Everything Will Be Alright

 I was hospitalized as a precaution till today. Just got home. Mild flu like symptoms. Quarantining myself in the basement.  Rie's symptoms never got real bad but I bet the return of the spasms were due to COVID.  She has been approved to stay in rehab another week.  At the rate I am recovering, by next week I should be able to take care of her in our house.❤️🙏

 Rie and I have mild COVID symptoms. She tested positive. I'm waiting on my results but I'm sure it will be positive.  They have asked me to leave the hospital for a minimum of 5 to 10 days.  I'll be quarantining myself in the basement away from the Mia and my brother, Foad.  Prayers are appreciated❤️🙏

 Rie had a full day of therapy. Did really well with cognitive tests. We practiced propelling the wheelchair up and down a sloped ramp. A big relief as it looks like we should be able to use her new wheelchair to go down our steep driveway to the fun parts of the house! The second half of the day brought frequent painful spasms.  A new medication seems to be helping.  Cause unknown.  Basically, any noxious stimulus can cause spasms during the healing phase after a brain injury.  The cause can be as benign as a passing stressful thought or as ominous as things I refuse to think about.  Work up is in progress to rule out the serious causes but so far all is good.  Her response to the new medication is reassuring and would make serious causes unlikely. The tentative discharge date is January 31st but her rehab doctor has requested another week.  We are waiting for insurance authorization for the extension.🙏

 Successful medical van ride in wheelchair to plastic surgeon's office. We were an hour early and they were two hours late! Through the frustration of the wait, we learned that our bladder control was much better than we had thought!  Even when things don't feel good, He is teaching us something good that we would not have learned in any other way.  Praise God.  ❤️🙏. All but two stitches were removed.  The rest will come out next week. Final urine test showed she is on the correct antibiotics.  All UTI symptoms resolved. Continuing to see wonderful daily improvements in strength, mobility, ease of transfers, appetite, speech, memory, and cognition.  Apparently, the emotion centers of Rie's brain are now undergoing repair and recovery. Don't panic if during your conversations, you notice minute long emotional eruptions.  They call it "Emotional Incontinence".  It is part of the healing and often not associated with sadness. The eruptions pass...

 Over the weekend, Rie became sluggish and confused. Heart rate went up and then a fever and a severe headache for 24 hours.  Given a history of five brain surgeries in five months, we prayed for something less drastic in this sixth month.  Thankfully head CT scan was stable and blood work was normal. The urine test showed a mild infection to be the cause.  Feeling much better now.  Praise God. ❤️🙏

For the first time, Rie was able to propel and steer the wheelchair with ease. Home wheelchair ordered. Botox injections in the tightest muscles of the shoulder and calf were administered to decrease tone, increase range and prevent contractures.   We may see even faster improvements in mobility within two weeks.  Ever since Rie was cleared for Pizza two days ago, that's all we've been eating.  Doesn't look like we are going to get tired of pizza.  I understand some people like a variety but that's their problem! Have a blessed Sunday.💗🙏

 The first thing Rie asked when she reunited with her phone last night was, "Show me how to text Mia to tell her good night".❤️❤️❤️ After we did that, a dear family member happened to call her at the perfect time.  The two of them had an amazing conversation. Rie's voice volume and speed were adequate and her responses and comments were totally appropriate, so she must be ready for your calls, texts, FaceTime, etc.  The timing of it is tricky.  There are many unpredictable doctor, nurse, and therapist visits throughout the day. So I'd say just try whenever best for you and she will respond if/when free. Lastly, Rie asked for the Amazon app.  I informed her that Amazon had gone out of business! 💗🙏

 A small improvement in Rie's standing balance has made a big difference in the physical demands on me.  In rehab, small is big! ❤️🙏

 The physical therapist helped Rie walk down the hall using a handleless long stick.  It looked like Moses' staff.  Praise God.❤️🙏

 Rie walked 100 feet with the rolling walker, with minimal help mainly for balance and safety.  Voice and speech improving.  I'm charging her new iPhone13!  Praise God. 💗🙏

For the first time in many months, Rie was able to stand up with no physical help, just some verbal cues.  She was then placed in a weight-reducing harness and with the help of two physical therapists guiding each leg, she was able to walk on the treadmill for 6 minutes at 1.6 miles per hour. Per Rie's request, her diet was advanced from "Pureed" to "Minced and Moist".  Sadly, she now likes anchovies so I had to share half of my can! Praise God.💗🙏

Given the current rate of cognitive, speech, and fine motor improvements, Rie should soon be able to use her own phone for texting and faceTiming.  Praise God. 💗🙏 I'll let you know.

