FRIDAY AFTERNOON/EVENING
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| Joshua B. buys jersey for Sam |
Sam wanted rice and pudding for a late lunch. Ate about three bites of rice and all of his pudding. Can feed himself. We are happy he's eating.
He is having trouble hearing. He complains about his right ear but his left side has the fracture. His skull was fractured and it probably will affect his hearing.
All IV fluids have been removed. He's only has oxygen and his heart monitor.
All of the Portland stations did follow-up stories and Arkansas Online called today. Thank you to the 49ers fan club here (Niner Empire) in Portland and Joshua B. who bought Sam an Aaron Rodgers jersey on behalf of his fan club. The Green Bay Packers released a statement and have shipped a gift to Sam. The GoFundMe account is over $35,000. My hotel, my HOTEL (Crowne Plaza Convention Center) sent Sam flowers. The generosity is overwhelming. We are beyond grateful. No words.
Sam had sessions with physical therapy (took a lap with his walker and helmet), occupational therapy (brushed his teeth), and speech pathology (his enemies). For some reason, he really dislikes speech therapy. He gets frustrated and doesn't want to answer the questions. He refused to write a sentence. Today was hard. He couldn't answer some of the questions (for example, Is March before June?); struggled with the math; but he owned the "Name as many animals as you can in 1 minute" category. She asked him to name animals, he repeated the question to her then didn't say anything for 30 seconds. She reminded him what they were doing, naming animals, and started the clock again. He then began naming every freakin' BIRD on the planet. Ostrich, parrot, falcon, hawk, penguin, parakeet, seagull, and on and on. He named birds I've never heard of. I asked the therapist what that meant, and she said it was a great strategy. He listened, gathered his thoughts, formed a strategy and answered the question.
Today, the police released pictures of persons of interest in my son's case. If you know these men, please call the Portland Police Department.
Here are some of the news stories. Some are accurate, many of them are not.
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| Bridget's mom held a fundraiser for Sam |
Bridget's mom, Maggie, coordinated a fundraiser for Sam. Another blessing.
SATURDAY MORNING
I woke up angry. Angry at the situation but mostly angry at those who put us in it. It's just infuriating and heartbreaking and defeating. It physically hurts. Molly and I spent an hour on the phone last night just crying together. It's so painful.
Sam was angry too when I arrived this morning. Angry cause he's tired, because he doesn't understand why he's here, because he's thirsty, because his lungs hurt, and because he can't hear. His brain swelling is messing with his hearing. It's frustrating.
SALT (sodium)! It's Sam's greatest nemesis right now. He can't get enough. We are over-salting his food, he's taking salt tabs and medicine to keep salt in. When someone has a brain injury, what happens is called "cerebral salt wasting." His brain is telling his body to get rid of salt, and it does. So they have to keep pumping him full of salt.
For breakfast he ate VERY salty eggs and bacon. The most he has eaten all week. They are finally given him pain meds plus Claritin plus salt sooo .... he had pills for dessert. For lunch, he had a Boost and pudding.
Because of the fluid restriction (which keeps getting more restrictive), now he can only drink milk and Boost. He will never want those two things ever again after this is all over. Bridget and I don't want to drink anything in front of him. It just doesn't seem fair, so we are just going to be thirsty with him.
He asked about his Grandpa and Grandma Wallace, his Grandma and Grandpa Hinds, his dad Daniel Whitehorn, his sister Molly and my boyfriend Dan. He remembered that Dan, his Dad and his sister are coming to visit (we are taking shifts) and wanted to know when. He wanted to know when his grandparents were coming. I know that will break their hearts to hear that, but he's expressing his love.
He's having respiratory therapy every 6 hours. It helps a little. Because of the cough, ordered another chest X-ray. They took him off the oxygen for a brief period of time to see how he does ... But back on oxygen.
He has been diagnosed as a Level V on the Rancho Neurological Scale. This is good. He is moving up the scale appropriately. Here is some more information.
Sam has had a good day overall. He's been asking questions, resting, and eating. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers.
The Abbey Bar, where Sam works, is having a fundraiser for him next Wednesday.
The GoFundMe account now has over $43,000. People are so generous. No words.
Keep up your strength. You're doing amazing! Few situations are as difficult and you're there right by his side and over here keeping him covered.
ReplyDeleteIt's so good to learn that he is making progress. Such a very slow healing from these things. It shows how all of those little things that you post about are SO very important for Sam.
Hoping that you continue to have the support that you need here in Portland to take some of the burden from you so that your focus can remain on Sam.
Thank you so very much.
DeleteKeep your head up, all of us Packer fans from Wisconsin are praying for Sam! You are an angel!
ReplyDeleteSam and family,
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry to hear about this. I was born and raised in Green Bay(now in the NW) and the outpouring of love and support your family is receiving warms my heart. I can only hope that the support is taken some of the weight off. I saw that Sam and Bridget have a dog. Have you asked the staff if he can visit? Do you think Sam would be interested in visits from therapy dogs if we could arrange it? I'm a nurse and know dogs can usually go into most units, but not sure about the ICU.
Sending love and healing!