September 12, 2017 10:05 pm
Mary and Paul both made it down to the hospital today, but not for very long. We are both still under the weather but hoping we've turned the corner. The coughing is bad, especially Mary who not only coughs nonstop but also sounds like she might hack up a lung at times. Very painful. We're a little worried about our neighbors here in the apartments. Good thing they are all elderly. Maybe they are hard of hearing too.
In OT this morning, Josh was given short phrases to read, such as "raise your arms" or "wiggle your fingers." He could read the phrases easily but when asked to do what they say, he couldn't. He has a hard time connecting the words to the actions.
Josh had an MRI today to check out the fluid level in his brain. The results were not good. His ventricles were about the same size as the last MRI a couple of weeks ago. This was expected since his shunt setting is still at a seven -- not much fluid is being drained. But the surprising results were that the fluid in the front area of his brain had actually increased. The hope was that by keeping the ventricles extra large, the fluid in the front would be forced out. This has not worked. The doctor told us this means we either leave it the way it is or put in a second shunt to drain the front of his brain. He told us the neurosurgeon at Swedish who put in Josh's first shunt would stop by tomorrow and consult with us. Another surgery and another shunt is looking pretty likely at this point. We'll see.
Josh was pretty wiped out after the MRI because they gave him a small dose of Xanax before the MRI to relax him, so he slept through his next class but then rallied for his final class of the day -- PT. He did a lot in PT, including walking a dog around the facility! After PT he was back in bed and asleep in 0.6 seconds. It took a little effort to get him out of bed for dinner.
Josh's former roommate, Alicia, did a video call so she could talk with Josh for a few minutes. He is getting better at talking on the phone, but it is still difficult for him to carry on much of a conversation. In their phone call, Alicia asked if Josh remembered the time her dog got into his room and ate some of his food and Josh got mad at the dog. Josh said, "Yeah, that sounds like something I'd do." That cracked us all up, including Josh.
Paul had a work-related telephone call in the evening and Mary wasn't feeling very well, so we left Josh in the care of the folks of Craig and came back to the apartment early.
Mary and Paul both made it down to the hospital today, but not for very long. We are both still under the weather but hoping we've turned the corner. The coughing is bad, especially Mary who not only coughs nonstop but also sounds like she might hack up a lung at times. Very painful. We're a little worried about our neighbors here in the apartments. Good thing they are all elderly. Maybe they are hard of hearing too.
In OT this morning, Josh was given short phrases to read, such as "raise your arms" or "wiggle your fingers." He could read the phrases easily but when asked to do what they say, he couldn't. He has a hard time connecting the words to the actions.
Josh had an MRI today to check out the fluid level in his brain. The results were not good. His ventricles were about the same size as the last MRI a couple of weeks ago. This was expected since his shunt setting is still at a seven -- not much fluid is being drained. But the surprising results were that the fluid in the front area of his brain had actually increased. The hope was that by keeping the ventricles extra large, the fluid in the front would be forced out. This has not worked. The doctor told us this means we either leave it the way it is or put in a second shunt to drain the front of his brain. He told us the neurosurgeon at Swedish who put in Josh's first shunt would stop by tomorrow and consult with us. Another surgery and another shunt is looking pretty likely at this point. We'll see.
Josh was pretty wiped out after the MRI because they gave him a small dose of Xanax before the MRI to relax him, so he slept through his next class but then rallied for his final class of the day -- PT. He did a lot in PT, including walking a dog around the facility! After PT he was back in bed and asleep in 0.6 seconds. It took a little effort to get him out of bed for dinner.
Josh's former roommate, Alicia, did a video call so she could talk with Josh for a few minutes. He is getting better at talking on the phone, but it is still difficult for him to carry on much of a conversation. In their phone call, Alicia asked if Josh remembered the time her dog got into his room and ate some of his food and Josh got mad at the dog. Josh said, "Yeah, that sounds like something I'd do." That cracked us all up, including Josh.
Paul had a work-related telephone call in the evening and Mary wasn't feeling very well, so we left Josh in the care of the folks of Craig and came back to the apartment early.
We're making progress! I know it seems impossibly slow to you, since it's 24/7. but when you consider where he was 10 weeks ago, his prognosis then, and where he is now...it's more than unbelievable. Great work! Appreciate a break and be good to yourselves. You've earned it.
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