December 23, 2009

Melinda has been really busy this past month. Melinda continued to receive home health therapies 3 times a week. As Melinda progressed, it was decided that she needed outpatient therapy. It was exciting to know that she would be using new equipment to help her walk and strengthen her right arm. Melinda is working hard to get her balance and coordination.

Melinda started back to high school for her senior year. We decided that it would be best for her to do 1/2 days, 3 days a week. Melinda would also need an aide to go to school with her, to help her from class to class and with her assignments. The school didn't have an aide for Melinda and so we prayed and god brought Melinda's friend Carolyn. Melinda was so excited to see all her teachers and classmates. Melinda went to school for a week when we got a call from the rehab in Texas. We were told about Pate Rehabilitation in Texas back in October that helped with post traumatic brain injuries like Melinda's. I had taken Melinda to Dallas Texas to be evaluated and the case manager said Melinda would be a good candidate. Pate rehab had been talking to our insurance and they approved Melinda to go starting December 15th. The insurance approved the first 30 days but could as long as 3 months. We packed her bags and headed to Anna Texas. It was a fast and busy day getting Melinda admitted and meeting all the therapist so they could evaluate her. We went to the main house to see Melinda's room to unpack her things. Her room is like a mini apartment. She has a refrigerator, washer & dryer and a separate living area. When we started this process to get Melinda to this rehab, we were told that the insurance would say no and she wouldn't be allowed to go. We all prayed and never lost our faith that this was where Melinda needed to be to continue her recovery. It was very emotional, mostly for me to say goodbye to Melinda. She let me know this week that she isn't so homesick and is meeting new friends. As a mom that makes my heart feel a little bit better. We are driving down on Christmas day to see Melinda and visit for a few days. Please keep Melinda in your daily prayers that she continues to progress. I pray to God that he continues to give us strenght to stay strong and to never lose faith.

Nov 22nd

Melinda is doing well. She seems to be getting stronger every day and is getting good walking with the walker. We got her a walking cane but didn't work out so well. She fell a few times. We don't want to rush if she isn't ready but we know soon she will be. She is getting better about doing exercises and will even initiate them on her own. Melinda's spirits remain high and she is looking forward to going back to school. We are still working on that. Melinda will need an aide with her at school. Melinda isn't receiving occupational or speech therapy at this time. She only has enough visits for physcial therapy to last through December. I talked with her PT and we are working on getting Melinda to the facility to use their equipment to work harder on her balance. Everything is going well and Melinda continues to do her daily routines without much assistance. Melinda is using her right hand to eat and has been doing a lot of writing. It is truely amazing to see Melinda improving. Thank you for your continued prayers. God Bless you and Happy Thanksgiving!

Nov. 11th

Melinda is doing well. Working hard every day. We haven't heard anything about the rehab in Dallas TX. We will just keep praying. Melinda received her seasonal flu shot, H1N1 shot and her pneumonia shot. She couldn't afford to get sick since her immune system is not strong. She is wanting to go to school really bad. We are talking to the school about getting started on her senior year. Melinda asks, Am I going to school today"? Melinda will need an aide to help her the whole time she is at school. To help her to each class, to the bathroom, etc. Melinda's writing is improving. She is using her right hand to write. Her writing is legible and easy to read. We had an appointment with her doctor. Dr. Kirkendall said, "Melinda has improved in the last 6 weeks. She has built up more strength in her arms and legs. He wants her to build up her thigh muscles. This will help with her balance. Melinda showed Dr. Kirkendall that she could walk by her self. He was amazed at her progress. He will see her in another 2 months. Dr. Kirkendall gave Melinda a pep talk. Told her that God has a plan for her. Told Melinda she could have died, but there was reason that she didn't die. Dr. Kirkendall told his story about when he was 17 yrs old he was injured badly. It took him 3-4 years to heal. God saved him for a reason. That Melinda has a second chance. We got paperwork back from social security. Melinda has been deemed disabled. Only for now, not forever. Melinda's custom wheelchair is being delivered tomorrow from OKC. Praise God we don't even have to use the wheelchair very much. Melinda will like it, she ordered a pink one with white spokes. Please continue to pray for Melinda. Melinda is improving every day and we thank God for all his blessings. God Bless you.

Oct 31st

Melinda is doing well. She continues her home health therapies 3 times a week. She is working really hard. She is using her walker all the time. She only uses her wheelchair if she has to walk long distances or has no place to sit. We are practicing doing some walking without the walker. This is exciting. The balance has improved a little. Melinda has fallen a few times but is okay. We have talked about maybe getting her a cane. Melinda likes that idea and wants a pink one. She is doing so well getting herself dressed in the mornings and is even started tying her shoes. We are also noticing Melinda is showing a lot more emotions. I do believe our teenager is back. She does get frustrated with her exercises and doesn't want to do them. We have to have pep talks as to why we have to do exercises. Melinda understands that she won't get better if she doesn't work hard. The eye specialist in Enid gave Melinda good news. She does have some problems with her eyes but the doctor thinks maybe in 6 months they could improve. The doctor said, her retina and optical nerve looks good. I think he called it a muscle on the top of the eye that is damaged. The doctor said, this is common with any head injury. With the extent of her injuries her eyes look really good. He also said, all Melinda's physical problems are due to the brain injury and not her eyes. Melinda is enjoying having her braces off. She has to now keep track of her retainers. So far she is doing pretty good with keeping up with them. We stopped by Select Specialty Hospital to see the all the medical staff. Oh my gosh! They were amazed how much Melinda has improved. They told Melinda how really sick she was. It was a really good visit. We saw Dr. Britt which was the backup doctor for Dr. Huff. He looked at me and then Melinda and then back at me. He says, I know you. I said this is Melinda. Dr. Britt said she looked amazing and he would tell Dr. Huff. Our next trip was to see Dr. Smith, the rehab doctor. He said, she looks well and she needs to continue to walk at least 30 min - 1 hr a day. It was a long day for all of us but a exciting day to see everyone that helped with Melinda's recovery. We are looking into a rehab in Dallas TX that specialize in brain injuries. We took Melinda on Oct. 23rd and they evaluated her. They asked, Melinda why do you want to come? Melinda said, I want to walk. They said that Melinda would be a good candidate for their program. They also have a 98 acre ranch with horses. They have kids that are Melinda's age. Melinda is ready to go but awaiting the approval from the insurance company. Please pray that Melinda will be accepted and keep praying that she will continue to get better. God Bless.

Oct 11th

Melinda continues to improve with each new day. I know god is still healing her and I know every one continues to pray for her complete recovery. I have faith that she will. We are all adjusting well and have gotten into a routine. Melinda is working hard in all her therapy sessions and her therapist says she is improving. Melinda continues to have good spirits with a big smile. She is glad to be home and we are all happy to be back together as a family. On Tuesday Oct 13th Melinda gets her braces taken off in Yukon. The orthodontics said there was no damage to her braces and her teeth moved beautifully. Melinda is very excited to be getting them off and lets us know every day. We will then go into OKC and see Dr. Smith (rehab) for a follow up appt. We will also be stopping by Select Specialty Hospital to say hello. When Melinda left Select Hospital she wasn't talking and was just beginning to smile. They will be amazed by her progress. On Friday, October 16th, Melinda has an appt. with an eye specialist in Enid. She still has double vision and other problems going on with her eyes. The family doctor said, this will help her motor skills a bunch. I am excited. Thank you for your continued support and prayers. I will keep you updated on how her appointments went. God Bless!!

Oct. 11th - update from Melinda

Hello this is Melinda I'm doing much better I'm walking but with a walker. i want to say thank you for all the prayers and sticking by my side through it all. i would really like to thank my mom and all my family, because without them i don't know how i would of made it. Thank you to everyone really, because without you guys i don't know where i would be. I know this has made me stronger and i know god is still healing me. right now I'm trying to learn how to walk again. i have therapies everyday. i can dress myself. i have to have help taking a shower and up and down the stairs. i have problems with everything on my right side but getting better with it. I have a lot of visitors that come, which I'm very thankful for because without them i don't know where i would be. thank you to my church the first christian church for having a benefit for me. thank you for all your prayers. i was really glad to see everyone in church. i was told i received a lot of visitors while i was in the hospital. thank you. i thank every one for all my cards and phone calls while i was in the hospital. i know i have a long ways to go so please keep praying for me. Love to you all. oxxoxxxoxox Melinda

September 25

Melinda had a good week. She received a good report from her therapist. They said she has improved and doing well. The last 2 sessions, Melinda is working harder on her balance with her walker. Praise God we haven't used her wheelchair the last 2 days. Speech is working really hard to get Melinda talking louder. We again have homework this weekend. OT is using a resistance band to strengthen Melinda's arms. She pulled it 3 times and said, I'm done my arms hurt. OT said, no you have 20 more. Melinda went to see her family doctor and we are going to be seeing a specialist about her eyes. She still has double vision and she tested about 20/50. Hopefully with some special glasses this will help her eyes and motor skills improve.

I would like to say a few words how thankful and appreciative of all the prayers, support, love and concern everyone has shown our family through these last 4 1/2 months. Thank you to the District Attorney's office for your support and donating your time so I could be with Melinda. xxooxxo Thank you William S. Key employees for your support. Ft. Supply School, "You are Awesome" Thank you students and staff for all your acts of kindness. To our church family, First Christian Church, thank you for the dinner and baked goods auction held for Melinda. To everyone that donated to help with our expenses. THANK YOU! We are truly touched and blessed. Thank you for the calls, visits, get well cards, prayers, a kind thought or concern. I thank all the doctors, nurses, therapist and medical staff that helped with Melinda's recovery. And most of all, give thanks to God our lord and savior. Please continue your prayers for Melinda. God Bless you!!

