Day 12

I would like to start today's post by publicly thanking everyone who has sent cards, letters, or emails for Carolyn and Mike. So far I have received over 30 and continue to receive more everyday. It has definitely helped raise Mike's spirit to know that so many people care so much. I had a request for their location and visiting times. They are at John Peter Smith Trauma Center on Allen in Fort Worth. They have been receiving excellent care and everyone has been so kind and compassionate. (A word or caution to anyone planning to visit - The trauma center is not located in the best part of town, so I would not recommend visiting at night.) Carolyn and Mike are both in the PCU which shares a waiting room with the ICU. The visiting hours are every even hour from 6am to 10pm, for 30 minutes. The signs posted say to limit visitors to 2at a time, but we have had up to 4 people in the room at a time. Please continue to send any other correspondence to me so I can make sure it gets to Carolyn and Mike. I can't guarantee that the hospital mail room is as efficient as the nurses.

Now for an update:
Carolyn seems to be more active (moving her arms, head and mouth around), but still has not woken-up. She seems to react to some things; mainly physical touch and occasionally voices, but nothing seems completely purposeful. The doctors have considered increasing the dose of the medication they started to stimulate her brain function. I'm not sure if he is definitely going to do this or not. Carolyn has also had a few problems today. They are doing some tests to rule out pneumonia, urinary tract infection, and/or sepsis. She has had a low to mid grade fever since this morning so the doctors ordered some cultures. We should know more tomorrow. They have also started the discussions about transferring her to a long-term acute care hospital. We made sure they know that Carolyn and Mike live near San Antonio, so they are looking into appropriate facilities. Sometime next week we should have a better idea of the timing of it all. The doctor has started the process but has not released her for transfer.

Little by little, Mike is getting stronger and stronger. He was able to close his fingers around my finger today. He still needs to work on being able to squeeze hard enough to grip things but he is making progress. He seems to be getting more sleep the last few nights and is enjoying having Carolyn in the same room. I think it helps ease some of his stress now that he can see her and talk to her.

I may not be able to see them tomorrow but will let everyone know as soon as I get more updates.