired since he'd been up since about 7:30 am. When therapy was done we took him to his room and back into bed to rest for a bit. Dad & I went to lunch. After lunch we took Paul outside for a walk around the hospital grounds. There are horses on a farm across from the hospital so we crossed the road so he could see them. When asked if he saw the horses he nodded his head "yes". We sat outside in the little garden for a bit and listened to the airplanes and birds. There was a gentle breeze and Paul stayed awake and held his head up during the whole outing!! This evening the nurse came in and instructed Dad & Me (mostly Dad) how to do Bolus feeding through the feed tube. This feeding is five times a day instead of a constant feed at night. This is more like a regular feeding schedule that most of us have and the body does well with. He had his first feeding today and held it down really well. The doctor had increased the muscle relaxer last night and also started Paul on the new medicine that is used for Parkinson's patients. This is suppose to help wake him up more. He seems to be doing OK with both of these changes but we will see over the next few days. Friday Paul will have four therapy sessions. The OT wants to do more ADL sessions since Paul does so well with them. I suspect that is what is going to happen ... the schedule actually says ... Speech-10:00am, OT-11:00 am, PT-1:00 pm & OT again at 3:00 pm. That makes for a long day but Paul has been staying awake most of the day anyway. Over the weekend Tabby plans to work on the house again. She needs to do ...
1) Painting in Kitchen Area and Stairway. Painting Ceiling, Trim, and Walls. It's a bit difficult especially with the Ceiling and Trim; 2) Installation of Exterior Door. (Concrete Entry Way) This is out of our expertise and she will need someone who will know what type and size door to buy; 3) Installation of Interior Door for Downstairs Bathroom. (30" Rough In); 4) If we can have the bedroom door switched around, that would be quite helpful too. (That's a time and volunteer issue.); 5) Cleaning the house ... there is lots of drywall dust all over the house.
If you would like to help ... Please email me and we can get you Tabby's phone number. It would also be good if you send a contact phone number for her in case she finds that she already has enough help and needs to contact you so you don't waste a trip. Paul's still scheduled to come home next Thursday and it will be nice to have the house completely ready. Next week will be a whirlwind of activity getting all the medical equipment delivered and beginning to work with the agency that will coordinate Paul's in-home care needs. Please also keep us in prayer as we prepare for all the changes!!
Blessings, Lynne & Carl
Thursday, March 30, 2006
Life
| This Is My Life, Rated | |
| Life: |  7 |
| Mind: |  7.9 |
| Body: |  5.3 |
| Spirit: | 7.6 |
| Friends/Family: | 7.8 |
| Love: | 7.3 |
| Finance: | 5.4 |
| Take the Rate My Life Quiz | |
Paul's Update - 03/29/06
Dear Friends:
Paul was VERY alert today. It seems like the change in medicines has been a good course! Dad & I missed ADL this morning since it was scheduled for 8:00 am. Dad went to Tabby's house first thing to work sanding the drywall and I had a physical therapy appointment at 9:00 am. Dad got to the hospital at 9:30 am. The pastor came shortly after Dad got there. The speech therapist came at 10:00 because of a change in the schedule (she was suppose to come at 1:00 pm). He did even better than yesterday. She started with ice chips, he took them but wasn't able to swallow. He was holding his head up really good today. She got him to wave to her. He did that twice. He was ABLE to ring the bell today. He picked it up in his hand and used his index finger to ring it. She gave him the buzzer and he squeezed it but didn't want to let go. She finally got him to work it correctly but when she asked him "yes" questions he had some trouble with it. She still thinks it is worthy of more work since he seems to understand what to do but has a hard time getting it transferred to correct actions. She also worked with exercising his tongue. PT was at 11:00 am. The representative from the wheelchair company came and worked to get an order for a custom wheelchair. It will probably take about 6-8 weeks for his chair to be ready but he now has a "loaner" chair to go home with. He stayed awake and alert through most of this. After we got done with that Dad & I got him into a flannel jacket and took him outside for a walk. He was getting pretty tired but we stayed out for about 50 minutes. He was back in the bed around 2:45 pm. Dad put on the History channel and he watched it quite a bit. He also has some "old friends" keeping him company. Yesterday Tabby brought his two of his toys that were at the hospital with him. He use to play with them a lot and we are hoping they will encourage him to move his arms more. The doctor came in tonight and talked to Dad. He is pleased to see Paul be so alert. He is going to try to increase the new muscle relaxer a bit again. He also wants to try a new drug that is used for Parkinson's patients. His hope is it will make Paul even more alert. Dad also asked him if we can start giving Paul feedings three times a day instead of the slow feeding all night. He is going to think about that and maybe we can start that before we take Paul home next week. Thursday Dad & I will meet with a representative from Brain Injury Services. I hope she will be able to give us information about services that will be helpful when we go home. I think we are all starting to be anxious (and as ready as we can be at this point) to bring him home. We look forward the possibility that he will do better in his own environment! Keep praying ... God has been faithful to us and I know he will work out everything for the changes ahead!
God Bless, Lynne & Carl
Paul was VERY alert today. It seems like the change in medicines has been a good course! Dad & I missed ADL this morning since it was scheduled for 8:00 am. Dad went to Tabby's house first thing to work sanding the drywall and I had a physical therapy appointment at 9:00 am. Dad got to the hospital at 9:30 am. The pastor came shortly after Dad got there. The speech therapist came at 10:00 because of a change in the schedule (she was suppose to come at 1:00 pm). He did even better than yesterday. She started with ice chips, he took them but wasn't able to swallow. He was holding his head up really good today. She got him to wave to her. He did that twice. He was ABLE to ring the bell today. He picked it up in his hand and used his index finger to ring it. She gave him the buzzer and he squeezed it but didn't want to let go. She finally got him to work it correctly but when she asked him "yes" questions he had some trouble with it. She still thinks it is worthy of more work since he seems to understand what to do but has a hard time getting it transferred to correct actions. She also worked with exercising his tongue. PT was at 11:00 am. The representative from the wheelchair company came and worked to get an order for a custom wheelchair. It will probably take about 6-8 weeks for his chair to be ready but he now has a "loaner" chair to go home with. He stayed awake and alert through most of this. After we got done with that Dad & I got him into a flannel jacket and took him outside for a walk. He was getting pretty tired but we stayed out for about 50 minutes. He was back in the bed around 2:45 pm. Dad put on the History channel and he watched it quite a bit. He also has some "old friends" keeping him company. Yesterday Tabby brought his two of his toys that were at the hospital with him. He use to play with them a lot and we are hoping they will encourage him to move his arms more. The doctor came in tonight and talked to Dad. He is pleased to see Paul be so alert. He is going to try to increase the new muscle relaxer a bit again. He also wants to try a new drug that is used for Parkinson's patients. His hope is it will make Paul even more alert. Dad also asked him if we can start giving Paul feedings three times a day instead of the slow feeding all night. He is going to think about that and maybe we can start that before we take Paul home next week. Thursday Dad & I will meet with a representative from Brain Injury Services. I hope she will be able to give us information about services that will be helpful when we go home. I think we are all starting to be anxious (and as ready as we can be at this point) to bring him home. We look forward the possibility that he will do better in his own environment! Keep praying ... God has been faithful to us and I know he will work out everything for the changes ahead!
God Bless, Lynne & Carl
Wednesday, March 29, 2006
What Color?
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Paul's Update - 03/28/06
Dear Friends:
Today was Mom's day with Paul. Dad spent the day working at Paul & Tabby's house doing drywall spackling. The walls should be ready to paint by Wednesday evening! I arrived at the hospital around 8:30. The nurse's aid was just coming in to dress Paul so he'd be ready for OT at 9:00. He was awake and ready. OT came, got him out of bed and took him to the therapy room. She worked on his arms mostly today. His right arm is getting stronger and he is able to use it a little more. The left arm is still stiff but he tries hard to use it (even to the point of pain!). Once we got back to the room Paul stayed in the wheelchair for a bit until time for PT. When the therapist came in we were able to go right down to the gym. It was pretty busy in there but they were able to get him up and walk. He walked about ten feet and then they had to turn around to walk the ten feet back with the Swedish walker. Then she wanted to try walking him with a person on each side holding him up under his armpits. He took several steps and actually did a little better without the walker. The last thing she did was to have him practice standing up and rocking from side to side to exercise his hips. Speech was at 1:00 pm. We had a substitute today and she will be there again tomorrow. She was following instructions from the regular therapist. She started with the bell ... he really couldn't do that. He would extend his arm and hand to ring it but he doesn't have enough "snap" to ring it. She gave him the buzzer and he immediately pushed the button but then he didn't let go. She worked with that for a while and he finally got the hang of it. She asked him several of the same questions as yesterday. He only got two of them right today. He was able to get about 5 small ice chips which he really wanted and he did pretty good with them. He swallowed most of it (with a little encouragement). She was able to get him to lift his left hand to touch hers about 6 inches up. I think speech went really well. Tabby was able to come to the hospital tonight and stay until the end of visiting hours. She has been so busy with the house that she hasn't been able to get there until after 9:00 pm so she hasn't been there for several days. The doctor came in this evening and confirmed that he stopped the indigestion med last night and was pleased to see that the hiccupping wasn't worse today. Tomorrow the nurse will give Paul some Tylenol prior to therapy to see if that enables him to move a bit better with less pain. We will also do the measuring for Paul's wheelchair at 11:00 am tomorrow. It is starting to look like we are almost prepared to bring Paul home next Thursday. The nurses and doctors will meet tomorrow and analyze how Paul is doing but we are doubtful that they will change the expected release date. I think God has worked out a lot of things for our preparation. Extra time, volunteers to help get the house ready, less meds, a chance to talk to someone from Brain Injury Services on Thursday. Lots of evidence that God is in charge and is answering our prayers! Our God is so faithful to us!
Have a great day, Lynne & Carl
Today was Mom's day with Paul. Dad spent the day working at Paul & Tabby's house doing drywall spackling. The walls should be ready to paint by Wednesday evening! I arrived at the hospital around 8:30. The nurse's aid was just coming in to dress Paul so he'd be ready for OT at 9:00. He was awake and ready. OT came, got him out of bed and took him to the therapy room. She worked on his arms mostly today. His right arm is getting stronger and he is able to use it a little more. The left arm is still stiff but he tries hard to use it (even to the point of pain!). Once we got back to the room Paul stayed in the wheelchair for a bit until time for PT. When the therapist came in we were able to go right down to the gym. It was pretty busy in there but they were able to get him up and walk. He walked about ten feet and then they had to turn around to walk the ten feet back with the Swedish walker. Then she wanted to try walking him with a person on each side holding him up under his armpits. He took several steps and actually did a little better without the walker. The last thing she did was to have him practice standing up and rocking from side to side to exercise his hips. Speech was at 1:00 pm. We had a substitute today and she will be there again tomorrow. She was following instructions from the regular therapist. She started with the bell ... he really couldn't do that. He would extend his arm and hand to ring it but he doesn't have enough "snap" to ring it. She gave him the buzzer and he immediately pushed the button but then he didn't let go. She worked with that for a while and he finally got the hang of it. She asked him several of the same questions as yesterday. He only got two of them right today. He was able to get about 5 small ice chips which he really wanted and he did pretty good with them. He swallowed most of it (with a little encouragement). She was able to get him to lift his left hand to touch hers about 6 inches up. I think speech went really well. Tabby was able to come to the hospital tonight and stay until the end of visiting hours. She has been so busy with the house that she hasn't been able to get there until after 9:00 pm so she hasn't been there for several days. The doctor came in this evening and confirmed that he stopped the indigestion med last night and was pleased to see that the hiccupping wasn't worse today. Tomorrow the nurse will give Paul some Tylenol prior to therapy to see if that enables him to move a bit better with less pain. We will also do the measuring for Paul's wheelchair at 11:00 am tomorrow. It is starting to look like we are almost prepared to bring Paul home next Thursday. The nurses and doctors will meet tomorrow and analyze how Paul is doing but we are doubtful that they will change the expected release date. I think God has worked out a lot of things for our preparation. Extra time, volunteers to help get the house ready, less meds, a chance to talk to someone from Brain Injury Services on Thursday. Lots of evidence that God is in charge and is answering our prayers! Our God is so faithful to us!
Have a great day, Lynne & Carl
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Kegling Tales -- Day 6
The 2006 excursion continued another day. We drove down through New Orleans where we saw a lot of people rummaging through debris piles and then along the Mississippi Coast where we saw quite a bit of damage with lots of construction or demolition as we drove through. Maybe why we didn't see more hurricane type damage in New Orleans was because the city sat so low that the storm blew over the top of it and only the levees were hit hardest resulting in the massive flooding. The Mississippi Coast was a mess with most houses within a half mile of the coast completely gone and those within a mile heavily damaged. Of course the Casino's had the most workers employed and seemed to have the heaviest equipment. But all along US 90 it was evident the average resident were working fast and furious to get back to normal lives. I honestly couldn't say that about what I saw in New Orleans. From my viewpoint, the flood damage was the biggest problem there in New Orleans. Everywhere else we saw hurricane damage (wind, water, tornado, and tree). Yes some of the towns were small compared to New Orleans. But if the town only had 15 buildings and all of them were leveled or only had a slab left, I would consider that devastation. While New Orleans is the bigger town and usually gets the lion’s share of the money, what I saw elsewhere was far worse and deserves better coverage.
I saw worse roof damage in Mississippi than what I saw on the Superdome. From the media reports I had the impression it was about to fall down. Perhaps what was hidden from us was that the worse damage to the Superdome was inside and not outside. Not storm damage but occupant damage. They plan to open in September for the Saints – Falcons game. I wish someone would tell the residents of Foley TX., Grand Chenier LA., Cameron LA., Gulfport MS., Biloxi MS., and Pirates Cove LA., that they would be back to normal this fall.
I know some will disagree with me but I believe someone with a flooded home is a bit better off than someone standing there looking at a bare concrete slab with all your belongings scattered all over the country side. We saw several homes in New Orleans where they removed everything down to the studs and were letting them dry out. At least they still had something to start from and could salvage something even if it was minimal.
Oh, I love how New Orleans deals with cars you don't want. They abandon them on the interstate and let the vandals or fire turn them into scrap for the city to remove. I know some will say they are storm cars. But storm cars are covered with a dirty brown coat of mud and these cars weren't even dirty. I wish I had kept count of just how many I did see but it would be close to 2 dozen and sometimes there were 2 or 3 close by. Yes, I realize the tags were gone but if they ran the VIN number they would find the registered owner. Then ticket them and fine them the cost of removal. A few $1000 fines or 30 days in jail and a suspended driver’s license would get their attention. But then again Whiney Ray wouldn't let that happen.
On a humorous note .. One little town that was almost totally destroyed had this sign posted as you entered .. Chocolate City? Kiss my Ass!
For you Southerners, Jeff Davis' house though damaged withstood the storm when the other antebellum and modern homes were blown away in a cloud of splinters. Long Live the South and our day will come. :)
I saw worse roof damage in Mississippi than what I saw on the Superdome. From the media reports I had the impression it was about to fall down. Perhaps what was hidden from us was that the worse damage to the Superdome was inside and not outside. Not storm damage but occupant damage. They plan to open in September for the Saints – Falcons game. I wish someone would tell the residents of Foley TX., Grand Chenier LA., Cameron LA., Gulfport MS., Biloxi MS., and Pirates Cove LA., that they would be back to normal this fall.