September 22

Melinda is adjusting at home and doing well. She is keeping the same schedule as she did at Jim Thorpe Rehab. She is up at 7:45 am to get dressed and eat breakfast. At 9:00 am she starts with physical therapy. Right now she is working with the walker and trying to regain her balance. At 10:00 speech therapy comes and they work on Melinda's voice. I told Melinda this would be her chance to scream at mom. She liked that idea. The therapist gives Melinda homework through the week. Melinda has to remember 15 things she did in a weekend to work on her memory. Occupational therapy has been working on Melinda's right hand. She tries to pick up toothpicks with tweezers. She is also working on writing with her right hand. In the afternoons Melinda works on the floor doing trunk exercises and leg lifts and uses a putty to work with her right hand. Melinda is doing very well going up and down the stairs at home. She is progressing a little each day. I was really excited today. I asked, Melinda to take one step with each foot. She did and did not lose her balance. She took another 2 steps, one at a time and did not lose her balance. Praise God!! With repetition over and over she will be walking soon. I know in my heart that all the prayers said for Melinda has gotten her this far. We are so thankful and can't thank every one enough for all the support and prayers that has helped us through this difficult time. It is truly a miracle that Melinda is home and doing well. GOD answered our prayers. Please keep Melinda in your prayers as she continues to work hard every day to improve to get better. God Bless!

September 3-12

Melinda is doing well and counting down the days till she can go home. She was very excited to have her peg tube removed since she is eating regular foods and taking her medicines by mouth. I would always tell Melinda, be patient, everything will come off one at a time. I promise! We are going home!! On Friday, September 4th Melinda had her therapy sessions all morning long while Todd & I started packing and loading everything in the car. At 12:30, Melinda's therapist (Theresita, Jenna, Jenny) threw a pizza party to say their goodbyes. It was sad to say goodbye, but very excited to be going home! It has been a long 4 1/2 months. I apologize for not updating Melinda's progress this past week. We are happy to be home and adjusting and getting into a routine. Our home has a lot of stairs, so this has been a challenge. Melinda will continue physical, occupational and speech therapies at home. The therapist will come to our home 3 days a week and when Melinda is stronger she will be able to do outpatient therapy. Melinda is in good spirits, getting stronger every day and is enjoying being with family and friends. Melinda is still working on her balance. She is getting better using her walker. On Friday, September 11th, Melinda had an orthodontics appointment to check her braces. The doctor said her teeth look great and amazingly there wasn't anything damaged on her braces from the accident. Melinda can have her braces removed next month. Melinda said, "When I get my braces off, I want to take senior pictures." We are so thankful for all the support we received. All the prayers and kindness you have shown our family. God answered our prayers!! We brought Melinda home. Please continue to pray for Melinda that she gets stronger and continues to progress in her therapies.

Sept. 1 - 2

Melinda's week is going very well. Tuesday Melinda got her feeding tube taken out. She missed aquatic therapy that day but it is a relief to get that tube out of her stomach. On Wednsday morning PT and Melinda went to the gym and placed a mat on the floor and layed down as if she had fallen with no help to get up. She tried to get up without no help or very little. We are still a long way from her doing this on her own. Her trunk still needs to be strengthened and her whole right side is still week with limited mobility. This exercise completely wore Melinda out. She was very tired after that. It was a very good exercise for her to work on her entire body. In the afternoon she had another swallow test done. She did well on the thin liquids from a spoon. She tried thin liquids from a cup. The first time she did good. The second time she aspirated a small bit. The ST okayed to give liquids by spoon but only the ST can give Melinda thin liquids by cup right now. They are working on getting a drink and tucking her chin to swallow and after swallowing completely then she can raise her head.
Things continue to improve and we are grateful.
The therapists are all starting to make preparations for Melinda to come home. They are giving her pep talks about continuing to work hard at home and giving her things to work at and exercises to do. Melinda's short term memory is getting better every day and she is getting stronger.
We are excited about being able to come home but we have a long way to go. Keep Praying. Our prayers are being answered. Praise God and God Bless.

August 28-31

Melinda had a good weekend. Her grandmother (Mema) arrived Friday to stay the weekend with Melinda. On Saturday sister Leann and neice Britany came by to spend the day. They had a great time visiting and being funny. The weekends go by so fast that it is not fair.
Melinda is looking forward to the day she can go home. She has been told she needs to work very hard to get ready and so she is. Monday morn. OT worked on Melinda using her walker to get to the bathroom since we don't think her wheelchair will fit. She is progressing nicely and we think she will be fine there.
We have had concerns about stairs and Melinda's ability to use them since our house has stairs everywhere. PT worked with her this morning on some stairs and Melinda did great on the stairs. This is a huge weight off our minds. She will continue to need help with them but we know she can handle them.
Melinda continues to progress and it is our hope that when she comes home she will continue to do the same and have faith that this will happen.
The prayers and the Lord continue to produce miracles with Melinda and we thank everyone for that.
God Bless.

August 26, 27

Melinda is having a good week. She likes getting in the pool to work on her balance and core strength. I think it helps with her joint movement. She seems to be stepping better while trying to walk. She still needs two people to help her walk but she is getting better at it each day.
Melinda had a fun afternoon this afternoon at therapy. PT and ST got together and combined to work her. They hooked up the wii and put in Guitar Hero and had her sing while standing using her right arm to steady herself and held onto to the microphone with her left. This got Melinda to use her right side and her singing for speech. It went really well and she had fun.
Melinda is looking forward to the weekend. We don't have any plans but she enjoys the rest.
Thank everyone for everything. God Bless.

August 25

Melinda continues to work hard with her therapies and is making progress. She got to do something special today and went out on an outing to Target this morning and looked at clothes. Melinda picked out a tank top and a sweats type jacket. We also did things to work as her therapies. She used her right arm and hand, she tried on clothes, and she walked a little bit behind a cart. Melinda had a good time and as soon as she got back she got in the pool for her aquatic therapy. All in all she enjoyed the day. She walked with PT in the afternoon session and seemed to move her hips and legs a little better after being in the water.
Thank everyone for the prayers and cards. Keep praying and God bless.

August 21 - 23

Melinda had an enjoyable weekend but it wore her out. Melinda had her usual day of therapies on Friday. On Saturday Melinda was given a pass to leave the hospital for a while. That after noon we loaded up and went to Shawnee to see her sister Leann for an early birthday. We visited for a few hours and then went to eat. After we ate we came back to the hospital. The day completely wore Melinda out and was ready to go the sleep as soon as we got back. She slept all evening, all night Saturday and slept most of the day Sunday. She had a restful day so hopefully she will be ready for another week of therapies. Melinda is improving every day but will still need lots of therapy when she gets to come home. She is ready to get out of the hospital come home.

Please remember to keep Melinda, Jon, and their families in your prayers. They are working. God Bless.

August 20

Melinda had a good day today. She is getting better and quicker at getting herself dressed in the mornings. She is starting to use her right hand a little to grab and hold items to help put clothes on like her socks. She is not very strong with it but she is trying. She still needs a little help with holding her legs up over her other knee so she could reach her feet. She also worked at standing at the bathroom sink and working at balancing herself and reaching for items and using her hands and fingers to do things like twist caps off or flip caps to open them.
PT's morning session worked on Melinda's balance also and her trunk strength, then walked a little at walking with the walker. In the afternoon session PT came to the room and Melinda walked with the walker in the hallway. She walked all the way around the nurses station back to her room, took a breather and then did it again. When she remembers to keep her hips under her, lean a little forward, and stand up straight and tall, she looks really good walking and she seems to walk better.
ST is still working on Melinda's short term memory and pronunciation of her words. Her memory is getting better. She is still needing to work on her lung capacity and air intake. Melinda was told Wednsday that they set a tentative release date of two more weeks and she was excited and has not forgot that for sure. She asks about every 30 minutes how many more days she has left till she can go home. She also asks quite often about her school and if they have started and if she will be able to graduate with her class.
Thank you everyone and God bless.

August 18 & 19

Melinda has had a goo couple of days. On Tuesday ST played some of the songs off of Melinda's cds and they sang to them. They had a great time and laughed a lot. Tuesday afternoon OT came to get Melinda to do something different. She hooked up a wii game to the tv near the nurses station. Melinda played baseball and a little tennis. She could not quite get the timing down but she enjoyed it anyway. PT came by while Melinda was playing and thought that was a good idea. PT asked if she could use it on Wednsday. On Wednsday PT put a twist to the wii game and had Melinda stand to play it using her good arm (left) to play and to use her weak side to steady her and to balance herself. In the afternoon PT came by with a walker. PT stood Melinda behind the walker and with a little assistance Melinda walked. She still has balance problems and she still crosses her right leg in front of ther left but she is moving her legs better and she did a good job of hanging on to the walker with her right hand. We are making progress and it is exciting but she has a lot of hard work remaining to be able to do things on her own. She had two people helping her with the walker but she was doing most of the work.

Prayers are being answered. Please continue to keep Melinda in your prayers.
God bless you all.

August 14 - 17

Melinda has been doing great with her therapies. She is working very hard to recover her mobility and flexability. She continues to make progress. Friday evening Melinda was given the ok for a short pass. She did very well with the transfer from her wheelchair to the vehicle. Once she was in the vehicle and we started driving she said she was feeling car sick. Dr. Smith says that is pretty normal with brain injuries and the new movement in the vehicle. It should get better.
Melinda has a very busy weekend with lots of visitors. She was up in her chair most of both days. Sunday evening she was very tired. She was so tired she wanted to lay down and not finish her dinner. I knew she was tired when she said that because she is always hungry and ready to eat. She layed down and she slept all evening. She was woke up to get a bath and then she was back to bed again. She woke up tired Monday morning and was a little sluggish for her therapies and the therapists noticed she was not her normal self. We made it thru the day and she is going to get plenty of rest this evening and tonight so she will be ready tomorrow morning.
Melinda want to thank everyone for coming to see her. She always enjoys getting visits. She continues to have a good attitude and works very hard. Please continue to pray for Melinda's progress.

God Bless.

August 12 & 13

Melinda is staying busy with all her therapies. She is working very very hard and never complains. All the therapist is seeing Melinda's sassy, ornery side and keeps us all laughing. PT said, Melinda is depending on her left hand to much and forgetting about her right hand." PT is using techniques to get her to balance her body without the use of her right hand. Melinda is frightened and she feels unstable. PT is using a mirror so she can see the correct way to stand and take steps. Melinda's right knee hyper-extends with every step, she is having a hard time walking and is in a lot of pain. I asked, "Does she need a knee brace?" They said, "No. The muscles need to be strengthened a lot more." Melinda is enjoying aquatics(pool) therapy. She was a little frightened when the therapist let her lose her balance in the pool. With a brain injury you have to re-program the brain to learn these things that are automatic to an un-injured brain. OT is working with Melinda's right hand and this has been a very slow process. I know, everything is in baby steps and one day at a time. The neurosurgeon finally contacted Dr. Smith and said, "The neck brace can come off!" YEA!!! Melinda hasn't had any pain in her neck or arms the last couple of days. Dr. Smith also, stopped her heart rate/blood pressure medicine and said, "she should have more energy." Melinda's 4 week evaluation went well. She continues to improve and estimated date of release is 2-3 weeks. When we get home, Melinda will have continued Physical therapy, Occupational therapy and Speech therapy. Please continue to pray for Melinda, Jon and our families. We still have a long road to recovery ahead of us. Thank you for your concern, love and support. God Bless!