For the first time since July 30th, 2021, Rie stood up from sitting, all by herself. Once her wobbling and our amazement settled down, she did ten squats, twice! We realized Satan wants us to hurry and fail, but the Lord teaches us patience to get stronger, in Him. 💪🙏 ...but  we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;  And patience, experience; and experience, hope:  And hope never disappoints...(Romans 5).  

 After a day full of mostly ups and some downs, Rie and I found courage, strength, and resilience by reading about a starving exhausted man who withstood the tempter and made the coward run away by simply saying, "get thee hence, Satan".  We rehearsed the verse but Rie's version was, "get lost, you son of a beep"!  Matthew 4:10 RKJV (Rie's King James Version).

Certain physical and cognitive abilities now seem better than her baseline was prior to the cranioplasty.  The cranial implant that has fixed the large skull defect seems to be making more than a cosmetic difference.  The literature is not conclusive as to the reasons for such improvements.  We may not know why or how but we know Who.  Praise God.💗🙏

 Rie's improvements yesterday were unprecedented!  As that sweet Ethiopian angel said the day before, "EVERYTHING WILL BE ALRIGHT ".  Praise God. ❤️🙏

 The CT scan was stable! A sweet housekeeper wearing a beautiful cross necklace came to clean our floor.  She was puzzled as to why she had been sent to our room from a different floor.  She "happened" to be from Ethiopia where Rie and her family have done missionary work.  She held her hands in prayer as she left and looking at Rie said, "EVERYTHING WILL BE ALRIGHT".  💗🙏

Rie tolerated a full day of therapy.  No pain.  Eating and sleeping well.  Incision looks great. Self-feeding restarted, slow but encouraging.  Somehow the speech therapists can make her talk! An awesome neurologist and an awesome physiatrist (rehab specialist) teamed up and started medication adjustments to better help with the spasms, response time, and energy level.  Another head CT today to compare with last week's. This rehab hospital is the right place for us at this time.  Praise God!🙏💗

 Due to somnolence, the analgesics were withheld for 36 hours.  She did well; maybe a few more spasms but not uncomfortable. The therapists said they will do more than the required daily three hours of therapy if Rie tolerates it. Please pray for tolerance of therapy and for the spasms to stay away as the activity demands are increased.  Love and Blessings. 💗🙏

 They let us sleep here!  First full night of sleep  in over a month: no spasms, no hourly neuro checks, no noise outside the room, no loud overhead announcements, etc.  Rie should be ready for the full day of initial assessments by all the different therapy departments.

 Transport went well.  Unpacking and answering a million admission questions! Nice place here.🙏

Rie slept well. Minimal pain. The spasms are definitely less frequent and less intense.  However, the spasms and the two back to back cranioplasty procedures have caused significant cognitive and physical setbacks making the one-person-assist transfers impossible for now.  Praying that another round of inpatient rehab will get us there again.🙏 The plastic surgeon approved the transfer to St Davids Rehabilitation Hospital today.  Packing our bags,,,,AGAIN!

 The nice chaplain brought Rie a soft blanket and two lavender sachets and she gave me a little red heart figurine💖.  I told her about the dream Rie had the night before the event.  The three of us dropped a few tears, overwhelmed by the first-hand experience of the Lord going before us (Deuteronomy 31:8)🙏. Inpatient rehab at SDRH approved.  We might be transferred today or on Monday.  Waiting on the Plastic surgeon's recommendation.

 We got transferred out of the ICU to the neuro floor late last night after the repeat head CT scan looked stable. Rie slept well.  St David Rehabilitation Hospital referral was accepted pending insurance authorization. We are now on the sixth floor with a panoramic view of the Eastern sky.  Waiting to see what kind of sunrise He has planned for us. ❤️🙏

I’m trying a friend’s suggestion to fix the need for excessive scrolling. This “Test1” blog post and any associated comments should appear on top of Rie’s blog. 🙏