Challenging surgery

Today we met with the surgeon that will perform surgery on Sherry's hernia. It will need to be done sooner rather than later. He would actually prefer to wait and let her recovery continue. However, she has too much of her intestines displaced to wait very long. The doctor thinks this will be a "challenging operation from a technical standpoint." There are some pretty serious risk factors, more than normal for this type of surgery. The primary concern at this point is anti-biotics. Sherry will need them as she heals from the surgery. We don't know what anti-biotic caused the very severe reaction that sent Sherry to the Burn Center in early August of 2005, but obviously it has to be avoided at all costs. So, Dr. Ruff is getting an Infectious disease specialist involved in the case before proceeding. We should know by Tuesday what they have decided. It goes without saying that this did not turn out to be the "cake walk" that we had all hoped for. It will not be a simple procedure. It will be open surgery and will require at least an overnight stay in hospital, if not more. We are in for a few tense weeks I'm afraid. Please continue to lend Sherry your support and encouragement. She is taking it all in stride of course, she just wants to be "fixed."

Sean and the kids came over for their usual Friday visit. It gave Sherry a chance to show off all of the new and exciting things she is doing these days. She demonstrated her ability to go through a deck of cards and correctly name all the suits and numbers, she threaded the buttons with the shoe lace, she did the puzzle she has been practicing and more. Then Sean got her to play a game of Go Fish! It took her only a few moments to catch on to the game again and she proceeded to "kick his tush." This was the first time she had played a game involving her vision and memory. We were all very, very excited for her. It was a great start and should only get better with time.

enough for now,

I love my wife.....tomorrow we move forward,

Dean

Good days #2

Here is Jody's written journal entry of today. Again, my comments are below it in itallics.

9/28
4:30-5:00

Sherry continues to amaze me. Her work ethic is so great always wanting to do more. She is doing all the vision exercises with ease and confidence. She is also striving to read more, coming up with her own ideas and thoughts. I love it when she says "lets try this" or "I remember doing it this way." Even when there are lots of emotions and distractions around the house, she wants to get better so bad that she is able to push that back and do her work (with a few deep breaths!) I enjoy the big smile she has and big heart.

I talked with Don, Sherry's physical therapist today and he told me that we all should feel very encouraged about Sherry's progress. He agreed with me that this period of time seems to be the most accelerated recovery we have seen. He also feels things have really taken off since the prisms, glasses and vision therapy began. We are cutting back on physical and occupational therapy to concentrate more on speech and vision. These are exciting times.

enough for now,

I love my wife....tomorrow we move forward


Dean

Good days

These last several days and really, past several weeks, have been good ones for Sherry. She really seems to be progressing at a faster pace and her attitude reflects it. Jody is very good about keeping a written journal about Sherry. I am going to share some of that with you all tonight. I will begin with today's entry and go backwards from there. My comments will be in itallics.

9/27
2-2:15 p.m.

We practiced with the thread and buttons using the patch and she did very well. Sherry had a good attitude and was very excited about working. She helped fold the towels. Her eyes are getting very good at tracking and I am hoping we will increase the challenge of the activities next week. Her confidence is good.

3:30-3:45 p.m.

Sherry was looking at a cookbook and reading some of the bold words even pages that didn't have pictures. She also helped me with the dishes. Thanks Sherry.

Sherry is now able to thread a large button with a shoe lace, something she would not have been able to do just a few short weeks ago. Jody told me that Sherry was very helpful and did a great job drying the dishes today. Getting back into the everyday household routines is so important to her. Perhaps the most exciting news of the day was the cookbook. She read the cookbook for well over two solid hours today. She had a huge smile on her face when I came home, she told us she could see and READ so much more than before. She proved it too, reading several words and even parts of sentences. Why is this happening? I think it is a combination of many things. I think her brain is just rewiring itself at a faster pace at this moment in time. I think the vision therapy and working with the prisms has had a huge effect. And of course all of her hard work with her speech, physical and occupational therapists. She has a great team behind her and she wants everything back so badly, we can't help but be hopeful.

9/26
4:15-4:45

Sherry is following objects better and able to see faster moving objects. I also think she can see to the side better. She also notices when she moves her head more (during the vision therapy work.) She knows this is working for her.

