Thursday, August 7, 2008

Update - Thursday, August 7

I feel very lucky that we are at Baylor Institute of Rehabilitation as it is one of the best in the country. Our first week here is coming to an end and, just as we expected, the therapists here are working Paul hard. Weekly conferences, which include the therapists, neuropsychologist, and the doctor, are held to keep me abreast of Paul's current therapy and progress. Our first conference was yesterday, and they reported that Paul is inconsistent with command following but is starting to attend to automatic skills. Automatic skills examples include that we can hand him his glasses and he'll put them on, he'll take the phone and put it up to his ear and then flip it closed, and he'll raise his arm to help when his shirt his being taken off. Right now, the speech therapist is working on developing a yes/no communication system but have not yet developed a reliable way of getting Paul to communicate.

As posted on Tuesday, Paul moves around a lot and is very restless. Because he is getting so strong, he is now in an enclosed bed to keep him from pulling himself out of the bed. The best description we've come up with is that it looks like his bed is in a bouncy house. But, this keeps him safe and seems to be the norm around the rehab facility as many patients have their own bouncy houses.

We now have a private room, room 300, and expect to be here at least through the month of August. Again, please keep in mind that Paul is busy throughout the day with therapy so visitors are encouraged to come in the late afternoon and evenings. I also ask that visits be kept to about 15 or 20 minutes to keep Paul from getting overwhelmed.

Thank you all again for all of your support and continual interest in Paul's recovery.

Love,

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks for keeping us posted. We are all rooting for Paul's quick recovery.

Anonymous said...

hey patty and paul; sounds as if things are goig well!! patty the jerde's are so lucky and blessed we have you in our family!! we thank you for being there and taking care of paul. rememember to take care of patty. we love you both. love,mary

Anonymous said...

Sounds like Paul is definitely in the right place! I so enjoy reading these updates and really appreciate you taking the time to help us follow his journey. I thought you might like to share this scripture to Paul: "I can do all things through Christ who strenthens me." -- Phillippians 4:13. I truly believe that God will continue to make Paul stronger and heal him and you will continue to see progress and you guys will be going home in no time. Keep the faith.
Love,
Angelina

Anonymous said...

Patty
Thanks so much for the update. It's great to hear how strong Paul is getting. Thinking about you, Paul and Buzz.
Jennifer

Anonymous said...

Patty - What great news about Paul's recovery! I know he is driven even more by having you there. You are a inspiration to all of us! Thinking of you, Buzz and Paul daily. Thanks for keeping us up-to-date on the Blog.
Tammy

Anonymous said...

I remember early on, you gave a description of the recovery process... that it's not an instant "he's awake!" type of thing, like you see on TV. I must admit, that was a little disappointing, but it sounds like Paul's moving through the REAL process quite swiftly. I'm always very glad to hear about his progress! Keep going! :)

-- DJ @ InterLegis

Unknown said...

Hey Jerde & Co.

A bouncy house bed? That sounds like fun. I bet Paul's a huge fan. (wink-wink). I'm happy to hear that Baylor is doing you right and staying on their toes. With their help and Paul's spirit, I am very optimistic.

Give yourself and Paul a hug for me.

Cassandra

Anonymous said...

Great going, Paul...

Anonymous said...

Paul, I'm sorry I missed you this week but it sounded like a good week for you. Keep on swallowing so we can get some real food in you. I love you and will see you soon.

Anonymous said...

Yo, Paul-

Just letting you know I'm thinking about you today. Keep kicking butt in the physical therapy.

-Tim

TommyB said...

Hey Paul,
I was thinking about you at spin class today. We want you back so I am praying for it to happen sooner than later. Wake up and get it cranking, we miss you.

Tribecan said...

Hi Patty -- hope the rehab is going well! We're all thinking about you and Paul and following along on the blog, anxiously awaiting more good news.

Neal and Jacqueline

Anonymous said...

Dear Patty,

I have checked this blog every single day since I learned of Paul's injury. As always, you amaze me. With all that you have to do, you take the time to not only let everyone know what's going on, but you carefully decipher what it all really means. I come to this site to follow Paul's progress, to find out what to pray for you, and to post comments to keep you encouraged. But you know what? I've found that the grace, dignity, and strength that you and your family embody in this incredible situation has been tremendous encouragement to me!! God is blessing you all, and through you, He is also blessing all of us. You're so cool.

Paul, you keep on truckin', dude. None of us thought for one second that this would keep you down, and you're proving us all right.

Love you guys,
Kathy Nichols