Another Update

Well it has been some time since I wrote but I have spent most of my computer time working and checking email. I have made great progress in the last week and it looks like I might be heading home toward the end of next week! Today I walk about 325 feet without taking any rest breaks and I did so without hardly locking my knees back. That is great progress seeing as though two days ago most of my steps ended with me locking my knees. I guess you could say I am making progress on step at a time.

My arms are getting better too. I still can’t lift them all the way up, but they are getting there. My hands and feet are still numb and they cramp up when my pain meds start to run out, but I am still able to use my hands quite well. I am typing this with my hands in proper typing position and they are doing pretty good.

Something new that has appeared is dry skin. It started with my legs. I scratched the calves and ankles to the point that I broke the skin in a few spots. I have been applying lotion at least three times a day since I realized what was happening. I am now itching on my legs, back and hands. My feet are dry too but they don’t really itch. Well, at least I can’t feel them itch, but that could just be the numbness.

It is hard to believe I have been in the hospital for 29 days now. There are times when it seems like only days and others when it seems like an eternity. To think of going home in a week or less brings up a range of emotions from happiness to fear. I am ecstatic to think about being home with my family and scared to think about the fact that I will be in a wheel chair and walking with a walker and still not able to do everything that I was able to do a month ago. I have been overwhelmed by the amount of support that my family and I have received from both family and friends and I would like to thank each and every one of you for everything thus far. I know we still have quite a long road ahead and I can only hope that everyone will continue to do what they have so far. Your prayers and support have been incredible. Thank you!

Yes in deed I'm walkin'

I have been meaning to write for a couple days now and I just have not gotten around to it. The big news for the week is that I have been walking! I started walking between the parallel bars, and that allowed for about 4 to 5 steps, but the last several days I have been using a walker. The first day I went about 10 feet and it was an odd feeling. My feet are still numb so balance is a little difficult, but with lots of concentration I am able to stay upright. The second day I went about 30 feet and the steps felt better. I still can’t stand from a seated position on my own, but once I get up I am okay for the most part. Today I used the walker again and went about 40 feet. I have a harder time stepping with my left foot; I have to try just a bit harder, than I do with my right, to get it to move forward. I usually stop when my back starts to cramp up. It’s a bit uncomfortable once the muscles start to spasm, so that is when I decide to plop back down into the wheelchair.

So, walking was the big news but other than that I can report that things are going well. I am able to do a little more each day. It is either reaching a little further, pushing a little harder or moving a little better. Right now I think the thing I would like most, besides walking better, is for my shoulders to work better. When I am laying down I can move my arm from down by my side to up by my head, but when I am sitting down I can put my hand on my knee and lift it only about 3 to 4 inches. I know it will get better in time, but I wish it was better now. My hands and feet are still very numb. I do have some feeling but not much, and when I do touch something it is very tingly. The rest of my body has mild numbness, nothing major.

On Tuesday the doctor told me that he thinks I have 3 to 4 weeks to go, but that is only a guesstimate. I am by far the youngest person here but it seems that I may have the longest stay. I am not sure why everyone is here but strokes and surgery seem to be the biggest reason folks are here for rehab. I have seen several people leave in the week that I have been here and a couple new people arrive. Everyone is very nice staff does very good when it comes to taking care of us. They make you feel very comfortable and they do anything they can to make sure all your needs are met. I have been very grateful for everyone I have worked with. Well, I will have company very soon so I will finish up for now. God bless each and every one of you and thank you for all your prayers…

Back on-line…

Well I have made it to the rehab center and I feel like I am improving each day. There is no wireless connection here so we have been trying to find a way to get me connected. We finally ended up getting a Cricket broadband USB modem. Now I am back on-line and I can work and play once again.

