11:40am
We waited 24 days to hear 3 words that Taylor finally said - "I love you". He said it before the accident every time he left home, or ended a phone conversation. And, he said it out of the blue often. Yesterday, he told his father, mother and sister that he loved them all at different times. The wait was worth it.
This morning, Taylor got to visit with his cat, "Frank". Just like he does at home, as soon as he saw Frank he began to scratch the cat's neck. Taylor smiled, the cat squinted his eyes. It was just like old times.
Taylor continues to do well in an effort to wean him off of the Trach. If he continues at the rate he is now, he should be able to talk to us in a day or so. And, if the test tomorrow goes well, he'll be able to take liquids through his mouth.
He is getting REAL tired real quick of his condition, so we're hopeful that once we can talk to him, and he can talk back, we can give him some comfort and inspire him to cooperate with everyone.
The more aware he becomes of his surroundings, the more we expect to him to get aggravated. But, Taylor is a very smart guy and once he learns what he has to do to shorten his stay, I expect he'll do it....or maybe even over do it.
4:40pm
Since mid morning, Taylor has been breathing on his own. Shortly after lunchtime, he was taken completely off the ventilator and has been doing well in that regard.
But, overall, Taylor is having a rough afternoon. He is able to indicate that his stomach is hurting, but it's likely from the feeding tube that he pulled out yesterday. He continues to grab for the Trach, the collar he is wearing for the fractured neck, and other lines running here and there. His arms are on a tether to keep him from doing any further damage, but he still manages to slide down the bed, or bends to get his upper body closer to his hands. It's one of those "good and bad" things. That he's able to figure out how to solve, or attempt to solve, the problem of his hands being tethered by moving his body to his hands is an great indication of his recovery, according to the staff.
He is getting frustrated, at at times really mad, with his inability to communicate. He was mouthing words that we couldn't understand. He grabbed the pen from my pocket and indicated he wanted to write. The Nurse gave me a pad and I held it as he tried to write something. Twice he wrote the same thing, but I was unable to make it out. I then wrote down the alphabet and tried to get him to spell it out, but he was unable to hold his hand steady enough to point out certain letters.
In the middle of all this, he would get shooting pains that would suddenly hit him causing him to grimace, grit his teeth, clench his fists and bend his legs. The staff was trying to minimize the pain medication, since they were going to fix the Trach so that he could talk, and since he was breathing on his own.
They made the adjustment on the Trach and he tried to talk, but was unable to do so. This is just a temporary problem, mostly likely caused by him being tired. They'll try again tomorrow to get him to talk.
This morning, Taylor got to visit with his cat, "Frank". Just like he does at home, as soon as he saw Frank he began to scratch the cat's neck. Taylor smiled, the cat squinted his eyes. It was just like old times.
Taylor continues to do well in an effort to wean him off of the Trach. If he continues at the rate he is now, he should be able to talk to us in a day or so. And, if the test tomorrow goes well, he'll be able to take liquids through his mouth.
He is getting REAL tired real quick of his condition, so we're hopeful that once we can talk to him, and he can talk back, we can give him some comfort and inspire him to cooperate with everyone.
The more aware he becomes of his surroundings, the more we expect to him to get aggravated. But, Taylor is a very smart guy and once he learns what he has to do to shorten his stay, I expect he'll do it....or maybe even over do it.
4:40pm
Since mid morning, Taylor has been breathing on his own. Shortly after lunchtime, he was taken completely off the ventilator and has been doing well in that regard.
But, overall, Taylor is having a rough afternoon. He is able to indicate that his stomach is hurting, but it's likely from the feeding tube that he pulled out yesterday. He continues to grab for the Trach, the collar he is wearing for the fractured neck, and other lines running here and there. His arms are on a tether to keep him from doing any further damage, but he still manages to slide down the bed, or bends to get his upper body closer to his hands. It's one of those "good and bad" things. That he's able to figure out how to solve, or attempt to solve, the problem of his hands being tethered by moving his body to his hands is an great indication of his recovery, according to the staff.
He is getting frustrated, at at times really mad, with his inability to communicate. He was mouthing words that we couldn't understand. He grabbed the pen from my pocket and indicated he wanted to write. The Nurse gave me a pad and I held it as he tried to write something. Twice he wrote the same thing, but I was unable to make it out. I then wrote down the alphabet and tried to get him to spell it out, but he was unable to hold his hand steady enough to point out certain letters.
In the middle of all this, he would get shooting pains that would suddenly hit him causing him to grimace, grit his teeth, clench his fists and bend his legs. The staff was trying to minimize the pain medication, since they were going to fix the Trach so that he could talk, and since he was breathing on his own.
They made the adjustment on the Trach and he tried to talk, but was unable to do so. This is just a temporary problem, mostly likely caused by him being tired. They'll try again tomorrow to get him to talk.
1 comment:
Try placing your palm up against taylors "working finger" and have him draw letters in your palm. It may be easier, his brain won't have to focus on how to manipulate the pen and get his letters out. Might be worth a try. I am off this week and will get up there one day and give him a foot massage! Maybe that will distract him from pain. Love you guys, your old neighbor - Suzi
Post a Comment