Grandpa Brian!

Jake and I are expecting our first child this Fall! Brian keeps asking, "When are you going to find out what the make and model is?" Meaning is it a boy or a girl. The family is still hanging on strong and are glad we have something positive to think about. Brian is still progress upward, week to week he get so much better. He is able to mow the yards on his John Deere (wearing a hard hat), he also walks about two miles a day. His heart is also healthy, it is back to above normal function, no clogged arteries, no cardiomyopathy and we know now that the seizure caused the heart to stop. We are truly blessed to have him here. He will make an awesome Grandpa and babysitter, I can tell. Grandma Nancy, unfortunately needs a new hip and will be getting surgery this Tuesday, so cross your fingers for her, this will be her third hip replacement.

Still trucking...

So we continue on the journey of healing. Every day is a new day and we continue to grow and at the same time struggle with our new lifestyle. Brian is doing great. He comments on how he really has to concentrate shaving his face, gets really cold outdoors and has trouble remembering things. There is lots of positive things as well, he is able to take all his pills at different times of the day, this is a challenge even for my self and I am a nurse. He is able to BBQ to perfection a top sirloin steak for the family. He is also able to be home alone (mom is back to work), a month ago he would never been able to. I find him a lot calmer and funny. I told mom the movie Regarding Henry with Harrison Ford reminded me of Brian. How he was was somewhat cold and misunderstood and would yell at his kids if they spilled milk at the dinner table to a calm soul who if you spilled milk I will purposefully spill mine so you don't feel bad kind of person. We thank everyone who thought of us during our difficult situation. I realize now working at the St. Joe's in the ER, how lucky we actually are for having Brian with us. People usually don't make it after an hypoxic event like Brian's.

Brian here!

"Hope you are all doing good. I am fine...hah! So far still stuck at home. Still can't drive, that sucks! I surely enjoyed having all of your support out there. Sorry it had to happen at a bad time of the year. I've got plenty of yard work that needs to be done. I have lots of things coming up like painting the upstairs. Thanks again, that's all. I'm tired now. Love ya, see ya later."

PT

Brian scores 100% in PT and they don't feel like he needs much more help. This is frustrating to us because we feel like it's kind of a waste for us to go. He still kind of marches as he walks and has difficulties with corners and depth perception but is so much improved. He is better and better everyday. In a couple months, I totally see him 100% and that is no joke. It is actually insane. He told me all about his day in detail and he sounds better; not as loud and makes sense. He also told me that he plans on paiting the upstairs sometime next week. So in rehab they made him act out painting with a brush. Brian just shook his head and said I have a paint gun? So here we are just doing what they tell us one day at a time. Mom and I plan on making a cook book and paying Brian's medical bills with the procedes. If anyone is willing to donate a recipe feel free. Thanks again visitors and supporters we never would have gotten this far if it weren't for you. Brian also went to Brother Don's for lunch and got to see lots of friends.

Nipples..

Brian is continuing to progress enough to notice that now with his cadillac defibrillator his nipples are lopsided. Mom and him just hang out do breakfast, lunch and dinner together along with iced tea as their drink of choice. Day to day mom gets more relaxed and lets Brian do more for example today he took a shower all by himself, no shower chair, no mom helping him, completely all by himself. Mom said he only dropped the soap once, because she heard it. He also said that he needs to use his left hand to wash his bottom because if he uses his right the soap falls through his fingers (he has a missing a digit for all the people that don't know)! Today he was able to vacuum the living room but first changing the belt and bag on the vacuum, this required a screwdriver from the garage. It's small but it is big to us. Thanks to all the people who made us casseroles and that have visited. Visitors are welcome now that he is doing so well.