August 11

Melinda had another busy day. She is working hard in all her therapies. She's dressing her self better and really trying to use her right hand. In PT, she is working on her hips, balancing and standing by herself. Melinda is doing some alphabetizing and memorizing in Speech therapy. Dr. Smith said, "Melinda's UTI infection is a little resilient to the antibiotic and she will take bactrim another 7-10 days." The doctor said, "I won't be doing a skin test to take her out of isolation, because it will just come back positive, and Melinda won't be able to do aquatics therapy." Everyone is saying that Melinda will really benefit a lot in aquatic therapy. Melinda aspirated on thin liquids and didn't pass her swallowing test. She did upgrade from drinking honey thickness to nectar thickness. ST - Jenny said, "Melinda's throat muscles are still weak because of the neck brace." We will keep talking to the doctor about taking the neck brace off. Melinda enjoyed the pool therapy. She worked on balance and walking.

Melinda wants to say a few words.....Thank you for all the prayers for me, without your prayers I would not be here today. Thank you for the letters, cards, visits and all the love and support I have received. This helped me stay strong. I love you all and I can't wait to go home. Hope to see you all soon! Love, Melinda Rae

August 10

Melinda had a good day. Melinda is doing better at dressing her self. PT did exercises with her hips and said, her hip extensions are good. Melinda walked with the shopping cart, stood up against the wall and is learning how to step sideways. Melinda had fun playing Go Fish with the Speech therapist. She is scheduled to have another swallow test tomorrow. Dr. Smith came in and moved Melinda's neck around. He asked, "Does your neck hurt at all?" She said, "No. Your just tickling me!" Dr. Smith is making another call to the neurosurgeon to get the results of the Ct scan. Melinda's nasal swab came back negative and she will start aquatics therapy tomorrow. This also means that Melinda's staph infection isn't active and she won't be labeled an isolation precaution. No more protective gowns or latex gloves for anyone entering her room. Yea! Melinda had an awesome day and I am so proud of her!! We are eternally grateful for all the prayers and support.

Fri. and Weekend

Melinda is doing well. She is working very hard and continues to progress every day. On Friday, PT and OT worked together to help strengthen her arm and hand muscles. The therapist said, "If the muscles tighten up, she won't have any function in her right arm." Melinda's eating and swallowing is going well. The Speech therapist said, "Melinda will have another swallow test next week." If she passes, she will be able to eat and drink anything she wants. She said, "I want a McDonald's hamburger and Chinese food!" Melinda is in good spirits. She is enjoying all her visits, phone calls and get well cards. I know seeing and hearing familiar faces and voices has helped her recovery. Before, she would just look at you with a blank stare and now I am seeing a HUGE difference in her facial expressions. Melinda is funny and making everybody laugh till we are all in tears. Melinda and Jon have come a long way since April 24th and we owe it all to our Heavenly Father! Please keep praying as they endure the many hours of therapy. Thank you and God Bless!! If you would like to visit Melinda, the hours are M-F 4:00 pm to 8:00 pm and Sat & Sun 12:00 - 8:00 pm.

August 6

Melinda slept well through the night. OT - Jenna gave her an A for effort for trying to use both hands to put her socks on. Melinda has a lot of work to do on her right hand and arm, but she is starting to move it on her own. Dr. Smith said, "Hemoglobin is fine, but Melinda has an urinary tract infection(UTI)." This will get cleared up with an antibiotic. Still waiting on a call back from the neuro doctor about the neck brace. PT - Teresita and Elizabeth took Melinda down to the gym. She worked with the shopping cart. Her stepping, shifting her hips and posture all have improved from yesterday. As we were walking down the hall, we talked about going to the mall to do some serious shopping. Melinda smiled and said Yes!! ST - Jenny worked with Melinda on addition, sequencing and memory. Jenny said, "Melinda is doing well, her process is slower, but will get better." Melinda's 3rd week evaluation states she is progressing well. Melinda is improving and doing so MUCH better! We know it is all the prayers we have received. They are very much appreciated. Thank you and God Bless!

August 5

Melinda woke up with a headache and was really tired. She had difficulty getting through her morning therapies. PT Teresita said, "Melinda seems tired and looks pale this morning ." They checked her heart rate and it showed to be a little high. The therapist decided to change their schedule to start later in the afternoon to give Melinda a downtime nap. She woke up rested, had lunch and was ready to get back to work. We met Amy from recreational therapy today, and she will be doing some fun things with Melinda twice a week. Melinda pushed a shopping cart in PT. The therapist, Teresita and Dora only helped shift her hips and help the right leg step, if needed. As I was watched Melinda walk down the hall, her eyes bright and she was smiling from ear to ear. I am so proud of her! The struggles that she endures every day, and never complains. A mother's love of a child is like no other. It's hard watching your child struggle with every thing. How easy it would be if we could kiss the pain away and make everything okay. I know God feels our pain and knows what we are going through. I have comfort, knowing my faith in God is strong and with each day the pain is less and the day is brighter. Continue to pray for Melinda and Jon to give them strength to endure the many hours of therapy. Thank you for your prayers and all the love and support! God Bless!!

August 4

Melinda worked hard in therapy, by the end of the day she was very exhausted and ready for bed. Melinda's speech therapist, Jenny tested her with some crackers and pudding. She passed with flying colors. Her meals have been upgraded starting tomorrow. Melinda will have another swallow test next week to see if she can drink thin liquids. Talking to PT Teresita, Melinda would benefit aquatics (water)therapy. Since she had a staph infection that was cleared up with antibiotics months ago, she is still labeled isolation precaution. The doctor ordered a nose swab and urine culture to see if the staph infection is still active. In PT, Melinda is working her hips back and forth and is in a lot of pain with her right pelvis(fracture) but keeps going. The music therapist Suzy is working with Melinda to show excitement in her words, to use different pitches in her voice. Melinda is always smiling, polite and pleasant to every one around her. The nurse gave her a shot in her tummy and she said, "Thank you, but it really hurt". "That's Melinda!" When she looks in the mirror, she sees a big difference in her looks. I said, "I see my smiling, caring, big heart, ornery, loving beautiful daughter." I told her to stay strong, don't lose faith in God and lean on him for strength. Melinda and Jon are both working hard to get well so they can come home. Please continue to pray, pray, pray!!! Amen!!

August 3

Melinda had a great day and is doing well. We are waking up at 7:30 to get dressed and eat breakfast. Melinda is not a morning person. She is getting plenty of sleep, but still tires easily. PT is really working hard to get Melinda's back and trunk stronger. The walker(rjo) was able to help her walk, but she wasn't using her hips to stand tall. She was using her upper body to hold her self up. Melinda tried the parallel bars and did great. She is having to work harder to walk and has to use her legs to support her body. PT is showing her how to shift her hips from side to side, so each leg will support her body to take steps. She walked 20 steps by her self. Yea! The therapist(2) helped her shift her hips and move her right leg. PT said, "We are going to teach Melinda how to dance." Speech started Melinda on a memory book. All the therapist write what they did in their session with her on each day. Melinda will be reading this book over and over to help retain memory. She remembers only in the moment. ST said, "She will test Melinda on eating a cracker." If she does well chewing and swallowing, she will change the texture of her food. Yea! Melinda will be a step closer to eating regular foods and water. Dr. Smith said, "We should hear something about her back/neck tomorrow." The neuro doctor might want an MRI if he isn't satisfied with the CT scan. Yes! God is truly answering our prayers. Melinda is God's miracle, not once but twice. Continue to pray for Melinda to give her the strength to keep fighting this battle. Thank you for all your support, thoughts and prayers.

Fri. and Weekend

Melinda is getting stronger everyday. ST - Jenny ordered Melinda to receive 3 meals a day. She is enjoying eating again, even if it is pureed. Melinda said, "Aunt Stacey I will give you a hug, if she give me a piece of cake." We all had a good laugh! Melinda is funny and has a great sense of humor. In PT, she walked with the walker(rjo) and beat her record of 124 steps. She walked 150 steps and wanted to quit because we thought she was in pain. We got her sat back down in her wheelchair and PT - Teresita asked, "What is the worst thing about walking?" She said, "The shorts, you give me wed-gees!" Again we all laughed!! Dr. Smith is waiting for the neurosurgeon to call back with the results of the Ct scan of her back. The pulmonary doctor ordered her breathing treatments to 4 times a day, instead of 6. Melinda said, "she will be coming home in 1 month!" "I have faith, that through God, anything is possible!" Please continue to pray for Melinda and Jon. Thank you and God Bless!!

July 30 Thurs.

Melinda started her day at 8:30 this morning and stayed busy till 4:00. She is exhausted and very much ready to get in bed and rest. She continues to work hard in OT, PT, ST and MT(music). Yes, "Melinda has music therapy twice a week and is singing her favorite songs, which she knows word for word." ST and MT are trying different things to get her to talk louder. They want her to use an Incentive Spiro-meter(IS) that will help expand her lungs. She places her mouth around a mouth piece and tries sucking as much air in as she can. The IS will register the amount and St said, "Teenagers lungs should be able to hold in air around 1500 ml. and Melinda is doing less than 500." The IS was left with us and ST said, "We have homework." Yea! Melinda will add it to her growing list. This afternoon, Melinda had various tests run to check her vision. She has double vision and some other things going on with her eyes. OT can work on some eye exercises here, but later she will be referred to an eye specialist. Melinda will wear a translucent eye patch and alternate the patch every 2 hours to help with the double vision. Melinda said, "It helped and now I have 1 mom and not 2". We laughed so hard. Thank you for your prayers and support. God Bless.