I know some will disagree with me but I believe someone with a flooded home is a bit better off than someone standing there looking at a bare concrete slab with all your belongings scattered all over the country side. We saw several homes in New Orleans where they removed everything down to the studs and were letting them dry out. At least they still had something to start from and could salvage something even if it was minimal.
Oh, I love how New Orleans deals with cars you don't want. They abandon them on the interstate and let the vandals or fire turn them into scrap for the city to remove. I know some will say they are storm cars. But storm cars are covered with a dirty brown coat of mud and these cars weren't even dirty. I wish I had kept count of just how many I did see but it would be close to 2 dozen and sometimes there were 2 or 3 close by. Yes, I realize the tags were gone but if they ran the VIN number they would find the registered owner. Then ticket them and fine them the cost of removal. A few $1000 fines or 30 days in jail and a suspended driver’s license would get their attention. But then again Whiney Ray wouldn't let that happen.
On a humorous note .. One little town that was almost totally destroyed had this sign posted as you entered .. Chocolate City? Kiss my Ass!
For you Southerners, Jeff Davis' house though damaged withstood the storm when the other antebellum and modern homes were blown away in a cloud of splinters. Long Live the South and our day will come. :)
Paul's Update - 03/27/06
Dear Friends:
Today started a little rocky. Dad arrived to find that the nurses had been very busy this morning and Paul hadn't been dressed or gotten up yet. OT was scheduled for 9:00 am so the therapist helped Dad get Paul ready. She got him in the bathroom and helped him get cleaned up. The therapist got him to take the lid off his deodorant and he (with help) applied it to his underarm. It appeared that his arm felt better today. Speech was at 11:00 am. He blew his whistle today. She attempted to get him to eat pudding but he wouldn't even try to eat it. She had to suction it back out of his mouth. She tried a popsicle and he bit off a chunk and chewed it a bit but wouldn't swallow it. She tried to get him to ring a bell, he could reach it but he couldn't push it fast enough to make it ring. She changed to the buzzer and told him to respond with one buzz for "yes" answers. She asked him "Is your name Paul?" he pushed the buzzer, "Is your dad here?". he pushed it, "are you married?" ... he pushed it. Then she asked him "Do you live in Texas?" he didn't push the button and then "Do you live in Virginia?" and he didn't push the button. This seemed disappointing but then she asked him again "Is your name Paul?" and he pushed the button. She said that she will continue to work on this activity. At 12:00, when speech was done, Dad got him back in the bed to rest before PT. Dad went to lunch and when he came back there were four Fairfax County Police officers at the nurses station. The motor squad had come to visit Paul (he used to do the setups on the Fairfax County Motorcycles). They brought him a ball cap from the Fairfax County Motormen. How cool is that? Dad got a chance to talk to them and told them Paul's story. PT was at 1:00 pm. They got him up to walk and he seemed to do a little better today!! Wednesday the wheelchair company will come to measure Paul for his wheelchair. It will take about 4-6 weeks for the wheelchair to be custom built. The doctor came in and said he will discontinue another medicine (it keeps the food flowing in the right direction to help prevent indigestion) since it causes drowsiness. The changes he has made so far seem to help Paul stay more alert. The remainder of the day was restful but he seemed alert. He spent time watching TV with Dad. He is exhibiting more sounds ... mostly moaning sounds but this is exercise for his vocal cords. The construction company came to the house today and poured the concrete for the ramp. Tabby seemed pleased with the work. Dad will go back to the house to do some more drywall work on Tuesday. I will spend the day with Paul.
Blessings, Lynne & Carl
P.S. I started my physical therapy for my shoulder today and will go a couple of time a week for a while. It seems to feel much better but therapy will loosen up the tendons in my shoulder.
Today started a little rocky. Dad arrived to find that the nurses had been very busy this morning and Paul hadn't been dressed or gotten up yet. OT was scheduled for 9:00 am so the therapist helped Dad get Paul ready. She got him in the bathroom and helped him get cleaned up. The therapist got him to take the lid off his deodorant and he (with help) applied it to his underarm. It appeared that his arm felt better today. Speech was at 11:00 am. He blew his whistle today. She attempted to get him to eat pudding but he wouldn't even try to eat it. She had to suction it back out of his mouth. She tried a popsicle and he bit off a chunk and chewed it a bit but wouldn't swallow it. She tried to get him to ring a bell, he could reach it but he couldn't push it fast enough to make it ring. She changed to the buzzer and told him to respond with one buzz for "yes" answers. She asked him "Is your name Paul?" he pushed the buzzer, "Is your dad here?". he pushed it, "are you married?" ... he pushed it. Then she asked him "Do you live in Texas?" he didn't push the button and then "Do you live in Virginia?" and he didn't push the button. This seemed disappointing but then she asked him again "Is your name Paul?" and he pushed the button. She said that she will continue to work on this activity. At 12:00, when speech was done, Dad got him back in the bed to rest before PT. Dad went to lunch and when he came back there were four Fairfax County Police officers at the nurses station. The motor squad had come to visit Paul (he used to do the setups on the Fairfax County Motorcycles). They brought him a ball cap from the Fairfax County Motormen. How cool is that? Dad got a chance to talk to them and told them Paul's story. PT was at 1:00 pm. They got him up to walk and he seemed to do a little better today!! Wednesday the wheelchair company will come to measure Paul for his wheelchair. It will take about 4-6 weeks for the wheelchair to be custom built. The doctor came in and said he will discontinue another medicine (it keeps the food flowing in the right direction to help prevent indigestion) since it causes drowsiness. The changes he has made so far seem to help Paul stay more alert. The remainder of the day was restful but he seemed alert. He spent time watching TV with Dad. He is exhibiting more sounds ... mostly moaning sounds but this is exercise for his vocal cords. The construction company came to the house today and poured the concrete for the ramp. Tabby seemed pleased with the work. Dad will go back to the house to do some more drywall work on Tuesday. I will spend the day with Paul.
Blessings, Lynne & Carl
P.S. I started my physical therapy for my shoulder today and will go a couple of time a week for a while. It seems to feel much better but therapy will loosen up the tendons in my shoulder.
Sunday, March 26, 2006
Paul's Update - 03/26/06
Dear Friends:
Sundays as you know are pretty quiet. Our day of rest!! Carolyn & Alysa were at the hospital when I got there at about 2:15pm. Dad was at Paul & Tabby's house again today to work on drywall some more. It is coming along very well. Monday will probably be the day that the Construction company is coming to start the forms for the ramp. They promised Tabby that the ramp WILL be done before he comes home on April 6. Paul was awake and alert when I arrived. Since there is no therapy on Sunday we worked a bit on encouraging him to swallow. Carolyn gave him a sponge with some Starburst Fruit Smoothie drink ... (don't tell the speech therapist ... it's a secret ... LOL) He seemed to like it. She tried to put the sponge stick in Paul's left hand to see if he could get it to his mouth by himself. He tried real hard but cannot quite get it to his mouth. He gets within about six inches ... but his arm is still pretty stiff. I spent some time today just moving his left arm in small circular motions. I didn't force it to move enough to hurt and was able to get a little bending movement from the elbow. The exciting part of the day was when I was working to get him to swallow ... I told him to close his mouth and swallow and he closed his lips ... then he stuck his tongue out and licked his bottom lip. This is exciting because the therapist has been working hard to get him to do just that!!! He only did it once but that is a start! Later in the evening we had the TV on and Paul was watching the Ice Skating World Finals (he was indulging me ... LOL) Then I put on the History channel for him. They had a story about Cleopatra and he seemed to be very interested in it. He watched most of the 1/2 hour program. When I left at 9pm he was sleeping. The medicines that he started a few days ago seem to make him more alert and awake most of the day ... hopefully that means that he will sleep all night! Monday I will start physical therapy for my shoulder. Amazingly it feels much better today. Thanks for your prayer!!
Have a great day! Lynne & Carl
Sundays as you know are pretty quiet. Our day of rest!! Carolyn & Alysa were at the hospital when I got there at about 2:15pm. Dad was at Paul & Tabby's house again today to work on drywall some more. It is coming along very well. Monday will probably be the day that the Construction company is coming to start the forms for the ramp. They promised Tabby that the ramp WILL be done before he comes home on April 6. Paul was awake and alert when I arrived. Since there is no therapy on Sunday we worked a bit on encouraging him to swallow. Carolyn gave him a sponge with some Starburst Fruit Smoothie drink ... (don't tell the speech therapist ... it's a secret ... LOL) He seemed to like it. She tried to put the sponge stick in Paul's left hand to see if he could get it to his mouth by himself. He tried real hard but cannot quite get it to his mouth. He gets within about six inches ... but his arm is still pretty stiff. I spent some time today just moving his left arm in small circular motions. I didn't force it to move enough to hurt and was able to get a little bending movement from the elbow. The exciting part of the day was when I was working to get him to swallow ... I told him to close his mouth and swallow and he closed his lips ... then he stuck his tongue out and licked his bottom lip. This is exciting because the therapist has been working hard to get him to do just that!!! He only did it once but that is a start! Later in the evening we had the TV on and Paul was watching the Ice Skating World Finals (he was indulging me ... LOL) Then I put on the History channel for him. They had a story about Cleopatra and he seemed to be very interested in it. He watched most of the 1/2 hour program. When I left at 9pm he was sleeping. The medicines that he started a few days ago seem to make him more alert and awake most of the day ... hopefully that means that he will sleep all night! Monday I will start physical therapy for my shoulder. Amazingly it feels much better today. Thanks for your prayer!!
Have a great day! Lynne & Carl
Kegling Tales -- Day 5
Homeward bound! We took the scenic route up the southeast coast of Texas so we could see the Gulf of Mexico most of the time. What we did see is a lot of Hurricane Rita damage. Several things amazed me today, especially the amount of damage from the "other" hurricane. For every house we saw standing and heavily damaged we saw 7-10 slabs where the original had been. We did not see any house undamaged except for the new ones already built. I didn't realize that from Sabine Pass TX. to where we turned north to go to Lafayette La., some 150 miles, that everything was gone or destroyed. No gas stations, restaurants or businesses. Three little towns we rode through were totally gone. Foley TX. was the heart breaker. I can't recall seeing one structure left except for the new trailers. The trailers were outnumbered 10 to 1 with yards of pilings where the house used to be. Only junk piles and stilts for the house that use to be there. In many cases the residents cleared the slab to park their camping trailer on. The only restrooms we saw were port-a-potties set out every now and then. It made me want to stop and offer some help after seeing the devastation. Barges right up against the road so if I wanted to pull off I couldn't. One house had one of its corners on the edge of the pavement. Numerous cars were half buried and others upside down and half buried. From the high-water marks in many places, I would have been 10' plus under water. Every school we passed was destroyed and one only left the foundation.
But the most dumbfounding part of this? We haven't been bombarded by the media of these peoples plight after Rita. All we have heard is the incessant whining by the pompous mayor and the ingrates of New Orleans. Those people just sit on their rotting porches and wait for FEMA and the Government to come do the work for them. Today, I saw real people out there cleaning, clearing, repairing and replacing what they had lost. I would say take the money and spent it on the Rita survivors and open the levee gates and wash the filth of New Orleans down the Mississippi. Sorry fish!
To those on the Southeast Coast of Texas and Western Louisiana affected by Rita, my hat is off to you and my prayers for a speedy recovery. To those in New Orleans affected by Katrina, Flush it!
Tomorrow we will continue our exodus home and pass through the Mississippi Gulf Coast on Highway 90.
But the most dumbfounding part of this? We haven't been bombarded by the media of these peoples plight after Rita. All we have heard is the incessant whining by the pompous mayor and the ingrates of New Orleans. Those people just sit on their rotting porches and wait for FEMA and the Government to come do the work for them. Today, I saw real people out there cleaning, clearing, repairing and replacing what they had lost. I would say take the money and spent it on the Rita survivors and open the levee gates and wash the filth of New Orleans down the Mississippi. Sorry fish!
To those on the Southeast Coast of Texas and Western Louisiana affected by Rita, my hat is off to you and my prayers for a speedy recovery. To those in New Orleans affected by Katrina, Flush it!
Tomorrow we will continue our exodus home and pass through the Mississippi Gulf Coast on Highway 90.
Paul's Update - 03/25/06
Dear Friends:
Friday was a really bad day for my shoulder but I'm feeling lots better. Thanks for your prayer for me as well as Paul!
Friday was a pretty good day for Paul. At least it started off pretty good. ADL started before Dad got there. She dressed and cleaned him up. He was awake the whole time and was looking up in the mirror while they worked to wash his face and brush his teeth. She managed to get him to spit the water out of his mouth. PT was good as well. He walked with assistance the length of the gym. They also worked to stretch him a little on the table mat. The regular speech therapist had to go out of town because of an illness in the family. A substitute came in that had never seen him. She didn't come in until after Paul had gotten his afternoon medicines. Of course ... he was tired after that. He didn't respond well to the therapist. Since she doesn't know him she was under the impression that he could only do "instinctive" movement. But she asked him to blink his eyes ... he did it which surprised her. He really wasn't interested in therapy at this point so the session was cut short. The doctor came in to see how things are going and was pleased that he had a pretty good day. I came to the hospital a little late in the day. Ronda brought me after we had lunch together. He responded to her when she came into the room. We managed to get a little smile out of him. Some things he really responds to!!
Saturday was a day for Bobby & I to spend with Paul. Dad was at the house helping Tabby and some friends work on the house. More work in the bathroom and kitchen to complete the drywall. Hopefully it will be done in a couple of days and be ready for paint. The ramp outside will be started on either Sunday or Monday. When Bobby & I got to the hospital Paul was dressed and awake. Speech therapy was at 9am. A substitute was in today. She had never worked with Paul but she managed to get him to pick up a ball and put it in a coffee cup (with a little coaching from big brother). He was slow getting started but he finally did it once really good and a second time with much coaching. She got him to blow his whistle about 10 times and he also blew a Kleenex from his face several times. She gave him a little grape popsicle and tried to get him to lick some pudding from his teeth. Mostly this encourages him to move his tongue but I think he really likes to get something that tastes good!! OT was a substitute therapist also. She worked on a table mat to stretch Paul's back, neck, arms and legs. He tolerated most of that well but the left arm causes immediate resistance since it hurts him. She was glad to see that he isn't very stiff and can help and respond to some of the things she was trying to do. There is only two therapy regimens on Saturday so the rest of the day was quiet but Paul was awake most of the day. He seems to tolerate the new medicines much better. Thank goodness!! It is good to see Paul respond a little better.
God Bless, Lynne & Carl
Friday was a really bad day for my shoulder but I'm feeling lots better. Thanks for your prayer for me as well as Paul!
Friday was a pretty good day for Paul. At least it started off pretty good. ADL started before Dad got there. She dressed and cleaned him up. He was awake the whole time and was looking up in the mirror while they worked to wash his face and brush his teeth. She managed to get him to spit the water out of his mouth. PT was good as well. He walked with assistance the length of the gym. They also worked to stretch him a little on the table mat. The regular speech therapist had to go out of town because of an illness in the family. A substitute came in that had never seen him. She didn't come in until after Paul had gotten his afternoon medicines. Of course ... he was tired after that. He didn't respond well to the therapist. Since she doesn't know him she was under the impression that he could only do "instinctive" movement. But she asked him to blink his eyes ... he did it which surprised her. He really wasn't interested in therapy at this point so the session was cut short. The doctor came in to see how things are going and was pleased that he had a pretty good day. I came to the hospital a little late in the day. Ronda brought me after we had lunch together. He responded to her when she came into the room. We managed to get a little smile out of him. Some things he really responds to!!
