Day 20/21: What a difference a day makes!

Hi everyone! It's Patti again. First off...apologies for not getting a post posted yesterday. I did write it, despite the fact that my brain was no longer firing synapses last night. But in my fatigue, I didn't process that the reason I couldn't get the Wi-Fi at Scott and Ashley's house (Scahley's, as our family says)to work. Maybe it is another one of the many tender mercies we have witnessed. I am sure the quality of the post I wrote last night left a lot to be desired! So basic summary of yesterday.

 Yesterday was a hard and exhausting day. Scottie wore out three caregivers yesterday with the Ironman of "Wrestlemania" events. He was constantly tugging at something, trying to get out of bed, needing to go to the bathroom, something.... Something urgent and critical that demanded immediate assistance. He was amazingly and exhaustingly restless. I timed him at night, since I had the night shift Sunday night. It ranged from 1 to 3 minutes in between needs. He finally slept for 30 minutes from 6:00 am to 6:30 am. Soooo needless to say, I did not get even one wink of sleep. He persisted like that through the day yesterday, too. It reminded me of a toddler who you know is exhausted and they need to sleep, but they are so tired that they fight it or are unable to fall asleep. The more tired he got, the more confused and inappropriate his behavior became.

Fortunately, he was given Seroquel last night and he finally gave into the fatigue and slept....and slept.... Victories for today....

1. He walked for the first time! Physical therapy came and brought a walker with a forearm support for his right arm. He was able to walk with stand by asssit for safety 500 feet. He, of course, was not ready to stop. He could "walk forever"! (Scott's response to the physical therapist) objectively, though, he was beginning to show signs of fatigue: clumsiness, decreased foot clearnance, slumping, etc., so they agreed to stop at the end of the hallway. Following his walk with the walker, and physical therapy, he wheeled himself around the entire floor. He used his left hand on the wheel and both feet on the floor. I helped to steer only, so he didn't go in a circle. He does have some hemiplegia (weakness)on the right side and some hypertonuns (rigidity to movement)on the right arm, similar to a person with a stroke. Sooooo..... He is unable to use the right arm to help, and the right leg could only assist a little bit.

2. He is clearly alert and awake today. His eyes are open. His communication today is mostly appropriate (way different from yesterday!) He was able to have a relatively normal conversation with a friend today who just came back from Italy. He was able to relate her experiences to those he had while serving his mission in Austria. He is not oriented to the year, but he does remember that he is at St. Joseph's Hospital and that he is going to Barrow "soon". He smiled for the camera. (I will add pictures later) The right side of his face moves, but not his left. He had pureed chicken and vegetables for lunch, along with chocolate ice cream. He is able to eat soft foods consistenly well.

3. Yesterday, his lungs were sounding a bit "gunky". Today they are clear again. They gave him an inspiration spirometer to breath into evey hour. They also said that he would not be actually able to move it, since his air is mostly coming in through his trach, but he is actually able to move it to the 1500 mark! Go Scottie!

4. His facial swelling (due to his most recent surgery) is down considerably. His body processes swelling faster than anyone I have ever seen, and I have seen a LOT of post-op patients. We were told to expect the swelling to increase for three days, then it will begin to dissipate. Today is day 4 post-op and he is almost back to normal! All of your prayers are working, I promise! We see it every day! It's amazing to be on this end of the prayers!

 5. He has had no pain today or yesterday, which is also a nice blessing. We hate to have to add pain meds on top of the brain injury. He really has not had much pain considering all of his injuries and the degree of his injuries. So many blessings to be grateful for! Well.... I am going to get this posted, so I don't keep you waiting too much longer, but.... I will add more later and I will include pictures. For now, Ashley and I are heading over to Barrow for a tour. We are excited! We have been told, for sure, he will go tomorrow, so... Yeah! He has even had some preliminary assessments today for Barrow, so things are moving forward. "Talk" to you soon! Patti