Day 5 of Recovery

Oh my what a busy day! We are out of ICU, moved out about 9pm last night onto the STC wing of the hospital. Was a long night, and not a great one, so it was also a tiring morning. His afternoon has been a whirlwind. Saw the PT again, and he moved back into a chair, which is a big deal! He was so determined to make it, and he did, on the first try. So far he's had speech and physical therapy and has done well with both. He's eating regular food now (if hospital food qualifies as regular food).

Saw the hematologist, who is going to do some blood work to see if they can find out what happened. As of now, they have no idea, and say "they've never seen anything like this before." Why am I not surprised that Jon is the one to do something no one else has!

His spirits are good, and I think making it into the chair and eating some food has made a difference. The kids finally get to see him today, after 4 days without him. So they are all excited about that. They did talk to him last night on the phone and that was great for everyone!

We will be moving soon to the Center for Rehabilitative Medicine in Waco soon. Possibly tonight, but I doubt it. I think it will be first thing tomorrow morning. He needs to start some intensive therapy asap, and I know it will make a world of difference.

I read some of the e-mails, all of the blog posts and some texts to him today and he is just completely overwhelmed! He just can't believe the outpouring of support he has received, and it truly means the world to him (and me obviously)! I just want everyone to know how much you mean to Jon. He has received so many wonderful messages about how loved he is, but please know that he values and loves each one of you too.

We have had lots of wonderful visitors today, and it was great for him to see everyone. As he moves to his new location, visiting hours are going to be more strict, since he will be in therapy much of the day. I will send out the hours that he will be open to visitors. And if I think he's too tired, I'm going to send out word that he needs to just get some rest. He never wants to say no to anyone, so I'll be the bad cop! I'm good at it, just ask my kids.

Those are the main details, so now I can bore you with my own. I titled this post day 5 of recovery, because we aren't looking at this as how many days post stroke, it's how many days of recovery we've already accomplished. Jon is good at keeping things positive, and that's how we need to face this continuing battle. One of the most important lessons I've learned is to that I have to re-evaluate the definition of success. Before Friday, success to me was our daughter making the select soccer team, our son making the honor society (I am a mom after all, so I do have to get some bragging in!) Now success comes in different forms - seeing his eyes open wide, hearing his strong voice, which I always took for granted, seeing him work so hard just to wiggle a toe. But those successes are just as thrilling as just as wonderful to watch!

For those who are praying for him to be strong, God is listening, and Jon is fighting and hanging in there like a champ. So keep those vibes coming, and I will post another update tomorrow!