9/25
5-5:15 p.m. Brittney to help.

Sherry was in a better mood after her mom called. She was "running amuck" and cleaning near the phone. She is getting much better at following targets.

9/25
1-1:15 p.m.

She was in a good mood, had no problem doing the exercises. Did well with the puzzle. She also said that around the house the arrows we put up (I put post-it note colored arrows on all the light switches, door nobs, nobs to her dresser, fridge door handle etc so she might be able to see them better.) have made a big difference for her. When we use the prisms she got all four trys correct (up, down, left, right) She did not need any direction and had no problem finding my hands. Great job!

9/22
5-5:15 p.m.

Brittney helped Sherry with vision therapy. She did very well (both of them) She was able to see Brittney's tiny hand. She is getting much better at following targets. She feels for the puzzle holes, but going forward.

I hope that this gives you all some sense of how well Sherry is doing. I got a very good report from Kirsten, her speech therapist. She is doing very well during those sessions as well, sometimes surprising Kirsten. Kirsten also sees a huge difference since Sherry began using the prisms.

I remember when Sherry was in Eugene Rehab about this time last year. she didn't know what simple household items like coffee cups, hairbrush, tooth brush were and she could really only tell the difference between light and dark. How hard she has worked, how far she has come. We are not done yet, but watch out, she is charging forward.

enough for now,

I love my wife....tomorrow we move forward

Dean

Confirmation

Yesterday, Sherry's CT scan confirmed that she does have a hernia. More specifically, a
ventral hernia. We will meet with a surgeon on the 29th. to determine what to do next. In all probability she will undergo a surgical procedure. After doing some internet research last night, I am comfortable with the possibility that this can be done laproscopically and she can avoid invasive open surgery. We won't find out, of course, until we talk with the surgeon. We will keep you all posted. Sherry is more upset about having to wait than she is about the actual operation. She just wants the "watermelon" gone. I think she is a little more apprehensive than she lets on, but overall, she has a great attitude about it all. It's just another step in "moving forward" and "getting her Sherry back." I am more convinced than ever that she can do it to. When she first came home in February, I was hopeful that she could recover. But I told myself that this could be it, this may be how my wife is forever. I was okay with that. I am still okay with it. If her recovery were to stop tomorrow, it's okay and we will make the best out of the situation. I love her no matter what and will stay by her side. But after watching her slow, constant progress, her work ethic and can-do attitude, I now expect her to get her old self, or very close to it, back. She remains my "miracle in progress."

On Sunday we had a small family gathering to celebrate (belatedly) Chelsea and Brittney's birthday. Chelsea turned 13 in early August and Britt turned 11 at the beginning of this month. We had a very long, difficult summer with many behaviour issues that made things difficult for Sherry (and Jody and I as well.) With school revving up again, we hope things will settle down, although as we all know, with kids it never really settles down. Despite all the trials and tribulations of raising our girls, I am so glad that they are part of our life. I can't imagine life without them. This last year has affected them in ways that we don't even realize, I'm sure of that. We are all doing our best to make sense of what happened and to move on as best we can. With all that the girls have already gone through before coming to our family, it has got to be so hard for them. They almost lost another mother. I am not always good about remembering that. Above is a picture from the party.

enough for now,

I love my wife....we won't stop moving forward until the job is done

Dean

Lots of news....

Much has happened since my last post several days ago. Sherry contiues to do very well, always "moving forward." She is doing much more these days, always getting up at home and "running amuck." She helps clean the dishes, she is making great progress with all her self-help skills. One example, when she first returned home in February I would put a hairbrush in her hand as she sat on the edge of the bed after a shower. She would try to brush her hair, most times using the wrong side of the brush. She would try for a few seconds until she became frustrated and then give the brush back to me. Now when she gets out of the shower, she finds the brush on the counter by herself, looks intently into the mirror and does a good job brushing her hair, staying at it until it is to her liking. I can't tell you the simple joy I get out of standing back and watching her as she brushes her hair this way and that way until it is just so. She is also making progress in dressing herself, putting on her own shirt or nightgown several times now. She seems to have so much more confidence now, her attitude is still amazing. She knows she has more work to do, but is looking forward to doing it and "getting her Sherry back."