Saturday was a day for Bobby & I to spend with Paul. Dad was at the house helping Tabby and some friends work on the house. More work in the bathroom and kitchen to complete the drywall. Hopefully it will be done in a couple of days and be ready for paint. The ramp outside will be started on either Sunday or Monday. When Bobby & I got to the hospital Paul was dressed and awake. Speech therapy was at 9am. A substitute was in today. She had never worked with Paul but she managed to get him to pick up a ball and put it in a coffee cup (with a little coaching from big brother). He was slow getting started but he finally did it once really good and a second time with much coaching. She got him to blow his whistle about 10 times and he also blew a Kleenex from his face several times. She gave him a little grape popsicle and tried to get him to lick some pudding from his teeth. Mostly this encourages him to move his tongue but I think he really likes to get something that tastes good!! OT was a substitute therapist also. She worked on a table mat to stretch Paul's back, neck, arms and legs. He tolerated most of that well but the left arm causes immediate resistance since it hurts him. She was glad to see that he isn't very stiff and can help and respond to some of the things she was trying to do. There is only two therapy regimens on Saturday so the rest of the day was quiet but Paul was awake most of the day. He seems to tolerate the new medicines much better. Thank goodness!! It is good to see Paul respond a little better.
God Bless, Lynne & Carl
Saturday, March 25, 2006
Kegling Tales -- Day 4
Well, today was another good day while I didn't roll what I wanted too, I can rest knowing there was many below me. The lanes were tough and forced you to be very accurate. I haven't had so many of those "missed by a hair" in a long time.
I might have done better except keeping track of mom was interesting at the least. She dragged herself back to the room Saturday morning about 1:00 am. Then she slept till 11:00 am. Then to top it off when I ordered ice tea for lunch .. she ordered Long Island ice tea. Hmm, the wild one is letting loose. The rest of the day was spent exploring Corpus Christi. It looks to be a nice town from all that we could see.
I might have done better except keeping track of mom was interesting at the least. She dragged herself back to the room Saturday morning about 1:00 am. Then she slept till 11:00 am. Then to top it off when I ordered ice tea for lunch .. she ordered Long Island ice tea. Hmm, the wild one is letting loose. The rest of the day was spent exploring Corpus Christi. It looks to be a nice town from all that we could see.
Kegling Tales -- Day 3
Well, today was another beautiful day is south Texas. We rode along the coast for a bit looking at the Gulf of Mexico. Lunch was at restaurant built on a barge and tied up in the harbor in Corpus Christi. The food was good and we actually over ate. Bowling was fun but could have been better. As usual the play was slow and that isn't good for me. I like a fast pace so tomorrow's doubles and singles are more suited for me. I seem to score my best in that format. We bowled next to last years winners and it was evident why they won. Oh, to be 25 and full of energy and throw a ball 20+ miles per hour. Also every one of them carried 6 or more bowling balls to use. I did that for a while when I was younger but it is a real pain in the butt dragging 64 pounds of balls up and down the stairs. For now I will settle for 15 miles per hour and listen to the creaks and pops of our old bones. I didn't bowl what I wanted too but I sure had fun with my teammates from California. Also we bowled the late team shift and bowling at Midnight isn't normal. Well, it is 1:30 am and way past time to sleep and I need rest to get ready for tomorrows fun.
Friday, March 24, 2006
Paul's Update - 03/23/06
Dear Friends:
Unfortunately my shoulder has been hurting so bad by the end of the day that I cannot type. It appears that I have tendonitis in my right shoulder and will start physical therapy for that on Monday. So I apologize again for getting this message out late.
Paul had a pretty good day on Thursday. His medicine for muscle relaxing was changed to a new drug. This will hopefully be better and not make him so sleepy. Therapy started later today. Speech was at 11am. It went OK but Paul wasn't very interested in the buzzer machine. She asked him a question that took some thought and he didn't answer with the machine ... after that he wouldn't do it at all. She was able to get him to eat a little popsicle (he always enjoys that). I got to the hospital around 12:30 and Paul was wide awake. He seemed more alert. OT was at 1pm and he did pretty good. She had some trouble getting him started but when she laid him on his left side she got him alert and he was able to move his left arm a bit. He laid on that side for about 10 minutes. PT was at 1pm and the regular therapist worked with the girl that is the "wheelchair expert". She measured Paul while laying on the mat and then she got him in a sitting position so she could measure his upper body, arms & legs. Even though they didn't walk with him ... he got a workout anyway. They needed to have him sit up as tall as he could. That meant stretching his shoulders back & up along with holding his head up. The PT is going to set up an appointment with the wheelchair manufacturer to have a representative come and work with her to get the specs to order a chair. We will probably go home with a rental chair while his chair is being built. It appears that we are all having a little anxiety about the prospect of bringing Paul home. It is a new phase (again!) that we don't feel prepared for. We think Paul will probably do well being in his own environment but there is so much we don't feel prepared for. I'm so thankful for having such great friends & family as our support!! God has certainly provided for our need in that area!
Blessings, Lynne & Carl
Unfortunately my shoulder has been hurting so bad by the end of the day that I cannot type. It appears that I have tendonitis in my right shoulder and will start physical therapy for that on Monday. So I apologize again for getting this message out late.
Paul had a pretty good day on Thursday. His medicine for muscle relaxing was changed to a new drug. This will hopefully be better and not make him so sleepy. Therapy started later today. Speech was at 11am. It went OK but Paul wasn't very interested in the buzzer machine. She asked him a question that took some thought and he didn't answer with the machine ... after that he wouldn't do it at all. She was able to get him to eat a little popsicle (he always enjoys that). I got to the hospital around 12:30 and Paul was wide awake. He seemed more alert. OT was at 1pm and he did pretty good. She had some trouble getting him started but when she laid him on his left side she got him alert and he was able to move his left arm a bit. He laid on that side for about 10 minutes. PT was at 1pm and the regular therapist worked with the girl that is the "wheelchair expert". She measured Paul while laying on the mat and then she got him in a sitting position so she could measure his upper body, arms & legs. Even though they didn't walk with him ... he got a workout anyway. They needed to have him sit up as tall as he could. That meant stretching his shoulders back & up along with holding his head up. The PT is going to set up an appointment with the wheelchair manufacturer to have a representative come and work with her to get the specs to order a chair. We will probably go home with a rental chair while his chair is being built. It appears that we are all having a little anxiety about the prospect of bringing Paul home. It is a new phase (again!) that we don't feel prepared for. We think Paul will probably do well being in his own environment but there is so much we don't feel prepared for. I'm so thankful for having such great friends & family as our support!! God has certainly provided for our need in that area!
Blessings, Lynne & Carl
Thursday, March 23, 2006
Kegling Tales -- Day 2
Well, we made it to CorpusChristi safe and sound. I will attempt to eat dinner after my kidneys stop bouncing. Maybe some Denney's pot roast, mashed potatoes, and gravy will make them feel better. I figure the cowboy's love riding them stinking horses so much they built their roads to bounce them just as much. In Reality, the ride has been great and luckily we haven't seen one accident. But then again, it isn't Friday or saturday night yet either. I do love getting passed by some speed nuts only to pass them a few miles later having a chat with some State Trooper with his pretty lights on. I was even gracious enough to pull over and let them fly by and even gave them a "God Bless you and have a nice day." In Our visit with some old friends in Gonzales Louisianna was great. Seafood at a local favorite resturant and a lot of talk hit the spot. Tomorrow I will start planning the trip home. Maybe we will do some driving along the Gulf Coast to see the storm damage from last year. Oh, and I did see a few cowboys today, errr ... cowgirls, and did they ever fill a mean pair of jeans.
Paul's Update - 03/22/06
Sorry this is late. I've been having problems with my shoulder and wasn't able to type last night.....here is Wednesday's update!
Dear Friends:
Paul's PT was scheduled for 9 a.m. today ... guess when meds came ... 9 a.m. These meds knock him out for about an hour or hour & a half. His PT & OT were cancelled today. This is frustrating since the medicines are interfering with his therapy. Speech went OK at 1pm. The therapist worked with him to cut cookie dough and put it on a cookie sheet. She cooked it for him. Dad didn't think it was right to make cookies and not eat them ... so he gave him a small taste :-) . The doctor said that he is going to do a complete "revamp" of all Paul's meds to see if he can get the right combination and have Paul be more alert and able to function. The meeting of the staff concluded that Paul will be at Mount Vernon until at least April 6. This is good news since we are still trying to get things ready for him to be at home. Thursday therapies will be at 11 am, 1 pm and 3 pm to see if Paul can function better.
Have a good day, Lynne & Carl
Dear Friends:
Paul's PT was scheduled for 9 a.m. today ... guess when meds came ... 9 a.m. These meds knock him out for about an hour or hour & a half. His PT & OT were cancelled today. This is frustrating since the medicines are interfering with his therapy. Speech went OK at 1pm. The therapist worked with him to cut cookie dough and put it on a cookie sheet. She cooked it for him. Dad didn't think it was right to make cookies and not eat them ... so he gave him a small taste :-) . The doctor said that he is going to do a complete "revamp" of all Paul's meds to see if he can get the right combination and have Paul be more alert and able to function. The meeting of the staff concluded that Paul will be at Mount Vernon until at least April 6. This is good news since we are still trying to get things ready for him to be at home. Thursday therapies will be at 11 am, 1 pm and 3 pm to see if Paul can function better.
Have a good day, Lynne & Carl
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
Kegling Tales
Well, the adventure begins. Tonight I am in Gonzales Louisiana and staying with some friends. I made the run from my house to mom's in 14.5 hours. I think that is the best I have ever done it in. And even then it was still tiring. Tomorrow I head for Corpus Christi and get ready to bowl.
Driving today I was able to see some of katrina's mess. Going home I plan to travel US 90 and be right along the coast and the worst of the damage. It reminds me a lot of being at mom's house after Dennis. The damage looks so much the same. Debris is everywhere, damaged buildings where the repair hasn't even started, blue roofs galore and large spaces with FEMA trailers parked in neat little rows. And I passed many road crews cleaning up the highway at a rate of 30 bags of trash per mile.
Don't ever stop in the French Settlement in the heart of cajun country and ask for directions .. you won't understand a word. :)
*****
To the Nationals - Don't trade him, send him to AA ball and let him squallor in the minors till the contract runs out.
Driving today I was able to see some of katrina's mess. Going home I plan to travel US 90 and be right along the coast and the worst of the damage. It reminds me a lot of being at mom's house after Dennis. The damage looks so much the same. Debris is everywhere, damaged buildings where the repair hasn't even started, blue roofs galore and large spaces with FEMA trailers parked in neat little rows. And I passed many road crews cleaning up the highway at a rate of 30 bags of trash per mile.
Don't ever stop in the French Settlement in the heart of cajun country and ask for directions .. you won't understand a word. :)
*****
To the Nationals - Don't trade him, send him to AA ball and let him squallor in the minors till the contract runs out.
Paul's Update - 03/21/06
Dear Friends:
Tuesday was a pretty good day. Paul was awake at 7:30 am when the Occupational Therapist came for ADL. She was able to get him dressed and he helped a little with cleaning his face. He still is having a great deal of pain with his left arm though. The doctor has increased the muscle relaxers and it seems to help with putting his arms down but he has lots of pain when he tries to raise his left arm UP. The therapist didn't like the "test" wheelchair that Paul is using because it put him too high to get up to the sink. It also doesn't have good side or arm supports and he falls from side to side. She is worried that he could fall. We went back to the old wheelchair he was using for now. Sometime this week the Physical Therapist is suppose to work with us and the representative from the wheelchair company to order a chair that is custom fitted for Paul. Speech went OK. The therapist worked to stimulate Paul's mouth and tongue. She also had a new "toy" today. She was able to get a machine that rings a buzzer when to push a button. She asked Paul to push the button once ... then twice and then three times. He was able to successfully do each of these commands. But then she asked him to push once for "yes" and twice for "no". She asked him if he was married and he pushed the button twice ("no"). She asked him if his name was John and he pushed the button three times...?? Dad was wondering if he actually did it right but is having trouble controlling the pushing of the button ... since two and three are the same relationship to each other as one and two (if two was "yes" and three was "no" he got the answers right). Maybe he is ringing it by putting his hand on the buzzer and then he is actually pushing the button purposely only once. We aren't sure but this exercise is worthy of more work!! The Physical therapist had Paul at 1pm and he was tired and his arm was hurting a lot. His face gets really red and he actually holds his breath when he tries to move it. She decided that they wouldn't walk but she worked on standing up for a bit. Dr. Gisolfi came in around 6:30 pm. He was pleased to see Paul's arm is looser but he is puzzled (as are we) that he seems to be in such pain. The X-ray that was taken the other day showed nothing. He will continue to work on the medicines to see if he can find something that helps. Wednesday is "evaluation" day. The doctors, nurses & therapists consult with each other about the patients progress and whether they can expect continued results over the next week. This could mean that Paul might be recommended to go home. We are hoping that they will keep him longer but at least will keep him until March 29th. Tabby is working hard with friends & family to get the house ready. Please pray that it will all come together. God has been so good to us throughout this ordeal. He has provided unexpected benefits through some unwelcome changes along the way. I hope that going home will turn out to be a good thing for Paul's recovery! Have a great day!
Love, Lynne & Carl
Tuesday was a pretty good day. Paul was awake at 7:30 am when the Occupational Therapist came for ADL. She was able to get him dressed and he helped a little with cleaning his face. He still is having a great deal of pain with his left arm though. The doctor has increased the muscle relaxers and it seems to help with putting his arms down but he has lots of pain when he tries to raise his left arm UP. The therapist didn't like the "test" wheelchair that Paul is using because it put him too high to get up to the sink. It also doesn't have good side or arm supports and he falls from side to side. She is worried that he could fall. We went back to the old wheelchair he was using for now. Sometime this week the Physical Therapist is suppose to work with us and the representative from the wheelchair company to order a chair that is custom fitted for Paul. Speech went OK. The therapist worked to stimulate Paul's mouth and tongue. She also had a new "toy" today. She was able to get a machine that rings a buzzer when to push a button. She asked Paul to push the button once ... then twice and then three times. He was able to successfully do each of these commands. But then she asked him to push once for "yes" and twice for "no". She asked him if he was married and he pushed the button twice ("no"). She asked him if his name was John and he pushed the button three times...?? Dad was wondering if he actually did it right but is having trouble controlling the pushing of the button ... since two and three are the same relationship to each other as one and two (if two was "yes" and three was "no" he got the answers right). Maybe he is ringing it by putting his hand on the buzzer and then he is actually pushing the button purposely only once. We aren't sure but this exercise is worthy of more work!! The Physical therapist had Paul at 1pm and he was tired and his arm was hurting a lot. His face gets really red and he actually holds his breath when he tries to move it. She decided that they wouldn't walk but she worked on standing up for a bit. Dr. Gisolfi came in around 6:30 pm. He was pleased to see Paul's arm is looser but he is puzzled (as are we) that he seems to be in such pain. The X-ray that was taken the other day showed nothing. He will continue to work on the medicines to see if he can find something that helps. Wednesday is "evaluation" day. The doctors, nurses & therapists consult with each other about the patients progress and whether they can expect continued results over the next week. This could mean that Paul might be recommended to go home. We are hoping that they will keep him longer but at least will keep him until March 29th. Tabby is working hard with friends & family to get the house ready. Please pray that it will all come together. God has been so good to us throughout this ordeal. He has provided unexpected benefits through some unwelcome changes along the way. I hope that going home will turn out to be a good thing for Paul's recovery! Have a great day!