HAPPY GUY

Brian went to Dr. Damaron yesterday and he is very surprised that Brian is doing so well. He wants to add another blood pressure med to Brian's list. This puzzles me because his EKG, ECHO and CARDIAC CATH were normal. His blood pressure is running way low like 100/50 since St. Joes. He is still sure that Brian's heart is bad because he drank. Usually with a stroke patient or seizure patient you want to blood pressure a little higher than normal to profuse the brain. Brian's heart stopping and then coming back is a miracle to everyone so maybe it does need to rest. So, I told mom to just do want he says and get a second opinion in the mean time. He goes to Dr. Moore the rehab doctor today and hopefully that goes well. His personality is back to normal and makes jokes all the time. Mom and I just belly laugh at him because he jokes all day. He walks around the house and straightens pictures on the walls, and puts things away. He has to stay busy at all times.

Happy to be home!

Brian is adjusting just fine. He likes sleeping in his own bed and with mom. His brain comes back more and more everyday. He is ambulatory thorughout the house, and walks to the mail box using his walker. He eats three hearty meals a day and keeps mom busy. When I drive in after a long twelve hour shift, I can see them sitting on the love seat together through the sliding class door. I am happy for my mom and Brian, even though we still have a really long way to go. It is a little hard to believe that we got him back. We need to figure out that dang Dilantin, that has been a problem since day one. We his Dilantin gets too high, his gait is wide and he has a very obvious slur to his speech, he also is able to tell us, he feels like his is "high on his dope", and this is what is going on now. It is a tricky thing. He saw Dr. Bright (the neurologist) today and he told Brian he is a miracle and he can't believe he is doing so well. He also went to the grocery store with mom, and pushed the cart. He will have lots of doctor appointments and lots of rehab. I try and keep the blog current, I am so happy that people actually reads it. Thanks so much people, we can thank you enough. Tomorrow, Dr. Damoron (the cardiologist), who will be blown away. He was the one that didn't want to fix Brian's heart because he was sure he would be a vegetable, well he was wrong wasn't he?

He is home!

Brian is home at last. He was discharged early this morning. He was able to see the dogs (Kilo and Tig), unfortunately we needed to put Kilo down since he hasn't been well through Winter. We had planned to wait until Brian could say his goodbyes. Brian is a big eater now, and can help in the kitchen. He made quacamole for dinner and tries his best. He wears a gait belt that we can hold on to while he is walking. He did almost fall once, he isn't exactly steady so we have to keep eyes on him at all times and assist him when he decides to quickly jump out of his chair. He kept looking to see if he put a hole in the wall after he face planted it. We have to keep the humor at all times. He was able to go down stairs and also walk to the mail box, using a walker. He had lots of visitors; grandma, Seth, Jake, Gail, Leslie, and Dwight. That is really good for him. He does get very tired at the end of the day and went to bed last night at 7:30pm. I stayed after we put him to bed to visit with mom, and write down questions we have for the doctors and add to our "to-do" list for Brian. We heard a door shut and Brian had gotten up to go to the bathroom and was getting back into bed. We were relieved he hadn't fallen, he is so independent and just does what he wants. So here we are, another hurdle.

Homecoming EVE!

Thank God for giving us a miraculous outcome on our Brian. One month ago Brian's heart stopped for about twenty minutes and tomorrow he will be home!? We are so grateful for every one's prayers and support! It worked. He is so much better, can recall being at St. Joe's and the ride over but isn't able to recall Christmas or any time spent at Harrison. We were told from the beginning that it would take a minimum of six months in a hospital before he would ever be able to come home. He does lean to one side and has a little slur to his speech, he will have many appointments to help his improvements and I am sure lots of medical bills. Mom is taking all of February off and this will be good for them both. I have cleaned the house and Seth has done a lot of cleaning on the out side. He rearranged the breeze way so Brian doesn't feel compelled to get in old habits of smoking. Mom has stocked the fridge with yummy foods to keep him busy and hopefully things will continue to get better and better. I plan on driving over in the morning to pick mom and Brian up and take them home! When Brian was asked what he would do the minute he got home, he said "take a nap"!

A month later....

