Posted on 11/07/2014 3:01:52 PM PST by WhyisaTexasgirlinPA
Arrowhead (John) fell off a 20’ ladder at work, onto his head, and has a severe brain injury!
Broke all the bones in his face and skull, broke his shoulder blade and some ribs.
His last post was 10/20 in the morning. He fell about 2pm that same day and was LifeFlighted to the hospital; then, after about 6 hours of surgery, he went directly to ICU. It was touch and go for days in critical condition.
After 2 weeks in ICU he has been transferred to a Specialty Neurological Rehab center in Austin, as of 11/3.
He can move his arms and legs, so no spinal injury, but he is not cognizant. Sometimes he can respond to “can you squeeze my hand?”, sometimes not. His daughter is getting ready to go back home.
The nurses are calling them every day. Small improvements are noticed, such as he sat up for 10 seconds today, but no one has a prognosis. Brain injuries heal how they heal, when the heal, if they heal....3 to 6 months at least.
PRAY HARD, please!!!! And spread the word to your prayer lists.
Thanks for the update. I have posted a link on the garden thread.
Let's pray,
Lord Jesus,
We are so grateful you hear us and that you are right there with Arrow as he strives to advance in his therapy and treatments. We ask that you continue to strengthen him inwardly as well as physically throughout the weeks ahead.
We pray for those in this new facility that they might have your eyes to see and treat him as you would have it. Give them all that they need to assist him and to encourage him.
We also pray for those standing by...that they might always be an encouragement to Arrow even when e his steps might not go as hoped for from one day to the next..
You are the Almighty God and nothing is too hard for you to accomplish in this work for Arrow to fully recover....give patience and steadfastness to all involved in this...your work...on Arrow's behalf.
In your great and wonderful name...Jesus....Amen
I sure can.....thanks.
Just home from work. FReepmail sent. Thanks.
That’s what I was thinking....a good thing. “I know how to fold socks and this isn’t it.”
And after so many years in the Texas National Guard, he probably has had enough marching and could “joke” about it.
Fantastic report, Kathy. That is so encouraging. Sounds to me like John’s going to make it back to the world after all.
Thank you!
Sounds like he making some progress, and it really sounds like he’s in there fighting to get out.
As was written to me not such a short time ago... I share with you....
BTTT for continued prayers for John and family....
Our Lord has now made you into a strong team....
Believe that He has a plan for you—a future and a hope—not for evil but for good(Jeremiah 29:11).
He will restore the years that the locusts have eaten(Joel 2:25-27)
A cord of three strands is not easily broken(Ecclesiastes 4:12).
Continue to speak words of love and encouragement to John,our Lord is the Great Physician, the God of healing.
Our prayers are with you all.
Thinking about you. Hope you are feeling better.
My heartfelt prayers are with you, Arrowhead.
Kathy, any updates on John?
We are still praying for him and his family.
Thank you for the continued prayers. I’m sure the family really appreciates them.
He’s been on my mind a lot lately as well.
I don’t like asking, but I think I will anyway this week. I’ll write to his daughter for an update.
I’ll post whatever I find out.
An Easter card might be nice as well.
Sent a card today—that is what prompted me to ask. He was on my mind yesterday, and then checked and saw there wasn’t any recent updates.
Thanks for checking for us all.
FRiends, Arrowhead1952 could use a card to show we have not forgotten him.
Ask Kathy in Alaska by private Freepmail to get Arrowhead’s address.
At present, the situation is as follows. Physically and mentally, Dad has made some small steps in his recovery, but all improvements have been very slow baby-steps. He is still at Heartland Health Care Center in Austin and is still receiving therapy numerous times per week. He is not off of his feeding tube yet as he cannot swallow without the risk of coughing into his lungs, but that process has slowly improved over time and his "swallows" are getting quicker... which is good! He does not talk much in speech therapy, but will occasionally say "yes" or "no" when asked a question. A few times now he has said a full sentence out of the blue to the therapists, and last time I visited (about 2 weeks ago) he helped me sing Happy Birthday to his speech therapist. (It was the speech therapist's actual birthday, and she told him that, so it seemed to help!) This past Sunday when my mom took him to church, she told me he was starting to quietly sing along with one of the hymns he knew. So that was nice to see, and hear!
Physically, he seems to be very weak when standing or trying to walk. (He has actually fallen out of bed twice trying to get up on his own, but luckily it did not seem that he was hurt more than just a couple of bruises and a bit of a swollen lip.) In my personal opinion, the 5 months of being in bed or a wheelchair for the majority of the day has taken quite a toll on his muscle mass in his legs. When the physical therapists try to get him up to walk a little, he is incredibly shaky and it takes the work of 2-3 therapists to help him move 15 feet or so. However, he does seem to do well with other physical therapy activities that do not involve walking, like tossing a ball back and forth or kicking a ball on the ground (while sitting in his wheelchair.) When we go to see him we notice that he enjoys fidgeting with his tools that we brought him (wrench, nuts and bolts, etc.), and his cousin brings up a carved wooden spoon when he visits, which Dad is helping him sand down and blow the sawdust off of as it gets smoother and smoother. All of these are great examples of what I would call his "muscle memory" coming back - those things that Dad enjoyed come back to him like the proverbial "riding a bike." Dealing with tools, sanding, etc. were things that he loved, and he still loves to shuffle the dominoes when we all play. On my most recent visit, my mom, my dad's sister, Dad, and I all sat down to try and play a few games of dominoes. His sister always helps Dad choose which one to play from his stack, but he did play one correct domino towards the end of the game without her help! It was great to see and we were all very excited for him. (He won the game too! Or at least that's what we told him. ;) )
My mom is working with the insurance company to figure out what the next steps are, what types of therapy - if any - will be covered, how long Dad is able to stay at his current health care center, where Dad will be able to go in the future, etc. A few weeks ago we were given two days notice (TWO DAYS!) by the insurance company to basically get him out and find a new care center without therapy because the claim for him to stay longer and continue to receive therapy had been denied; in their opinion, he simply was not making enough progress to qualify for any longer of a stay. Luckily, after a discussion with the therapists and hours upon hours on the phone with his insurance company, she had Dad's stay in skilled nursing at Heartland extended by two more weeks. At that point, we fear, we will likely be a the end of the line and Dad will have to be moved from skilled nursing into custodial care. We are not sure of this yet, because like I said, it changes day-to-day... He may stay at Heartland and just move rooms, but we are just not sure yet as it is difficult to get accurate and correct information, both from the insurance company and from the many healthcare homes we are speaking with.
I will continue to send some updates, but they will most likely be more few-and-far between (like this one was). Thank you and all of his FReeper friends for the continued prayers and the cards - my mom helps him read through them every time she goes to visit and he loves them! We both breathe a little easier knowing that so many people are rooting for him.
Thanks, All, for the continued prayers and cards for Arrowhead and his family.
Continuing in Prayer for Arrowhead and his family.
My heart breaks for you, your mom and Arrowhead. Prays To God for you all.
Thank you for the update. Arrowhead remains in my prayers.
Saying prayers to God for you all.
Another fellow Texan fellow Texan prayer ping!
Thanks for posting this update on Arrowhead. I continue to pray for his complete recovery. My thoughts and prayers also go to Lisa in her new job.
Prayers on the way.
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