Post 1. Attention Prayer Warriors!
Corey was taken back to prep and holding. We expect that her surgery will start promptly at 11:30. It will be a 2 hour surgery, she will go to recovery and then the ICU. Caitlin is calling today “Humpty Dumpty Surgery”, they’re putting Corey back together. Humor is a great healer!
I’ve shared with you all that each day I look for a message to carry with me. On my drive to the hospital this morning, I played a CD of Christian music that a good friend sent to Corey and I.
The first two songs were my message for today. The first song’s refrain was “You’re in good hands”…the second song was a prayer to God, (I’m paraphrasing) ‘when I am weak and can not speak I will call on you. Be with me. Be my strength, my healer, my best friend’.
His response, “I AM” … Now we wait, but not alone! xoxo
Post 2. Corey is out of surgery. Everything went well. They closed the VP Shunt and want to watch her. She will have her staples removed in two weeks and the neurosurgeon wants to see her in a month for follow up. He is pleased and wants us to start working with her to follow commands. “Wiggle your toes, Stick out your tongue” You know she’s going to stick out her tongue first as if to say, “See, I told you so”!
Another wonderful update! The orthopedic surgeon called. The xrays came back for the femur, pelvis and clavicle. The HO is stable. All three fractures have healed. He is very comfortable clearing her for full weight baring Therapy with PT/OT. She’s ready to go!! xoxo
Post 3. It’s late but I couldn’t wait until tomorrow to post the most exciting update of the day. We were waiting in the Surgical waiting room when our nurse came to say she saw Corey leaving recovery to go to the ICU and her eyes were open! It appeared she wanted to see where they were taking her!
The entrance to her room is on her right side. As we entered, we greeted her with the usual “Hi Honey”. She opened her eyes, turned her head towards the right and looked directly at us. JohnPaul and Caitlin went towards the left side of her bed. They each called to her with a similar greeting. She moved her eyes and head 180 degrees from the right to the left to look at them. We were completely amazed and elated!
For the next hour, her day nurse Trista was in her room with us. Corey would appear to be alert but then doze off. We were sharing “Corey Stories” with Trista. Each time the kids laughed, Corey opened her eyes. She was fixated on both of them. The kids would try some command prompts. Each asked her to open her eyes and she did. We then deliberately tried several tracking exercises. Once again, Corey didn’t miss a trick. She followed us from one side of the bed to the other. At one point, the nurse was standing to her right. I was standing at the foot of her bed. Trista asked her to “find Mom”. I called her name and told her I was at her feet. She turned away from Trista and looked straight ahead to find me!
All that work was exhausting and she slept from 6:30 – 8:30. Tonight’s night nurse had never been assigned to Corey before. As she began the cycle of medications and temperature check, Corey opened both eyes. She wanted to see who this new person was? She watched her move about the room. The nurse thought this was Corey’s baseline (normal behavior)…I assured her it was not and it was amazing to watch this. The nurses assess Corey’s neurological status every few hours with voice prompts and commands. The nurse suggested I call to Corey and direct the commands. Corey was on a roll. Once again she turned her head to follow my voice and find me. She answered questions with her closed eye (long blink) for YES and most exciting, followed the flashlight for tracking. I’d also like to add that she’s not on any pain medication. They monitor her heart rate and blood pressure to assess her pain, both are perfectly normal.
My prayer tonight has so much gratitude for each motion of Corey’s head, eyes and neck. I’m grateful for the nursing staff that cares for us as much as they care for Corey. I’m thankful for the expertise of the Doctors. I also pray that the nurses and doctors know that what they do each day, routinely for them, is an amazing gift for us! We are blessed to have them in our lives.
Get some rest Corey. When you were a baby, you wouldn’t lay down to sleep. You were too busy looking out the door to see what was happening in the hall or up all night playing with your toys and reading books (usually tormenting Caitlin, too). Plenty of time for that little one. Tonight you rest, tomorrow we can play all day and you’ll be back tormenting your sister and brother in no time. We love you, happy dreams xoxo