friday and saturday

Friday morning at 10 they moved Jon to Select Specialty Hospital. Jon had a really great day yesterday. He was assessed by the doctor, the pa, and different therapist. Jon really responded well. He did everything that they asked. He moved fingers and toes on the right and left side according to what they asked him. He was talking more. He wiggled his tongue. They were all very happy with how Jon responded. He was able to sit up in a special chair for a while. This hospital is bright and clean. Jon has three big windows in his room. Someone told us that there was a small window for things to reconnect and we are in it. The doctor said we need to get Jon up and going so he can get out of here:)...

Last night Jon started to get a fever. By this morning it was at 105. His pulse rate was also up. Jon is also breathing fast. They have him on a cooling blanket and have started antibiotics. They haven't gotten the results from his blood cultures back yet. Jon is coughing up a lot of stuff. They also are taking his pic line out and putting a central line back in in case the pic line is a source of infection. They said that this is common but it still worries us. Yesterday was such a great day; this feels like such a set back...Please say an extra prayer or two for Jon.

5/27/09

Jon is going to be moving again soon. He will be moving to Select Specialty Hospital. The doctors explained to us that Jon is not sick enough to be in an acute care center such as OU Medical but not well enough for 8 hours of PT at Jim Thorpe. Select is a step down unit. Jon will be able to get as much therapy as he can tolerate. Yesterday Jon was able to take a wheel chair ride out to the pond at the hospital. He has been up again today. They are still reducing his meds. Last night Jon spiked a fever and they discovered that he has a UTI. They started him on antibiotics.

Jon is making many advances and we are very thankful. It is so easy to misconstrue Jon's condition. Jon is not full awake. It is like he is in a daze and not aware of most of what is going on around him. His eyes are open but he doesn't "talk" or respond all of the time. He will track us sometimes. Jon isn't Jon again yet...please keep praying that he comes back to us soon. I miss him so much!!! We will love him unconditionally but my selfish side wants to see him and talk to him and tell him how much we love and miss him!!! There is so much he has left to do in this world. Thanks for all of the prayers and continued support...lots of love to everyone:)

5/26/09

Jon had another busy day yesterday. PT and OT sat him in a wheel chair for almost 1 1/2 hours. His oxygen and pulse stayed good while he was sitting up. We got to wheel him around the 5th floor. It was so exciting to us...I am not really sure what Jon thought of all the excitement. Mom discovered after I left that the oxygen was not making any noise...It had been empty. We do not know for how long but Jon's numbers did not indicate that he was having any problems. I should clarify that Jon is not able to have conversations or "talk" all of the time. He sporadically will say something. It is hard to hear him b/c he does not have the voice thing on his trach. He is allowing mom to brush his teeth. He opens his mouth up and lets her clean his mouth. Yesterday, Jon was fidgeting in his bed and I was sitting next to him. I asked him if he wanted me to move and he did not hesitate in shaking his head yes! He was also trying to snap his fingers. The doctors are going to meet and discuss the plan for Jon's continued recovery today. They are still lowering his meds all the time. Please keep praying.

Movin' on up...

Saturday evening about 7 they moved Jon to the 5th floor. He is in a room that has a sitter. The sitter sits in a room that has a camera on Jon and watches him and one other patient. Yesterday (Sunday) they reduced one of his meds by 1/2. They are completely taking him off of it today (Monday). It is a medicine for his agitation. Jon is MUCH less agitated. Thank the Lord!!! This morning Jon actually talked to Kem. Kem asked him if he was in pain and he said, "No." He asked Jon if he was uncomfortable and he said, "yes." Jon said, "help me" and Kem told him that we were helping him. The doctors and nurses are doing everything they can for him and that he had been in an accident. Kem asked him if he was going to tell Mom hi when she got here and he said , "yes." Jon seems much more aware today. Although he is much aware, they told us to not over stimulate him. Lots of talkin could be overwhelming for him. We so thankful for all of these things. Keep up the prayers!

