Dear Friends and Family,
A few nights ago very late Allie asked me if she could see herself in a mirror. This was an event I knew was coming but lived in fear of. For those of you that have not seen Allie or someone else in a halo, I will try and describe it to you. There is a round metal "halo" that goes around her head about an inch out. It is secured to her head by four pieces of hardware that are screwed into her skull. Two are in her forehead and two above her ears. There are four long round bars that hold the "halo" and are attached to a vest that goes around the tops of her shoulders and ends below her ribs. Allie looked into the mirror and asked if those screws were actually in her head. We told her they were. Her only response was "Oh my God". Then she asked to see her trach with and without the tube in it. Then she informed me that the circles under her eyes weren't as bad as I had been telling her they were (thought it might get her to sleep more). She gave us kind of a "oh well" expression and that was the end of it. I continue to be in awe of her ability to cope.
Allie's day yesterday was a series of frightening experiences. It would take too long to go into them all but she lost the air from her vent three times. Beyond scary!! As good as it is here, I could go on and on about the mistakes made, personnel issues, etc. but I won't.
Allie continues to be in a lot of pain. Some from her injured neck and a lot from what they refer to as nerve pain which manifests in her limbs and back in spite of the fact she can't move or feel those areas of her body.
It is impossible for her to get comfortable. She rarely sleeps more than a couple hours at a time.
On the positive side she swallowed a couple of ice chips today and she is scheduled to go outside for the first time today (was suppose to go yesterday but portable vent wasn't charged).
Thank you all for your prayers, love, concern, help, visits, etc.
Please continue to pray for Allie and Jerry's recovery.
Allie has asked me to share my faith with her everyday that she will get better. I believe she will.
Love,
Deborah
Allie
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Monday, May 4, 2009
Dear Family & Friends
On April 7 Allie was in a car accident that changed our lives forever. It was a rainy day and an unfortunate accident in which no one was to blame. Allie was airlifted to Santa Clara Valley Medical. When we arrived (her Dad, brother Adam, Joey and I) shortly after she did, we were taken into a private room and given devastating news. Allie was unconscious. She had suffered a broken neck and was hemmoraging from a torn artery in her neck (one of the two brain stem arteries). They were not optimistic about her survival. We refused to believe it. Losing Allie was not an option! When we saw her for the first time she had been intubated, her face and neck were swollen from the internal bleeding. When we walked in and I said her name, she opened her eyes and looked at me.
Allie (and her doctor's) first challenge was the surgery to stop the bleeding in her neck. The doctor that did the procedure had only done one similar to this before and the damage to the artery was not nearly as bad as Allie's. The surgery was over 3 hours. Family and friends began praying. The artery was irreparable but he was able to bypass it by inserting tiny coils one by one to stop the bleeding. Staff here called the success of the surgery nothing less than heroic. The next surgery was to try and stabalize the broken bones in her neck. It turned out that she had broken the first three -- C1, C2 & C3. We were informed that it was the worst break that her surgeon had ever seen. Another agonizing 3-1/2 hours. Allie did better than expected. She has a halo vest to give her the best chance of mending.
Most of you know about the ups and downs Allie has had since she arrived here. Tomorrow will mark 4 weeks. She started in TICU was moved to RTC and back to SICU due to lung complications. Doctor's remained very guarded but knowing how many were praying for Allie we knew she would improve and surprise all. She is back in RTC (rehab trauma center). Her lungs are doing great. Today she was taken off antibiotics. She has physical therapy everyday, (just stretches of her legs and arms at this point), spends over an hour sitting up in a wheelchair and is getting therapy that will allow her to speak and swallow.
Allie remains on a ventilator. She cannot feel or move from her chin down. She is in a lot of pain and it seems impossible to make her comfortable. She communicates with blinks, and most of us have become pretty good at reading lips. She has her angry and sad times. But still finds it in herself to give smiles and say thank you. She does her swallow exercises with great determination. She asks her doctors a lot of questions and makes decisions about her care. She is very good at directing those around her and letting people know what she needs.
I will never be able to express my gratitude to our family and friends for the prayers and strength that have been directed to our Allie. I have no doubt it is what has made her recovery so amazing thus far.
Allie is so blessed to have such a wonderful group of friends. Thank you for your visits, prayers, pictures, dvds, cards, text messages, etc.
Thank you to all our friends who are praying, feeding us, taking care of our pets, etc.
Thank you to my sisters and brother who have showed up faithfully to give me an opportunity to sleep, eat or bathe.
Thank you to Katie MacCallister for creating this blog for us.
Ron and I are overwhelmed with the support and forever grateful!!!
Please continue to pray for Allie and Jerry. We believe that they will be in that small percentage that overcome their current disabilities. Right now we are praying that Allie will be able to breathe on her own.
Thank you, Thank you, Thank you.
Love, Peace & Happiness,
Deborah
Allie (and her doctor's) first challenge was the surgery to stop the bleeding in her neck. The doctor that did the procedure had only done one similar to this before and the damage to the artery was not nearly as bad as Allie's. The surgery was over 3 hours. Family and friends began praying. The artery was irreparable but he was able to bypass it by inserting tiny coils one by one to stop the bleeding. Staff here called the success of the surgery nothing less than heroic. The next surgery was to try and stabalize the broken bones in her neck. It turned out that she had broken the first three -- C1, C2 & C3. We were informed that it was the worst break that her surgeon had ever seen. Another agonizing 3-1/2 hours. Allie did better than expected. She has a halo vest to give her the best chance of mending.
Most of you know about the ups and downs Allie has had since she arrived here. Tomorrow will mark 4 weeks. She started in TICU was moved to RTC and back to SICU due to lung complications. Doctor's remained very guarded but knowing how many were praying for Allie we knew she would improve and surprise all. She is back in RTC (rehab trauma center). Her lungs are doing great. Today she was taken off antibiotics. She has physical therapy everyday, (just stretches of her legs and arms at this point), spends over an hour sitting up in a wheelchair and is getting therapy that will allow her to speak and swallow.
Allie remains on a ventilator. She cannot feel or move from her chin down. She is in a lot of pain and it seems impossible to make her comfortable. She communicates with blinks, and most of us have become pretty good at reading lips. She has her angry and sad times. But still finds it in herself to give smiles and say thank you. She does her swallow exercises with great determination. She asks her doctors a lot of questions and makes decisions about her care. She is very good at directing those around her and letting people know what she needs.
I will never be able to express my gratitude to our family and friends for the prayers and strength that have been directed to our Allie. I have no doubt it is what has made her recovery so amazing thus far.
Allie is so blessed to have such a wonderful group of friends. Thank you for your visits, prayers, pictures, dvds, cards, text messages, etc.
Thank you to all our friends who are praying, feeding us, taking care of our pets, etc.
Thank you to my sisters and brother who have showed up faithfully to give me an opportunity to sleep, eat or bathe.
Thank you to Katie MacCallister for creating this blog for us.
Ron and I are overwhelmed with the support and forever grateful!!!
Please continue to pray for Allie and Jerry. We believe that they will be in that small percentage that overcome their current disabilities. Right now we are praying that Allie will be able to breathe on her own.
Thank you, Thank you, Thank you.
Love, Peace & Happiness,
Deborah
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