John is hang'in in there!

Update on John.....We are still in Roannoke Memorial Hospital room 884, waiting for acceptance into rehab. There are many criteria to get into rehab and it seems as soon as he meets one another comes up. We are doing anything and everything they ask of us, so as you can imagine it is very disappointing for John from week to week being told there is one more thing he has to overcome before he can leave the hospital. John is medically stable according to the doctors, however he is still very ill and the potential for life threatening situations is always present. The Wegener's Granulomatosis is in remission. He has several holes(fistulas) in his stomach and bowel so he is not able to get any nutrition by mouth. He continues to receive nutrition through an IV. He has an open abdominal wound which the surgeons say will be 6 months to a year before they could even think about repairing the belly, so it will be at least that long before he can eat. He battles with pain everyday, but they seem to have it under better control. He is able to move his hands and his arms at the elbow. He can now wiggle his legs and raise his head a little. As Bob mentioned before he is using his TV remote and is able to call for the nurse during the night when we are not there. He is receiving physical and occupational therapy everyday and is making progress. They are kicking his butt!!!!!

We are so thankful to have John stable. We are very blessed to have family and friends support us through this catastrophic event. We have a long road ahead of us and I am asking if anyone is able to spare a few minutes sometime, please come and see John. Everyone is welcome as often as you can come. Visits from family and friends make the days and months seem a little shorter and John would be so happy! We are trying to keep him positive and he needs as much encouragement as he can get.

If you have any questions or comments for John please post them here and I will make sure he gets them. He is starting to ask for his blackberry so hopefully it won't be too long before he can get back to checking the ESPN page for the latest scores and sporting news!

Please continue to keep John in your prayers.

We have so many wonderful people in our lives and just know we appreciate you and your thoughts and prayers. May God bless you.


Lisa

Another milestone achieved

Great news today - John had his trache tube removed early this morning. He is doing well, aside from a little anxiety :-) Seriously, he'll be tested and monitored pretty closely to make sure he's taking the transition well. Otherwise he's progressing pretty well.

Everyday PT is really working him hard and wearing him out as well. If you have not seen him lately, John has much improved movement of his hands and arms - he actually has a speaker phone in the bed so he can receive phone calls. He's able to use the TV remote again, which he is very proud of.

Small steps... and great improvements.

Please continue to keep John in your thoughts and prayers. Thanks everyone.

Online Donation Account:

John made his OUTSIDE the building

Quick note today. More later when I return from the hospital...

John actually made his way outside the hospital for a bit yesterday! He was extremely impressed and happy about being outside in the awesome weather. The staff also capped John's trache tube as a test to see how well he does without using it. If all goes well, they are considering removing the trache.

Please continue to think of John and the family - and everyone is encouraged to visit!

More later.