July 29

Melinda is feeling well and is in good spirits. She woke up at 8:30 this morning to OT telling her it's time to get out of bed. OT helped Melinda transfer into her wheelchair to get dressed for the day. At 9:30 PT wheeled her down to the gym where they used the walker(rjo). Melinda seizes to amaze me, so hold on to your hats! She walked a total of 277 steps today. The longest walk was 124 steps and she is exhausted and ready for bed. I need to clarify Melinda's walking that she isn't able to stand or walk on her own w/out total assistance. She is getting stronger and is able to help with her transfers to bed, wheelchair etc., but is still very weak. At 10:00 ST worked with Melinda and her memory notebook. She received a good evaluation from the medical staff and they are pleased with her progress. Her first week at Jim Thorpe she was rated a level 1 - total assist. and this week she progressed to level 2 - maximum assist. Her goal is a level 4 - minimal assist. w/24 hr. supervision. I fed Melinda her lunch and she did well eating and swallowing. ST Jenny said, "She will have breakfast and lunch starting on Friday." The Psychologist Jeff asked, "Is Melinda getting in the pool?" I told him she contracted a blood infection from the picc line over 2 months ago. It was cleared up with antibiotics and is now under control. He will check to see if we can't get her in the pool. Melinda and Jon have come a long way in their recovery and we give God all the glory!! Please continue to pray for Melinda and Jon that God gives them the strength to get through this battle to win the war. God Bless You!

July 28

Melinda had a good night and was wide awake this morning to start her therapy at 8:30 am. The Occupational therapist Jenna came in and helped her get dressed and ready for the Physical therapist session with Theresita and Elizabeth. We all went down to the gym to do some more walking. Theresita said they will use the same walker from yesterday since it was so effective. We start with Theresita walking behind Melinda and holding on to her in case her legs start to buckle. Elizabeth sits on a foot stool with wheels and follows along the side to help with her right leg. I stand in front to guide the walker and encourage her to keep going and don't give up. Melinda pushed herself and she amazingly walked 70 steps! Yea!!! Melinda said, she will try to do 130 steps tomorrow and we believe she will. The Speech therapist Jenny asked, Melinda are you hungry? She said, Yes! She had pureed mashed potatoes w/gravy, green beans, peaches and custard pudding. Melinda was very excited and handled swallowing all her food correctly. Jenny said, sometimes with a brain injury it doesn't work properly and can't let the person know they are full. Jenny said, she will monitor Melinda closely. OT is doing stretches on Melinda's right arm and hand to loosen up the muscles. The therapist and doctors will have their weekly meeting tomorrow and will talk about Melinda's progress. We are truly blessed and thankful for everyone's continued prayers and support. God bless!!!

Weekend & Monday

Melinda had a good weekend and rested after a long week of therapy. Her oxygen is good at 96% and up and she hasn't had any problems breathing since the trachea was removed. Melinda is getting stronger in all therapy sessions and we are seeing big improvements. Melinda went to the gym and used an assisted walker that allows her to have support under her arms and walk. She walked 14 ft... took a small break and walked 20 ft. She is a trooper and we are so proud of her!! Speech therapy is working with Melinda to accentuate her words to make the words sound clearer. She is doing so well eating applesauce that the therapist is letting her eat lunch tomorrow for the first time. Yea!! She will have pureed mashed potatoes and vegetables. MM GOOD!! OT asked her, do you want to work in the gym or take a shower? She said take a shower. I said, the only reason she wants a shower is so she doesn't have to go down to the gym and work. OT asked her, is that true? "She grinned really BIG and said yes". The therapist said, you are ornery. Since she wanted a shower they went to the gym and worked on strengthening her right arm. We ask that you continue to pray for Melinda and Jon and we appreciate all the prayers, love, support we have received. God Bless you.

"Melinda wants to thank everyone for all the prayers, visits and cards she has received. She really appreciates it."

July 24

Melinda is working very hard and very exhausted by the end of the day. She is ready to get in bed to relax and sleep. Melinda's tube feedings and medicine is still put through the peg tube that is in her stomach. The tube feedings had been a 24 hr. continuous feed. They started her on a bolus feeding and she will get 1 can of feeding 3 times a day and then a continuous feed from 8:00 pm - 4:00 am. They want her to get used to feeling hungry. OT said she is dressing herself better but it's a struggle for her to dress with one hand. OT is having Melinda wear a splint on her right hand to keep her fingers straight. They will continue to modify the splint to keep the muscles stretched out to reduce the pain. PT got Melinda cinched up with the harness and walking on the treadmill. She walked 30 seconds longer than yesterday. Yea!! ST brought Melinda some more Dr. Pepper, applesauce and ice cream. She really enjoyed it. ST threw away the ice cream because it was melting and to thin.. Melinda was not happy. I told her she was lucky to get ice cream and she said... if you get it out of the trash we both can eat it. I laughed so hard! Melinda's voice is getting stronger and she has been busy talking to her friends and family on the phone. It's amazing hearing her voice!! Melinda is working hard and I am so proud of her. All the therapist said she is the best patient because she gives 150% and never gives up. Melinda needs your continued prayers. Thank you for all your support and prayers. God Bless you!

July 23

Melinda had another good day. Melinda's back is getting stronger and she is able to sit up straighter and not fall over. Melinda had a good session with PT this morning. It is difficult for Melinda to walk even with the help of 2 therapists because she is very weak and this causes her extreme pain. PT decided to use the treadmill so she could walk. They used a harness that is above the treadmill and then they raised her body up to where she could stand on both legs. Melinda was able to walk on the treadmill for 5 minutes. Yea!! The good news is she was lifting and stepping with her right leg 50% of the time. This is the leg that wouldn't move at all. ST gave Melinda thickened Dr. Pepper and applesauce and she loved it. Her voice is getting stronger and this morning she said she wanted out of here. I asked, where do you want to go? I want to go to the mall. I said keep working hard and we will and she said yes. OT stretched her right arm and fingers and this is very painful because all her muscles and tendons are tight and this feels like a pulled hamstring. Melinda is working very hard and getting stronger and GOD is answering our prayers and we are so thankful!!

July 22

Melinda was given oxygen during the night and she was alert and had a really good day today. During the OT and PT sessions there are always two (2) therapists helping transfer Melinda to her wheelchair or back to her bed. Melinda told PT that she did not do very well today but all the therapist said Melinda is doing well and it is all in baby steps. She is working 6-7 hours a day and is very exhausted. ST gave Melinda thickened lemon water and applesauce but she didn't like it and made horrible faces. She did like the thickened Dr. pepper and was only given 8-10 spoon fulls. For now they will thicken her drinks with a powdered corn starch so she won't aspirate. We don't want any setbacks since the trachea was just removed. All evening Melinda said she was hungry and wants to eat and drink water. It breaks my heart that I have to tell her no and she asks why. I explain to her that soon she will eat and drink when she gets stronger and then a few minutes later she will ask again and then again. Melinda's voice is getting stronger and most of the time we can understand what she is saying and sometimes she is talking and seems a little confused. The pulmonary doctor said the hole in her throat looks good and will take 2 weeks to completely close up. The doctor said Melinda's knee showed no breaks. The x-ray doesn't show if she has any torn ligaments. Melinda is having a lot of pain all over her body and is very uncomfortable. She is very weak and it will take a long time to gain back her strength. Melinda is doing so well and it is amazing how strong she is. She is staying positive with all the uplifting encouragement's from the doctors and therapist. We are thankful for all the prayers and support. Please continue to pray for Melinda.

"Melinda said she is happy that her family and friends are coming to visit her and all the cards and letters she has received." She is also enjoying talking to her big sister on the telephone.

July 21

Melinda slept well and woke up very tired but managed to get through her morning therapies okay. The last few nights when Melinda goes into a deep sleep her oxygen is dropping to the low 80's and the pulmonary doctor ordered her to have oxygen through the night. Melinda had her swallow test at 11:30 this morning. Melinda drank several different liquids okay but did not handle eating thick pudding. Her tongue wasn't strong enough to push it down her throat and she got sick. The test also showed that the vocal cords are working properly. The speech therapist said she will be the only one to give Melinda pureed foods. The pulmonary doctor reviewed the results of the swallow test and ordered the trachea to be removed. Yea! Praise God! We are still waiting for the results from the doctor to have her neck brace removed. Melinda is so MUCH!! better and we give god all the glory! Amen. Please continue to pray for Melinda. She will be coming home soon!

July 20

The doctor came in this morning and said Melinda is progressing well. Melinda understands she will have to work hard in her therapy sessions to get better. Melinda is having pain in her left knee when she stands up and is not able to stand very long. PT decided to work on stretching Melinda's muscles and will let the doctor know about the pain in her knee. Speech therapy said that Melinda will have the swallow test tomorrow morning to see if she can start eating and drinking. Melinda said she wants chicken and chocolate milk. Melinda had a doctors appointment at OU Physicians this afternoon to review the cat scan of her spine. We weren't able to get any results from the doctor today but will know tomorrow if Melinda's spine has healed and if the neck brace can be removed. When we arrived back to Jim Thorpe and got Melinda back to her room radiology was ready to x-ray her left knee. We also missed the pulmonary doctor to remove the trachea. Melinda will have another busy and exhausting day. Thank you for all the love and support and please keep praying that Melinda will have the strength to stay strong and positive.

July 18 & 19

Melinda continues to get a little stronger with each day. The weekends are resting days and Melinda is not complaining at all. The trachea has been capped off since Friday morning and Melinda's oxygen and breathing is good since she is taking medicine to help control her secretions. The doctor said the trachea will be removed on Monday and we are counting down. Amen! Melinda is aware of what is going on and is very frustrated and sad. Melinda said she doesn't want to do her therapy and that it hurts everywhere. Melinda also said she wants food and a drink of water. The Speech therapist said on Wednesday they will do a swallow test. Pray for Jon and Melinda for they have a long road ahead. God is answering our prayers. Thank you!

