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.
Monday, June 29, 2009
Sunday, June 28, 2009
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.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
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!
Friday, June 26, 2009
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.
6/26/09 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.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
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.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
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.
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.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
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.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
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.
Friday, June 19, 2009
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.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
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.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
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.
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.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
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.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
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.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
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!
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!
Friday, June 12, 2009
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
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.
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.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
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.
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.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
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.
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.
Monday, June 8, 2009
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
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
Sunday, June 7, 2009
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.
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.
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.
Friday, June 5, 2009
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.
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.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
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.
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.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
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.
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.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
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.
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.
Monday, June 1, 2009
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.
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.
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