Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Update for Weeks of Nov 1st and Nov 8th

These past two weeks have been filled with outings with Troy and the girls and I and him preparing for coming home. There have even been a few times where we bring him home to hang out at the house with the girls and I. Unfortunately, the contractors still hasn't come out to the house to handicap ready the house so he can't spend the nights here yet, but I'm praying they get that done really soon!

On the medical aspect of it, Troy has been battling with the fact that he is going to have to deal with his ataxia and learn how to cope with it and make it work for him, as he continues to heal. Ataxia is defined as wobbliness. An in-coordination and unsteadiness due to the brain's failure to regulate the body's posture and regulate the strength and direction of limb movements. Ataxia was a consequence of the bruising on the brain, specifically in the cerebellum which lies beneath the back part of the cerebrum, right underneath the brain stem. There is no cure for this, but with help of therapy he can slowly regain his balance and learn to coordinate his steps and walk with minimal to no assistance. The only problem is that this is a slow process, so while he's wanting to get up and walk now, it might be years down the road before he can do that on his own. NOW...with all of that said, I am only recording this as the medical aspect of it, not as a declaration of what is to happen. We all know that the final verdict in Troy's health will be God's will...not the doctor's!

On another note, Troy has also been coughing a lot when he eats. This is because, due to the brain injury, the epiglottis (a small flap you have in your throat that opens to let you breath and covers the bronchi when your eating so food doesn't go down your windpipes) has slowed it's reaction, so when he's eating too fast, the epiglottis doesn't have the reaction time to close and food goes down the wrong way causing him to cough. The therapist have made a sign for him to put in front of his plate when he's eating to remind him to slow down and chew his food and swallow slowly, and so far (I was there having dinner with him yesterday) he has been doing well with that. They will do a swallow study on him again to determine if the speed of swallowing is the cause and if so, reminding him to slow down will help him not choke and cough. If not, then they will have to put him on a special diet where he will have foods to eat that don't have to be fully chewed to be swallowed.

So, the prayers this week need to be focused on Troy's ataxia and the quick recovery from that so that he can get out of the wheelchair and get his coordination back and the swallowing issues.

Thanks for everyone that supports us in prayer and keeps up with Troy's blog. Troy logs in and reads it from time to time and really enjoys reading everyone's supportive comments!

2 comments:

  1. Troy. we love you! Your grandparents here in Michigan are praying for your complete recovery.

    We are about to celebrate your Grandpa's Birthday on November 17. He will be 82 yrs. of age.

    Please say Hello to Joan and the girls. We Love You All!!

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  2. Troy it was good to see you on sunday even if only for a short vist. you are always in our prayers and we love all of you and will always be there for all of you. God is the true healer and we are amazed at his progress with you.
    Love, Brian & Linda

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