July 17

Melinda slept all night long and was still tired this morning when the nurse came in to get her ready for therapy sessions. She was tired, had a head ache and her body is sore from working muscles all week that have not been worked for such a long time. Melinda had a hard time concentrating and giving a strong effort during the morning sessions and the therapists noticed her change but still worked her. Melinda received some Tylenol and got to lay down during lunch hour and she seemed to do much better during the afternoon. After her afternoon sessions she layed back down and has slept all evening. She is very tired but she is working hard and giving all she can to get better. Melinda will still have some therapy sessions over the weekend but not as much so she will get a chance to rest and get ready for next week. Melinda has made huge strides just in the first week of being here. Please keep praying for Melinda and J0n.
God Bless.

July 16

Melinda had a peaceful and restful night last night. She is sleeping more and more every night. She actually slept the whole night.
Melinda had an appointment this morning at OU Medical Center with Ortho. Dr. Smith wanted to make sure her pelvis was doing ok and that she could handle all of her rehab. Dr. Roberts (Ortho) said her ex-rays showed she was healing and that he was not going to put any restrictions on her. This was wonderful news.
They put Melinda in a wheelchair at 9:00 to go to her appointment. After her appointment the transport people were called and we had to wait on them to come pick us up. We waited an hour before they showed up. When they showed up and got us loaded up and taken back to Jim Thorpe it was about 12:30. Melinda had enough time to lay down for a few minutes before her therapy groups started coming in at 1:00. Melinda usually starts therapy sessions at 8:30 in the morning and goes till about 2:30 or 3:00. Today everyone arranged their schedules so they would be able to work with Melinda in the afternoon. They worked until almost 5:00. Melinda was exhausted. She had her trachea capped off at 8:30 this morning and it remained in all day and evening until about 9:00 p.m. and she had no problems all day. Melinda was given oxygen tanks for her transport this morning but she did not need them. When she got back to her room we put her on a very small amount of oxygen by the nasal tubing. Melinda's stats were still good and not having problems so I think we put the oxygen on her just to make me feel better.
Melinda is coughing less and having less problems with her throat and secretions. I think Melinda could have kept her trachea cap on all night but respiratory said they had to follow orders and put the hoses back on her for the night.
Melinda is healing every day and getting stronger every day. Please keep praying God bless.

July 15

Melinda slept well through the night and woke up early to OT getting her out of bed and dressed. Melinda was very sleepy and did not want to get up. Respiratory again capped off the trachea to let Melinda breath on her own. PT took Melinda to the exercise room to work on using her trunk muscles to stand up. During the session Melinda had a pained look on her face and we asked Melinda where it hurt and she touched her left pelvis down to her knee. PT said they will discuss it with the doctor in their team meeting today. ST worked on breathing techniques to help Melinda start talking. I can't tell you how amazing it is to hear Melinda's voice even if it is a whisper. Before we know it Melinda will be back to talking non stop. The pulmonary doctor wants Melinda's trachea capped for a longer period of time and when she wears it for 48 hrs. the trachea will be removed. The medical staff assigned to Melinda will have a weekly meeting to evaluate her progress. The medical team said Melinda's rehab will be 6-8 weeks but this can change with each weekly evaluation. Our family wishes to thank everyone for their continued support and prayers for Jon and Melinda. May God Bless you!

July 14

Melinda is sleeping through the night and doing well. OT came in around 8:30 this morning to get Melinda out of bed and continue working with her daily life skills. Respiratory capped off Melinda's trachea so she could completely breath on her own. PT worked with Melinda showing her how to use her muscles to stand, sit up and hold her head up straight. They said she is improving a little each day. ST worked with Melinda to strengthen her vocal cords and breathing to help her find her voice to start talking. Around 3:30 Melinda was put back on the oxygen and humidity because the secretions (saliva) in her lungs and throat were too thick and dry and she couldn't cough it out. Once the trachea is removed Melinda won't have any problems handling her secretions. Yesterday Melinda's neck and pelvis were x-rayed. The doctor said it looked like everything is healing but on Thursday Melinda has an appointment with the orthopedic doctor to check her over and review the x-rays. We want to be very certain that Melinda's neck and pelvis is healed and not re-injure her and have a set back.

We take for granted the simple things we can do in our daily lives like; wave, laugh, talk, eat or even pray. As I update Melinda's progress you can see that she is having to learn to do all those simple things and by the grace of God and all the prayers she too will again. Please continue to pray for Melinda and Jon as they progress each day towards their full recovery. God Bless!

July 13

Melinda is doing well. The doctor ordered Melinda to stop taking her 24 hr. insulin shot since her blood sugar has been in the normal range the last 5 days. Melinda had a really busy day with all of her therapist and is very tired this evening. Each therapist comes in the morning and afternoon for their session with Melinda. Occupational therapy comes in and works with Melinda to do every day daily living skills... brush her hair, brush her teeth and getting dressed. Physical therapy is helping Melinda to use her muscles, motor skills and be able to control her body. Speech therapy tested Melinda this morning to see if she would recognize objects and she passed with flying colors. The St. used an erase board to see if Melinda could answer some questions. The St. wrote 2 words on the board with one being the answer and Melinda needed to point to the correct answer. Melinda made a 100%.. she knew today's date, that today is Monday, she is in the hospital in OKC and that Obama is the president. The therapist are all smiling and very pleased with Melinda's progress. The pulmonary doctor said they will cap Melinda's trachea tomorrow morning and monitor her oxygen levels. If Melinda doesn't have any problems in the next 24 hours the trachea will come out. Praise God!! Thank you everyone for praying for Melinda's full recovery.

July 12

Melinda had a peaceful night and is more relaxed today. Pt. dressed Melinda this morning and wanted to see if she could breath on her own while sitting in a chair and Melinda tolerated this for 1 hr with her oxygen staying above 90%. Pt. is impressed with Melinda and said she is going to be their best patient. Speech therapy came by with some pictures of a bed, tv etc., the alphabet and numbers. They wanted to see if Melinda would recognize by pointing to the picture or letter that was asked... and Melinda did a great job! Soon Melinda will be able to talk and tell us. Melinda's back, pelvis and chest were x-rayed and will know the results tomorrow. God Bless.

July 11

Melinda is a little restless but is doing well. All the therapist are coming by to meet Melinda and are anxious to start working with her. P.T. came in this morning... dressed Melinda and sat her in a wheelchair. Melinda became nausea and got sick. The pulmonary doctor ordered chest x-ray since Melinda's trachea cuff had been deflated and wants to make sure she did not aspirate in her lungs and also ordered blood gases. The doctor talked about removing the trachea and said will cap it off to see if Melinda can breath through her nose. Please say an extra prayer for Melinda that her trachea, catheter, picc line and neck brace will be removed this week and that she has the strength to endure the many hours of therapy. God Bless.

July 8 - 10

Melinda continues doing well breathing on her own. Even though she is not on the ventilator she continues to get oxygen of 40%. They attached a tee on the end of the trachea and oxygen is pumped through a hose to her trachea and is also humidified to keep her throat moist. Thursday they began weening her off the oxygen and moved it to 30 percent and then to 28 percent by evening. That is the setting that she has to be on when they shut off the oxygen. Melinda was moved today (Friday) to Integris Jim Thorpe Rehabilitation Hospital 4219 S. Western, OKC OK 73109 Rm#5306. The team will begin doing evaluations and determine tomorrow what course of action to work with Melinda. We appreciate all the prayers and support.
Coninue to pray for Melinda and Jon.
God Bless.

July 4 - July 7

Melinda had a very good weekend. On Saturday at 11:00 am they turned off her ventilator to see how she would respond. The plan was to turn off the ventilator for a couple of hours and put her back on it and then repeat this each day for longer amount of time. Melinda did so well for those couple of hours that the nurse called the Dr. and he advised to leave it off a while longer to see if she can handle it. Well, here we are on Tuesday and she is still not back on the ventilator. PRAISE GOD, PRAISE GOD, PRAISE GOD. Melinda is breathing on her own.

Today (Tue.) the doctors came by and were very pleased with Melinda. They said they were going to move her up stairs to a room this afternoon. MELINDA IS MOVING OUT OF ICU.
PRAISE GOD, PRAISE GOD. I asked Dr. Smith what Melinda will have to do now to qualify to go to Jim Thorpe Rehabilitation Center. Dr. Smith said basically she can go now but they are going to leave her in a room for a few days and make sure her lungs are strong enough and to watch and evaluate her more. The plan is to move her to Jim Thorpe on Friday.

We are truly witnessing one of God's miracles right in front of our eyes. Please continue to pray for Melinda and Jon. They are both getting stronger every day and I truly believe they will both make full recoveries. We thank everyone that is praying daily for them. Everone's prayers, cards, words of encouragement, visits, etc. has given us strength and kept us going. Our words of thanks just doesn't seem enough and we are humbled by the support that everyone has given. Thank you and keep praying, Melinda and Jon still has a long road ahead of them but they are going to get there. May the Lord bless you.

Thurs & Fri

Melinda is doing very well and is moving forward with each new day. The ventilator was changed to 5 pressure support last night and we have waited for this day to happen and we praise god. Melinda continues to not have any apnea since she was taken off of her sleep medicine and we are so happy is was not caused by the brain injury. Melinda is still sleeping well during the night and seems more relaxed. Saturday morning Melinda will start a 2 hour trial on breathing on her own and with each day it will be a little longer. Melinda's chest was x-rayed today to see if the lungs have cleared. Dr. Smith ordered Melinda's back and pelvis x-rayed on monday morning. Dr. Smith said we might be able to take the neck brace off. Please continue to pray for Melinda's full recovery.

6/30/09 Tues. & 7/1/09 Wed.

Melinda is doing really well and all her vitals are staying stable even with all the moving, rolling and getting up. Melinda is awake and very much alert of whats going on just can't tell us yet. Melinda's blood sugar has been normal the last 2 days and this shows her body is healing. Dr. Huff has changed Melinda's pressure support settings these last few days and she is at 7 and doing great! At 12:00 tonight Melinda will be down to 5 "Praise God". Dr. Huff said they will see if Melinda can totally breath on her own and will start doing trials until Melinda can breath on her own for 24 hours and this could take several days. Melinda has not had any apnea spells in the last 3 days and this is very good news. Respiratory said Melinda is handling the changes on the vent and not having any problems breathing and everything looks good. Dr. Brown has stopped the antibiotic for Melinda's lungs and her lungs sound good. Melinda is sleeping peacefully through the night and mornings and getting lots of needed rest which means I am getting some rest.