Love, Lynne & Carl
Paul's Update - 0/20/06
Dear Friends:
Dad & I got to the hospital today about 8:30 today. Paul was wide awake and looked at us when we came in. PT was scheduled for 9am. Over the weekend the nurse had requested that Paul's medicines be administered at 7am instead of 8am. Hopefully this will allow him time to adjust to the drugs in his system prior to PT. He did a little better today than he did on Saturday. He was able to walk about 30 feet today with lots of assistance. He is pretty exhausted from the drugs but he tries. At 10 a.m. the Occupational Therapist came in. She tried to get him to put his left hand to his mouth. The drugs he is getting are suppose to relax his muscles to enable him to use his arms. When she attempted to get his hand to his mouth it caused him a great deal of pain. He groaned and his face became red. She decided to take him to the therapy room and try to stretch his other muscles instead. She worked his arms and shoulders. She laid him on his side and tried to get him to grab a ball. He didn't seem to have much interest in this activity but once she got the ball in his hand he was able to hold onto it. He wouldn't give it to Tabby though ... oh well!! Speech therapy was at 1pm. Dad went with him while Tabby & I stayed to visit with Brandon and his family who had come to visit. Brandon was at Fairfax Hospital at the same time as Paul with a very similar injury. He is doing GREAT and we really enjoyed visiting with him, his mom & his grandparents. Speech was not great today because Paul's arm was really bothering him. She broke off a piece of a popsicle and put it on a spoon to see if he could eat with it. His arm was hurting so much that he wasn't even interested in the popsicle. She worked to exercise his jaw and his tongue. Tomorrow she is going to try to work with some machines that will help Paul communicate by using his hands to push buttons. Tonight Dad asked the doctor to X-ray Paul's elbow to see if there is a reason for all this pain. The doctor also increased the muscle relaxer again today. He feels that Paul's body will eventually get use to the drugs but it is really hard for us to see him be so sleepy much of the time. Since Paul is moving so slowly it looks like most of his rehab will be happening at home ... in about 9 days. As a refresher I will include the webpage that describes the Ranchos Los Amigos scale of recovery for a Coma Patient. Paul is still at about 5-6 on this scale. He does some of the things in each of these levels but not all of them in the higher levels. I will also include a website that describes what a "coma" is. I think this is a very interesting and accurate description of a coma. The article is a little long and wordy but worth reading. It mentions the Glascow Scale and Paul is approximately an 11 on this scale.
Love & Hugs, Lynne & Carl
Dad & I got to the hospital today about 8:30 today. Paul was wide awake and looked at us when we came in. PT was scheduled for 9am. Over the weekend the nurse had requested that Paul's medicines be administered at 7am instead of 8am. Hopefully this will allow him time to adjust to the drugs in his system prior to PT. He did a little better today than he did on Saturday. He was able to walk about 30 feet today with lots of assistance. He is pretty exhausted from the drugs but he tries. At 10 a.m. the Occupational Therapist came in. She tried to get him to put his left hand to his mouth. The drugs he is getting are suppose to relax his muscles to enable him to use his arms. When she attempted to get his hand to his mouth it caused him a great deal of pain. He groaned and his face became red. She decided to take him to the therapy room and try to stretch his other muscles instead. She worked his arms and shoulders. She laid him on his side and tried to get him to grab a ball. He didn't seem to have much interest in this activity but once she got the ball in his hand he was able to hold onto it. He wouldn't give it to Tabby though ... oh well!! Speech therapy was at 1pm. Dad went with him while Tabby & I stayed to visit with Brandon and his family who had come to visit. Brandon was at Fairfax Hospital at the same time as Paul with a very similar injury. He is doing GREAT and we really enjoyed visiting with him, his mom & his grandparents. Speech was not great today because Paul's arm was really bothering him. She broke off a piece of a popsicle and put it on a spoon to see if he could eat with it. His arm was hurting so much that he wasn't even interested in the popsicle. She worked to exercise his jaw and his tongue. Tomorrow she is going to try to work with some machines that will help Paul communicate by using his hands to push buttons. Tonight Dad asked the doctor to X-ray Paul's elbow to see if there is a reason for all this pain. The doctor also increased the muscle relaxer again today. He feels that Paul's body will eventually get use to the drugs but it is really hard for us to see him be so sleepy much of the time. Since Paul is moving so slowly it looks like most of his rehab will be happening at home ... in about 9 days. As a refresher I will include the webpage that describes the Ranchos Los Amigos scale of recovery for a Coma Patient. Paul is still at about 5-6 on this scale. He does some of the things in each of these levels but not all of them in the higher levels. I will also include a website that describes what a "coma" is. I think this is a very interesting and accurate description of a coma. The article is a little long and wordy but worth reading. It mentions the Glascow Scale and Paul is approximately an 11 on this scale.
Love & Hugs, Lynne & Carl
Monday, March 20, 2006
Paul's Update - 03/19/06
Dear Friends:
Sundays are pretty quiet. Dad & I went to church this morning and then went to Paul & Tabby's house after. There was a lot of folks already there to work on the house. There was concrete work and drywall work in the bathroom to be done. The ramp outside the basement door still has quite a bit of work to be done this week. Although much still needs to be done we are grateful that it is getting done!! We arrived at the hospital this afternoon around 3 pm. Paul was awake but still looked pretty sleepy. Since there was no therapy today we let him have a restful day. Dad exercised his arms a bit. He is a bit more limber but are still somewhat stiff. The muscle relaxers seem to help even though they make him sleepy! When we went out for dinner the nurse's aid came in and gave Paul a shower & washed his hair. I know he felt better...he likes his showers! Tabby didn't get there until about 8:15pm. She stays a lot later than anyone else and the nurses don't really mind. Monday will be another busy day. PT starts at 9am, OT is at 10am & speech is at 1pm. Have a Blessed Day!
Love, Lynne & Carl
Sundays are pretty quiet. Dad & I went to church this morning and then went to Paul & Tabby's house after. There was a lot of folks already there to work on the house. There was concrete work and drywall work in the bathroom to be done. The ramp outside the basement door still has quite a bit of work to be done this week. Although much still needs to be done we are grateful that it is getting done!! We arrived at the hospital this afternoon around 3 pm. Paul was awake but still looked pretty sleepy. Since there was no therapy today we let him have a restful day. Dad exercised his arms a bit. He is a bit more limber but are still somewhat stiff. The muscle relaxers seem to help even though they make him sleepy! When we went out for dinner the nurse's aid came in and gave Paul a shower & washed his hair. I know he felt better...he likes his showers! Tabby didn't get there until about 8:15pm. She stays a lot later than anyone else and the nurses don't really mind. Monday will be another busy day. PT starts at 9am, OT is at 10am & speech is at 1pm. Have a Blessed Day!
Love, Lynne & Carl
Saturday, March 18, 2006
Paul's Update - 03/18/06
Dear Friends:
I have been having lots of problems with my email account. Please bear with me and let me know if you are missing any updates that I can forward to you when I resolve these problems. Today started out so much better. The nurse gave Paul his medicines at 7:30 am and by 9 am when the speech therapist came in he was awake and able to participate. She put some chocolate pudding in his mouth behind his front teeth. He was able to retrieve it with his tongue from there and eat it. He wouldn't get his tongue past his teeth. She also let him bite into a popsicle. He took much too big a bite and she had to get it back out of his mouth. He did swallow better with small pieces of popsicle. She worked to message his tongue and cheeks. PT was at 1:30 today. The same girl that worked with him yesterday was there again today. She is apparently the person at Mount Vernon that orders wheelchairs for patients and she spent a bit of time showing Dad & Me the types of wheelchairs she would recommend for Paul. In the world of wheelchairs ... these were Cadillacs! She wants to order a customer fitted wheelchair for him so he will have the maximum amount of comfort and adaptability to his needs. Once she was done showing us the options she wanted to make sure Paul had an opportunity to walk today. He walked about 20 feet today. Not one of his best days since he was pretty tired by then. Most of the day he was tired but he was awake most of the day. By tonight he was perked up and was watching TV when we left. He managed a smile when I joked with him about Dad saying "WE like the history channel"!! Best of all ... I got a kiss before leaving! Much work was being done at Paul & Tabby's house today. Many of the men from the church came over along with friends & family to work on the ramp to the basement door and start the work on the bathroom. They also worked to make the basement more open and accessible by modifying the wall in the middle of the basement. Thanks from us to all those who helped!! Sunday will be a quiet day ... no therapy! Have a great day!
Love, Lynne & Carl
I have been having lots of problems with my email account. Please bear with me and let me know if you are missing any updates that I can forward to you when I resolve these problems. Today started out so much better. The nurse gave Paul his medicines at 7:30 am and by 9 am when the speech therapist came in he was awake and able to participate. She put some chocolate pudding in his mouth behind his front teeth. He was able to retrieve it with his tongue from there and eat it. He wouldn't get his tongue past his teeth. She also let him bite into a popsicle. He took much too big a bite and she had to get it back out of his mouth. He did swallow better with small pieces of popsicle. She worked to message his tongue and cheeks. PT was at 1:30 today. The same girl that worked with him yesterday was there again today. She is apparently the person at Mount Vernon that orders wheelchairs for patients and she spent a bit of time showing Dad & Me the types of wheelchairs she would recommend for Paul. In the world of wheelchairs ... these were Cadillacs! She wants to order a customer fitted wheelchair for him so he will have the maximum amount of comfort and adaptability to his needs. Once she was done showing us the options she wanted to make sure Paul had an opportunity to walk today. He walked about 20 feet today. Not one of his best days since he was pretty tired by then. Most of the day he was tired but he was awake most of the day. By tonight he was perked up and was watching TV when we left. He managed a smile when I joked with him about Dad saying "WE like the history channel"!! Best of all ... I got a kiss before leaving! Much work was being done at Paul & Tabby's house today. Many of the men from the church came over along with friends & family to work on the ramp to the basement door and start the work on the bathroom. They also worked to make the basement more open and accessible by modifying the wall in the middle of the basement. Thanks from us to all those who helped!! Sunday will be a quiet day ... no therapy! Have a great day!
Love, Lynne & Carl
Paul's Update - 03/17/06
Dear Friends:
Paul was awake and smiling when Dad got there this morning. The nurse came in to give Paul his medicines at 8:50. OT was scheduled for 9am. They came to get him and took him to the therapy room but by 9:15 he was sound asleep. They couldn't wake him so they took him back to his room and put him back in the bed. The nurse checked his BP ... it was low but not dangerously low. The speech therapist came at 10am. He was awake by then and she was able to work with him. When she came she had two lollipops. She let him pick which one he wanted. She worked for about 30 minutes trying to get him to stick his tongue out. He was getting it out almost as far as his teeth but that wasn't what she was going for. She also worked to exercise his facial muscles. All this was done from his bed but he stayed awake during all of her session. PT was at 1pm today. They worked to stretch his muscles a bit. They rolled him on his stomach he didn't like that at all. They used the walker again today and he walked about 30 feet. The physical therapist today was a substitute from the regular girl. This girl is also the person that orders custom wheelchairs for patients!! She told Dad that she will be ordering a wheelchair that will be specially designed for Paul. That should make things nicer for him when he gets home! After therapy Dad rolled him on his side in the bed. He slept for a couple of hours on his side ... he likes being on his side. Dad talked to the doctor later in the day. He is going to adjust the medications again. He may adjust the time that he is to get meds to make it so Paul isn't medicated just before the therapy times. Maybe he can function for therapy!! Paul had a few times during the day that he appeared to be "blue". Tabby wasn't there today and it appears that he really misses her when she isn't there. Dad left early tonight so we could go out to dinner with some very dear friends. It was a nice opportunity but Dad had a hard time leaving Paul with nobody there. Saturday will be "work day" at Paul & Tabby's house. Since Paul will probably come home on March 29th it is important that the house be ready either this weekend or next. Thankfully, lots of people have volunteered to come and help! Enjoy your weekend.
Lynne & Carl
Paul was awake and smiling when Dad got there this morning. The nurse came in to give Paul his medicines at 8:50. OT was scheduled for 9am. They came to get him and took him to the therapy room but by 9:15 he was sound asleep. They couldn't wake him so they took him back to his room and put him back in the bed. The nurse checked his BP ... it was low but not dangerously low. The speech therapist came at 10am. He was awake by then and she was able to work with him. When she came she had two lollipops. She let him pick which one he wanted. She worked for about 30 minutes trying to get him to stick his tongue out. He was getting it out almost as far as his teeth but that wasn't what she was going for. She also worked to exercise his facial muscles. All this was done from his bed but he stayed awake during all of her session. PT was at 1pm today. They worked to stretch his muscles a bit. They rolled him on his stomach he didn't like that at all. They used the walker again today and he walked about 30 feet. The physical therapist today was a substitute from the regular girl. This girl is also the person that orders custom wheelchairs for patients!! She told Dad that she will be ordering a wheelchair that will be specially designed for Paul. That should make things nicer for him when he gets home! After therapy Dad rolled him on his side in the bed. He slept for a couple of hours on his side ... he likes being on his side. Dad talked to the doctor later in the day. He is going to adjust the medications again. He may adjust the time that he is to get meds to make it so Paul isn't medicated just before the therapy times. Maybe he can function for therapy!! Paul had a few times during the day that he appeared to be "blue". Tabby wasn't there today and it appears that he really misses her when she isn't there. Dad left early tonight so we could go out to dinner with some very dear friends. It was a nice opportunity but Dad had a hard time leaving Paul with nobody there. Saturday will be "work day" at Paul & Tabby's house. Since Paul will probably come home on March 29th it is important that the house be ready either this weekend or next. Thankfully, lots of people have volunteered to come and help! Enjoy your weekend.
Lynne & Carl
Friday, March 17, 2006
When Will The Madness Stop?
Well, three days till I head for Nationals. After a year of waiting the time is here. In some ways I am starting to get pumped up for the tournament. I am still adjusting to not having dad around anymore. It is amazing just how many things bring back memories. In my mind, moving to Tortola, British Virgin Islands sure looks good from where I stand!
Better 1/2 - Having some tests done Monday at Ft. Belvoir.
#1 - Still awaiting information back for his hearing waiver.
#2 - Still looking.
Bubbles - Enjoys the pay but wishes for more work or rather more exciting work.
Jessi - doing well on her GED test.
Jaci – is doing fine now with her pregnancy but she bears watching and careful attention to the child.
This week we had a cabbie try and run over a policeman and then not stop for others who were in pursuit. At the hearing he just wanted to know what the fine was and he stated he couldn't understand the seriousness or uproar caused by what he did. This man has already been convicted for three felony assault charges. Come on, this guy should have been exported on the first Al Qaeda boat home. It seems that sometimes if you are a minority you get to live by a different set of rules.
Here is a good excuse to get out of jury duty. (P=Person J=Judge)
P: I don't understand English well enough and I need to be excused.
