Big Days

We have had a few big days around here.  Last Sunday night they pulled the ventilator out of Scott's room.  It was such a big moment that I had to take a picture of it.  We have heard from several respiratory therapists, nurses and the doctor that Scott got off the ventilator in record time.  We are very proud of him for that.  Once they were able to put the speaking valve in and leave the cuff deflated his anxiety was gone and he turned the corner very quickly on his breathing.

Bye bye ventilator.......I hope we will never ever have to see you again

Scott has been working hard during his physical and occupational therapies.  All the therapists like to work with him, because he is so determined and motivated.  His arms are moving pretty good now and the movement is a lot more controlled.  His hands are still weak and uncontrolled, but they are getting better every day.  I love that they have incorporated Hannah into his therapies and let her help (she had to toss a beach ball to him while he was laying on a table at a 30 degree angle).  One of our favorite nurses let Hannah help the other day too.  Hannah was beyond excited to have "jobs" at the hospital.  She helped her wash Scott's compression stockings and she scanned the medications.  She then made Hannah a name tag that said Nurse in training.  She is very proud of it and has worn it every day now. 

Hannah now says that she wants to be a nurse for Halloween and a nurse when she grows up:)

Scott saw himself in the mirror for the first time this week during therapy.  He couldn't believe how skinny he looks and how long his hair had gotten and thought he looked like a clown.  So, he wanted to shave his head.  He does look a lot more like himself again (minus 50lbs).  

Wednesday was another big day.  He was upgraded to a general diet after another assessment by the speech therapist.  No more ground up food!  He requested a Chipotle burrito for lunch yesterday and ate half of it.  It is good to see his appetite come back a little bit.  Nothing ever sounded good to him up to this point.  He still has the feeding tube on at night to get some extra calories.

Wednesday evening was big, because they finally felt it was safe to pull the trach!  It had been more than 3 days since he needed to be suctioned and his lungs sounded clear, so it was pulled.  It was actually quite uneventful. 

I just finished reading "Happily Ever After" by Holly Gerlach.  She is the girl in the YouTube video I posted before.  The book tells her story with Guillain Barre Syndrome.  I couldn't believe all of the similarities.  It felt like I was reading our own story.  If you have any free time and want another glimpse into our current life I would highly recommend reading her book (it is available on itunes for $3.99).