Please continue praying for Melinda to keep fighting and the medical staff that is treating her. I am so eternally grateful and thank the lord for all the love and support we have received and all the prayers... thank you! God Bless yous!

6/28/09 Sun & 6/29/09 Mon

Sunday - Melinda had a really good day but gets very restless laying in bed. Physical therapist said Melinda is doing great following commands and has improved a lot. Dr. Huff changed the pressure support to 15 and Melinda is handling this well with no problems. Melinda had a few spells with her apnea through the night but Dr. Huff reassures me that everything is okay. Dr. Huff stopped Melinda's sleep medicine and muscle relaxant and thinks this is causing her apnea. Melinda had a really good night and slept 11 peaceful hours.

Monday - Melinda continues to improve with each day and her oxygen, heart rate and blood pressure are stable. Melinda's breathing is a lot better too. All the professional staff comment how much Melinda has improved these last few weeks and that she looks really good. Dr. Huff said Melinda is doing well and changed her pressure support to 12. Physical therapy worked with Melinda and she started to get tired...she asked Melinda if she was tired and she answered Yes. I worked with Melinda today to see if she would do any commands. I asked her to stick her thumb up, and raise 2,3,4,5 fingers and she did it all on command. Melinda is also starting to move her right side and it is getting stronger every day. I told Melinda today that god is here with us and that he is healing her and loves her very much and that everyone is praying for her and Jon. I thank you for all of your thoughts and prayers. God Bless.

6/27/09 update

Melinda is doing really well and her vitals are stable. Melinda is more aware of what is going on but can't tell us yet. Melinda is showing us in different ways how she is uncomfortable buy scooting her self off the bed when she is tired of laying down. The nurse asked Melinda what she wanted and Melinda spoke and told her "I want in the chair and I want out of here". Melinda is progressing so much and we praise the lord. Dr. Huff changed Melinda's pressure support to 16 and said she is doing great and her lungs sound really good. Thank you for all the support and prayers.

6/27/09 update

Melinda had a calm and peaceful night. Yesterday when Dr. Smith came in he ordered Melinda's muscle relaxant medicine decreased. Dr. Smith says Melinda will be even more active. Dr. Huff came in this morning and looked at Melinda's breathing Sat's and changed her pressure support to 16 on the ventilator and our goal is 5. Dr. Huff feels Melinda is doing very well and this is good news to hear. The last few days there has been some talk that Melinda might be moving out of ICU and up to 2nd floor. I asked the nurse and he said the decision would be up to Dr Huff and at this time has not put anything in his report indicating Melinda would be leaving. Melinda is calm and resting today and this is good for her body to heal. Our family appreciates all the love, prayers and support we graciously have received and we foremost thank the lord for all his blessings he has given to each and everyone. God Bless!

6/25/09 & 6/26/09 update

6/25/09 Melinda had a good night and day and is improving a little each day. All the professional staff is commenting how good Melinda looks and the improvements she has made. Melinda's vitals are remaining stable and when she is over stimulated her vitals do go up but they come down. This is showing the doctors that Melinda is healing and her brain is beginning to know how to regulate her vitals. Dr. Huff is pleased with Melinda's progress and said we will continue to wean her off the ventilator 1 point every 12 hours and does not want to get in a big hurry so we don't have a setback. Melinda's pressure support is at 22 and we need to get to 5. Physical therapy decided to see if Melinda could stand up. The therapist was adjusting her body and set her on the edge of the bed and before they knew it Melinda pulled herself up. The therapist & I were very excited!

6/26/09 Melinda had a restless night and could not go to sleep. Melinda is getting more alert and now she is getting frustrated because she is tired of laying in her bed. Melinda is working hard these last few days to get out of bed. Melinda knows how to move her body and legs and manevers herself to the edge of the bed. I talked with Dr. Huff about Melinda's apnea and he said it is okay t0 not worry. Melinda's pressure support is at 20 and out goal is 5. Talked to Dr. Smith about Melinda's neck brace and he said she will wear it a little longer since her neck is not strong and this will help support it. Physical therapy helped Melinda stand up 4 times and the therapist said she did all of the standing by her self and they are very very pleased with her progress. Dr. Brown is the infectious disease doctor and she reviewed Melinda's white count and the bacteria that grew in her lungs. I can't remember the name but this bacteria is very rare and not seen very often. Melinda is taking antibiotics through the nebulizer every 12 hours and this seems to be helping her cough. I want every one to know that all these little things that Melinda does is another step forward towards her recovery....so please keep those prayers going.

6/24/09 update

Melinda had a good night and her breathing is starting to come down in the 20's. Melinda handled breathing on her own until 10:00 pm when she was given her sleep medicine and she stopped breathing. Dr. Boggs was called and he ordered Melinda to be put back on full vent. This morning Dr. Huff changed the ventilator setting back to 25 pressure support and said we will wean Melinda very slowly and will monitor her closely over the next 24 hours. Melinda was awake all day and was alert. Melinda is following more commands and physical therapy is pleased with her progress. Melinda is starting to find her voice even though she is on a ventilator and has a trachea and it sounds like a low hum in her throat. It sounded like Melinda was trying to talk, so I asked her repeatedly to say momma over and over. Melinda amazingly said momma several times. I was crying with joy so I called her dad and aunt Stacey and they both heard her say it over the phone. The nurses aide came in to test Melinda's blood sugar and she heard Melinda say momma and she told the nurse and it was documented. Praise God!!! God hears our prayers and he is amazingly healing Jon and Melinda. We truly are witnessing 2 miracles. Thank you for your prayers, love and support.

6/22/09 & 6/23/09

Melinda had a good night and coughed very little. Melinda's fever is gone and the chest x-ray shows improvement. Melinda had a great day and was awake and alert. Dr. Huff said things are looking better but thinks she might have another infection. Physical therapy put Melinda in a chair for 45 minutes and she was able to follow some commands. Melinda continues to have good and stable vitals and the doctors are pleased with her progress.

Last night Melinda coughed through the night and was given 1 dose of lidocaine. Melinda's cough is getting better but at times is still very forceful. Melinda was wide awake at 6:00 this morning and is still awake this evening. Dr. Huff says some bacteria grew and infectious disease would be giving Melinda another antibiotic. Dr. Huff wouldn't say what kind of infection or the name of it only that it is a rare infection that they don't see much of. Dr. Huff changed the ventilator to pressure support 25 to start weaning Melinda. Melinda has done well all day with only a few times of having apnea. This means Melinda got used to the ventilator helping her breath and her lungs are weak and this will just take time to get her lungs strong. I was told by the doctor that there could be another reason why Melinda stops breathing at times. The doctor says with a brain injury, the brain is not healed yet and can't tell Melinda to breath. In the next few weeks of weaning Melinda off the ventilator and she still continues to have apnea we will have to transfer to Houston TX and I was reassured that when Melinda's brain completely heals her apnea will go away. Please pray!pray! extra hard that Melinda will have no problems with her apnea and getting off the ventilator. Thank you for all the love and support we have received and please continue to pray.

6/21/09 update

Melinda rested and had a peaceful night. At 6:00 this morning Melinda had a coughing fit and they gave her some lidocaine and this helped a lot. Dr. Boggs said this morning that Melinda might be getting her neck brace off this week. I told Melinda as she keeps getting better that one thing at a time will eventually come off and to remember that all the tubes and hoses is not forever. Melinda has been awake and alert all day and it has been so wonderful being able to talk to her and watching all her vitals remain stable. Melinda waved at dad and sister Alecia and was giving kisses to everyone. It has been a wonderful day to see Melinda with her beautiful eyes open and to tell her that god loves her, her family, friends and every one loves her and is praying for her. We thank the lord for each precious day we share together and to thank the lord for all our blessings we have received. Please continue to pray for Jon and Melinda. God bless.

6/20/09 update

Melinda was finally able to rest through the night. Melinda coughed a few times through the night but did not last long. Melinda was very exhausted from last night and she slept throughout the day. Melinda's vitals were stable and she did very little coughing. This afternoon respiratory changed the ventilator to cpap to see if Melinda could breathe on her own. Respiratory monitored Melinda and her oxygen dropped to 92% and she was breathing 45 breaths per minute. Melinda only tolerated 10 minutes of breathing on her own and respiratory changed the ventilator back to help her breath. Melinda's oxygen was back at 99% and she was breathing 30 breaths per min. I talked to the charge nurse and she said they will keep trying to wean Melinda off the ventilator and this will just take time. It is amazing to see the progress Melinda is making every day and we are so blessed and thankful for everyone that is praying for Jon and Melinda's full recovery. God bless you.

6/19/09 update

Melinda had a good night and around 4:00 am she was wide awake and alert. Melinda is still running a low grade fever and continues to cough a lot. Melinda's cough is getting a little better but at times her cough is still very forceful and lidocaine is administered through a nebulizer that runs through her lungs. The lidocaine numbs Melinda's lungs and helps her to stop coughing. Melinda did not have a long therapy session today because she is having lots of pressure in her stomach and this is very painful for her. The antibiotics and her tube feeding are causing her discomfort. Dr. Huff ordered some medicine to relieve the pressure in her stomach. Melinda had a good afternoon and vitals stable . This evening Melinda started coughing and respiratory gave her a breathing treatment and some lidocaine to calm her down. This helped for awhile but Melinda kept coughing. Melinda's nurse did not alert respiratory and she suctioned her 3 times without giving her 100% oxygen from the ventilator. I told the nurse that before respiratory suctions they change the ventilator to 100% oxygen so she doesn't struggle with breathing. The nurse said I'm not respiratory. Melinda continued to cough and could not get her breathing under control and her oxygen dropped to 94%. Respiratory gave Melinda another dose of lidocaine and praying this helps but it did not. Melinda was immediately given 2 doses of adavan to get her calmed down and she is resting but still continues to breath hard. I confirmed with respiratory about changing the ventilator to 100% oxygen before suctioning out the lungs and she said yes. I am so angry that the nurse put Melinda in a crisis situation that could have easily been prevented had she let respiratory do their job. I ask everyone more than ever to please pray for Melinda and please don't stop as we go through this difficult time. Thank you & God Bless.

