31 January 2010
Day 77 – Grayson’s Condition
Dear family and friends
It was a very nice weekend with Grayson. We got to spend a lot of time with him in his new environment. We watched him prepare a meal with some assistance, do dishes, play cards, read some National Geographic's, and get off campus for a few outings like shopping for some groceries and clothes.
Today we went to church with Grayson. We visited a wonderful small Lutheran church in town, and were welcomed with open arms, even though we sat in someone else's "regular" pew. My home church has a lot to learn about hospitality and welcoming from these folks! We were surprised and pleased that Grayson started singing along with some of the hymns during the service. After services, we passed on the pot luck luncheon and annual meeting and instead we went to lunch at Panda Express – Grayson's first meal out in 11 weeks!
Thank you for all of the comments and emails about Grayson's short video from yesterday. We shared several of them with Grayson before we made the trek home today, and he was very pleased to hear from you. Our parting was bittersweet, as we will probably not be back for a week or two. He is continuing to improve, and we are thrilled at his progress. God is blessing us richly!
Pax!
Brant
30 January 2010
Day 76 – Grayson’s Condition
Dear family and friends
Tonight I have a special message from Grayson to all of you.
I believe that there is little that I can add tonight.
Pax!
Brant
29 January 2010
Day 75 – Grayson’s Condition
Dear family and friends
Road trip!
Today we got to visit Grayson in his apartment. He had already made dinner with some assistance. Tonight he had chicken and rice with fresh broccoli and salad. By the time we arrived, he had already cleaned and put away the dishes.
He has a weekly allotment of $25 for activities. He chose to spend about half at the billiard parlor yesterday, and he has several opportunities to choose from for the next few days.
After not seeing him for two days, we were pleased at the increased clarity of his speech. Instead of having him repeat everything several times for understanding, we could generally make out what he was saying on the first pass. Everything was faster – his walk, his speech, his understanding, his responses.
Grayson was so glad to see us! He gave us big hugs and was excited to tell us what he had been doing. We delivered mail from home, family pictures to put on his bulletin board, and National Geographic magazines to read. He was thrilled with the new "stuff".
This is a wonderful facility, and after only a few days, Grayson is showing rapid signs of growth. We are blessed to have the opportunity to be here.
Pax!
Brant
28 January 2010
Day 74 – Grayson’s Condition
Dear family and friends
Today we spent the entire day 100 miles away from Grayson – that was a weird feeling after so long being with him in the hospital. I called to talk to him tonight, and discovered that he was on a field trip – out playing pool! They piled on the bus and went out to a local place to play pool. I am most interested to talk with Grayson to see what he thought of it. Unfortunately, I don't know how much he will remember.
It was fun to talk with Grayson on the phone last night after we got home. First, it is fun to talk with him on the phone! Last week, he couldn't carry on much of a conversation. Now, if you work at it, you can actually understand much of what he is trying to say.
When I talked to him last night, I found out that he had just gotten back from the rec center where they watched the new Michael Jackson movie, "This is It". This was after he had already made dinner, and cleaned up and put away his dishes.
As you can tell, there is lots of activity to keep these guys occupied. I say "guys" because there are women, but not many – only 1 of 7 of the patients is female. Women are just less likely to engage in high risk behavior that is one of the leading causes of traumatic brain injury (TBI). After observing the patients at the center, and seeing just how many are recovering from TBI, I have a new found respect for, and additional reason to wear, appropriate protective gear when engaging in certain activities. While certainly not the cause of Grayson's current difficulty, we tried to do our best to control our risk factors. From our ski trip in January 2009, here is an unintentional advertisement for ski helmets from the Reed family. Protect your head!
Pax!
Brant
27 January 2010
Day 73 – Grayson’s Condition
Dear family and friends
Regina and I spent another day at the facility finalizing details and observing Grayson in his new environment. As I mentioned a few days ago, there is the residential campus where the patients live and a clinic where they work. There is a fleet of special busses that transport the patients between the facilities, roughly a 20 minute ride. These busses go back and forth hourly.
Grayson's first full day of work consisted of a full battery of therapies. As he is a new patient, the first few weeks are going to be focused on getting baseline information down to the minutest detail so that development plans can be created.