5/23/09

Jon has had some good days lately. He is less agitated than he was in the past. Yesterday when the therapist had him in the chair they told him that he was going to leave and ask Jon if he could wave bye to him. Jon waved a finger. Later a therapist did the same thing and Jon waved his hand. Jon is not consistently responding to commands. He looks kind of like he is in a daze when his eyes are open. He will track people. As soon as they have a sitter available Jon will get to move to the 5th floor!!! They said that maybe by the end of next week Jon will be moved to a rehab facility. They may even be able to take his trach out soon? All of Jon's vitals are good. It is so good to see him less agitated. He has started to moan some. The therapist that came in and worked w/ Jon's ankle today said that he would sit in the chair later today. It is such a good thing to get to be moved to the 5th floor but it also seems a little scary:) We are so used to the nurses in ICU and know that they work so hard to take good care of Jon. (Part of me wishes that he could just stay w/ them until he is well enough to go home...I know this isn't best for Jon though.) Each new step is exciting and we are so thankful. The doctor said this morning that they are pleased with Jon's progress so far! The RT said that Jon is a miracle child. God is still performing miracles on earth so please continue your prayers...

5/20/09 afternoon

Today Jon was taken off of the ventilator. They were going to do trials but when they had the oxygen collar on him his oxygen level was as good or better than with the vent so they took it away!!! They also took out his ART line. The ART line was a line inserted into an artery to measure his internal blood pressure. Jon got to sit in the chair again today. He is still agitated and gets upset. Mom thought he was more responsive/aware today. We are so thankful for these advances.

I think that when most people think of someone being in a coma, they think that they just "wake up". This is not always the case. With brain injuries there is never any particular way that things occur. The doctors don't give certainties...they don't say that if this happens that will be the result. The process Jon is going through is the "waking up" process. This is what we refer to as Jon being agitated. Agitated is not just a simple rise in blood pressure or heart rate. It is thrashing around in the bed/chair. He moves his hands/arms and kicks the bed. He tries to sit up and get out of bed. He tries to pull the feeding tube out of his nose. He grimaces. He looks completely uncomfortable. These "agitated" episodes don't last all of the time but they are exhausting. They say that this can last anywhere from one to two days to a few weeks. Jon is not talking yet. He has mouthed a few things to us, but cannot verbally express himself yet. Although he has his eyes open he is not fully aware of everything. We are thankful that he is responsive. He is not fully awake or back to his old self again. He has such a long road of recovery ahead! Continue your prayers:)

Busy Day today!!

Jon has had a busy day today! He was agitated this morning and so mom stepped out of the room for a few minutes and when she returned they had him sitting in a recliner. He stayed there for about an hour. They also did their first ventilator trial with him. They put the oxygen collar on him for two hours this afternoon and he did VERY well! They put him back on the vent after the hour. They will continue this and keep increasing his time off the vent...They are also talking about having to put him back on some sedation because of his severe agitation. There is a fine line between what we want him to be doing and what is out of control and not healthy for him. He needs to be able to settle down and rest so that his body can continue to heal. If they put him back on the sedation he will have to stay on the ventilator so we really hope that he will not have to go back on the sedation! We are so excited about Jon's progress today! Praise the Lord!!!! It is so easy to focus on the many steps forward that Jon has had. He still has so much recovery time ahead of him. We are so thankful for his progress but also aware of the long road of recovery still ahead....

Monday 5/18/09

Jon's condition is about the same. The respiratory therapist want to put the oxygen mask on Jon and take the ventilator off but the doctor says to wait a little longer. She wants to take it slowly so that we don't have any set backs. The sedation medication is off completely now. He is on pain medication and medication for his agitation. For most of the day Jon was pretty calm. When Mom left last night he was VERY agitated and they had to give him quite a bit of medication to get him to settle down. Once he begins to get upset, it is hard for him to settle himself down and so therefore he continues to be agitated and it gets worse and worse until they have to use medication to help him. Mom says that his strength continues to grow each day. We really need for his lungs to continue to heal and get better. Please continue to pray for Jon and our family. Knowing that this is all in God's hands and that we have such an awesome God is such a comfort to us.

Sunday

Overall Jon had a much more restful day. He had a few times that he was really agitated. They are working to lower the meds for the agitation. He is taking all of his own breathes except for 2 per minute. They still have his PEEP set at 8. They're going to leave all of the pressure settings the same on his vent until the bottom part of his lungs heal a little bit more. His blood/gas levels are almost normal:) Jon is still responding to the things the doctors and nurses are asking of him. When he gets agitated, we can tell him that he has been in an accident and that he is okay and he tends to settle down at least for a little while. They have been giving him medicine to cause him to forget so we have to keep reminding him of things. They told us that they are starting to look for trends in Jon's health and will be going more from week to week rather than minute to minute. Please continue to pray...God is answering so many prayers.

