It's Been a Slow Day

Today was a pretty slow day for Peggy. After all the activity yesterday, Tim told me her memory was really bad last night. She was having a very difficult time recalling much of what had happened during the day. This is why it is so important for her to rest her brain. So today Elijah went to see his grandfather off to Texas and then went to play with his cousins--Thank you Suzie. Peg stayed in bed most of the day and when she got up she would only stay up for a little while. She told me she was tired. She has also experienced some dizziness today. We're going to have to watch carefully because she has been doing so well with her balance that we were surprised when she almost fell while outside. (She had her shades on and was sitting down but when she got up the ground was not steady for her.) She also took some pain medication today and that's the first time she has decided, without encouragement, that she needed some.
She had a little company tonight and did okay. So, all in all it was a slow but okay day.
I was able to make her appointment with the Trauma Center for the 8th of September and at that time they will schedule something with the Cognitive testing people to get a baseline for where she is. I will probably call them tomorrow and see if we can go ahead and get something set up so I can figure out what my schedule is going to be. I am reluctant to leave until the evaluation has taken place. So, again, this is not going to be a sprint but rather a marathon--slow and steady. As always thanks for the prayers, cards, calls, and words of encouragement. All of it helps. Linda

Day 5

Today has been another good day. Peggy slept in and then got up around 10:30 this morning. She has not really been to sleep since then. She has rested some, but not much. She is working very hard to convince all of us that she is okay. She is very bored and all of us know that's a very bad thing. So, today she had read a little, sat outside in the shade with her shades on, talked on the phone, and messed with her blackberry some. I didn't catch her using the computer but with a blackberry, who needs a computer, right? Her friends asked her what they should call me and she, with her usual sense of humor (I hope) said, "Just call her Aldoph."

Short-term memory is about the same. Her balance is better. She was really tired tonight and was moving slower than she had been during the day. I expect that tomorrow she may not be quite as energetic as she was today. I'm hoping she will have a long night's sleep and then sleep in again tomorrow. Her dad has been here since Friday and has been Elijah's best friend. They have played with the Wii, gone to the park, gone to the racetrack (for those of you who aren't aware, Elijah races quarter midgets in the 5 year-old age range) to show off Elijah's skills, and generally had lots of fun. (Howard, Peggy's dad told me I didn't need to go see Elijah race because my heart probably couldn't take another disaster.) Howard goes home tomorrow so we're looking for things to keep a very busy 5 year old occupied.

Tim may or may not go back to work tomorrow. He is still very worried and a bit afraid to leave her. They are so close to each other and I think she feels better just knowing he's close by. He's only about 20 minutes away, so he can get here pretty quickly should the need arise. Whatever he decides will be what's best for both of them.

I've had a full day so I'm signing off for now. More tomorrow. Wish me luck with getting her follow up appointment set. They aren't going to like it if I show up at the Trauma Center in person! Thank you all for the prayers, the positive thoughts, and the love. Keep them coming. Love, Linda

A Good Day

Today has been an awesome day. Much better than yesterday. Her memory is much better today and she says she feels better. Her shoulder has continued to bother her and she says she still feels like this is all a dream, but she has been awake most of the day and has not crashed after being involved with one of us. She is pretty bored with all of this quiet time and I think that's a good sign. I am hoping that all of the activity today does not cost her tomorrow but I guess we will cross that bridge tomorrow. It's been a long day so I'll sign out for now. Peggy's Mom, Linda

On Tuesday, August 25, Peggy was participating in the Northwest Spectacular Horse Show and was it very spectacular! She was riding her horse, Al, and approaching a jump when Al missed a step and lunged unexpectedly. Peggy's head hit his head and she was knocked unconscious. She slid from his back and fell to the arena floor hitting her right shoulder and the right side of her head. The paramedics were at the scene but were unable to bring her around. The life flight helicopter was called and she was transported to Legacy Emanuel Hospital where she remained unconscious. As she began to wake up she became very combative (I know that's hard to believe) and had to be intubated and placed in a medical sleep in order for them to run the CT scans that were necessary. Apparently from the blow and the fall her brain did a little bouncing around and was bruised in five places. She also suffered a small skull fracture to the lower left base of her skull. She remained intubated for several hours and was then extubated and began to breathe on her own when those of you who had arrived at the hospital started talking to her per the doctor's instructions in order to keep her awake and breathing. (She doesn't remember any of this but it's my understanding that she was pretty entertaining during this time.) She went back to sleep and woke up momentarily to say "Hi Mom" when I arrived at 10:30 p.m. from Texas. (Tim called me before the helicopter had gotten her to the hospital and I was on the first flight I could get--scared to death to say the least.) At around 3:40 a.m. she came around again and the first words were, "What in the World?" She was very disoriented couldn't figure out where she was or how she got there. She did not remember anything that had happened since that morning when she arrived at the horse show. She stayed awake for about 30 minutes and then went back to sleep. When she awoke she continued to be disoriented and her short-term memory was not working very well. (Long-term was and is fine—she can quote any law statute you want to know about!) About 7:00 a.m. the hospital decided they needed her ICU space and began the process of moving her to a regular room. We arrived in the room around 8:00 a.m. and were then ignored by the doctors until 7:00 p.m. Needless to say, Tim and I were pretty upset. When the doctor finally arrived, he was surprised and apologetic that no one had been in to see her or to keep us posted on what to expect. At that time Peggy was still throwing up and was very dizzy. As the evening progressed, the nausea improved but the dizziness was pretty bad. The physical therapist came in and explained that the blow to the head had caused some inner ear dysfunction and that he would help her with that if it didn’t improve (It’s called having rocks in your ear.) The occupational therapist came in and ran Peggy through some exercises that confirmed her short-term memory is not yet up to par.
On Thursday, the physical therapist came back and did some head manipulation to improve the dizziness—it has helped tremendously. The doctor came in and said he was going to dismiss her because she needed to be at home where it would be quieter (you know she has a very active 5 year old), there would be less light, and less stimulation and she would be much happier in her own surroundings. He said patients with Traumatic Brain Injuries do much better when they are home. So, we left the hospital around noon. She was very happy to be home.
Now, here’s the hard part. She’s home, but for the next 7-10 days we were told she was to have very little brain stimulation because her brain needs rest to heal. That translates to no TV, no reading, low light, low voices, and not much interaction. It has been very hard for her and all of you not to want to interact. I have become the “interaction cop” and monitor how much activity she can have. We have discovered that when she has visitors she rises to the occasion and will interact as long as they will stay. When they leave, she goes to sleep and will sleep for two to three hours. So, what we are asking from everyone is that they call to see if a visit is possible and if it is then to come for five to ten minutes to say “hi” and sit with her for a while. It’s important talk in a low voice and not to stimulate her too much. We will probably continue to screen visits to two or three a day until the end of next week. We are still trying to get an appointment set up. Once she goes back to see the doctor, then I think the visitation situation will get much better. I know that there are a lot of people who love her and just want to make sure she is okay and that this is really hard on everyone. She is making progress and is getting pretty bored with all of this, but this may be the most important thing she does to help heal her brain and ultimately that’s what all of us want.
So, keep calling so we can tell her you did. Send cards and leave voice messages. She loves hearing from you. I’ll keep you posted through the blog and you can call here at the house anytime you want. Thank you so much for your love and concern and most importantly thank you for your prayers. They have been received, felt, and are working. God is good.