When Grayson arrived, a staff member guided him to the posted schedule, had him locate his name, and determine where he should go that hour. First stop was occupational therapy (OT). Grayson was interviewed, had his eyes examined for visual acuity at a gross level and he did some activities to test his fine motor skills. The therapist then guided Grayson to the schedule again so that he could determine where he needed to go next.
Next up was physical therapy (PT). Grayson had his blood pressure and heart rate checked, then hit the treadmill for a workout.
Can we pause here for just a moment? Treadmill? Less than a month ago Grayson could barely walk with two people holding him and someone walking behind with a wheelchair. Wow!
Ok, so back to my story. The therapist fired up the machine at 1.7 MPH and 0% incline. On 3 minute intervals, he moved the incline to 5%, then 10%, then he increased the speed to 2.5 MPH and 12% incline for the final 3 minutes. Grayson didn't miss a beat, or a step I should say. Afterward, he had to sit while his blood pressure and heart rate was checked over time to see how he recovered. He did very well. He concluded his PT hour with range of motion tests before being led to the lunch area.
After lunch, the lunchtime supervisor led Grayson to the schedule so he could determine where he needed to go – cognitive rehabilitation (CR). In CR, Grayson was tested on his ability to put bits and facts together and observations together. I likened it to testing the processor, not the memory. We already know that his long term memory is in pretty good shape. As the concepts got harder he had difficulty putting all of the test pieces together.
His final session of the day was another OT session with yet a different therapist. She took an immediate liking to Grayson, because she is a fellow Trojan! Here Grayson was tested on his fine motor skills. This is an area where Grayson will need a lot of work. His hands, though steady at rest, shake when the brain directs them to do something.
Throughout the day, Grayson was trying to go to sleep. He slept well the previous night, but it is a constant struggle to keep him awake and focused. At this point it could be a med problem, a neuro problem, or just another sign of healing. Whatever the cause, when Grayson is able to focus, he does much better than when he is head down on the table. This is an area that the staff and the medical staff will focus on over the next few weeks.
After we said our good-byes, we watched Grayson get on the bus for the trip to the residential campus, and we hopped in the car for the 100+ mile drive home. The time we spent here was good for us. As parents, we needed to see firsthand the caring and loving actions of the staff with Grayson. We needed to see how they adjusted to his frustration when he was unable to communicate his desires, or when he wanted to do something unsafe. Based on our observations, I know that God has led us to the right place. Why should I be surprised?
Pax!
Brant
Regina and I spent another day at the facility finalizing details and observing Grayson in his new environment. As I mentioned a few days ago, there is the residential campus where the patients live and a clinic where they work. There is a fleet of special busses that transport the patients between the facilities, roughly a 20 minute ride. These busses go back and forth hourly.
Grayson's first full day of work consisted of a full battery of therapies. As he is a new patient, the first few weeks are going to be focused on getting baseline information down to the minutest detail so that development plans can be created.
When Grayson arrived, a staff member guided him to the posted schedule, had him locate his name, and determine where he should go that hour. First stop was occupational therapy (OT). Grayson was interviewed, had his eyes examined for visual acuity at a gross level and he did some activities to test his fine motor skills. The therapist then guided Grayson to the schedule again so that he could determine where he needed to go next.
Next up was physical therapy (PT). Grayson had his blood pressure and heart rate checked, then hit the treadmill for a workout.
Can we pause here for just a moment? Treadmill? Less than a month ago Grayson could barely walk with two people holding him and someone walking behind with a wheelchair. Wow!
Ok, so back to my story. The therapist fired up the machine at 1.7 MPH and 0% incline. On 3 minute intervals, he moved the incline to 5%, then 10%, then he increased the speed to 2.5 MPH and 12% incline for the final 3 minutes. Grayson didn't miss a beat, or a step I should say. Afterward, he had to sit while his blood pressure and heart rate was checked over time to see how he recovered. He did very well. He concluded his PT hour with range of motion tests before being led to the lunch area.
After lunch, the lunchtime supervisor led Grayson to the schedule so he could determine where he needed to go – cognitive rehabilitation (CR). In CR, Grayson was tested on his ability to put bits and facts together and observations together. I likened it to testing the processor, not the memory. We already know that his long term memory is in pretty good shape. As the concepts got harder he had difficulty putting all of the test pieces together.
His final session of the day was another OT session with yet a different therapist. She took an immediate liking to Grayson, because she is a fellow Trojan! Here Grayson was tested on his fine motor skills. This is an area where Grayson will need a lot of work. His hands, though steady at rest, shake when the brain directs them to do something.
