Day 27: Trach Free Day!!! April 9, 2012

Wahoo! Scott's trach has been removed!!! In the words of Scott, "At this point, it is more of a hinderance than a help!" The physician briefly (2-3 minutes) interrupted his physical therapy session this am, pulled out the trach, placed a gauze plug in it's place, taped the plug down, and Scott was good to go! It still seems amazingly crazy to me that they do not need to stitch up this big hole, but... They don't! He does hiss when he strains. He is to avoid screaming (not typically a problem with Scott). They say the hole will heal over in a few days. Crazy!

 The "real" Scottie is coming back, noticeably more every day. His voice is his own now. He sounds like Scott. He has intonation and inflection in his voice now. His singing can actually be called singing now, although it is still not to the quality and fluidity that it once was. It is no longer monotone and mechanical. He sang along with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir yesterday, and along with Jeff and Ashley Jepperson today. Jeff and Scott were in a band together in college. They had a song they would sing to kids called, "Slippery Fish". ...very fun, interactive, and whimsical. Jeff and Ashley videotaped them singing it with their children. (Thanks! He really enjoyed it!) Scott watched it while waiting for therapy this morning... and sang along. That was the best I have heard him sound since the accident.

He is also beginning to show some facial muscle movements. They are small movements, but it is still an improvement! We'll take it all! Here are some pictures of him making faces for us earlier today.


 

You can also see how much his facial swelling has decreased in these pictures and the one below.

Scott's sweet wife, Ashley, created a small celebration today for Scott to celebrate getting his trach removed. There were ballons, and frivolity, and a large poster made by his med school class with uplifing well wishes written by his classmates! Thank you AZCOM class!




Now that he is beginning to regain some short-term memory, it is nice to read and hear and feel the love from his friends and family. We are beginning to read to him the many emails, blog comments, etc. that everyone sent while he was unconscious. Ashley even showed him pictures of the accident scene, of Scott at various stages in his recovery, etc.... He handles it all well. He is starting to internalize the impact of the vision piece more, though, as he is being challenged to do more in rehab. His vision is quite limited, even though he has "normal" vision with his left eye. He can only read very close up. He can see obstacles, as long as they are not on his right. He will allow us to cover up his left eye now to test his vision. He wouldn't tolerate it initially.

He continues to make amazing daily progress. We continue to be amazed at his resiliency and brilliance as we watch him heal. Thank you all for continuing your prayers! This process will be his toughest marathon. He will need those prayers through all phases. We appreciate that you all are along throu the marathon offering your prayers and support.

Love to all!

Patti