Here is another picture of Brian at St. Joes. He is doing much better. He asks frequently for his earrings, since they took them out that first day in ICU. Mom is going to try and go to work today, this is emotional for her because she hasn't been back and the staff their has been very supportive. We have made lots of appointments for Brian out side of the hospital, like checkups with the doctors that have followed his case and all his therapies. This is a big step coming home, we'd never thought he would be coming home so soon. We have cleaned the whole house just need to clean the breeze way out so Brian won't be put in his old routine and want to have a cirgarette. We are thinking that he will come home Friday because there is no sense in him staying over the weekend because he doesn't have any classes over the weekend. He just sits in bed which sets him back. It will just be easier on mom if he was home. So that is the plan, pretty crazy we know.

Pictures finally!

Brian is just doing awesome. He has improved so much and it is so absolutely amazing we are all in shock. He is still planned to be discharged Feb 3rd to home, which at home he will need 24 hour care. He doesn't tell random stories that don't make sense anymore. He doesn't start a conversation and is really laid back but will talk to you after you start convering with him. He walks his visitors out the elevators and hugs them bye. It is the most darling thing I have ever seen. He is trying hard to take care of mom too by sharing his meals. He has moved on from tape and spoons to complex lego buildings, crazy eights, movies (like Rocky) and talking on the phone. It just amazes us. He needs challenges and us to ask lots of questions for his brain to reboot.

The pictures posted are from when he was at Harrison.

25 days later

Brian is practically steady and walking alone. He is still a fall risk because of his confusion. He is getting better with asking questions and saying, "What the hell is going on?" He realized something serious happened to him and he is putting all the pieces together. Mom has been with him since Tuesday night, I work tomorrow and hopefully she will come home with me and then back Friday morning together, since I work Friday too. His expected day of discharge is the 3rd of February and will need 24 hour care when home. We think he is almost ready to come home just need to work on the speech therapy and how his brain works. He is more and more lucid everyday and it is getting better with time, really it hasn't even been a month. No one ever thought that he would ever be this well. We just pray he comes back a little more cognitively. He doesn't want cigarettes or alcohol at all now. I think the family not drinking around him will be the hardest part. So continued prayers are much appreciated. Brian's heart is completely healthy and has no damage of cardiomyopathy like they thought which is very good. So now we just wait for his brain to reboot.

Much better

So I finally dragged mom home for the first night since January 12th (the move) to sleep in her own bed. I think this was really beneficial to her and it was long over due. We brought Brian clean clothes, new games and lots of yummy snacks. He practically can walk by himself and is back to where he was prior seizure. We still walk him with a gait belt and a walker but by the time he gets to his room, he picks the walker off the ground, folds it up leans it against the wall and walks to bed with out any help. Since he moves so fast and is determined to do what he wants to do we just kind of let him. He is still a fall risk but is much much better and is almost walking by himself. He was wearing his 501 levis we brought him from home, which is just huge to us because last week he was making things with tape and spoons so the fact that can put levis on and button the buttons is just amazing to us. He still doesn't remember Christmas but was able to point out people from the Christmas picture....like Yazzy and Brayden. He wasn't able to put his finger on Lydon but after we told him he agreed. He just needs stimulation at all times and needs to walk off all his energy. We are going to check in with our awesome rehab doctor (Dr. Moore) just to touch base and let her know of Brian's progress. We are definitely not anywhere close to the end of this journey but we are getting closer.

Just another day

Brian is doing very well. He did have a set back with the two seizures he had but is still improving. He was almost walking by himself before the set back now he still uses the walker and has to be really careful because he is wobbly. He doesn't really have any short term memory like what happened to bring him to the hospital but is so much better day to day just with normal daily activities. He is trying so hard and just doing everything they want him to do to have an almost complete recovery. They weekends at rehab are relaxed. Brian is much more relaxed now and rarely asked for a cigarette. He takes care of mom too, it is really cute. Gets her napkins and water and tells her she can eat off his plate. So we are just taking one day at a time and hoping Brian will be home soon.

