3. Rehab Floor (CIRU)

Where do we place our hope?

The tension between staying in the present and having hope for the future is difficult.

The present is hard. Anne still can’t move anything but her right hand and her right quadricep. She can’t roll over in bed or turn her head. Her eyes are stuck to the right and she cries most of the day.

Yes, she is getting stronger and making great progress, but the future is uncertain – so placing our hope in an unknown future is like building a house on sand…

So where do we place our hope? I echo Peter’s words from John 6, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.”

Our hope is in Christ alone.

Please pray:

  1. Anne has a really bad sore throat. She is refusing to swallow, so she is not eating and is even more agitated than ‘normal’. So pray for her throat to get better.
  2. Continue to pray for Anne’s total healing, and all of us to trust in God’s good character and mercy toward our family.

Good night – kathryn

1st fruits…

Well, Anne has officially completed her first week of rehab. Her estimated stay is 4-6 weeks…

Yesterday, I got to visit with a mom whose daughter had a worse brain injury than Anne’s – and now she’s toddling all over the rehab floor – as normal as can be.

She encouraged me to hold on to the small things that Anne does because they reveal her potential. So let’s list the ‘small’ steps that Anne has accomplished this week :-)

  1. She says, ‘yeah,’ ‘uh-uh,’ and ‘more’ consistently. And then today, my mouth about hit the floor when her therapist asked her to say, “marshmellow.” AND SHE DID! amazing
  2. She is eating pureed food well and is starting on crunchy foods.
  3. She is sitting well with assistance and can sit a little while totally unassisted.
  4. She’s standing with assistance for 15-20 minutes at a time.
  5. She’s consistently initiating steps with her right leg, and has initiated with her left leg a few times.
  6. She’s grabbing and ‘exploring’ with her right hand.
  7.  She smiles, laughs and cries (alot :-)

I would say this has been a pretty good week!!! These are the “first-fruits” of God’s work in Anne. I’m encouraged to press forward – while remaining grateful for God’s mighty work in the present.

You are our GOOD God. THANK YOU JESUS for preserving Anne’s life and bringing her this far. We pray for her total healing, but trust that you will finish the good work you’ve started in Anne. We know your plan for Anne is good. We are humbled by your mercy toward us. Please help us to trust you moment by moment. We love you! Amen

Screaming & Schedules

Well… I’m exhausted :-)

We have four hours of therapy, resting-foot-splint schedules, active-foot-splint shedules, hand-splint schedules, pureed diet eating schedules, weaning feeding tube schedules, dressing, diapering, teeth brushing – and bathing schedules.

And all of this while Anne is in her “agitated phase” (aka: SCREAMING AT THE TOP OF HER LUNGS phase :-) I’m laughing right now – that keeps me from crying ;-) Seriously, the fact that Anne is crying 75% of the day is a GOOD thing. It means she’s coming back to us – but that doesn’t make it any easier…

The doctors, therapists and veteran-rehab-parents all assure me that this really is just a phase. Meanwhile, God has supplied energy and endurance. “Your right hand has held me up, Your gentleness has made me great. You enlarged my path under me, so my feet did not slip” Psalm 18:35-36.

Please pray:

  1. For Anne to push through this “agitated phase” to a place where she is less disoriented and has greater communication skills (in other words – please, God help her to speak!)
  2. For Anne’s tremors to subside so she can have greater control of her hands.
  3. For patience for all, and
  4. Finally, for her total and complete recovery.

-kathryn

Praying for His Presence

For those of you who have the devotional, Jesus Calling, today’s entry was very awesome!

My sweet friend, Paulette, gave me that devotional and as I read this morning, I thought of both my circumstances and hers – as her husband has significant surgery today.

I’m praying for both of us to leave the future in God’s hands, and to experience His caring presence in the present!

