Mom Update 11/2

Update (7:02pm): After spending some time with mom today, though she hasn't opened her eyes as much as before, she has been moving and fidgeting quite a bit. The movement on her left side seems very intentional and as if she were awake. (But of course, each time I look to her face to check, she's not.) But the movement is deliberate and not simply out of discomfort or necessity, so that's great. I've also begun to see some minimal movement on her right side. I didn't expect that at all, so yay!

Even though things are still a wee bit precarious, it's an enormous relief to know we've turned a corner. I can't tell you how much the constant support from everyone has been - thank you, thank you, and thank you again.

As we settle into a bit of a holding pattern, I will continue to update you on mom's progress, but I'd anticipate it to be more like one (or possibly two) a day. Progress will be slow and (hopefully) steady and we will be going toward staying with mom in shifts more and more. If you would like, feel free to come visit. And remember to focus those prayers not only on recovery, but also specifically with language!!

A bit of good news today - we met with the neuro PA again this morning and she said the newest CT scan showed that the swelling in her brain has gone down - yay!! So that means it's moving in the right direction. It was only an incremental amount, but she is cautiously optimistic that we're out of the danger zone.

They also took her off the respirator for a limited time today to test how she does without it and to look at her natural level of saturation (basically how well she breathes on her own). Things looked good, but the PA doesn't want to actually take her off the breathing tube for a couple more days as a precaution. She said though, as we continue to see the swelling go down, we should begin to see her waking up a little bit more. Which is all great news.

This however, doesn't change her long term outcome. She will likely never be independent again and will require permanent care. Before the swelling began she showed signs of understanding and the ability to follow commands. Again, as the swelling incrementally goes down, we should see incremental gains in both wakefulness and understanding. Just how much...that remains to be seen. She will have to go through extensive occupational and speech therapy for at least a year.

There are, of course, still risks and we're not guaranteed that she's out of the woods...but we're heading there. Thank you all so much for your thoughts and prayers. Both Monica and I dreamed of my mom talking last night. More than likely it's more wishful thinking than prophesy, but it doesn't hurt to pray about it. As we move forward and pray for her recovery and guide her through this whole process, let's concentrate on language. Our PA told us that not all of her language center was affected - some of it was spared. It's hard to think of my mom as permanently disabled, but if she were given the mercy of communication - what a blessing that would be!! It's still very early, but the PA anticipated she would have significant difficulty communicating her needs. I can't imagine that is anything but frustrating. Let's pray she's willing and able to tackle the obstacle.

This is all still so overwhelming and surreal....and we have a very long road ahead. Thank you so much for your continued prayer and support - we need it!