36 replies to this topic

[Vonstar]

Thanks for your advice re the communication. Will get to work on the communication board tonight!

Think I was maybe a bit hasty in my post. After so many setbacks it was good to hear some good news for a change I leapt on it without thinking too much about how col would feel once he came to.
He's very distressed as youve probably guessed. My focus had been on getting him awake for baby arriving (so stupid!). They've had to up his sedationto help him get through the night.

Hoping this comm board will help him tomorrow.

[S&W Winger]

I was using paper and a pen with which to write, then a chalkboard, to heavy for me at the time, but others held it for me...it was all exhausting and frustrating, so be prepared for him to just tire and not even want to communicate at times...


Amazing post, Goldie...

[snowqueeneh]

I hung up pictues of our family all around Pauls room. I even had the "maintenance man" at the hospital come in and hang pictures from the ceiling where Paul would see. I put up all the drawings the kids made for him. I had the room totally decked out. I never did the communication thing too much because he was so doped up at the time and I didn't want him to think that "that was it" for him. I tried to imagine what he was going through and I figured it was sort of like that movie Groundhogs day. I thought that perhaps he was waking up for the first time - time and time again. So... instead of confusing him and breaking his heart over and over I decided that pictures would comfort him more. Because I could not be there every minute I knew that at least he would know we were there always... and the first thing he would see was us.

Soon after the trache was in he started to communicate but it took a long time. He doesn't remember too much of that. He was high as a kite lol. He told me all the strange things he saw. He even though that there was a tail around the room? He also thought he was flying planes with Westley Snipes lmao!!! There is more but I don't have enough time to tell it all. So... I am glad I didn't try to communicate too much. Like I said... pictures tell a thousand words. He will know you are not too far when he can wake up and see pictures of you right there at all times. That is just my suggestion but the other ideas are great as well.

[Vonstar]

Colin's kidney function has came back and he's breathing via a trache on the lowest setting so things are looking up.

I don't want to get ahead of myself but I ran my finger along the sole of his foot and it twitched. Tried this a couple of times and it twitched each time. He was sleeping so didn't want to wake him.

Is this a normal occurence for a c4/c5 complete injury or does this mean he may have an incomplete injury? He's not had his op yet so the drs still don't know the true extent of his spinal cord injury other than c5 vertebrae is shattered from scan. I'd assumed the cord had been severed at that level?

Pictures of the family around the room have worked a treat and still working on the comm board - I need to learn to be patient instead of guessing words - but we're (I'm)getting there. Getting the normal smirks and eye rolls to my comments too from colin.

[Tetracyclone]

Glad for you that Colin has improved.

You cannot know yet if the cord is severed or not. Wait until they operate.

As to the reflex in his foot, reflexes run in a loop from the sacrum, if I remember correctly, so they can function even in a complete. This is why completes can have terrible spasms.

[snowqueeneh]

I did the same thing. Paul had twitches as well... they turned out to be reflexes. I thought for sure something had to give. All I can tell you is that it is a waiting game. It's so stressful when you don't have all the answers. It took a long time for me to accept that he was "complete". But truthfully... either way, it's still a long hard road. I truly feel what you are saying. Just hang in there. Deep breaths, one day at a time. I always said to myself "false hope only delays reality". You will have to face whatever it is eventually so if hope gets you by at this time than I say there is no harm in that. I know I had a lot of hope, and still do somewhere deep inside. Although reality kicked my ass about a year ago lol. Still... we manage to work through it all. Even when things went from bad to worse we survived. Lots of tears. Lots of talking. Lots of depression. But there is a light at the end of it all if you hold your head up high and never stop searching for it.

[Smileyblue]

I'm really glad for all of your family for his improvement! It's great! Enjoy it! But at the same time, don't let your hopes run away with you.. ;-)

When I first started spasming, my family all thought that this was fantastic! I was regaining some movement or something and were over the moon! But it was just that, spasms.. Not a great thing! (I'm sure there are quite a few who'll vouch for that! Lol)

Just be patient (I know, VERY hard to do) and enjoy the here and now that you have with him.. The rest can come later..

;-)