A few tidbits from the day…

  • Anne ate pureed food for dinner tonight! Her first real meal since the accident. Even in her agitated state – I think she enjoyed her food.
  • We are trying to teach Anne to say ‘yeah’ for yes and ‘unh-uh’ for no. She’s doing pretty well. Yesterday, I looked at Anne and said, “Hi!” and she said “Hi” right back. We’re very encouraged by her language development!
  • The whole family continues to eat dinner at the hospital together. Last night, Canon said to one of the therapists, “The hospital is like our second home. I’m here for my sister, Anne!”
  • Anne’s former sunday school teacher, Mrs. Debbie, is at the hospital with Anne tonight. Thank you Mrs. Debbie for allowing Eric to get some sleep!!!

Thank you everyone for praying. we are so grateful! -kathryn

Pressing forward

The accident was four weeks ago today… Sometimes I feel like I’m in the middle of a dream; it doesn’t seem possible that my spunky, bright Anne has a severe brain injury.

Isaiah 30:21 says, “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying ‘This is the way; walk in it.'”So we press forward, with a mix of grief and joy, but forward nonetheless.

Anne’s current phase is challenging. She is agitated and confused, audibly crying most of the time. I find myself leaning on my old ways of self-sufficiency. Thinking back over my day, I realized that I did not ask God for help once, but carried on – essentially alone – trying to care for Anne.

You would think that I would learn to cling to my saviour – to run to Him, cling to Him. This is just as much a “rehab” time for me as it is for Anne :-) May we both come out on the other side more “like gold” (Job 23:10).

Thankful for His grace -kathryn

Quick update

Anne has been so agitated today. She cried through her therapy and her nap. We have been told that heightened emotions are a phase some will go through.

HUGE praise – Anne initiated a step with her right leg!! She also cleared a swallowing test – meaning that we can attempt much more food now.

Kathryn’s prayer requests yesterday were exactly where we are. Please pray:

  1. For God to preserve Anne’s cognitive abilities and ultimately, for her to speak,
  2. For Anne to gain greater control over her eyes,
  3. For Anne’s tremors to decrease so she can have more control using her hands, and
  4. For Anne’s character to be molded into Christlikeness as she perseveres through all her therapy sessions.

Hoping for a little rest tonight :-)

-eric

A little more from Anne

Every day we see a little more from Anne… She’s sitting better and eating better (she ate ice cream today). Her eyes are brighter and more focused and overall she seems more responsive. For example, in addition to smiling more, she laughed out loud for the first time today.

The Speech Therapist and I both think Anne tried to say, “uh huh” when asked if she wanted more ice cream. I just sat and cried, thinking about how thankful I was to hear my sweet girl try to speak.

Please pray:

  1. For God to preserve Anne’s cognitive abilities and ultimately, for her to speak,
  2. For Anne to gain greater control over her eyes,
  3. For Anne’s tremors to decrease so she can have more control using her hands, and
  4. For Anne’s character to be molded into Christlikeness as she perseveres through all her therapy sessions.

Tired but thankful, -kathryn

Anne’s miraculous smile

5-8-10

Anne continues to try to do EVERYTHING her therapists ask of her. She has an amazing will. We are very proud of her.

Today Ms. Debbie (her former Sunday School teacher) came by for a visit. This pic was taken during her visit. Ms. Debbie and Anne have always had a special connection :-)

Please continue to pray:

  1. For Anne’s tremors/neuro storms to disappear, and for God to be close and comfort Anne.
  2. For the whole family to be encouraged to persevere and trust in our Great Physician day by day.

-kathryn

Working hard…

Another tough, but wonderful day in rehab. Little Anne worked really hard to open her mouth for some popsicle – and she opened a little wider today! She also was able to push a down on a button with her right hand which was a huge thing for her. Anne sat up in her wheelchair longer today than any other previous day, and we went outside for some sunshine – the warm sun on her little body immediately calmed her – i think she really liked being outside. She also had lots of family interaction – and she seems a tiny bit more responsive with her few smiles.

George Wallace gave us John 11:4 today: But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” What a great story to be reminded of – God’s timing and his plans are often very different than our own!! But they are always GOOD plans!

Praise God for the miracles he has already provided. Pray that Anne will one day soon be able to speak!!

-eric