6/18/09 update

Melinda had a little better night and managed 4-5 hours of sleep. Melinda's blood pressure, heart rate remain stable with medication and her oxygen is stable at 99 - 100% but her breathing is still high at 30 breaths per minute. Dr. Huff reviewed the CT scan and said he did not see anything else on Melinda's chest but the pneumonia. Dr. Huff said Melinda is coughing because of the pneumonia and is breathing to hard and will not be able to wean her off the ventilator until she heals or she stops coughing. Melinda's coughs are very forceful and she can't handle not being on the ventilator. Physical therapy sat Melinda in a chair for over an hour and she handled this well. Melinda's pelvis did not hurt her and her vitals were stable. Melinda recognized her oldest sister Leann, niece Britany and grandpa. Melinda was giving out lots of kisses and was trying to talk. This was an amazing day for all of us. Thank you for all the support we have received through this difficult time and please continue to pray for Melinda and Jon.

6/16/09 update & 6/17/09 day update

Melinda rested all morning since she did not get any sleep through the night. Dr. Huff came in and said he wants to start weaning Melinda off the ventilator tomorrow. Melinda had a really good afternoon and was alert and moving her left leg a lot. Physical therapist put Melinda in a chair for about 25 minutes. Melinda on command did a high 5 and lifted up her left index finger. Melinda is still coughing a lot. Around 8:00 pm respiratory was cleaning stuff out of Melinda's lungs and she would not stop coughing and the lidocaine did not help. Melinda continued coughing till 11:00 pm and was very exhausted. Melinda managed to get some rest through the night.

Dr. Huff came in this morning and I told him about her coughing for hours last night and he ordered a CT scan of Melinda's chest today. Dr. Huff decided not to do any weaning off of the ventilator until the results are in. Dr. Huff said they will monitor Melinda's hemoglobin and did not want to do a scope procedure right now. Physcial therapy did a 30 day assessment on Melinda and she did very well. The therapist said Melinda really understands what they are asking her to do but it is very difficult for her. Melinda's broken pelvis is healing fine and does not hurt her as much when she is moved. Dr. Smith said maybe another 1-2 weeks on the neck brace.

6/15/09 update

Melinda had a good and stable night. Melinda is more alert and seems to be feeling better. Later in the afternoon she was a little agitated and had a fever and this continued through the night. I knew Melinda wasn't feeling well because her heart rate and breathing was high and she kept coughing horribly. Melinda did not sleep at all and I stayed at her side all night. I asked the nurse to give Melinda some Tylenol and he told me she was not running a fever. I told the nurse she needs something because she is feeling bad and is agitated. This went on for 2 hours. I asked for the charge nurse and told him Melinda needs something for her agitation. The charge nurse gave her pain medicine adivan. This helped Melinda and her heart rate came down. Please don't stop praying, Melinda needs our prayers more than ever. God Bless you.

6/14/09 update

Melinda had a really good night and all her vitals were stable. Melinda continues to have a fever and is given Tylenol to bring it down. Melinda's 3rd test came back positive and concludes she has an internal bleed. This will be addressed tomorrow with Dr. Huff. Melinda's hemoglobin dropped to 8.5 and Dr. Britt ordered 2 pints of blood. Melinda received her 2 pints of blood and continues her antibiotics for her pneumonia and staph infection. The culture came back that Melinda received the staph infection from her picc line in her arm. When the bodies immune system is low you are more susceptible to infections. Melinda's chest x-ray showed no changes but is stable. Around 8:00 this evening Melinda was finished with her 2nd pint of blood and she was getting some good color in her face. Melinda starting opening her eyes and was more alert. I was talking to her and she smiled and she watched a little t.v. At 10:00 Melinda was given her sleep medicine and was resting peacefully. Thank you for all your thoughts and prayers.

6/13/09 update

Yesterday evening Melinda developed a fever and it continued through the night. Even though Melinda had a fever of 101.6 she still managed to get some rest. Melinda continues to have a fever all day and tonight. This is probably due to her infections. Melinda's oxygen, heart rate and blood pressure were stable and her breathing stayed under 30 most of the day.

Melinda's blood work today showed her hemoglobin was low. Yesterday it was 9.9 and today it was 7.5 which is a big drop. When your hemoglobin drops to 8 you will need units of blood. 2 pints of blood was ordered today for Melinda but Dr. Britt was not sure that the results were correct and he ordered blood work again. Melinda's hemoglobin came back at 9.5 and no units of blood were given. Dr. Britt thinks that Melinda might be bleeding internally and he ordered 3 tests and at this time the first 2 tests performed today came back positive and tomorrow will find out the results of the 3rd test. If all 3 tests are positive it concludes that Melinda is bleeding internally somewhere.

Melinda is still taking antibiotics to clear up her infections and is still very sluggish and not very responsive. Melinda continues to cough a lot and continues to receive lidocaine for her throat. I know everyone is praying hard and please keep praying so that Melinda will continue to improve every day so she can come home. God Bless!

6/12/09 update

Last night Melinda had a steady and stable night. Melinda continued to have a good morning. Dr. Huff did not order any new changes on the ventilator and just keep weaning Melinda off the sedation Diprovan. Around noon Melinda was off the sedation. Melinda is still sluggish but was getting a little agitated and she started to run a fever of 101.1. Melinda was given Tylenol and Adivan to calm her down. Melinda's blood pressure, heart rate and oxygen were all good but she continues to breathe to hard around the 30's. Melinda needs to breathe under 20 so she can get some rest. Melinda has developed a bad cough and can't stop so they are now giving her a shot of lidocaine down her trachea. This seems to help for awhile. They can give it to her every hour. Respiratory said Melinda's lungs sound really good. Melinda will have her chest x-ray tomorrow morning and pray that they have improved. The results from the picc line have not came back yet so we don't know if that caused Melinda's infection in her stomach that got in her blood. Melinda continues to take antibiotics every 6 hours.
Keep praying for Melinda that her lungs are improving. GOD BLESS

6/11/09 update

Melinda did well all day and vitals stable. Melinda's potassium has been low but they are giving her meds. Dr. Brown is the infectious disease doctor and she performed some kind of test on the antibiotics and showed they were not compatible and changed it.

Melinda had a new picc line put in her left arm. A picc line is the same as an i.v. in your hand but this can be left in for long period of time. Dr. Huff wanted the picc line in Melinda's right arm taken out and sent off to lab. Dr. Huff wants to know how Melinda got another infection that started in her stomach and is now in her blood. Will not know the results for a couple of days. The report came back that the picc line in the left arm is not positioned correctly. Dr. Huff was called and he said go ahead and use it and he will decide tomorrow if he wants to do another picc line in the right arm or do a 3 picc line up by the collar bone.

Dr. Huff ordered Melinda to be weaned off the sedation slowly. If Melinda's oxygen, heart rate, blood pressure or breathing gets to high they will move the sedation back up. The neurons in her brain are healing and the brain is trying to figure out how to regulate everything. This will just take time. Thank you for all the prayers.

6/10/09 update

Last night Melinda had a rough night. Melinda's heart rate was a little high so they upped the dosage on her sedation to bring it down. Melinda's nurse monitored her closely through the night.

Melinda had a calm and stable day today. The doctor ordered no changes on the ventilator and will let Melinda rest. Melinda will continue to be sedated until the infections are gone. Dr. Brown changed Melinda's antibiotic this evening.

Thank you for all the prayers.

6-9-09

Melinda had another restful night and day today. All of her stats were good and stable. Dr. Huff came in a said that her blood culture had showed some infection. He said that the antibiotic that Melinda was on will work on this type infection. He also said that he was going to call in a Dr. Brown to look and treat Melinda. She is an infectious disease doctor. The nurses say she is very good. Dr. Huff said she will probably change her antibiotic to more specifically target her infection. Dr. Huff changed her oxygen pressure from 50 to 40 today and says Melinda is doing good and will leave her sedated for a little while longer.

Christie agreed to stay at home another day and take care of a few more errands. She said she had a good night of sleep and it felt good to be back in her bed. I am so thankful that she is getting a break to get some rest.

Thank everyone for your thoughts and prayers. I know they are being answered.

God Bless.

6-8-09

Melinda had a good, restful night last night and day today. All her vitals looked good and her oxygen level was up so they changed the ventilator from 60 percent to 50 percent and her oxygen level stayed good all day. Melinda had her cat scan and pelvis x-rayed this afternoon but will not hear anything until tomorrow.

After Christie checked on Melinda this morning, her and Alecia went home to take care of some things and for Alecia's softball game. Mema and myself stayed to be with Melinda. I am glad Christie finally got away for a break, even if it is just overnight. It is a well needed break that she needs more than she realizes.

Melinda's potassium level was a little low so they gave her some potassium this morning and this evening. Her blood sugar level has been good all day and did not need any insulin today. Melinda rested peacefully most of the day. This evening she had a little coughing fit and the nurses changed her position in bed and she almost immediately went back to resting and sleeping. The nurse said that must have been her way to tell us that she wanted moved.

Please continue to keep Melinda in your prayers and God will continue to heal and bless her.

"I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me."
Philippians 4:13

6/7/09 update

Melinda rested peacefully all day long and her vitals were stable. Melinda is still sedated and is given pain medicine to keep her vitals stable. Dr. Huff came back and said he will not make any changes to the ventilator and will keep her comfortable and quiet as possible. Dr. Huff said the x-ray shows Melinda has pneumonia and is being treated with 2 antibiotics every 12 hours and Lasix that pulls fluid out of the body once a day. Melinda will have blood work and chest, pelvis x-rays tomorrow morning.
Continue to pray for Melinda and Jon more than ever. They are having a few set backs but they are fighting hard to move forward towards a full recovery. PRAY!PRAY!PRAY! Thank you.

6/6/09 late update

Sorry I could not update last night. I stayed at the hospital with Melinda.

