Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Dear Friends,

The past several days have been quite challenging. As we were told in the early stages of Kevin's recovery he would have good days, bad days, and very bad days. How true this is. The past several days have been some of those very bad days, but today is a good day. It is very difficult to describe the very bad days, mostly because it is just too personal for the family to report to you the turmoil, stress and exhaustion we go through with the challenges of Kevin's recovery.

Today Kevin was in a good frame of mind when I came to the hospital this morning. He had been having a good conversation with Sarah who had taken the day off. Physical therapy came in just after my arrival and began their procedure of getting him dressed and ready to participate. Kevin was able to assist getting himself dressed as this was the first day they dressed him fully (no hospital gown). He was calm all the way through the hour of his "workout". This was a first as he usually becomes extremely agitated during his therapy sessions.

We knew from the beginning that Kevin may have some visual impairments which have become more and more apparent to us as we observe him. Last evening and this morning was really the first time Kevin verbalized that he was having trouble seeing and that everything was blurry. We believe this may be part of the problem causing him trouble getting and keeping his balance. He was checked by a rehab doctor this morning who believes that as the brain heals his eye sight will normalize. We ask your prayers that he will have no permanent eye impairments.

This morning we had our weekly conference with the staff at Kindred. All in all, Kevin is making good progress. He has no infections going on and the fluid around his lung is beginning to resolve on its own. They are slowly trying to get him to eat. He has managed applesauce, ice cream, milk and crackers. He still has trouble swallowing which can cause him to choke or aspirate so they have to proceed very cautiously. We are hoping and praying that will Kevin keep clear of infection and keep making forward strides so that by this time next week he could possibly be moved to Centre for Neuro Skills in Bakersfield.

We have posted a photo of Kevin and Sarah that was taken March 2, 2007, at the wedding rehearsal of his brother, Keith. We thought you would enjoy putting a face to your prayers.

Love,
Tami