Two in one day....

So I finally dragged mom home and Brian had a second seizure around 9:00 pm, dang it. So mom did get a shower and get some dinner and I drove her back to the hospital. He was resting after a big dose of Dilantin and some Ativan. Seizures are like running a marathon, exhausting afterwards. Mom finally has a bed so she is comfortable. I came home and plan on visiting tomorrow. Besides the two seizures today he is still progressing. We saw a new neurologist and he plans on starting Brian on a second anti-seizure medication (that is new on the market and has few side effects) and thinks sleep has something to do with it. Tomorrow is another day and I hope we will have no more set backs. Visitors are now welcome since Brian is way less confused or even phone calls to his cell or his room 311, Brian loves talking on the phone. The therapist recommends it because it is good for his memory and healing. Thanks again for all the thoughts and prayers keep them coming!

Another seizure

This morning Brian had one seizure in bed, so we have a set back. His Dilantin level was 8, not too low but we would like to see a 10. He is just resting in bed today and plans to only do speech therapy no physical activity today. We hope to get in touch with Dr. Bright the neurologist we saw at Harrison to see what he thinks is going on. Just wanted to keep everyone updated. Brian is now just resting in bed with mom at his side.

St. Joseph's

The transition to St. Joseph's has been interesting. We went from PCU, a pretty involved in your health floor, which was also a step down from ICU to laid back/chill rehab. I guess mom and I are having a hard time with Brian being so stable, nurses see him only for a quick listen to the heart and medication administration. His day is pretty jam packed he has like seven appointments scheduled throughout the day, these consist of PT, OT, and ST. The earliest one starting at 7:00 am. He is doing so much better than we ever could imagine. He is very strong physically, just has balance issues but is able to walk to the bathroom with one assist from his bed. He still uses a wheel chair to go upstairs to the forth floor for all his rehab. He can repeatedly stand on tippy toes, squat and stand on a "squishy mat" and balance himself. His mental progress is hard to put in words. I would say his is alert and oriented times three as a nurse because he knows who he is, he knows where he is at and he also is able to read the calendar and the clock in relation to time but still says random things that have no meaning or that don't make sense. He knows who everyone is and is able to answer pretty hard questions; for example the year he got married to mom. He is also not at all as agitated as he used to get, he does get tired at the end of his jammed pack day but is cooperative. He asks about his truck and the dogs and remembers most things up to the accident. He is able to tell me what he had for dinner but has difficulties grasping why I am there and where I am going when I am leaving. Poor mom has been so strong through this whole thing. I was kind of upset with her because she has been at the hospital since Monday (the ambulance ride from Harrison) and didn't want to come home with me tonight. I really think she is tired and could use some time away from the hospital but who am I to judge? Whatever mom is feeling I am feeling so I want to fix things when she is upset. If I were in that situation I would probably never leave Jake's side. I just want her to take care of her self and to not get burned out. So hopefully she will feel comfortable to come home tomorrow night. The other thing that made me mad was that mom hadn't received a cot or a recliner in the three days she has stayed, I made a point to fix those arrangements tonight. It is really nice working at the same hospital that Brian is in because I can visit on breaks and lunches and a badge can get you things sometimes. Brian's dilantin levels have been fluctuating but the doctors don't seem concerned, he also has an anti-anxiety med and nicotine patch available to use if need be but so far he hasn't needed them and is more relaxed and I don't think drinking or smoking will be a problem after discharge (today anyway). I talked to a nurse yesterday and she said that their plan for Brian to discharge is February 1st! So soon and this might change based on his individual progress. So hopefully this gives you an accurate picture of his update. Thanks again to everyone!

They tried to make me go to rehab.....