J: "Do you read English"
P: No
J: What is your occupation?
P: Letter Carrier
J: You don't understand English and can't read but you deliver our mail? You’re excused.
Looks like someone got hired just to meet a quota! Can't wait for the first deaf and blind traffic cop to direct traffic at some local intersection.
How many more 18 month babies need to be sexually abused before we as a human race get serious and stop these monsters? Unless we get serious and make the penalty so harsh they will continue to exploit the young and innocent. For me, blindness, castration, and amputation of the hands would be a good start.
Well, the “media crowned winner” of the World baseball Classic has lost. It is laughable as they said, "if we played our normal game we would have won, but they (Mexico) came up with a few good plays and won.” Hasn't anyone in the media been watching as the other world teams are beating our "Super Teams" on a regular basis now? Just look at how bad our "Super Olympic" team did!
Better 1/2 - Having some tests done Monday at Ft. Belvoir.
#1 - Still awaiting information back for his hearing waiver.
#2 - Still looking.
Bubbles - Enjoys the pay but wishes for more work or rather more exciting work.
Jessi - doing well on her GED test.
Jaci – is doing fine now with her pregnancy but she bears watching and careful attention to the child.
This week we had a cabbie try and run over a policeman and then not stop for others who were in pursuit. At the hearing he just wanted to know what the fine was and he stated he couldn't understand the seriousness or uproar caused by what he did. This man has already been convicted for three felony assault charges. Come on, this guy should have been exported on the first Al Qaeda boat home. It seems that sometimes if you are a minority you get to live by a different set of rules.
Here is a good excuse to get out of jury duty. (P=Person J=Judge)
P: I don't understand English well enough and I need to be excused.
J: "Do you read English"
P: No
J: What is your occupation?
P: Letter Carrier
J: You don't understand English and can't read but you deliver our mail? You’re excused.
Looks like someone got hired just to meet a quota! Can't wait for the first deaf and blind traffic cop to direct traffic at some local intersection.
How many more 18 month babies need to be sexually abused before we as a human race get serious and stop these monsters? Unless we get serious and make the penalty so harsh they will continue to exploit the young and innocent. For me, blindness, castration, and amputation of the hands would be a good start.
Well, the “media crowned winner” of the World baseball Classic has lost. It is laughable as they said, "if we played our normal game we would have won, but they (Mexico) came up with a few good plays and won.” Hasn't anyone in the media been watching as the other world teams are beating our "Super Teams" on a regular basis now? Just look at how bad our "Super Olympic" team did!
Thursday, March 16, 2006
Paul's Update - 03/16/06
Dear Friends:
Today was our family meeting. God is always good and has answered our prayers yet again! The meeting was mostly positive. The doctor that Dad spoke to the other day had a taped message that was pretty "factual" but described the injury to Paul's brain and what typical effects are with these kinds of injuries. She felt he would have trouble with talking (if he ever talks), difficulty doing problem solving or decision making, control with his body which would impede his walking or using his hands, possibly even his vision. Her outlook was that it would be probably years of recovery. The PT, OT and Speech therapists had a slightly more optimistic look at things although they also believe that Paul has a VERY long road of recovery ahead. The case manager and the attending physician were also there. The doctor described the whole thing as a "family injury". His spin is that we are now in the "management" phase of his injury as opposed to the "intervention" phase that we were in at Fairfax Hospital. All agreed that Paul will need lots of help and encouragement for a very long time. The case manager talked about the kinds of support, financial aid and medical supplies that would be available to Paul now that he will be covered by Medicaid. It appears that we will probably be taking him home around March 29th (as long as Medicaid will OK him staying until then). After he comes home he will be eligible for "home care" help until he is able to do outpatient therapy. Prior to going home the hospital staff will work to instruct us on caring for his needs & medications. As for Paul's day ... we got to the hospital around 8:30 and found the OT working with Paul in the bathroom to brush his teeth and wash his face. She said that when she came in the room this morning he smiled at her and was ready to help her getting started. He helped with putting his shirt on and was ready to get out of bed. While she was working with him the nurse came in and gave his medicines to him. It took about 20 minutes for the meds to begin to "zap" him. After that he was exhausted. At 9 am the physical therapist came in and got him into the wheelchair to go downstairs for PT. She got him up to walk with the walker. She had a helper today and it was a good thing because Paul wasn't able to help much. He couldn't even hold his head up. He was able to take several steps with some assistance but it was not his best workout. The family meeting was at 11am so Paul had some rest time while we were gone. The Speech therapist today was a substitute since the regular girl was off today. She was able to get Paul to open his mouth and she worked to stimulate his mouth and tongue. She gave him a cherry popsicle and worked to get him to stick his tongue out of his mouth to lick it. She tried several times unsuccessfully but finally he DID IT!! She worked to get him to lick the popsicle TEN times!!! She promised him a lollipop tomorrow!! Paul slept most of the day but tonight he was moving a lot and he was able to get BOTH of his hands almost to his chin at the same time!! He has mastered getting the right hand there but he works much harder with the left hand. Tomorrow the doctor will adjust the time that the medicine will be administered. Maybe that will enable him to get through therapy before he is exhausted!! Saturday will be a big "work day". It looks like we have some family & friends coming to help. The ramp going to the basement door will be installed & the bathroom will be getting a new tub (there currently isn't one there). We are so thankful for the willingness of people to come and help!
Have a great day, Lynne & Carl
Today was our family meeting. God is always good and has answered our prayers yet again! The meeting was mostly positive. The doctor that Dad spoke to the other day had a taped message that was pretty "factual" but described the injury to Paul's brain and what typical effects are with these kinds of injuries. She felt he would have trouble with talking (if he ever talks), difficulty doing problem solving or decision making, control with his body which would impede his walking or using his hands, possibly even his vision. Her outlook was that it would be probably years of recovery. The PT, OT and Speech therapists had a slightly more optimistic look at things although they also believe that Paul has a VERY long road of recovery ahead. The case manager and the attending physician were also there. The doctor described the whole thing as a "family injury". His spin is that we are now in the "management" phase of his injury as opposed to the "intervention" phase that we were in at Fairfax Hospital. All agreed that Paul will need lots of help and encouragement for a very long time. The case manager talked about the kinds of support, financial aid and medical supplies that would be available to Paul now that he will be covered by Medicaid. It appears that we will probably be taking him home around March 29th (as long as Medicaid will OK him staying until then). After he comes home he will be eligible for "home care" help until he is able to do outpatient therapy. Prior to going home the hospital staff will work to instruct us on caring for his needs & medications. As for Paul's day ... we got to the hospital around 8:30 and found the OT working with Paul in the bathroom to brush his teeth and wash his face. She said that when she came in the room this morning he smiled at her and was ready to help her getting started. He helped with putting his shirt on and was ready to get out of bed. While she was working with him the nurse came in and gave his medicines to him. It took about 20 minutes for the meds to begin to "zap" him. After that he was exhausted. At 9 am the physical therapist came in and got him into the wheelchair to go downstairs for PT. She got him up to walk with the walker. She had a helper today and it was a good thing because Paul wasn't able to help much. He couldn't even hold his head up. He was able to take several steps with some assistance but it was not his best workout. The family meeting was at 11am so Paul had some rest time while we were gone. The Speech therapist today was a substitute since the regular girl was off today. She was able to get Paul to open his mouth and she worked to stimulate his mouth and tongue. She gave him a cherry popsicle and worked to get him to stick his tongue out of his mouth to lick it. She tried several times unsuccessfully but finally he DID IT!! She worked to get him to lick the popsicle TEN times!!! She promised him a lollipop tomorrow!! Paul slept most of the day but tonight he was moving a lot and he was able to get BOTH of his hands almost to his chin at the same time!! He has mastered getting the right hand there but he works much harder with the left hand. Tomorrow the doctor will adjust the time that the medicine will be administered. Maybe that will enable him to get through therapy before he is exhausted!! Saturday will be a big "work day". It looks like we have some family & friends coming to help. The ramp going to the basement door will be installed & the bathroom will be getting a new tub (there currently isn't one there). We are so thankful for the willingness of people to come and help!
Have a great day, Lynne & Carl
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
Paul's Update - 03/15/06
Dear Friends:
I am back from my sister's house today. I have to apologize if for some reason you haven't been receiving my emails for the last two weeks. Since I was away I was unable to use my own computer to access the internet or use my Outlook account where all the email addresses I've been sending to are kept. If you are interested in finding out what happened over the last two weeks, let me know and I can resend the letters I sent out while I was away. Today was a pretty good day but it started out with a bit of a scare. Paul had OT first thing this morning after the nurse came in and gave him his medicines. Once they got to the therapy room Paul was having difficulty getting started. He continued to have difficulty ... not only doing the therapy but just staying AWAKE!! The therapist was concerned and they took him back to the nurses station where they took his blood pressure. It was 80/50. This is WAY too low!!! The doctor immediately ordered a CT and some blood tests to make sure there was nothing serious. He told Dad that he had increased Paul's muscle relaxers but he wasn't sure that was the problem. Once the results from the tests came back clear the doctor decided that it WAS indeed the medicine. He has decreased the dose back to what it was yesterday and will leave it there for now. We are relieved of course ... and Paul has done so well the last week that we don't truly understand why the meds were increased. PT got cancelled because of the testing. Speech therapy went OK. He ate some popsicle. She put the popsicle stick in his hand and he put it to his mouth and took a bite then took the stick back out of his own mouth. He took too big a bit though and the therapist decided that was too dangerous and so she will feed him for a while longer. They did a little peanut butter again. He did OK with it but he didn't stick his tongue out to lick it off his lips. She continues to stimulate his tongue with a stick that massages it. She is still concerned that he is not controlling his swallowing more than 50% of the time so he cannot be given real foods yet. We continue to get responses from him that are so rewarding. Tonight Tabby was telling Paul about an incident with his brother (she tattled on him!!). As soon as she told him about the incident ... he smiled. I said "you know something...but you aren't going to rat on him are you?". He shook his head with a definite "NO". Bobby's secret is safe!! LOL Tomorrow we will all be at the hospital ... all 6 of us. The family meeting is scheduled for 11 am. All of the doctors and therapists are suppose to give a report of what they believe Paul's status & outlook for the future is. The doctors have been pessimistic about Paul's prognosis for recovery right from the beginning. We are (and always have been) aware that he has a LONG recovery ahead of him. God has shown us miracle after miracle throughout this ordeal and we expect Him to do more for Paul than anyone can predict! Thanks for your continued prayer ... we will need it to hear the "predictions" of the "professionals".
Love & Hugs, Lynne & Carl
I am back from my sister's house today. I have to apologize if for some reason you haven't been receiving my emails for the last two weeks. Since I was away I was unable to use my own computer to access the internet or use my Outlook account where all the email addresses I've been sending to are kept. If you are interested in finding out what happened over the last two weeks, let me know and I can resend the letters I sent out while I was away. Today was a pretty good day but it started out with a bit of a scare. Paul had OT first thing this morning after the nurse came in and gave him his medicines. Once they got to the therapy room Paul was having difficulty getting started. He continued to have difficulty ... not only doing the therapy but just staying AWAKE!! The therapist was concerned and they took him back to the nurses station where they took his blood pressure. It was 80/50. This is WAY too low!!! The doctor immediately ordered a CT and some blood tests to make sure there was nothing serious. He told Dad that he had increased Paul's muscle relaxers but he wasn't sure that was the problem. Once the results from the tests came back clear the doctor decided that it WAS indeed the medicine. He has decreased the dose back to what it was yesterday and will leave it there for now. We are relieved of course ... and Paul has done so well the last week that we don't truly understand why the meds were increased. PT got cancelled because of the testing. Speech therapy went OK. He ate some popsicle. She put the popsicle stick in his hand and he put it to his mouth and took a bite then took the stick back out of his own mouth. He took too big a bit though and the therapist decided that was too dangerous and so she will feed him for a while longer. They did a little peanut butter again. He did OK with it but he didn't stick his tongue out to lick it off his lips. She continues to stimulate his tongue with a stick that massages it. She is still concerned that he is not controlling his swallowing more than 50% of the time so he cannot be given real foods yet. We continue to get responses from him that are so rewarding. Tonight Tabby was telling Paul about an incident with his brother (she tattled on him!!). As soon as she told him about the incident ... he smiled. I said "you know something...but you aren't going to rat on him are you?". He shook his head with a definite "NO". Bobby's secret is safe!! LOL Tomorrow we will all be at the hospital ... all 6 of us. The family meeting is scheduled for 11 am. All of the doctors and therapists are suppose to give a report of what they believe Paul's status & outlook for the future is. The doctors have been pessimistic about Paul's prognosis for recovery right from the beginning. We are (and always have been) aware that he has a LONG recovery ahead of him. God has shown us miracle after miracle throughout this ordeal and we expect Him to do more for Paul than anyone can predict! Thanks for your continued prayer ... we will need it to hear the "predictions" of the "professionals".
Love & Hugs, Lynne & Carl
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
Paul's Update - 03/14/06
Dear Friends:
Paul had another great day. He is more alert this week than he has been. He still struggles with some things like swallowing and responding regularly but he seems to understand most of the things that he is asked or told. OT worked a little late this morning so that the two therapists could work together. They worked on standing and leaning on the exercise table to balance himself. The physical therapist was surprised today when Paul leaned forward and prepared to stand by himself. They haven't really seen him do this since they usually stop him when he leans forward to prevent him from falling (which he never does!). Speech wasn't as good today as yesterday. They tried the peanut butter again. He didn't lick his lips but he was able to get the PB off his teeth and into his mouth. After he got it in his mouth he couldn't seem to swallow it. The therapist asked him if he was tired and he nodded "yes". Then she asked him if he wasn't swallowing because he was tired ... he shook his head "no". He really has not been doing well with responses since he came to Mount Vernon so this is an improvement from the last several weeks. His setback with meds affected him in many ways ... this is one of them! The new meds seem to keep him so much more alert and able to do his therapy. Dad had an encounter with a Psychiatrist today that cannot be at our family meeting on Thursday. She showed him a model of the brain and tried to explain the injury Paul has to his brain. She wasn't very encouraging (but we've heard that before). She encouraged us to have a network of friends!! Imagine that!! LOL If she only knew how much support we have had. She did say she believes that he will have YEARS of recovery ... IF he ever recovers. We certainly believe that he WILL recover ... and we will keep on believing! God has answered so many of our prayers along the way. Thursday's meeting should prove to be interesting ... I hope we are prepared emotionally for the things that could be said that day. Please pray for our strength to hear beyond some of what I expect to be negative outlooks! We certainly appreciate the prayer and strength we get from you!