Today she began actual vision therapy. She and Jody made the appt. as I had to work. It all seemed to go well, but it's just the start. Vision therapy will last at least 6 months and require a lot of work for Sherry at home. We all feel that this is a very crucial period of time for Sherry. But, we also feel that it is coming at just the right time. She is making so much progress in other areas, her attitude is so good, her strength and stamina are improving so much. We think she is ready to "kick it up another notch," to quote one of her favorite TV personalities (Emeril from the FoodNetwork.) We will of course keep you updated on the progress of vision therapy throughout the coming weeks and months.

On this coming Monday Sherry will go in for a CT scan of her abdoman. Those of you who have seen Sherry since her return home will have noticed a large "protrusion" from her abdoman. It always looked abnormal to us but we were told, at first, that it was just "fat." Well, now it seems as if it may be a hernia. The CT scan will confirm or eliminate this diagnosis. If confirmed, Sherry will probably need an operation to take care of it. She faces this possibility with the same attitude she brings to every other part of her situation. She sees it as just another step in moving forward. Besides she wants to get rid of the "watermelon" that she has had to carry around for so many months now. She is totally okay with possibly going back to the hospital for a short time. We should find out more next week and will of course let you all know.

Well, enough for one night although there is more to be told.

I love my wife......tomorrow we move forward,

Dean

bad, bad, husband

Tonight, I got into trouble. After dinner Sherry got up and walked into the kitchen. She looked into the sink and saw a few dirty dishes. She asked me why they had not been cleaned up yet. I of course stuttered and stammered some lame excuse that she didn't buy. "I'll do it then", she said (or words to that effect anyway) So, she proceeded to do the dishes. She is slowly but surely making her way back. The fact that she is beginning to do these routine daily activities has us feeling pretty good about where we are right now. I was so thrilled about her working in the kitchen that I ran and got the camera and took a few photos, one of which you see above.

short post tonight...enough for now,

I love my wife....tomorrow we move forward,

Dean

Surprises

I'm a little on the tired side again tonight. I guess sitting in the 93 degree heat at Autzen for several hours drained me. I know that Sherry will be disappointed if I do not post an entry tonight though. She had quite a day. So, with the replay of todays game on in the background...heres what happened.

In order for me to go to the game, Sean came over to spend the afternoon with his mother and watch the game on TV. I went to the game and hooked up with my buddy Steve and a friend of his (our usual "third" Rick was returning today from an Army Reserve stint in South Korea, but was unable to make it in time for the game.) We ran into my brother and his wife in the Mo Center before the game and had a nice visit with them. Then it was up to our seats in the heat for the game. The Ducks were up big midway through the fourth quarter, so I left early to beat the LTD rush (and the heat.)

When I finally got back home I found Sherry in the best mood I have seen her in a long time. She was so happy. The first thing I noticed was that she was wearing one of my old Duck t-shirts. Now, I don't recall Sherry donning Duck stuff....EVER! My first thought was, how on earth did she get the shirt on. I was pretty sure Sean had not helped her....lol. He told me that she had just gone into the bedroom and started looking through my dresser until she found an appropriate shirt. Brittney was in the room with her and gave her one verbal cue about the the shirt being upside down and then Sherry put it on herself.

At some point during the afternoon, she went into the kitchen and decided the stove top needed to be cleaned. So, she cleaned it. After I got home and Sean had left, I made dinner and when Sherry was finished I watched her pick up her bowl and cup, carry it into the kitchen, rinse them off in the sink and put them into the dishwasher! She needed a little help finding the faucet handle, but that was about it. It was not totally smooth, it took her some time and effort to find the appropriate places to put the dishes in the washer, but she did it. She is trying so hard. She wants to get "her Sherry" back. It was just a few months ago that we were all so happy that she was able to get out of her chair in the living room, walk to the bathroom, use the bathroom, and then make it back to her chair. Now she is beginning to do some other routine household things. She thinks she will do even better when she gets her glasses later this week. In two weeks she begins vision therapy, who knows what kind of progress she will make then. We are certainly very optimistic. If vision therapy helps her, what will that mean for all her other therapies? It is just an exciting time and we are so hopeful. Today was a good day. Sherry enjoyed her time with her son, enjoyed watching the game and the things she accomplished around the house.

enough for now,

I love my wife......tomorrow we move forward

Dean