Brian is being transferred to St. Joseph's today at 11:30. He is going to be in room 311 in inpatient rehab. He got his IV cathedar/PICC removed today along with the dressing on his defibrillator. We never thought this man would be free of cords and tubes but he is. Hopefully we will enjoy our stay there as much as we have enjoyed our stay at Harrison. Brian is healing more quickly than we ever had imagined. We just want to continuing updating everyone of his progress and thank everyone profusely because all the emails and prayers work. We never imagined an outcome this spectacular. We are very fortunate and thank God every day.

He's walking!

Today is again another huge step up from yesterday. Brian now does laps around the nurses station, with help with a stand up straight walker. He is very lucid at times but is still somewhat confused, especially with his health. It is hard to put in writing how much better he gets from day to day but it is very awesome to watch. What happened to him doesn't register at all with him, the fact that his heart stopped and he has been hospitalized doesn't click. He plays crazy eights with mom, looks at old photographs and names everyone in them. He is off all IV therapy, he eats very hearty meals and takes his medications whole. He is on Coreg (makes the work load of the heart easier), Lisinopril (for blood pressure), folic acid, multivitamin, Immodium (to bulk up stools), and Dilantin (seizure control). So he is a very stable stable patient. His lungs are clear, his heart is strong and so is his liver. Everyone is so astonished that he is doing so well. We don't think he will be in rehab for long, that transition happens tomorrow. All the doctors and nurses are just amazed and when he walks around the nurses station they all give a thumbs up! He is so coming back all the way. We wouldn't have wished these last fifteen days on anyone but we are also so glad that our Brian is doing so well. He still asks for cigarettes regularly, even though everyone tells us any withdrawls that he would have are long gone, now it is just psychological. We have to make life changes, that means no smoking or drinking ever again, and we hope no friends give in to this. When he gets home this will be the hardest part. Since he did have another seizure he will be unable to drive for six months. We are just taking one day at a time. Thanks again!

Keep on keepin' on...

Brain is doing better than ever expected. His tonic clonic movements have almost resolved themselves completely, he is steadier with fine motor movements and his cognitive abilities are really improving as well. He is still confused but he knows who everyone is. He called mom the night before last and asked for his pillow from home. He does get frustrated and tries to get up out of bed and leave. He asks, "Where's my wallet, where's my keys, and where's the car parked?" He also lifts his sheet up and says, "Where the heck are my Levi's?" He is quite comical. He is easily redirected when he gets frustrated. We have to remind him frequently to not use his left arm because that's the side where they put the defibrillator and we don't want it to dislodge, then he complains of chest pain. We are still moving right along. Mom is a little more relaxed since all the cardiac stuff is over with. Monday he will be transferred to St. Josephs. Thanks again for all the love and support. I will be posting a picture of Brian soon since he is doing so well.

Recovery..

He made it through second procedure, he now has a defibrillator! Hopefully it will be easy sailing from here on out, he is in recovery now and doing good.

Good results!

Brian had his cardiac cath this morning and he has no blockages or damage! This is good. Then hours later after trying to make him lay flat for four hours, they took him back to put in an ICD (Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator; this will shock his heart if it stops again). This made us a little nervous because we didn't mentally prepare for two big procedures in one day. So we are just waiting for him to be done with the second procedure and after this we will be relieved and hopefully our heart rates will return to baseline and we can all relax.

What a trooper!

Last night mom got a phone call at 11pm that Brian had pulled his feeding tube out of his nose for the fifth time. This didn't make us happy at all. He has hand restraints and a sitter, so how could this be? So mom actually drove back to the hospital very mad. We had a bad feeling yesterday that the lady watching him wasn't capable, we should of just followed our guts and asked for someone else, lesson learned. Today he had his swallow evaluation and passed with flying colors and they took his tube out at last. He was able to eat a tuna sandwich at lunch and a cheese burger, cottage cheese and milk for dinner. He is doing awesome. He is also able to swallow pills whole. He is very with it at times but gets easily frustrated he learns that he can't get out of bed to use the restroom. This is just the worst, I feel so bad for him because it just must be terrible to not be able to do what you want to do, especially your business. It's hard to be stuck in bed all day when you are used to doing otherwise. He is also seeing bugs, moths, bees and horse flies every where, we tell him that we understand that he sees them but they are not real and it's just part of his brain rebooting and not to be frightened. Tomorrow he has a cardiac cath/angiogram scheduled and this will tell us if he has and blockages or damage to his heart. They hope to move him to St. Joseph's in Tacoma on Monday for rehabilitation. We are still hanging in there and appreciate the tremendous support we have.