Saturday Morning

Jon is highly agitated this morning. We have been kicked out of his roo for a while so that he can rest. We can look through the window at him but the nurse asked us to please not wake him:) He is quite a handful today...Earlier before we were kicked out Mom leaned down and told Jon that she loved him and he mouthed "I love you" back to her. He tried to say something else but no one could understand what he was saying--I think he was asking where I was...lol. They did increase his medication to help with his agitation.

Friday 5/15/09 8:00 pm

Jon's surgery went well today. He returned to his room around 1:00 and the ventilator was on the same settings as before surgery:). They did a tracheotomy on Jon today when they were finished with his surgery. We were assured that this is in his best interest. The doctor says sometimes they can wean patients off the ventilator faster if they have a trach. By having a trach Jon will be able to eat and drink (when he is ready...not right now) and talk. He is not allowed to even try to talk for at least the first 24 hours and up to a few days....Jon is very agitated and is fighting while he is waking up. He moves his arms and legs A LOT!!! He has knocked the vent off twice and is trying to pull at everything. He is also kicking and moving his legs everywhere. He tries to pull his gloves off. The nurse explained to us today that all of his agitation and fighting is the neurons in his brain re-firing. This causes him to over react to any type of stimulation. This agitation and fighting stage is very normal. The nurse assures us that it is a very positive behavior b/c the more he fights the more his brain is doing. This behavior is very exhausting for us. We know that he is okay but it seems like we can't do anything to help him. It really hurts to not be able to help someone you love so dearly. The nurses assure us that Jon will not remember this time...Jon does eventually settle down either on his own or with medication. This part of his hospital stay is so tiring...I am glad that he is waking up more so that he brain injury can be more accurately assessed, but it is VERY DIFFICULT to see Jon this way. I am not sure that we will completely understand the extent of Jon's injuries until we have left the hospital. It seems as though each day we learn more and more about what improvements he has made and how sick he really has been...and how far he stil has to go. At this point they continue to tell us that we will not know the extent of trauma Jon's brain has undergone until he is more awake and past this stage. He is now at a 10-11T on the coma scale. We are at a 15. He needs to begin talking or trying to talk for the rating to go up. I learned what PEEP was today--It is the amount of pressure in the lungs. We normally exhale all of our oxygen with every breathe. The PEEP does not allow Jon to exhale all of his oxygen. It maintains a certain pressure in his lungs so that he does not have to use all of his energy to refill them. It also helps keep the aveoli inflated so that they do not shrivel up. They tell us that the ventilator is at minimal settings. Jon also got a pretty, big, black boot on his right leg today (I am not sure if he will like this boot as much as his new pair of boots he has at home...lol) . His vitals are all good. His bp and heart rate are at a much more stable level now than they have been in the past. Please continue your prayers for Jon and Melinda. Our families apprecitate them so much. God works in such wonderous and wonderful ways! So many of our prayers have already been answered! We are so thankful!

FYI

The nurse today told my mom that when the doctor first talked to us about Jon's condition two weeks ago, the nurse had never seen oxygen levels or vent levels that high before! We are so thankful for Jon's progress. Nurses from around the floor are stopping by to see him and they notice his remarkable progress. They are telling us that we need to let him rest and not talk to him too much b/c it keeps him "agitated." They also have told us that when he comes out of surgery tomorrow to expect his vent levels to be increased from today and that they will have to wean him off again. Please pray for him during his surgery and after:)

GOOD NEWS!!

This morning about 5 am Jon began responding to commands that the doctors were giving him. He is wiggling his toes and keeping his eyes open. They are trying to let Jon settle himself down whenever he gets agitated and if he doesn't settle down they will give him something. Jon is not able to talk because he has the ventilator in. They have gotten his PEEP down to 8 which is their target! The doctors are very happy about Jon's progress. Remember that although Jon's eyes are open, he is still very groggy. They are planning to be able to do surgery on Jon's ankle tomorrow. They assure us that this is nothing to be worried about. Please keep praying for Jon's recovery and give thanks for all of the success Jon has had so far!

yesterday

Jon had a hard day yesterday. The doctors did a scope on his lungs. They cleaned them out and took a piece to do a culture on. They think he may have pneumonia again or something. By the end of the evening they were able to get his ventilator back where it was and lower the PEEP by one to 10. They still have his sedation level lowered. The head nurse reassured mom that he is improving and that we knew we were going to have bumps in the road. She also reminded us that waking up is going to be hard.

