Time Flies??

I can hardly believe it has been almost three weeks since my last post. It seems that I continue to run out of day before I run out of things that need to be done.

Judi continues to improve with her "yes/no" responses. We have settled on using the hand signals and she grows more and more responsive with the signals each day. We still have to prompt her to answer the majority of the time, but she answers confidently when she understands the question. I have slowly but surely shifted into teaching her things that she appears not to understand. This is a slow process because I want to make sure she comprehends the topic(s) as opposed to simply answering the questions. This is a key area for us and hopefully she will continue to improve.

The BOTOX injections in her left arm/hand are showing positive results, but we have a LONG way to go there. She is trying to control them, but the response is minimal and sluggish at best. We will keep working hard on them and I have to remind myself that the right side was in a similar condition not too long ago.

Judi's legs continue to get stronger every day. We have been working hard in therapy and at home to strengthen these muscles and reactivate the nerves in the left leg using weight bearing activities. The only thing that is keeping us from putting her on the treadmill (with her body supported by harness) is her head position. We are still struggling in a big way to get her to hold her head up. We seem to make a little progress here and then lose it all again. We will keep working here, but I am afraid we are in for a long and frustrating journey.

Her first neurofeedback session is scheduled for April 6th. I am excited about the possibilities and hope that some new doors can be opened for her as a result of the sessions. I am concerned about the toll that the trip will take on her (it is about a three hour drive), but we'll adapt as we see how she responds. I had the passenger seat in the van modified to swivel so that we can transfer her from her wheelchair to the seat. Hopefully this will be more comfortable for her, but I am not sure she will be able to sit there safely with the current limited control of her head. We'll figure it out.

I guess that's the big stuff. I think it is important to make one key point to everyone that has followed Judi's recovery along the way: after almost a year, JUDI IS STILL GETTING BETTER! It is slow progress, but we are clearly still making progress. I have done countless hours of research on brain injuries and the one common theme is that people will usually continue to recover as long as they are receiving therapy. Much of this data has unfortunately been gathered by monitoring the troops that are returning from the wars that have similar injuries. The old school of thought was that after 18 months a person that had suffered this type of injury would have recovered about all that they were going to. The recovery obviously slows over time and what usually happens is that the support system just accepts where they are and the person no longer gets better. I will admit that I can see how this would happen. There are days when I am so tired I am not sure how I can keep pumping energy into Judi. I can't tell you how many times I have held her close, closed my eyes and asked God to give me the strength to make it just one more day. He always seems to answer. I am convinced that it is your prayers for Judi and me that are making this happen. Easter is just around the corner. Many miracles occurred leading up to, during and after this time in our Christian history. Perhaps there is another miracle in the making for Judi. Please remember us in your prayers and know that I will keep on working with her until the day I leave this earth.

Happy Easter and thank you all for your support,
Steve