Have a great day, Lynne & Carl
Paul had another great day. He is more alert this week than he has been. He still struggles with some things like swallowing and responding regularly but he seems to understand most of the things that he is asked or told. OT worked a little late this morning so that the two therapists could work together. They worked on standing and leaning on the exercise table to balance himself. The physical therapist was surprised today when Paul leaned forward and prepared to stand by himself. They haven't really seen him do this since they usually stop him when he leans forward to prevent him from falling (which he never does!). Speech wasn't as good today as yesterday. They tried the peanut butter again. He didn't lick his lips but he was able to get the PB off his teeth and into his mouth. After he got it in his mouth he couldn't seem to swallow it. The therapist asked him if he was tired and he nodded "yes". Then she asked him if he wasn't swallowing because he was tired ... he shook his head "no". He really has not been doing well with responses since he came to Mount Vernon so this is an improvement from the last several weeks. His setback with meds affected him in many ways ... this is one of them! The new meds seem to keep him so much more alert and able to do his therapy. Dad had an encounter with a Psychiatrist today that cannot be at our family meeting on Thursday. She showed him a model of the brain and tried to explain the injury Paul has to his brain. She wasn't very encouraging (but we've heard that before). She encouraged us to have a network of friends!! Imagine that!! LOL If she only knew how much support we have had. She did say she believes that he will have YEARS of recovery ... IF he ever recovers. We certainly believe that he WILL recover ... and we will keep on believing! God has answered so many of our prayers along the way. Thursday's meeting should prove to be interesting ... I hope we are prepared emotionally for the things that could be said that day. Please pray for our strength to hear beyond some of what I expect to be negative outlooks! We certainly appreciate the prayer and strength we get from you!
Have a great day, Lynne & Carl
Monday, March 13, 2006
Paul's Update - 03/13/06
Dear Friends:
Well ... Mom has all her stuff in her new home. The truck came about 8:30am and was there until about 1:30 PM. Mom, Ann & I are pretty tired but we got lots of stuff done to organize the house today.
Paul had a great day. PT started early this morning. The therapist got him to walk with the walker about 60 feet total (in three shifts of walking and resting). The occupational therapist worked on rolling over and getting up on his knees. She also worked with balancing himself. The speech therapist worked on chewing and swallowing more today. She also worked with exercising his tongue. She decided to try an experiment with Peanut Butter. She put some on his lips and he actually got his tongue out of his mouth and to his lips to LICK IT OFF!!! This is very significant since she hasn't been able to get him to stick his tongue out at all! It was a beautiful day so Dad took Paul outside. They saw some horses across the road from the hospital. Paul's wheelchair had a "flat" (the rubber came off the wheel) ... Dad thought he was going to have to call for a "wheelchair tow truck" LOL. He got it fixed though! The new medicine that Paul is taking makes him so much more alert. He was awake most of the day. We are excited that he seems more alert and is working so hard. On a scale of miles he is doing inches but we are so happy to have it! God is working on him each day. His injury was so severe and it is going to take such a long time (and has already!) but we are grateful for improvements each day! Have a great day!!
Love, Lynne & Carl
Well ... Mom has all her stuff in her new home. The truck came about 8:30am and was there until about 1:30 PM. Mom, Ann & I are pretty tired but we got lots of stuff done to organize the house today.
Paul had a great day. PT started early this morning. The therapist got him to walk with the walker about 60 feet total (in three shifts of walking and resting). The occupational therapist worked on rolling over and getting up on his knees. She also worked with balancing himself. The speech therapist worked on chewing and swallowing more today. She also worked with exercising his tongue. She decided to try an experiment with Peanut Butter. She put some on his lips and he actually got his tongue out of his mouth and to his lips to LICK IT OFF!!! This is very significant since she hasn't been able to get him to stick his tongue out at all! It was a beautiful day so Dad took Paul outside. They saw some horses across the road from the hospital. Paul's wheelchair had a "flat" (the rubber came off the wheel) ... Dad thought he was going to have to call for a "wheelchair tow truck" LOL. He got it fixed though! The new medicine that Paul is taking makes him so much more alert. He was awake most of the day. We are excited that he seems more alert and is working so hard. On a scale of miles he is doing inches but we are so happy to have it! God is working on him each day. His injury was so severe and it is going to take such a long time (and has already!) but we are grateful for improvements each day! Have a great day!!
Love, Lynne & Carl
Sunday, March 12, 2006
Paul's Update - 03/12/06
Dear Friends:
I am now in South Carolina. At least here I have computer access (ughh)!! Mom's moving truck comes first thing Monday morning. She is a little nervous and she is sad to leave her home of 28 years but I think she is anxious to start setting up her new home. Paul is having better and better days. Tabby spent some time with him today. He was sleeping when she arrived but he was alert when he woke. She told him that she is thinking about being at the hospital Monday for therapy. When asked if he wanted her there (even though she is TOUGHER than the therapists!!) he gave a definate head nod "yes". She plans to be there and talk to the therapist about being a little more agressive since he has responded very well in the past to the agressive approach. When the nurse came in today to get him into the bed they started to scoot him from the wheelchair to the bed. Tabby reminded her that he can "help" by standing up and transferring to the bed. Once in the bed he actually helped by supporting himself in a sitting position while they changed his shirt back to the hospital gown. He has great trunk strength. This is the week that we will have the "family meeting". Thursday is the day. We hope to find out what the doctors & therapists about Paul's progress. He seems to be responding very well since the new medicines. He now has a new muscle relaxer and a medicine that is in the same family as Ritalin that helps to stimulate him and give him more energy to do therapy. We aren't seeing the reaction to these medicines that the last ones had (thank God!!) Dad will be back at the hospital probably on Monday. He and Bill will be home from Florida around midnight Sunday! Soon we will all be back to our routines.
Love & Hugs, Lynne & Carl
I am now in South Carolina. At least here I have computer access (ughh)!! Mom's moving truck comes first thing Monday morning. She is a little nervous and she is sad to leave her home of 28 years but I think she is anxious to start setting up her new home. Paul is having better and better days. Tabby spent some time with him today. He was sleeping when she arrived but he was alert when he woke. She told him that she is thinking about being at the hospital Monday for therapy. When asked if he wanted her there (even though she is TOUGHER than the therapists!!) he gave a definate head nod "yes". She plans to be there and talk to the therapist about being a little more agressive since he has responded very well in the past to the agressive approach. When the nurse came in today to get him into the bed they started to scoot him from the wheelchair to the bed. Tabby reminded her that he can "help" by standing up and transferring to the bed. Once in the bed he actually helped by supporting himself in a sitting position while they changed his shirt back to the hospital gown. He has great trunk strength. This is the week that we will have the "family meeting". Thursday is the day. We hope to find out what the doctors & therapists about Paul's progress. He seems to be responding very well since the new medicines. He now has a new muscle relaxer and a medicine that is in the same family as Ritalin that helps to stimulate him and give him more energy to do therapy. We aren't seeing the reaction to these medicines that the last ones had (thank God!!) Dad will be back at the hospital probably on Monday. He and Bill will be home from Florida around midnight Sunday! Soon we will all be back to our routines.
Love & Hugs, Lynne & Carl
Saturday, March 11, 2006
Paul's Update - 03/11/06
Note: Due to unexpected difficulties related to the fact that mom is traveling and the apparent fact that hotel owners in Georgia still believe the internet is the underwear portion of a pair of swim trunks. Bobby will be composing tonight's e-mail.
This morning came earlier than a workday morning. Paul's first therapy started at 9am, so we had to leave by 7:30 (to compensate for the caffine and crissandwich stop essential to our mission). I may not know much, but I do know that 7 o'clock looks a lot better in the evening (where it belongs) than it does in the morning. Paul's schedule had him slated for Speech therapy at 9, and physical therapy at 1:30. Arriving at the hospital around 8:40 we found Paul dressed and ready to go. He looked really good this morning. Speech therapy concentrated on swallowing today, so he got to eat an entire popsicle. His therapist tried to get him to use his left arm (because he seems to be stronger with that one) and he seemed to do pretty well for the most part. He was able to hold the popsicle, but wasn't quite able to get it all the way to his mouth. He would lean his head towards it, while still trying to bring his arm up and she would assist him once he couldn't get it any further. He did okay for the most part, swallowing most of it, but he still managed to make a bit of a mess around his mouth. She got a washcloth and asked him to use it to clean off his face. She put the washcloth in his left hand and he got it close to his mouth, but not quite far enough to do any actual washing. Then he kinda shocked us. He raised his right hand (the weaker arm that he doesn't move very often) all the way up to his face and touched his thumb to his ear! He then ran the thumb down his jawline to his lips and looked up at us (almost like he was trying to figure out where his beard went). This is exciting because it seems to show some awareness. He didn't seem to be in a noise-making (talking) mood today, and his therapist didn't really push him that hard on it. He didn't really do much exciting during PT (physical therapy). They practiced standing and sitting, and he seemed to do okay, but required assistance to do them. He did rub his face with his right hand again during PT. After that we went outside. We toured the garden they have outside the main lobby, sat in the sun for a bit and enjoyed the breeze. We stayed outside for about a half an hour or so, and went back in 'cause he was looking kind of tired. Around 6 this evening I decided to head down to the cafeteria for dinner (the food is great here, by the way) so I told Paul I'd be back in 15-20 minutes and headed down. I met a guy who was recently paralyzed from the waist down and started shooting the breeze with him. Before I knew it, I had been gone an hour and a half. I raced back upstairs and found Paul halfway out of bed. He had kicked his blanket off and had both his legs hanging off the right side (remember, his weaker side) and had slid down the bed a little. He was really just one good roll-over away from being out of the bed, on the floow. His face was really red and he looked pretty angry. I felt so bad for leaving him that long. I got some nurses and we got him back into bed. I spent the last hour apologizing for being gone for so long. All in all, He looked really good today. He seemed to be alert , he got to eat ice cream, and go outside. I'd say we had a pretty good day. Thanks again to everybody, for your thoughts and prayers. Keep 'em coming' 'cuz they seem to be workin'.
Love, Bobby
This morning came earlier than a workday morning. Paul's first therapy started at 9am, so we had to leave by 7:30 (to compensate for the caffine and crissandwich stop essential to our mission). I may not know much, but I do know that 7 o'clock looks a lot better in the evening (where it belongs) than it does in the morning. Paul's schedule had him slated for Speech therapy at 9, and physical therapy at 1:30. Arriving at the hospital around 8:40 we found Paul dressed and ready to go. He looked really good this morning. Speech therapy concentrated on swallowing today, so he got to eat an entire popsicle. His therapist tried to get him to use his left arm (because he seems to be stronger with that one) and he seemed to do pretty well for the most part. He was able to hold the popsicle, but wasn't quite able to get it all the way to his mouth. He would lean his head towards it, while still trying to bring his arm up and she would assist him once he couldn't get it any further. He did okay for the most part, swallowing most of it, but he still managed to make a bit of a mess around his mouth. She got a washcloth and asked him to use it to clean off his face. She put the washcloth in his left hand and he got it close to his mouth, but not quite far enough to do any actual washing. Then he kinda shocked us. He raised his right hand (the weaker arm that he doesn't move very often) all the way up to his face and touched his thumb to his ear! He then ran the thumb down his jawline to his lips and looked up at us (almost like he was trying to figure out where his beard went). This is exciting because it seems to show some awareness. He didn't seem to be in a noise-making (talking) mood today, and his therapist didn't really push him that hard on it. He didn't really do much exciting during PT (physical therapy). They practiced standing and sitting, and he seemed to do okay, but required assistance to do them. He did rub his face with his right hand again during PT. After that we went outside. We toured the garden they have outside the main lobby, sat in the sun for a bit and enjoyed the breeze. We stayed outside for about a half an hour or so, and went back in 'cause he was looking kind of tired. Around 6 this evening I decided to head down to the cafeteria for dinner (the food is great here, by the way) so I told Paul I'd be back in 15-20 minutes and headed down. I met a guy who was recently paralyzed from the waist down and started shooting the breeze with him. Before I knew it, I had been gone an hour and a half. I raced back upstairs and found Paul halfway out of bed. He had kicked his blanket off and had both his legs hanging off the right side (remember, his weaker side) and had slid down the bed a little. He was really just one good roll-over away from being out of the bed, on the floow. His face was really red and he looked pretty angry. I felt so bad for leaving him that long. I got some nurses and we got him back into bed. I spent the last hour apologizing for being gone for so long. All in all, He looked really good today. He seemed to be alert , he got to eat ice cream, and go outside. I'd say we had a pretty good day. Thanks again to everybody, for your thoughts and prayers. Keep 'em coming' 'cuz they seem to be workin'.
Love, Bobby
Friday, March 10, 2006
Paul's Update - 03/09/06
Dear Friends:
Paul seems more and more alert each day. He seems to grin a lot lately. At PT Dad told therapist that yesterday was the first day Paul knew about his motorcycle being totaled and that Paul had always wanted a Street Bob ... however, Tabby wants touring bike. He joked that if Paul wanted to get a different bike he needed to do it a different way ... Paul got a big smirk on his face ... at least he can laugh about it! Therapy went even better today ... Paul walked about the same distance as yesterday but he seemed to do it even better. They worked more with standing also. He kept mouth closed and was swallowing pretty good during therapy but he was pretty exhausted afterward. The Speech Therapist had him eat about 1/2 a Popsicle. She is still concerned that he is only swallowing about 60% of the time and that isn't good enough to get more foods yet. Dad talked to the doctor and asked if anyone had ever done an xray of Paul's nose. It is crooked and he was wondering if that makes it hard for Paul to breathe through his nose. Evidently there were hundreds of xrays of Paul's head but not one of his nose. The doctor decided it was worth taking some pictures just to make sure there are no problems that were overlooked. We should have some results on that Friday. At OT they attempted to get Paul to roll onto his stomach but he resisted that a lot since it puts a lot of pressure on his arms. The therapist wanted to work with him on an exercise ball but the feeding tube is in the way so they just worked on the table mat and rolled from side to side. Tonight was shower night. As they were getting ready to bathe him Dad told Paul "I love you" and Paul looked at him and blew him a kiss! What a blessing! According to the social worker at the hospital we will need to be preparing for Paul to come home on or about the 29th of March. We aren't sure if this is an accurate date or if it could possibly be sooner ... we think it depends on the therapists evaluations each week. Tabby is working hard to get the house ready!! Bobby missed out on his time with Paul today because he had to work but Dad is leaving to take a trip with our friend Bill to Florida over the weekend so Bobby will plan to come up on Saturday and stay with Paul that day instead! Friday is my Mom's moving day. The truck will come to her house between 8-9am. It looks like we will leave Tennessee on Saturday or Sunday. Her goods will be in South Carolina on Monday. Please keep all of us that are traveling this weekend in your prayers.
Love,
Lynne & Carl
Paul seems more and more alert each day. He seems to grin a lot lately. At PT Dad told therapist that yesterday was the first day Paul knew about his motorcycle being totaled and that Paul had always wanted a Street Bob ... however, Tabby wants touring bike. He joked that if Paul wanted to get a different bike he needed to do it a different way ... Paul got a big smirk on his face ... at least he can laugh about it! Therapy went even better today ... Paul walked about the same distance as yesterday but he seemed to do it even better. They worked more with standing also. He kept mouth closed and was swallowing pretty good during therapy but he was pretty exhausted afterward. The Speech Therapist had him eat about 1/2 a Popsicle. She is still concerned that he is only swallowing about 60% of the time and that isn't good enough to get more foods yet. Dad talked to the doctor and asked if anyone had ever done an xray of Paul's nose. It is crooked and he was wondering if that makes it hard for Paul to breathe through his nose. Evidently there were hundreds of xrays of Paul's head but not one of his nose. The doctor decided it was worth taking some pictures just to make sure there are no problems that were overlooked. We should have some results on that Friday. At OT they attempted to get Paul to roll onto his stomach but he resisted that a lot since it puts a lot of pressure on his arms. The therapist wanted to work with him on an exercise ball but the feeding tube is in the way so they just worked on the table mat and rolled from side to side. Tonight was shower night. As they were getting ready to bathe him Dad told Paul "I love you" and Paul looked at him and blew him a kiss! What a blessing! According to the social worker at the hospital we will need to be preparing for Paul to come home on or about the 29th of March. We aren't sure if this is an accurate date or if it could possibly be sooner ... we think it depends on the therapists evaluations each week. Tabby is working hard to get the house ready!! Bobby missed out on his time with Paul today because he had to work but Dad is leaving to take a trip with our friend Bill to Florida over the weekend so Bobby will plan to come up on Saturday and stay with Paul that day instead! Friday is my Mom's moving day. The truck will come to her house between 8-9am. It looks like we will leave Tennessee on Saturday or Sunday. Her goods will be in South Carolina on Monday. Please keep all of us that are traveling this weekend in your prayers.
