The Road to Recovery - week 4

We shall draw from the heart of suffering itself the means of inspiration and survival.  (Winston Churchill)

Alysha update August 20/12
Duck Face
      Abigail, Zoe and I headed to Toronto to see Alysha today. Zoe visited with Aunty Lisa and Rich and Abigail and I headed in to see Alysha.  Alysha was incredibly relaxed and peaceful.  She opened her eyes a bit but looked tired and didn't seem to focus on much initially.  Abigail yippy-yapped about teenager things, and it seemed like Alysha wasn't really listening to any of it.  Finally Abigail got talking about her phone and all the funny pictures of her and Alysha making "Duck Face." (Duck face is a pejorative term for a facial expression made by pressing one's lips together into the shape of a ducks bill.)  Almost instantly after hearing the word duck-face...Alysha made the two-lipped pout herself and held it there to be sure we saw her.  Abby and I fussed over the facial expression and she gave us a smile.  A lips-together, small, contented smile that was such a familiar feature on Alysha's face prior to this medical nightmare.  Alysha's well timed performance of duck-face and then her familiar smile was proof to us that within that broken body is our Alysha who is working so hard to heal herself from the inside out.

Duck Face

       Alysha update August 19/12
The ventilator is packed up and taken away.
      Alysha has been breathing on her own since 6:30 am yesterday (Sat Aug 18th).  The staff are confident enough that Alysha will continue to breath on her own that they have packed up the ventilator and moved it out of Alysha's cubicle in the ICU.
      Alysha has been a bit restless today.  She has been working at removing some of the tubes and lines attached to her with some success.  There was minimal time for Alysha to celebrate her triumphs before the staff replaced/ re-attached the supports that Alysha worked so hard to detach.
      Ron, Carolyn, Lisa, Rich and Aashish visited Alysha today.


Alysha update August 18/12
A well earned day of rest
      Alysha has been breathing on her own since 6:30 am.  She hasn't received any medications today.  Throughout the day she remained relaxed and her heart rate and blood pressure were stable. Alysha earned this day of rest.  She slept on and off and kept her eyes closed most of the day.  She opened them periodically to look directly at her visitors as if to check that they were still there and then she closed them and kept resting.
      Visitors today included Ron, Lisa, Rich, Jason, Chrissy and Aashish.

Alysha update August 17/12
15 consecutive hours off the ventilator
     Alysha has been working on strengthening her breathing muscles.  All her hard work is paying off. She spent 15 hours off the ventilation machine. It is amazing how quickly her breathing endurance has improved. Alysha also had dialysis today.  They considered not doing dialysis today and seeing if her kidneys would do their job of filtering but since dialysis doesn't happen on the weekend it would have been 3 or more days between treatments, so the decision was made to have dialysis today.
     Today Alysha got feisty with a nurse who was trying to suction her airway. Apparently Alysha opened her eyes wide, glared at the nurse and reached her arm out to grab the woman.  After seeing how angry Alysha's face looked, the nurse said, "Oh, she does have an expressive face."
      I have another story that further supports my theory of Alysha purposely withholding her smiles from her mom.  After another day of no smiles for her mother, Lisa finally said, "OK Alysha that's enough, smile for Mom, I have watched you smile for everyone else, I want you to smile for me." Alysha's previously expressionless face broke into a wide smile.  Lisa said it looked like Alysha would have laughed out loud if she could.
     Visitors today included Yvette, Lisa, Rich and Justin.


Alysha update August 16/12
8 consecutive hours off the ventilator
     Today Alysha spent more time sitting in a chair and Lisa finally made it through all of her hair tangles. Alysha was off the mechanical ventilator for 8 consecutive hours today.  The staff thought she could have lasted even longer but they didn't want to tire her out. 
     All day Alysha was withholding her smiles from her mother as if on purpose.  One piece of evidence that supports this withholding theory involves Auntie Chrissy. After countless unmet requests for Alysha to smile for her mother,  Alysha greeted her Auntie Chrissy with a huge smile - beaming from ear to ear. 
     The family is a bit frustrated by the fact that the staff continue to give Alysha small doses of a drug - Dilaudid when they think she is in pain.  Although this drug is commonly used in patients such as Alysha - it seems to cause Alysha to become more agitated.  This drug was used again today and once again Alysha appeared more restless throughout the late afternoon. 
     Visitors today included Lisa, Rich, Justin, Aashish, Chrissy & Jason.

Alysha update August 15/12
Alysha smiles for her dad.
     The day started with Alysha giving her dad (Ron) a huge smile.      
     Today Lisa, Rich, Ron and I (Marcia) met with an ICU doctor who was involved with the resuscitations and care for Alysha since the first day of her cardiac arrests.  We handed him a full page of questions we have been generating over the past 3 weeks.  He addressed all of our questions, cleared up some misunderstandings, gave us a lot of information and told us he would get back to us regarding some of the questions he didn't have the answers to. He was clear and concise when talking about the medical procedures and tests and medications Alysha has encountered over the past 3 weeks.  He spoke in sweeping generalisations with regards to the prognosis. He said, "Do I think Alysha will ever be the girl she used to be?....No, Do we know now what her potential will be?....No, Do we know when she will reach her full potential?....No." 
     Today, Alysha's eyes were wide open. She smiled and cried and turned her eyes and head to look at visitors on request. She was very relaxed until she saw or heard the dialysis machine come to her bedside.  Then our previously subdued Alysha began reaching and twisting and kicking with her legs in such a way as it looked like she was trying to escape off the side of the bed away from the dialysis machine. Later, when the dialysis machine was doing it's job Alysha looked agitated and uncomfortable.  We suspect she isn't a fan of dialysis. She also sat in a chair today and had 4 straight hours off the ventilator. The four consecutive hours exhausted her and she dozed on and off through the afternoon.
     Visitors today included Ron, Lisa, Rich, Marcia, Michelle, Jeanne, Jason and Aashish.  Lisa went into work today to offer some much needed help in her department. Justin has been working with uncle John for the past few days. He shares his mom's strong work ethic. Ron has reluctantly returned to work this week, with plans to see his daughter as often as possible. Abby sent down some lasagna and soup that she made for the family. Brycen, Aarren, Jayden, Noah, Jacob and Zoe all sent their love.

King Cousins

    

Alysha update August 14/12
Off the ventilator for 1/4 of the day. 
     Alysha was sitting up in a chair today again.  Lisa worked on her hair for the 3rd straight day and made some more progress with the tangles at the back of her head.  Alysha was breathing on her own for 6 hours.  She was off the ventilator twice for 3 hours at a time. Alysha looks very content again today.  They have given her some medication to relax her.  They have removed the restraints on Alysha's arms.  The restraints have been used for the past 5 - 6 days when Alysha was flailing her arms about and was at risk of ripping out her tubes and lines.  Alysha was tracking objects and people with her eyes today.
     Visitors today were Lisa, Rich and Aashish. 

Kieran, Rich, Alysha, Lisa & Justin