10:30 am

I just talked to Mom and she said that Jon is having a little tougher time right now. He is awake much more and this is causing him to cough more. He is also feeling more agitated. His oxygen levels are lower than they have been in the past. They ended up having to make some increases in some things on his ventilator...Please pray for his continued recovery.

9:39 am

Last night Mom said that Jon was having a coughing fit and he had his eyes open. Mom and the nurse asked him if he was okay. He shook his head no (back and forth about 4 times)!!! He is coughing up a lot of stuff. He is also opening his eyes much more. Please continue to pray for Jon!

Jon's Weekend

Jon had a really good weekend. They changed some of the settings on his ventilator and he tolerated them. They changed it so that he would have to work harder on his own to breathe. They have also been reducing his sedation medication. It is now on a three (not sure what it was before). He is still on VERY strong pain medication. It is 100 times stronger than moriphine. He also has a dose of loratab every few hours. They said that if we took that dosage it would kill us but he has adjusted to it. The amount of pain meds keep him asleep a lot of the time. The doctors had him have a blood transfusion on Sunday. They said this was routine in trauma patients. Jon's bloodpressure and heart rate have been okay. They would like his bp to be a little higher and his heart rate to be a little lower...Jon is making steady progress on the vent....hopefully he will be able to get rid of it soon and they can really start to wake him up. He can't be fully awake with the vent b/c of the amount of discomfort it causes. Sunday as I was leaving I could see Jon's eyes cracking open and he squeezed my hand a couple of times. It is always so good to feel him and see him. They took out his central line and put a pick line in to administer meds and take blood. This will be a more permanent line for them to use. He should be able to keep it until he is well. Even though these were all small steps, they kept Jon busy this weekend. The doctors and nurses have said that he will have a busy week this week. They will continue to make changes to his vent and meds. Please continue to pray for his continued recovery. I also asked that you pray for my family. ALSO, my mom's second cousin was in an accident this past weekend and she is also in the hospital with a TBI. Please pray for her and her family.

Friday morning

Jon has still been doing well. Mom says that he has been getting agitated when they do different things to him. They are giving him medicine to wake him up. The nurse is going to see if they can switch the pain meds around to better address his needs...it would treat the pain to his bones and muscles rather than make him sleep. I am ready to get back to OKC so that I can see him again:) Please continue your prayers b/c they have made all of the difference so far. Although Jon is doing better, the nurses/doctors still have Jon's room limited to the immediate family. We appreciate all visitors though. We are truly thankful for everyone's overwhelming support and prayers. If he is too stimulated some of his numbers begin to fluctuate. Have a great Friday!!!

3:42 pm

Jon has had a good day today. All of his numbers have remained good today. He has been running a low grade temperature today but nothing has grown on the cultures that they did. They did find a blood clot in his leg and in his arm today. They are treating him with medication. Jon is also doing some of his breathing on his own. He is still on the ventilator but it monitors what it does and what Jon does on his own.

Thursday morning

This morning the nurses asked Jon to give them thumbs up and he did multiple times. He also squeezed their hand with strength and was looking around the room. He has developed another infection but they are not concerned with this right now. The sedation is still at the same level it has been...Please pray for a calm, restful, and healing day.

2:35 pm

Jon has opened his eyes today and looked at Mom and Kem. He has squeezed their hands, coughed and wrinkled his forehead. Mom says he looks fragile and she has explained to him that he has had a very bad case of pneumonia and that he needs his rest but not to worry because they are there. (I came back to school today so I haven't seen him....) I keep telling her to give him a big hug and tell him that I will be back soon! I hope he realizes how much he is truly loved! Remember that all praises and glory go to God!!!! This has just been a really good few days for him in his recovery:)

11:32 am

They are moving Jon to a regular bed now and they are going to take the paralytic off at the same time (we think). He had a good night. He is doing so much better!

