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