As I said I feel like I am improving a little bit each day. I am able to use a board to slide in and out of bed to me wheelchair. I can do most of the transition on my own, but I still have to be spotted. I got to the rehab center around 7 p.m. on Wednesday the 14th. On Thursday the therapy folks evaluated me and had me stand up, with lots of help, for about just under a minute. I have an elevated heart rate and on Thursday it hit 160 bpm and I was put in bed for the rest of the day. I did my therapy in bed on Friday, everyone was being cautious of my heart rate. It has been decided that my elevated heart rate is being caused by the Guillain-Barré and not one of my meds. I did 30 minutes of occupational and physical therapy on Saturday and Sunday. On Saturday I had my first shower in two weeks, it was great! For Monday I did my normal hour and a half of each type of therapy. Each day I seem to be able to do just a bit more than the day before. Today the doctor said that I have probably 3 to 4 weeks left here at rehab. That is just an estimate based on how I have been doing so far. So, over all things are going well, but I can’t wait to get home.

I miss not being home with my beautiful wife and kids. I miss my puppy too. There was a therapy dog here at the hospital yesterday. It was great to be able to pet her but it sure made me miss home just a little bit more. Some days go by very quickly and some just seem to drag on forever. I have lost track of the date more than once but luckily they write it on a dry erase board each morning. It does not really seem like I have been in the hospital as long as I have, but then when I think about it there are some days that it seems like I have been gone for months, it is really quite weird. It really makes me thankful for what all I have and can’t wait to get home. For now all I can do is take it one day at a time…

A little painful…

is how I would have to explain today. The Eagles won today so that was a good thing, but we tried to make the move from IV pain meds to pill form. This did not work so well and it took all day to get things back on track. After some reading today it seems that around weeks 2 and 3 individuals with GBS are at their weakest. I am not sure if weakness and pain are related in this case but my hands and feet seem to be at their worst. When trying to explain how my feet felt Tricia shared something that she had read that pretty much nailed it. Each foot feels like a solid piece of concrete. And let me tell you what, that feeling is no fun. The pain in my hands crept all the way back to my elbows today, again, not a great feeling.

I realize each days is going to be different and bring new challenges and I think that is going to be the hardest thing to deal with. No matter who we are, or what we do, we never know what our day is going to bring, but I am finding this a bit more difficult these days. Not only do I not know what is going to happen in my day I don’t know if there is going to be something else that I can’t do today that I could do yesterday. I just keep reminding myself that God is in control. He will not give me more than I can handle, although there are times I wonder if he has the right person when he puts something new on my plate.

Just remember that God is great and that we can do all things through Him!

No move today...

Thought I was gonna move to a rehab center today (Saturday, I am up a little late tonight) but the insurance office is not open on the weekend so I will be here at the hospital till at least Monday. I had a CT of my stomach tonight, no results yet. My blood pressure is higher than the doc would like and I have some sort of stomach issue, not sure if it is a nerve issue or not. I did not sleep well last night and took a few good naps today. My feet and hands are still cramped and in pain, but they are still working, so that is good.

A couple ladies from church came by today, after they dropped a bunch of food off at the house. It was nice to meet some of the folks helping out my family while we manage this rough time in our life. It is so awesome to see how willing people are to help out, even when you have only just met. There are soooo many things I would like to write but my hands are really starting to hurt. I will try to write more tomorrow during football and pain pills…

Current Status…

Well, I was hoping to have a lot more typed by now but as you can see I don’t. I am finding it rather difficult to type when I can’t feel my fingers and have limited control over them as well. My hands and feet seemed to be a bit stiffer and tighter today. My hands are so stiff that they are “stuck” in a half gripped position, it is very difficult to fully straighten my fingers, in fact there are a couple that don’t at this time. While things seemed to hurt more overall today I seemed to have better movement of my arms and legs than I have in the last couple days. The biggest news of the day is that I will be transferring to rehabilitation treatment center most likely tomorrow sometime. I will all depend on whether or not paperwork got done today and if there is a bed available at the other location. It is not really possible to know how long it will take to recover from all of this but some folks that I have spoke with are saying maybe 2 or 3 weeks of rehab, but it could also be a year or more. But based on how I am doing at the moment they are guessing up to a few weeks, and that is all time to retrain my muscles and nerves that have been damaged. It is going to be a long and painful road I have a feeling. But with the help of my family and the grace of God I will overcome it all. Well, my hands are done for the night, I must give them a rest now…goodnight!

Yesterday...

This is a picture I took of Donovan yesterday, January 6, 2009... Donovan will be on later today to update and give information on his condition...

in Him,
Trish