9:05 pm

Jon got off the special ventilator today. The doctors and nurses had been talking about switching him all day and his oxygen level kept showing about 90-93 so we weren't sure if they were going to do it. They decided that if they didn't try we wouldn't ever make any progress. They made the switch and he did extremely well. He was having about 97 and above oxygen levels. They went down a little bit later in the evening but he was doing well. They are talking about moving him to a regular bed and turning the paralytic off tomorrow. God answers our prayers and we need to be thankful! Please keep praying for Jon and Melinda.

11:06 am.

Jon had a VERY good night! This morning he had a little dip in his oxygen level but the nurse said that it was okay. She reminded us that we are going to have to keep taking the chance of pushing forward and accept a little step backward to ever make any progress. They are monitoring him closely. The doctor also told us that there has been a good amount of improvement in his x-ray from the first day until now. We are so thankful for all of his improvement. Jon's color looks good. The scabs on his face are really starting to heal. They are about to fall off. His swelling has really gone down. Jon is about back to his normal size. The orthopedic doctors told us that they would be able to do surgery on Jon's ankle whenever he was well enough to undergo the surgery safely. There would not be any further damage done by waiting. Jon's pupils are still responding appropriately. They are both equal and responsive. They all keep reminding us that his recovery will b made in baby steps...All prayers are appreciated!

1:17 pm

Jon is still off the nitric oxide. After his last lung recruitment they had to increase his oxygen to 80% but are working to bring it down again. The doctor said that he expected him to come out of this :) We still have a long road and need continuous prayers that this continues to work. He also said that Jon would probably be on a regular ventilator for 4-6 weeks...He also said that Jon is young and could surprise him. The doctor said that he is doing just what they expected and that not getting worse is getting better. We are so thankful for even the smallest of improvements that Jon makes.

10:30 am

They have taken Jon off of the nitric oxide this morning. Right now his oxygenation level is showing about 93 and they want it to be 94. This is the longest he has been off the nitric w/o having to be put back on. Hopefully, he will continue on this path...we have prayed so hard for this day to come. Now, we need him to be able to get off the special ventilator. I think it has to get down to about 40% and it is at 60% right now.


I am not sure what nitric oxide does to help...I just know that it has and I am very thankful:)

12:41 pm

Jon had a good night last night. They have his nitric oxide as low as they can get it w/o turning it off. They are also trying another approach...they are going to lower his oxygen % to 50% and let him stablize then try to turn off the nitric. We are still waiting on the x-ray from this morning. Jon's temperature is good as well as his blood pressure, heart rate, and oxygen level. We think he looks so much better each day. He seems to be a lot less swollen than he has in the previous days. To us it is such an encouraging sign...but we are not the doctors. This morning we went to the church service held here at the hospital. It focused on Courage, Comfort, and Help in Times of Trouble. These are a couple of scriptures that really stood out to me: ""God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof." Psalm 46:1-3 and "These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." John 16:33...Please keep praying.:)

5:16 pm

The doctors have kept Jon's nitric oxide level at one today. They tried to lower it to zero earlier and his oxygenation level was not quite what they wanted so they moved it back to one. His blood pressure has fluctuated a little. Jon's nurse seems to think that it is pain related so they are increasing his pain medicine a little. Hopefully it will help it to even out again. The doctors did say that his x-ray from this morning on his lungs might have looked a little better today so keep praying that this treatment continues to work!

9:15 am

Jon had a good night. He did not have any dips in blood pressure! They have the nitric oxide down to a 1. They are hoping to turn the nitric off at 10 am. The plan from there is to lower the oxygen % and then change back to the regular ventilator. Please keep praying that this is able to happen. God is so good and has answered so many prayers up to this point. We just need for everyone to keep praying for Jon's recovery b/c he still has such a long way to go. He is still considered to be critical at this point...we just have to be grateful for all of the baby steps he is making!

12:36 pm

Jon had another pretty good night. His blood pressure stayed up last night and today which is a positive thing for him. They are slowly weaning him off the oxygen level and nitric oxide. So far so good today. Please remember that Jon's condition is stil very fragile and he still needs your prayers. I know that I am beginning to sound like a broken record about the prayers, but it is truly what we believe will help Jon! All of his bloodwork so far has come back good and is not indicating any further problems. Continue to pray that Jon's treatment continues to work!