The road to recovery!

So apparently the last couple days I have been suffering what is known as writer's block. Since Brian was just holding steady and we didn't really have big news and we were so scared that something bad would happen (because we have been warned of set backs) I didn't have much to report on the blog. Brian is doing amazing. He is more and more with it everyday, he has said every Brianism know to man. He has never been in pain this whole time, a little itchy but that is it. He had another ultrasound done today and we got phenomenal results; an ejection fraction of 55%! This is the fraction of blood pumped out of a ventricle with each heart beat, normal is 50%-65%! His previous fraction was 25% that first day in ICU. They still want to do a cardiac cath (scheduled for Thursday morning) to make sure there isn't any damage or blockage to his heart. They also might put in an AED, so if his heart stops again, it will shock it right away. Personally, I don't think he needs this. He is still a little jerky so they will have to sedate him and this will delay recovery because sedation meds cause confusion. I still believe that he had a seizure laying on his stomach, occluded his airway, then his heart went into V-fib but that's just me. Better to be safe than sorry. They took his urinary cathedar out today as well so this is another sign of progress. He gets very tired because they have him really busy all day but he is working so hard. He was able to stand up today while holding on to a bedside table, he can comb his own hair too. We have had great amazing nurses and are so happy he is getting better. It was so funny I was whispering to mom, both of us at opposite sides if Brian, asking her when she was planning to go home, then what do you know Brian's whispering. Then I was like, "Brian why are you whispering?" Then all three of us just started belly laughing. I guess you had to be there. You just have to love him.

Doing everything they want him to!

Brian is still getting better and better every day. They have his day pretty jam packed. Between the cardiologist, the neurologist, speech therapy, physical therapy, and range of motion exercise, he is busy and working hard all day. He actually talked to me on the phone the night before last, which was amazing. He told the nurse that my name is "Natalie Coleman" and he also called me Natalia as well. His personality is so there between the "F" word and "Bullship" (but without the p and substitute a t)! He has great moments of lucidity but after hard work we lose him and he starts snoring. He also stood up with two people assisting him twice yesterday. He is still jerky but his body is moving so much better than days ago. When asked to read the "what day is it" from a calender on the wall he added the 3rd and 4th and got 7. He just tries so hard and makes us very proud. We are still plugging along. Thanks again for all the emails and prayers!

Still holding strong....

Brian is still progressing. He really does better with the door to his room shut, lights dimmed, no TV, and limited visitors. He was able to read the word "cars" from a tablet of paper. When asked to name some cars, he said; Toyota Celica and Sebring? When asked what kind of car he drove, he said extended cab. When asked what kind of gas it took, he said diesel. So he is trying hard but there is some error. If you knew Brian he drives a maroon Ford Ranger that takes unleaded. Mom also told Brian that we need to get him a radio and listen to some KZOK, then minutes later he was singing...."strawberry fields forever"! His humor is definitely helping us cope. His eyes are tracking much better and he sat in a chair for 30 minutes with PT. Apparently after suffering from hypoxia, this is exactly what happens. Our next hurdle is Brian's cardiac issues, and we will deal with them as they come. Thanks again for all your support.

Out of ICU!