Melinda had a good Friday night and a good morning on Saturday and her vitals were all good. Todd, sister Alecia and Mema came to visit and they were very excited to see big changes in Melinda. Melinda was very excited and was giving lots of kisses and moving lips like she was trying to talk. Melinda started to get tired so left her to rest. We came back to see Melinda and she looked a little agitated and she was breathing a little to fast. Melinda's regular medicines were given at 6:00 pm and she still was restless. Around 8:00 pm I knew something wasn't right and told the respiratory therapist that Melinda is breathing too hard and her oxygen is going down to 92. Melinda's oxygen has always been 95 - 100. The therapist told me she is fine and this is normal. I continued to watch Melinda struggle and cough and told my concerns to the therapist again. The charge nurse reassured me everything was fine. Mother's intuition but I knew something was wrong and this continued till 1:00 am. Melinda kept coughing and coughing and she was breathing high 30's and 40's per minute and her oxygen continued to drop. The nurse suctioned out a mucus plug out of her chest and thought this would take care of her oxygen. Melinda's oxygen level dropped to 81 and she was breathing 55 struggling horribly and the charge nurse gave her 2 doses of pain medicine and this did not help her. It was very intense and nothing they did helped Melinda. The charge nurse said she wanted to sedate Melinda to get her vitals under control and I agreed and said do it now. It took an hour but Melinda was finally resting. Melinda was put back on full ventilator and the oxygen on the vent which set normally at 40% was turned up to 100% to give her more oxygen to get it stable. The doctor was called and he ordered blood gases and a chest x-ray. The doctor came to assess Melinda and he ordered blood work and cultures. The doctor ordered no changes on the ventilator and keep her sedated until the results are in and by looking at the x-ray could be pneumonia. Will keep you updated.

Please pray!pray!pray! for Melinda and Jon to keep fighting.

6/5/09 update

Praise the Lord! Melinda had a great night and an awesome day. Melinda's blood pressure only got high a few times today and it seemed to be right before she was to receive her medicine. Melinda felt good all day and she was more alert than yesterday.

The nurse and I have been explaining to Melinda what has happened to her and this has calmed her down a lot. The nurse removed Melinda's restraints on her arms for a few minutes and Melinda's left hand would creep up to touch the wires and vent hoses. The nurse explained to Melinda that she could not pull on them and that all this stuff on her is not forever and I believe she understood.

Dr. Huff said Melinda is doing good and the pressure support on the ventilator was dropped to 7. Dr. Huff said there will not be any changes through the weekend.

Physical therapy worked with Melinda and sat her up on the edge of the bed. Melinda is getting a little bit stronger but still has a long recovery ahead of her. Melinda's brain injury has affected her right side and she will need a lot of rehab to get that side working. I got to hug Melinda and put my arms around her and could not stop kissing her and Melinda took her left arm and hugged me back. That was so amazing!!!

God is working a miracle right before our eyes and he is an amazing god. I don't question why this has happened, only that Melinda is gods child and god has unselfishly given her back to me.

Thank you for all the thoughts and prayers and god bless.

6/4/09 update

This morning the nurse said Melinda had an okay night. Melinda's blood pressure does fine for awhile and then it goes up high.

This morning around 9:30 Melinda's pressure started to rise again and my anxiety level goes way up. I just keep praying to god to bring it down and let Melinda rest. Melinda's pressure finally came down around 11:00 am and she was finally resting and slept 2 hours. Last week the doctors said several times that they thought the blood pressure was neurological and that the readings were not correct due to her brain injury but would not take the chance on Melinda having a stroke.

Dr. Huff came in and said Melinda was doing great and he lowered her pressure support to 8 and when she gets to 5 the ventilator will be taken off. This is a big step for Melinda and I am so proud of her.

Melinda has 2 physical therapist that work with her once a day during the week. I need to clarify how Melinda is able to sit up. It takes both of her therapist to sit her up and continue to hold her up through the therapy session and this is no easy task. One therapist is behind Melinda and she holds her neck and back up. The other therapist sits in front and works with her hands and arms and tries to get Melinda to do commands. Melinda followed some commands today and her therapists were pleased. Melinda's session was only 30 minutes and she was very exhausted and slept for 3 hours.

Melinda is trying to wake up a little bit more and seems to be aware of the nurses and at times has a frightened and scared look on her face. I held Melinda's hand most of the day to keep her calm and reassured her that everything is going to be okay and that god is here with us and he is healing her.

I'm not sure if I gave the name of the hospital where Melinda is. It is called Select Specialty Hospital, 3524 NW 56th St, OKC OK 73112.

Continue to pray for Melinda. GOD BLESS.

6/3/09 update

Melinda did not have a good night. The day nurse said her blood pressure was up last night and high this morning. The nurse gave Melinda several medicines to bring it down. Melinda was very exhausted and around 11:00 am she finally rested.

Physical therapy came in around 1:00 pm and got Melinda up on the side of the bed. Melinda was still very tired and not in to her therapy session. Melinda managed to do a few commands and Melinda had her elbow in the bed and she pulled herself up. The therapist noticed Melinda's vitals getting high and decided to put her back in bed and then the therapist asked if I wanted to hold Melinda and I said YES! I held Melinda and kissed her face all over and her vitals dropped to normal range. This was amazing and Melinda's therapist started crying. Melinda's vitals shot back up high when I stopped hugging on her. Melinda only sat up on the bed for 20 minutes and when they got her settled back in bed she slept for 2 hours. The therapy that Melinda does once a day is very exhausting but each day she gets a little stronger.

Dr Huff came in and lowered Melinda's pressure support to 10. Pressure support on the ventilator means it will help Melinda breath if she has any problems breathing at any time. Dr. Huff said he is pleased with Melinda's progress. Dr. Smith came by and said Melinda is doing fine and can't wait to get her to Jim Thorpe Rehab Center.

This afternoon I was touching Melinda's head and I told her I was going to kiss her and that she needed to pucker up. I bent down to kiss Melinda and she puckered up her lips. Melinda puckered up 3 times in a row. It was so amazing! I know these are little things but they are HUGE with Melinda's type of head injury and with every little thing she does is a step closer towards her recovery. Melinda's nurse witnessed it and she is documenting this in her chart.

This evening Melinda's blood pressure went really high at 210/121, heart rate 135 and she was doing 43 breaths per minute and very agitated. This was very scary and I just prayed to god to help Melinda calm down. The nurse gave Melinda her medicines and it took 45 minutes before her vitals were stable and my anxiety went down a lot. Melinda was resting peacefully tonight.

Please pray! pray! pray! for Melinda that she will have a peaceful and calm night and a good day.

6/2/09 update

Melinda had a really good night and all her vitals were stable. This morning Melinda was very active looking around and moving her arms and left leg. Melinda can move her right leg but it is not very active. Melinda continues to receive her blood pressure, pain medicine and Tylenol.

Dr. Huff came in to see Melinda and said everything looks good with her vitals and changed her pressure support to 12. Dr. Huff said he is pleased with Melinda's progress. Physical therapy worked with Melinda today and it went very well.

Melinda was very active all day and in to the evening. Melinda seemed to be very agitated and uncomfortable and did not sleep all day. Around 8:00 pm Melinda's heart rate and blood pressure was high and she was breathing too fast. This really worries me. Melinda has a new nurse tonight that has not taken care of her before and I have faith but am worried that her blood pressure will get too high. I am going to call the hospital later tonight.

Please pray with me that Melinda's blood pressure and heart rate remain stable throughout the night and pray to give me the strength to be strong for Melinda.

6/1/09 update

Melinda had a really good night and all vitals stable. Melinda continued to have a good morning. This is great news! Melinda's hemoglobin is a little low at 8.9 and normal hemoglobin is 9 and above. Melinda is having blood drawn every morning to monitor her levels. If Melinda's hemoglobin drops to 8 she may have to have some units of blood like she received 2 weeks ago.

The physical therapist came in this morning and tried a few commands with Melinda. The therapist asked Melinda to move her left foot and she did on command. Therapist continued to ask Melinda to move her left leg, right foot and right leg and she did on command. Praise the Lord! Melinda's therapist said she is improving and progressing and is doing a great job.

This afternoon a different therapist wanted to sit Melinda up on the edge of the bed. I got to help the therapist sit Melinda up and this was so awesome. Melinda continues to track and look around more and more and the therapist is pleased with her progress. Melinda only sat up for 5 minutes when her pelvis started hurting so we put her back in bed to rest.

Dr. Huff came in and reviewed Melinda and is very pleased with her progress. Dr. Huff said she is doing a lot better than she was last week. Dr. Huff changed the ventilator to pressure support 15 again to try and wean Melinda off the vent.

Dr. Smith came in and said the medicines are working for Melinda to get her to wake up. Melinda is still in the fog but is doing better with each day. Dr. Smith reviewed physical therapies notes and is pleased she is moving both legs and is more active.

Before I left Melinda this evening she was resting peacefully and her vitals were all good. Please pray that Melinda will have a peaceful night and that all her vitals are stable.

5/31/09 update

Melinda continues to have elevated blood pressure and is breathing hard. Melinda continues to receive her blood pressure and pain medicine to keep her stable. Melinda still wears mittens on her hands and this has kept her from grabbing the vent hoses. Melinda the houdini managed to get a hold of the vent hoses and now her arms are in restraints and she really hates it.

Respiratory therapist changed the ventilator to pressure support to see if Melinda could handle breathing on her own. Melinda handled breathing on her own for about 3 hours. Respiratory said Melinda is hyper-ventilating and she is breathing too fast and her blood pressure is too low . Melinda was given pain medicine and was put back on the ventilator to help her breath. The medicine took 30 minutes to get her calmed down and vitals stable.

The nurse turned off the lights and closed the blinds so Melinda could rest all day. Melinda is not handling any kind of stimulation right now and she needs to rest. **Keep praying for Melinda.**

5/30/09 update

I arrived at the hospital this morning and the nurse said Melinda is resting peacefully now. Melinda's blood pressure was a little elevated and the nurse gave Melinda her pain medicine to bring it down. Melinda will be receiving her pain medicine every 8 hours. The nurse said no stimulation for Melinda today and that this will be a resting day. Melinda's lights were turned off and the blinds closed all day to let her rest.

This afternoon the doctor ordered the ventilator to pressure support to let Melinda breath on her own. Melinda could only handle 45 minutes of breathing on her own when her blood pressure started to rise. The ventilator was changed back to help Melinda breath. The nurse said not to worry that they will try again tomorrow.

Melinda is getting more active with moving her arms and legs and is trying to fully wake up. Melinda is feeling the pain in her back fracture and broken pelvis a lot these last few days and this could possibly be the cause of her blood pressure going up.

Please continue to pray that Melinda will have a good day. GOD BLESS.