Love,
Lynne & Carl
Thursday, March 09, 2006
Chuckles and a few Head shakes - II
Well, another weekend and another Florida run to take care of business. It seems the week is a blur of actitvity as I try and catch up on some of the projects. Luckily I haven't run into any walls as I try and catch up.
Last week I received a video clip of a Muslim lady disputing some Muslim Clerics. The points she brought out were hard hitting and straight to the point. Too bad since now the Clerics in order to quiet her will eliminate her as a heretic. If you are interested in hearing her words here is the URL .
#1 - is still doing paperwork and such for the Army.
#2 - Well, old habits are hard to break.
Jessi - still proud and amazed at how far she has come with her life. Who would have thought!
Jacqui - had a small scare when she started to go into labor at 7 months. The doctors got it under control and she is home resting now.
Congrats to Donna (co-worker) who got engaged last Saturday. Someone pinch her and wake her up before the real damage is done.
Where does it end with these high paid Athletes? The ticket prices still keep getting raised ever higher. Before you know it with the cost of the ticket, a beer, hotdog and some chips you will need $100 per person. And that is for a regular season game! Last fall it cost the two of us almost $100 to see the Orioles and Red Sox play at Camden Yards and that didn't include transportation costs.
I love the one commentator today on the local radio that said "there seems to be a negative feeling towards the Muslims by the average American." He made that observation while talking about the Congress siding with the voters against the President on the Dubai Port Management Issue. Well excuse me but I think we have endured enough to warrant that. Heaven knows the average Muslim has done diddly squat to protest or stop what they call is a minor faction that causes trouble and doesn't represent the majority. In this case their silence is a tacit approval of what is going own. I do believe if a group of people from any religion in the U.S. does that and they will get stopped quickly if not wiped out.
Pakistani support for hunting Bin Laden is a joke. They have a grand scheme of sucking off aid money while going through the motions of hunting that man down. Hey, I will hunt for him is I could get $50 Million in aid.
If Iran wants to go nuclear, then let’s help them. They can be the site of the next nuclear test. One cruise missile in downtown Tehran and see how many buildings it will light up.
I enjoyed seeing my new real estate tax bill. The lowered the tax rate 5% but jumped my assessment 25%. How did I ever miss that math class? No wonder I didn't get the high paying jobs in Corporate America. Tonight for home work I will solve the equation if I can.
Last week I received a video clip of a Muslim lady disputing some Muslim Clerics. The points she brought out were hard hitting and straight to the point. Too bad since now the Clerics in order to quiet her will eliminate her as a heretic. If you are interested in hearing her words here is the URL .
#1 - is still doing paperwork and such for the Army.
#2 - Well, old habits are hard to break.
Jessi - still proud and amazed at how far she has come with her life. Who would have thought!
Jacqui - had a small scare when she started to go into labor at 7 months. The doctors got it under control and she is home resting now.
Congrats to Donna (co-worker) who got engaged last Saturday. Someone pinch her and wake her up before the real damage is done.
Where does it end with these high paid Athletes? The ticket prices still keep getting raised ever higher. Before you know it with the cost of the ticket, a beer, hotdog and some chips you will need $100 per person. And that is for a regular season game! Last fall it cost the two of us almost $100 to see the Orioles and Red Sox play at Camden Yards and that didn't include transportation costs.
I love the one commentator today on the local radio that said "there seems to be a negative feeling towards the Muslims by the average American." He made that observation while talking about the Congress siding with the voters against the President on the Dubai Port Management Issue. Well excuse me but I think we have endured enough to warrant that. Heaven knows the average Muslim has done diddly squat to protest or stop what they call is a minor faction that causes trouble and doesn't represent the majority. In this case their silence is a tacit approval of what is going own. I do believe if a group of people from any religion in the U.S. does that and they will get stopped quickly if not wiped out.
Pakistani support for hunting Bin Laden is a joke. They have a grand scheme of sucking off aid money while going through the motions of hunting that man down. Hey, I will hunt for him is I could get $50 Million in aid.
If Iran wants to go nuclear, then let’s help them. They can be the site of the next nuclear test. One cruise missile in downtown Tehran and see how many buildings it will light up.
I enjoyed seeing my new real estate tax bill. The lowered the tax rate 5% but jumped my assessment 25%. How did I ever miss that math class? No wonder I didn't get the high paying jobs in Corporate America. Tonight for home work I will solve the equation if I can.
Wednesday, March 08, 2006
Paul's Update - 03/08/06
Dear Friends:
It seems every day is so different lately. Today was the last day of the muscle relaxers that the doctor had put Paul on in an effort to relax his arms and shoulders. Since this medicine was causing him to be sleepy and confused they have decided to start a different kind of medicine to do the same thing ... hopefully it won't have the same side effects! The doctor also decided to stop the blood thinners that Paul has been taking. It appears that Paul is not really much of a risk for blood clots any more. PT today went even better than yesterday. Paul is walking a little better and with a little less assistance. The therapist still has to help him a bit with the right foot but he is trying to work it as best he can. OT was done by a substitute today, the regular girl was not there. They worked to stretch his arms and shoulders a bit. Speech worked on the chewing and swallowing again. He is having a bit of difficulty with the swallowing. He holds the liquids in his mouth until they go down on their own. This causes a possibility of liquid going down his windpipe. She can't start him on any more foods until he can swallow successfully. She also worked to get him to control his chewing action. She had him open his mouth and allow her to touch his tongue without chewing. She was somewhat successful at that but it took a little work. He listens to what she says but he has a hard time controlling it. We found out from the social worker at the hospital that the health insurance has now ended for Paul. He will be covered by Medicaid from now on. Today was stressful for Paul. It appears that Paul became aware that his motorcycle has been totalled. This seems to have made him very upset and made him cry again. Dad tried to cheer him up. How difficult it must be to realize you are in a place you don't want to be and then realize how that came about. That's not even mentioning the fact that he lost something he really enjoyed. It breaks our hearts to see this emotion ... even if it is a good thing. Dad & Bobby are spending the day with Paul on Thursday. Bobby enjoys spending time with Paul and doesn't get enough these days. I think Paul will be blessed to have his brother there! Our family has been quite a blessing for each other. No wonder God puts so much importance on family! We have quite an extended family in our friends as well. Thanks for being a part of our family!!
Love & Hugs,
Lynne & Carl
It seems every day is so different lately. Today was the last day of the muscle relaxers that the doctor had put Paul on in an effort to relax his arms and shoulders. Since this medicine was causing him to be sleepy and confused they have decided to start a different kind of medicine to do the same thing ... hopefully it won't have the same side effects! The doctor also decided to stop the blood thinners that Paul has been taking. It appears that Paul is not really much of a risk for blood clots any more. PT today went even better than yesterday. Paul is walking a little better and with a little less assistance. The therapist still has to help him a bit with the right foot but he is trying to work it as best he can. OT was done by a substitute today, the regular girl was not there. They worked to stretch his arms and shoulders a bit. Speech worked on the chewing and swallowing again. He is having a bit of difficulty with the swallowing. He holds the liquids in his mouth until they go down on their own. This causes a possibility of liquid going down his windpipe. She can't start him on any more foods until he can swallow successfully. She also worked to get him to control his chewing action. She had him open his mouth and allow her to touch his tongue without chewing. She was somewhat successful at that but it took a little work. He listens to what she says but he has a hard time controlling it. We found out from the social worker at the hospital that the health insurance has now ended for Paul. He will be covered by Medicaid from now on. Today was stressful for Paul. It appears that Paul became aware that his motorcycle has been totalled. This seems to have made him very upset and made him cry again. Dad tried to cheer him up. How difficult it must be to realize you are in a place you don't want to be and then realize how that came about. That's not even mentioning the fact that he lost something he really enjoyed. It breaks our hearts to see this emotion ... even if it is a good thing. Dad & Bobby are spending the day with Paul on Thursday. Bobby enjoys spending time with Paul and doesn't get enough these days. I think Paul will be blessed to have his brother there! Our family has been quite a blessing for each other. No wonder God puts so much importance on family! We have quite an extended family in our friends as well. Thanks for being a part of our family!!
Love & Hugs,
Lynne & Carl
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
Paul's Update - 03/07/06
Dear Friends:
Today was a much better day. Paul seems more interested in working with the therapists. Dad also said that he is responding to him when he calls his name ... he wasn't doing that for the last week or so. The day started with ADL (activities for daily living). They work to get him to do daily hygiene things ... like washing his face and brushing his teeth. He doesn't do these things very well without lots of help yet. The therapist that does ADL is the same as OT. Dad was telling her that he felt Paul really did well after the rolling exercise they did yesterday so she is going to work some more on that on Wednesday. Speech went really well. The therapist is working to get him to chew and swallow better. She is going to try to find out some better techniques encourage him. She asked him if he wanted some ice cream. He barely nods his head for "yes" but she said that wasn't acceptable since only Dad recognizes it. She wants him to work harder on nodding his head more significantly. He was allowed to have a couple of bites of strawberry ice cream. PT went real well also. They worked to stand and walk again today. After dad got his hand open Paul initiated the movement to stand up and they helped him the rest of the way. He walked for a while and then sat for a while. Overall he was able to walk about half the distance of the therapy room. He does real well with his left foot but they have to help him a bit with the right foot still. The staff Doctor checked in today to see how Paul was doing now that the muscle relaxers have been decreased. We are now convinced that the problem was indeed the medicines! Thank goodness. The CT that was done on Sunday came back OK. Apparently Wednesday is the day that the doctor gets together with all of the therapists to analyze each patients status and progress. I would love to be a "fly on the wall" for that!! I hope they will see that he is making progress. Tabby is working hard to get the house ready. She is getting lots of help from friends and family. What a blessing that is for all of us! Hopefully we won't be bringing him home for at least the next few weeks but at least the house is in the process of being ready.
Today was a much better day. Paul seems more interested in working with the therapists. Dad also said that he is responding to him when he calls his name ... he wasn't doing that for the last week or so. The day started with ADL (activities for daily living). They work to get him to do daily hygiene things ... like washing his face and brushing his teeth. He doesn't do these things very well without lots of help yet. The therapist that does ADL is the same as OT. Dad was telling her that he felt Paul really did well after the rolling exercise they did yesterday so she is going to work some more on that on Wednesday. Speech went really well. The therapist is working to get him to chew and swallow better. She is going to try to find out some better techniques encourage him. She asked him if he wanted some ice cream. He barely nods his head for "yes" but she said that wasn't acceptable since only Dad recognizes it. She wants him to work harder on nodding his head more significantly. He was allowed to have a couple of bites of strawberry ice cream. PT went real well also. They worked to stand and walk again today. After dad got his hand open Paul initiated the movement to stand up and they helped him the rest of the way. He walked for a while and then sat for a while. Overall he was able to walk about half the distance of the therapy room. He does real well with his left foot but they have to help him a bit with the right foot still. The staff Doctor checked in today to see how Paul was doing now that the muscle relaxers have been decreased. We are now convinced that the problem was indeed the medicines! Thank goodness. The CT that was done on Sunday came back OK. Apparently Wednesday is the day that the doctor gets together with all of the therapists to analyze each patients status and progress. I would love to be a "fly on the wall" for that!! I hope they will see that he is making progress. Tabby is working hard to get the house ready. She is getting lots of help from friends and family. What a blessing that is for all of us! Hopefully we won't be bringing him home for at least the next few weeks but at least the house is in the process of being ready.
God Bless,Lynne & Carl
Monday, March 06, 2006
Paul's Update - 03/06/06
Dear Friends:
Today was a much better day than we've had for several days. The staff doctor came in to see Dad this morning and they talked about how Paul was exhausted all the time and sleeping most of the day. According to the doctor the muscle relaxers that they started last week have a side effect of drowsiness and can cause the patient to be confused. The medicine will be slowly decreased over the next three days to eliminate them. Paul started the day not interested in doing much but the Occupational Therapist and an assistant came and they worked to get him to roll over to his stomach. He resisted quite a bit but they got him to do it. He rested on his elbows while the therapist counted to 15 then rested on his side for a couple minutes. They repeated this exercise three times while he held his head up! This workout seemed to wake him up quite a bit. Speech therapy was OK. They worked a little more on swallowing and he got to have a little popsicle. The therapist showed Dad an exercise to help strengthen his neck muscles. After speech they went back to the room and Paul rested for a bit until the Physical Therapist came around 1pm. They worked a little at the bench to stand and sit. They did that three or four times. He actually started trying to get up on his own without encouragement. They got a walker out and tried to have him stand and hold it. Dad had to work his hands from a clenched fist to hold onto the handle but once he did that Paul was able to take about 3 steps (with help). After he sat down Dad said he saw a little bit of a smile on his face. He seemed proud of himself!! The end of the day contained quite a large development ... When Dad went to put Paul's boot on tonight he got really MAD! He was clenching his fist and trying to push the boot off with his left foot. His face got real red. Dad said he hadn't seen him that mad about anything for a long time. Tabby came in just as Dad was going home. Shortly after she got there he started CRYING!!!! TEARS!! Coming down his face. Oh my Gosh!! I never thought I'd be glad to see that kind of emotion! Maybe we will begin to see him try to communicate more soon! God gave us another miracle today ... just when we needed it! The last couple of days have been very discouraging for us ... every once in a while we just need to be reminded that God isn't finished with Paul's healing yet but that he is still working on it!! Have a blessed day!!
Love, Lynne & Carl
Today was a much better day than we've had for several days. The staff doctor came in to see Dad this morning and they talked about how Paul was exhausted all the time and sleeping most of the day. According to the doctor the muscle relaxers that they started last week have a side effect of drowsiness and can cause the patient to be confused. The medicine will be slowly decreased over the next three days to eliminate them. Paul started the day not interested in doing much but the Occupational Therapist and an assistant came and they worked to get him to roll over to his stomach. He resisted quite a bit but they got him to do it. He rested on his elbows while the therapist counted to 15 then rested on his side for a couple minutes. They repeated this exercise three times while he held his head up! This workout seemed to wake him up quite a bit. Speech therapy was OK. They worked a little more on swallowing and he got to have a little popsicle. The therapist showed Dad an exercise to help strengthen his neck muscles. After speech they went back to the room and Paul rested for a bit until the Physical Therapist came around 1pm. They worked a little at the bench to stand and sit. They did that three or four times. He actually started trying to get up on his own without encouragement. They got a walker out and tried to have him stand and hold it. Dad had to work his hands from a clenched fist to hold onto the handle but once he did that Paul was able to take about 3 steps (with help). After he sat down Dad said he saw a little bit of a smile on his face. He seemed proud of himself!! The end of the day contained quite a large development ... When Dad went to put Paul's boot on tonight he got really MAD! He was clenching his fist and trying to push the boot off with his left foot. His face got real red. Dad said he hadn't seen him that mad about anything for a long time. Tabby came in just as Dad was going home. Shortly after she got there he started CRYING!!!! TEARS!! Coming down his face. Oh my Gosh!! I never thought I'd be glad to see that kind of emotion! Maybe we will begin to see him try to communicate more soon! God gave us another miracle today ... just when we needed it! The last couple of days have been very discouraging for us ... every once in a while we just need to be reminded that God isn't finished with Paul's healing yet but that he is still working on it!! Have a blessed day!!