Throughout the day, Grayson was trying to go to sleep. He slept well the previous night, but it is a constant struggle to keep him awake and focused. At this point it could be a med problem, a neuro problem, or just another sign of healing. Whatever the cause, when Grayson is able to focus, he does much better than when he is head down on the table. This is an area that the staff and the medical staff will focus on over the next few weeks.
After we said our good-byes, we watched Grayson get on the bus for the trip to the residential campus, and we hopped in the car for the 100+ mile drive home. The time we spent here was good for us. As parents, we needed to see firsthand the caring and loving actions of the staff with Grayson. We needed to see how they adjusted to his frustration when he was unable to communicate his desires, or when he wanted to do something unsafe. Based on our observations, I know that God has led us to the right place. Why should I be surprised?
Pax!
Brant
26 January 2010
Day 72 – Grayson’s Condition
Dear family and friends
Today was the first full day out of the hospital!
Grayson had a big day. It started as he got out of bed, showered and got himself ready, made breakfast and did his dishes. Then, he made the mistake of lying down. He went to sleep, and no one could get him up for a few hours! He missed the first two busses to the clinic, but was brought by around 11:00 AM.
The first part of the day was BORING for Grayson, as he had to sign all of the admitting forms, with me as the witness. Then he had a nursing evaluation. The day started to improve with lunch, because food is always good, even in pureed form!
The afternoon was a lot more fun.
Cognitive rehabilitation was Grayson's first therapy. Here they deal with speech, learning, and eating. Today after an hour proving that he could do it with supervision, Grayson was cleared to drink all liquids and eat solid food!
Next was physical therapy. Today the entire session was establishing baselines. Grayson showed through his testing that he was doing pretty well with most of his basic balance, walking and stairs. He does show some capability limitation in some balance areas, and that is what they will start working on tomorrow.
At the end of his day, Grayson took the patient bus back to the residence campus. He prepared his dinner with some help, then cleaned and put away his dishes. We were pleased at the way things were going at his apartment. We spent some time talking with Grayson and the staff before playing a game of Kings in the Corner. It was a nice visit, and we left with a comfortable feeling about his new home.
Tomorrow we will make a final pass by the clinic to complete some final details, then we will observe Grayson in occupational therapy before heading home.
So today I feel a bit like celebrating. Here is another clip from "My Fair Lady" – this time Grayson is singing, "Get Me to the Church on Time". Enjoy!
Pax!
Brant
Day 71 – Grayson’s Condition
Dear family and friends
Today was a big day!
Road trip!
After 10 weeks in the hospital, Grayson has been discharged. With much fanfare, and a big farewell from the staff at the hospital, Grayson was wheeled out the door. He was wearing a t-shirt that all the staff had signed, and he promised to come back and visit them. It is hard to believe that he had been at this facility almost 5 weeks!
Today we moved him to his new place – a residential post acute rehab facility. We had a lovely drive over the Grapevine through the snow. Grayson didn't sleep a wink and enjoyed looking at the surrounding countryside. If you know Grayson, on a long drive (greater than 10 minutes) he always fell asleep, so this was unusual.
The facility consists of a residential campus, and a clinic located at a separate site. Last evening we got him settled into his new residence – an apartment that he shares with 2 other young men – and several staff members that watch over them.
The focus at the residential campus is activities of daily living, or ADL as they call it here. The residents are encouraged to do as much for themselves as they are able, including getting ready in the morning, preparing meals, doing dishes, shopping for food, homework, laundry, etc. The staff will do as much, or as little as needed to help them accomplish their tasks. Grayson helped prepare his dinner, helped unpack his belongings, and got himself ready for bed. When we left last night, he was curled up in his bed ready to go to sleep. It had been a big day.
Tomorrow we will go to the clinic to complete the check-in process, and see him at work there. The facility consists of a therapeutic pool, a physical therapy area, an occupational therapy area, a speech therapy area, a nursing area, and a counseling area. I'll share more about it in tomorrow's blog.
Tonight is a bit scary for Mom and Dad, as we are leaving him in the care of new people once again. This time, we have to trust the staff to make sure that they keep him safe. I'm sure that they will, as he is hardly their first patient, but that doesn't reduce our anxiety. Once again, we place Grayson in God's hands for more healing and growth.
Pax!
Brant
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