Sam's Journey - Day 31

After a long day of waiting, Sam finally got his MRI. He was gone for about an hour, half of which was used disconnecting and reconnecting him to all of his gadgets. The techs who took him down said he didn't cough much during the MRI, which was good. The fact that he has a cough is an overall positive thing. It means his body is trying to move out the lung junk he accumulates due to being on a vent and being largely stationary in the bed. The only time he gets to move is when they turn him, which is every 2 hours. 

During the day, we had visits from different people--speech therapy, PT, respiratory, and the rep from where we hope he will be headed in a week or so--acute rehab. Since we've moved to the pulmonary floor, the care has been equally superb as it was in the Trauma ICU, and the fact that there's a bathroom in his room has made life much more manageable for Jim and me. Today I also had my second trach class, where I learned how to change a trach and what to do in emergency situations. Right afterwards, I had to actually change Sam's trach. This was the picture I sent Jim after that adventure:

It was an incredibly unnerving experience, but overall, it went well. It is my hope that it gets easier each time, but it still falls at the very bottom of the list of things in which I find joy.

Big things will be happening for Sam in the near future. At some point tomorrow, he will begin working with a cardiac chair. The goal is to get him to tolerate being in a seated or semi-seated position to facilitate recovery. We will (also tomorrow perhaps?) be hearing the results of the MRI. We remain hopeful for as little damage as possible, and even if there are major issues, we are resolved to not let that be the sole factor in where his rehab will lead. We have wholly turned this story over to God and to Sam and will let them write its subsequent chapters. The medical staff and the rest of us will need to be content with being adjunct contributors and bystanders in what we believe will be something remarkable to observe. God has placed us, for reasons known only to Him, in a position to let His best work be done. We have already witnessed incredible things in this past month, and we can't wait to see what else is in store.

I need to hit the sheets, so I will leave you with this picture. In preparation for seeing our boy sitting up more, here is one from when sitting anywhere was entertaining.  God's peace!