They moved Brian out of ICU today! He is in the Progressive Care Unit, the floor treats cardiac problems. We are still fighting to get him back completely. He is in and out of confusion and they have a sitter with him, because he needs someone to keep an eye on him. It's a waiting game. He is having a hard time fighting the urge to smoke. He rubs his cigarettes out on his fingers and flicks the ashes and puts the butts in his imaginary pocket, just like he used to do. They don't want to treat him because all the anti-smoking meds have side effects and his heart is still weak. We want the emails to keep coming, along with calls but we only want immediate family visiting because Brian isn't ready (too many people agitate him) for visitors and his room is very small. They don't even have a waiting room like they did in ICU. We don't want to hurt anyone's feelings and will keep the blog as updated as we can. Keep the prayers going. Pasteur Steve came to visit today too! The rehab doctor asked Brian give her a high five and a peace sign with both hands and two days he was unable to follow commands. He is making progress but the whole situation is still scary. Keep your fingers crossed! We love you friends and family. Thanks to all our support systems; our friend's from Belfair, the Kitsap County Health District, everyone at Brother Dons, everyone at Ralph's Red Apple, and our Parker Lumber friends. And all our other friends too numberous to name.

"I have to poop!"

This is a picture of Brian walking me down the aisle, hopefully he will be walking again soon! Today is another great day. I haven't been to the hospital yet today but our Brian is still moving forward. Last night was awesome, he saw PT and actually sat at the side of his bed. This to us is phenomenal, they take a man who's heart stopped, was frozen to ninety degrees and paralyzed with medications, sedated because a machine was breathing for him and they can sit him upright at the side of the bed six days later? He did have some set backs like pulling out the tube in his nose twice yesterday and having to get two chest xrays to confirm placement. We tried to warn them, he is feisty. The physical therapist did tell us to remind him to look right at us when talking to him because he is having difficulties tracking. He had speech therapy see him as well, they gave him some ice chips and will try to evaluate him every day until he can swallow on his own. He still has a terrible cough that they are treating with a different antibiotic because the culture wasn't sensitive the to previous one. He is off all oxygen as of this morning. He is still in and out and falls asleep mid conversation but last night he puckered up and gave mom and I a big kiss. It was adorable. His mannerisms are still there. This morning the nurse was very positive because he was initiating conversation and he even told the nurse he had to poop and they used a bedpan. When he does go to a rehab facility he most likely won't be in Kitsap County the neurologist that took over form Dr. Bright said that none of the facilities around here would meet his needs. So we are just doing it, moving forward and not looking back. Thanks again for all the support!

January 1st, 2009

This is a picture of Brian from August 4, 2007! I am trying to give the most current up to date facts to family and friends on this website. I have a tendency to focus on the positive and only hear the good stuff but I am doing my best. He is still trucking along and he is doing everything they want him to do. I visited him last night and the night nurse, Mike, was awesome. He said Brian was experiencing ICU delirium (he seems anxious & jerky & mumbles incoherently) and if he was a normal patient he would just sedate him. Since Brian is a neuro patient he just wants him to come back all the way. This is what all patients go through after being heavily sedated from being on a vent. The nurse said he has had periods of lucidity and this is good. He is coming back to us in pieces. He was moving a lot but calmed down after I stayed with him for a while. Today is amazing too! No doctors have been here because it's a holiday but nurses are following protocol and he is very stable. He has a feeding tube and a banana bag (vitamins) along with pills that are given to him through the tube. He is fiesty and wants that tube out of his nose, so when he is left alone the nurses have his hands in restraints. They plan on moving out of ICU tomorrow. I visited him this afternoon and he told me he "feels like shit" he also sat up in bed all by himself. He just used his back and stomach muscles to do this. He moves his feet and hands but the function isn't 100 percent and it's hard to tell if it is intentional or just a reaction. He is able to stratch his nose and grip and that's better than nothing. The EMT's/paramedics have also been calling the ICU every day to check on Brian. Their story keeps getting better and better, like how they had to walk an 1/8th of mile in the snow to get to our house! When really they got stuck in the driveway and was flagged to the correct house by Gail. We will have to personally thank those guys along with every one else who have been working on Brian and just thinking about us. We are still so glad that he came back to us. It is going to be hard, really hard, from here on out and we know this. We are so thankful for all the support.