Love, Lynne & Carl
Saturday, March 04, 2006
Paul's Update - 03/04/06
Today was probably the worst day for Paul in a long time. He isn't interested in doing anything. He doesn't cooperate with the therapists or respond to much of anything we ask him. Although he does some things very well and appears to know us there are lots of times that he doesn't respond to things the way he was a little over a week ago. Dad said he held his head up a little better today but it was a struggle to get him to stand up when PT came. We are a little concerned that Paul isn't feeling well. Tabby asked the doctor to move up the CAT scan that was scheduled for Wednesday. So we will be doing that on Sunday. We are a little concerned that there may be a problem with the shunt again. The CAT scan can tell us whether or not there is something to worry about. Since Paul has been so non-responsive and sleeping so much there is reason to think it needs to be looked at. Sunday is a quiet day anyway … no therapy. If it isn't a shunt problem at least Paul will be able to rest for the day. Thanks for your continued prayer. We pray that Paul's doctor will have great wisdom in determining whether there is a problem hindering his recovery!
Blessings, Lynne & Carl
Blessings, Lynne & Carl
Paul's Update - 03/03/06
Dear Friends:
I am away for the next two weeks to help my mother get moved from Tennessee to South Carolina. I will attempt to keep you as updated as I can by passing on the information I get each day. Dad got to the hospital early this morning to be there in time for the ADL "activities for daily living". Paul wasn't very cooperative today ... he seems to be very stubborn lately. The doctor came in early and took out the trach. Yahoo! He placed a small bandage over the hole and he said that the hole will close up in a few days. Now he can take showers on a regular basis ... he got one today!! Dad took the opportunity to ask the doctor when he thinks the blood thinners will be discontinued. This would make it much easier for when we take him home (less meds!!). The doctor said he wanted to think about it but he said that in a spinal cord injury patient (who are less mobile than Paul) the risk for blood clots is significantly decreased after three months. They are no more at risk than you or me! I suspect he will discontinue the blood thinner within the next couple of days. The PT session today was mostly time on a tilt table. She raised him to an angle that would apply weight to his feet and legs without standing alone. She wants to be able to increase his weight bearing endurance without causing too much exhaustion or pain to his foot. Speech therapy went well. Paul was able to take ice chips and crunch them for the therapist. She tried to get him to make sounds but he refused. She tried to get him to count with her. She would count 1-2-3 and move his fingers as she counted. Then she counted 1-2-3 and HE moved his fingers as she counted!! Dad talked with the physical therapist today and inquired if she thought Paul would be able to get six weeks of therapy. She said she didn't know but now that medicaid will be paying the bill there is a weekly evaluation that will happen to determine if Paul is progressing to the next level of recovery. If he doesn't progress they will recommend that he be discharged because if Medicaid notes that he has hit a plateau in his recovery they will refuse to pay for him to continue therapy. Evidently him crunching on ice and eating a popsicle could be good enough for this week ... I guess it doesn't take much but each level of recovery becomes more difficult to achieve and he is moving pretty slowly. Tabby has now begun to prepare their home to bring him there. She has cleaned out the spare room in their basement and is preparing to rehab their bathroom. It doesn't have a bathtub so she has a friend that will install one for them. Many things will need to be done over the next couple of weeks for him to be able to go there. She has started working hard to be ready! I pray that we will get all the right resourses and education to be ready to help him at home!! Have a great weekend!
Love & Hugs; Lynne (in SC) & Carl (at home)
I am away for the next two weeks to help my mother get moved from Tennessee to South Carolina. I will attempt to keep you as updated as I can by passing on the information I get each day. Dad got to the hospital early this morning to be there in time for the ADL "activities for daily living". Paul wasn't very cooperative today ... he seems to be very stubborn lately. The doctor came in early and took out the trach. Yahoo! He placed a small bandage over the hole and he said that the hole will close up in a few days. Now he can take showers on a regular basis ... he got one today!! Dad took the opportunity to ask the doctor when he thinks the blood thinners will be discontinued. This would make it much easier for when we take him home (less meds!!). The doctor said he wanted to think about it but he said that in a spinal cord injury patient (who are less mobile than Paul) the risk for blood clots is significantly decreased after three months. They are no more at risk than you or me! I suspect he will discontinue the blood thinner within the next couple of days. The PT session today was mostly time on a tilt table. She raised him to an angle that would apply weight to his feet and legs without standing alone. She wants to be able to increase his weight bearing endurance without causing too much exhaustion or pain to his foot. Speech therapy went well. Paul was able to take ice chips and crunch them for the therapist. She tried to get him to make sounds but he refused. She tried to get him to count with her. She would count 1-2-3 and move his fingers as she counted. Then she counted 1-2-3 and HE moved his fingers as she counted!! Dad talked with the physical therapist today and inquired if she thought Paul would be able to get six weeks of therapy. She said she didn't know but now that medicaid will be paying the bill there is a weekly evaluation that will happen to determine if Paul is progressing to the next level of recovery. If he doesn't progress they will recommend that he be discharged because if Medicaid notes that he has hit a plateau in his recovery they will refuse to pay for him to continue therapy. Evidently him crunching on ice and eating a popsicle could be good enough for this week ... I guess it doesn't take much but each level of recovery becomes more difficult to achieve and he is moving pretty slowly. Tabby has now begun to prepare their home to bring him there. She has cleaned out the spare room in their basement and is preparing to rehab their bathroom. It doesn't have a bathtub so she has a friend that will install one for them. Many things will need to be done over the next couple of weeks for him to be able to go there. She has started working hard to be ready! I pray that we will get all the right resourses and education to be ready to help him at home!! Have a great weekend!
Love & Hugs; Lynne (in SC) & Carl (at home)
Friday, March 03, 2006
Marking Time
Well, I am home now and trying to sort everything out after being away for 2+ weeks. It is amazing how the paperwork piles up in such a short time. The worst pile is the bills. Why can't we bury them never to rise again?
Mom - adjusting and trying to finish up her own pile of paperwork. She is looking forward to journeying with me to Corpus Christie later this month.
#1 - Is in Baltimore doing all the stuff to join the Army. he makes me proud and I believe he is making the right move for this point in his life.
#2 - May have a job and we will find out soon. Maybe the winds of change are finally blowing our way.
Jessi - looking forward to getting married soon. Dinner last night was a lot of fun.
Jacqui - starting to look every bit the part of mother seven months pregnant. She was also there with her husband and we had a great time talking about the baby and their life.
Lou - one word sums it up -- growing, well four words -- growing like a weed.
National Tournament -- I bowl on the 24th and the 25th. I most likely will travel 21-24 and 26-28.
Roleplay has been almost nonexistant for a while now. But the pressure cooker lid is rattling as it comes up to operating pressure. Maybe I could drop about 6 new segmants that have been in work for a while now!
Let the games begin ........
Mom - adjusting and trying to finish up her own pile of paperwork. She is looking forward to journeying with me to Corpus Christie later this month.
#1 - Is in Baltimore doing all the stuff to join the Army. he makes me proud and I believe he is making the right move for this point in his life.
#2 - May have a job and we will find out soon. Maybe the winds of change are finally blowing our way.
Jessi - looking forward to getting married soon. Dinner last night was a lot of fun.
Jacqui - starting to look every bit the part of mother seven months pregnant. She was also there with her husband and we had a great time talking about the baby and their life.
Lou - one word sums it up -- growing, well four words -- growing like a weed.
National Tournament -- I bowl on the 24th and the 25th. I most likely will travel 21-24 and 26-28.
Roleplay has been almost nonexistant for a while now. But the pressure cooker lid is rattling as it comes up to operating pressure. Maybe I could drop about 6 new segmants that have been in work for a while now!
Let the games begin ........
Paul's Update - 03/02/06
Dear Friends:
Well ... not a great day. Paul was pretty tired most of the day. He wasn't much interested in OT this morning. The therapist tried to get him to respond to her but he just refused. She decided to try to brush his teeth and she asked Dad if Paul could spit. He told her we don't really know if he can so she took a little water and gave it to him. Well ... he took it alright ... and the SWALLOWED it!! LOL He really isn't suppose to have water yet since he has the trach but he did OK with it! Speaking of the trach ... the doctor came in this morning and said that since Paul has done real well with the plug in the trach for the last two days and nights he plans to come in on Friday and take it out. This is great news! One more piece of hardware will go away. PT went a little better. The therapist put Paul's wheelchair in front of a bench that can be raised up to waist height. She had him put his hands and arms on the table and try to stand himself up. Once standing he was able to stand for a little and then sit back down. Speech was at 1pm and it was the best. He made a little sound with encouragement. Then the therapist tried to give Paul a little taste of a popsicle. He really liked it and ate about 3/4 of it by spoon. He even used his left hand to feed himself with the spoon. Today was a little discouraging for us. The social worker talked to Dad today and she told him she didn't think we would be able to get the full six weeks of therapy we were hoping for. She wants us to start preparing for when he will be discharged ... things like where he will go and what we will need for his new environment. She did seem to think he would still be there until at least after the family meeting that is scheduled for March 16th. The hospital does weekly evaluations of each patient and makes decisions based on whether they are progressing to the next level of recovery. If they don't progress then they recommend discharge. We are praying that they will see enough improvement to keep him there at least four weeks Unfortunately it appears that we are helpless in this situation AGAIN!! We still believe Paul will recover ... God has brought him this far and won't abandon him ... but the hospital holds all the cards!! Please continue to pray ... God has worked out other situations that seemed bad to us ... maybe this will be a blessing in disguise! Have a great Friday!
Love, Lynne & Carl
Well ... not a great day. Paul was pretty tired most of the day. He wasn't much interested in OT this morning. The therapist tried to get him to respond to her but he just refused. She decided to try to brush his teeth and she asked Dad if Paul could spit. He told her we don't really know if he can so she took a little water and gave it to him. Well ... he took it alright ... and the SWALLOWED it!! LOL He really isn't suppose to have water yet since he has the trach but he did OK with it! Speaking of the trach ... the doctor came in this morning and said that since Paul has done real well with the plug in the trach for the last two days and nights he plans to come in on Friday and take it out. This is great news! One more piece of hardware will go away. PT went a little better. The therapist put Paul's wheelchair in front of a bench that can be raised up to waist height. She had him put his hands and arms on the table and try to stand himself up. Once standing he was able to stand for a little and then sit back down. Speech was at 1pm and it was the best. He made a little sound with encouragement. Then the therapist tried to give Paul a little taste of a popsicle. He really liked it and ate about 3/4 of it by spoon. He even used his left hand to feed himself with the spoon. Today was a little discouraging for us. The social worker talked to Dad today and she told him she didn't think we would be able to get the full six weeks of therapy we were hoping for. She wants us to start preparing for when he will be discharged ... things like where he will go and what we will need for his new environment. She did seem to think he would still be there until at least after the family meeting that is scheduled for March 16th. The hospital does weekly evaluations of each patient and makes decisions based on whether they are progressing to the next level of recovery. If they don't progress then they recommend discharge. We are praying that they will see enough improvement to keep him there at least four weeks Unfortunately it appears that we are helpless in this situation AGAIN!! We still believe Paul will recover ... God has brought him this far and won't abandon him ... but the hospital holds all the cards!! Please continue to pray ... God has worked out other situations that seemed bad to us ... maybe this will be a blessing in disguise! Have a great Friday!
Love, Lynne & Carl
Thursday, March 02, 2006
Paul's Update - 03/01/06
Dear Friends:
Today was better. Paul started out the day with Physical Therapy. He was able to work better since he wasn't already tired. The therapist got him on his feet to stand. While he was standing he shifted his weight from his left foot. Dad asked him if he was having pain and he said "yes". His orthopedist had told us before that he may have pain in that left foot for some time. We will try some Tylenol prior to the next standing session! Speech therapy went fairly well. He was able to say "ahh" about six times with a little push on his stomach. Paul was able to get his hand to his mouth a bit better today. They continue to work on exercising his cheeks and tongue. As of tonight Paul has had the plug on his trach for over 24 hours. He is able to control his saliva and swallow very well. This is very good and it will take him closer to having the trach removed within a few days. Hopefully he will get better and better at chewing and swallowing so he can start eating by mouth soon too! Occupational Therapy was late today ... they came around 1pm. He was pretty tired but he was able to stretch out his arms a little. He started muscle relaxers on Tuesday night and it seems to help a little. There were two therapists working during OT today. They got him on a mat and had him roll from side to side. He seems to like being on his side and he can move almost by himself. They also worked at a table with him sitting up to push his arms across the table. This stretches out the arms without much stress on them. By the time they had done that much he was totally exhausted and couldn't even stay awake. He took a three hour nap after that!! Tabby came after work and stayed until visiting hours were over. It is so amazing to see how he responds to her. It is so warm and you can see a loving look between them. Love is a great healer!! Thursday will start off with OT. That should get him woke up and limbered up. Then he will have PT at 11am. Speech will be at 1pm. This should be a good schedule for him since most of the speech therapy is done from the bed or in the wheelchair. Each day is different but still we have good things happen every day!!
God Bless, Lynne & Carl
Today was better. Paul started out the day with Physical Therapy. He was able to work better since he wasn't already tired. The therapist got him on his feet to stand. While he was standing he shifted his weight from his left foot. Dad asked him if he was having pain and he said "yes". His orthopedist had told us before that he may have pain in that left foot for some time. We will try some Tylenol prior to the next standing session! Speech therapy went fairly well. He was able to say "ahh" about six times with a little push on his stomach. Paul was able to get his hand to his mouth a bit better today. They continue to work on exercising his cheeks and tongue. As of tonight Paul has had the plug on his trach for over 24 hours. He is able to control his saliva and swallow very well. This is very good and it will take him closer to having the trach removed within a few days. Hopefully he will get better and better at chewing and swallowing so he can start eating by mouth soon too! Occupational Therapy was late today ... they came around 1pm. He was pretty tired but he was able to stretch out his arms a little. He started muscle relaxers on Tuesday night and it seems to help a little. There were two therapists working during OT today. They got him on a mat and had him roll from side to side. He seems to like being on his side and he can move almost by himself. They also worked at a table with him sitting up to push his arms across the table. This stretches out the arms without much stress on them. By the time they had done that much he was totally exhausted and couldn't even stay awake. He took a three hour nap after that!! Tabby came after work and stayed until visiting hours were over. It is so amazing to see how he responds to her. It is so warm and you can see a loving look between them. Love is a great healer!! Thursday will start off with OT. That should get him woke up and limbered up. Then he will have PT at 11am. Speech will be at 1pm. This should be a good schedule for him since most of the speech therapy is done from the bed or in the wheelchair. Each day is different but still we have good things happen every day!!
God Bless, Lynne & Carl
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