Chase Update: Day 29 Wednesday July 16th 1:00 pm Chase gave us more miracles today. I put his oxygen monitor on his left hand,which he doesnt move much,because he kept pushing it off his right hand. He lifted both his left and right hand and pushed it off with his right hand. I was so excited. It was so deliberate. He then lifted his left hand and started touching the ventilator tube attached to the trach. I quickly removed his hand and told him if he messed it they would tie his hands down. He didnt do it again. Phil got a full on smile from him tonight while they were watching a comedy show, and when our favorite nurse stopped by he smiled with his face and eyes, and we got a little movement in his lips. Phil said goodbye to us this morning. He has to go get some work done. Baker Hughes has been amazing to us, but Phil needs to work and be home for a couple of day for his sanity. Chase cried. He cant make sounds or tears yet, but his face broke my heart. I cant imagine how hard it was for Phil to leave after that. He has been our rock, and Chases champion. Friday cant come soon enough. I think Chase understands most of what we say,and his ability to respond is improving. He is off the ventilator again, and back to sitting in the chair. He is still not gaining weight. I worry about that a lot. For those of you who are interested, Here is the scale they use for cognitive brain function. We need to be exhibiting level 5 functions to get into rehab. We started at a level 1, that is what people usually think of when they hear the word Coma, and why you may wonder why I want to wake up Chase when he is obviously awake. Parts of his brain are still in a coma. We have entered level 4 this week, though we only exhibit some of the items. I am only listing the first 5, though there are 10. Rancho Los Amigos Levels of Cognitive Functioning Level I - No Response: Total Assistance Complete absence of observable change in behavior when presented visual, auditory, tactile, proprioceptive, vestibular or painful stimuli Level II - Generalized Response: Total Assistance Demonstrates generalized reflex response to painful stimuli Responds to repeated auditory stimuli with increased or decreased activity Responds to external stimuli with physiological changes generalized, gross body movement and/or not purposeful vocalization Responses noted above may be same regardless of type and location of stimulation Responses may be significantly delayed Level III - Localized Response: Total Assistance Demonstrates withdrawal or vocalization to painful stimuli Turns toward or away from auditory stimuli Blinks when strong light crosses visual field Follows moving object passed within visual field Responds to discomfort by pulling tubes or restraints Responds inconsistently to simple commands Responses directly related to type of stimulus May respond to some persons (especially family and friends) but not to others. Level IV - Confused/Agitated: Maximal Assistance Alert and in heightened state of activity Purposeful attempts to remove restraints or tubes or crawl out of bed May perform motor activities such as sitting, reaching and walking but without any apparent purpose or upon anothers request Very brief and usually non-purposeful moments of sustained alternatives and divided attention Absent short-term memory May cry out or scream out of proportion to stimulus even after its removal May exhibit aggressive or flight behavior Mood may swing from euphoric to hostile with no apparent relationship to environmental events Unable to cooperate with treatment efforts Verbalizations are frequently incoherent and/or inappropriate to activity or environment Level V - Confused, Inappropriate Non-Agitated: Maximal Assistance Alert, not agitated but may wander randomly or with a vague intention of going home. May become agitated in reponse to external stimulation, and/or lack of environmental structure. Not oriented to person, place or time. Frequent brief periods, non-purposeful sustained attention Severely impaired recent memory, with confusion of past and present in reaction to ongoing activity Absent goal directed, problem solving, self-monitoring behavior Often demonstrates inappropriate use of objects without external direction May be able to perform previously learned tasks when structured and cues provided Unable to learn new information Able to respond appropriately to simple commands fairly consistently with external structures and cues Responses to simple commands without external structure are random and non-purposeful in relation to command Able to converse on a social, automatic level for brief periods of time when provided external structure and cues Verbalizations about present events become inappropriate and confabulatory when external structure and cues are not provided. Today we pray Chase continues to improve so we can get into the rehab center As soon as possible. We pray Chases impatience will inspire him to accomplish much, but that he can be patient with the Lords timeline. Chase is waking up a little more everyday. He is a miracle! We pray for Erica and Justin, we pray they recognize the hand of the Lord in the miracles he is providing for them, and that Justin will continue to defy the odd with the help of The Lord. We of course pray for you. We pray for you to have your own miracles today, and that the Lords hand is evident in your life. May God bless you and keep you until we meet again. We are legion!
Posted on: Wed, 16 Jul 2014 18:05:02 +0000
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