Can you hear me now?

Hey everyone!

Well, someone's been making phone calls this past week, and I'll get to more of that in a moment. There's a lot of new things happening in Mom and Dad's world, so I'll dispense with the usual intro and just get right to it.

The family met with Dad's doctors and therapists on Wednesday (1/19) to discuss his current medical status, conceivable goals, and what barriers they feel he will face in the coming months. The big news is that they think that Dad will recover to almost 100% over time, but it will take a lot of hard work on his part. Unfortunately, Dad will probably remain at this facility for a while longer than we had first hoped. Current estimates are 4-6 months. Here's a breakdown of each rehab area:

Speech Therapy - Everyone said they are very pleased with the progress Dad has made in this area. They would like for him to deflate his ventilation cuff more often during each day so he can work on talking more. This tactic will help to reawaken his vocal cords and throat muscles, which will help him to learn how to swallow again and be able to eventually eat on his own. Dad had mentioned to his therapist that Banana and Grape flavors sounded good to him, so she and her husband bought Dad some Popsicles the other day while they were at the grocery store.

As a result of his progress, Dad was able to make a few phone calls to different family and friends over the past week. Of course, it made his day to be able to talk to other people besides the ones that he gets to see most of the time. His voice is still crackling a little, but that will subside over time as he talks more.

Ventilation Therapy - When Dad came to this new facility, the ventilation machines were hard to get use to, as they are mechanically different from what he was use to in Lynchburg. But he has adapted well to the change and has started progressing towards staying off the machine more hours each day. The therapists think Dad can be off the ventilator within the next few months with continued hard work and effort.

Physical Therapy - There's been a few bumps in the road with this part of Dad's rehab, but we're working things out with the staff. The therapist wants Dad to stay out of the bed a little more each day to help with getting his body accustom to sitting up. This will also help to strengthen the muscles in his abdomen. So Dad is trying to do this each day, but is having difficultly working through the pain. To add to it, the staff is not always the best about coming back to get him into bed at the time they agree upon. It sometimes ends up being over an hour longer than what they promised, which doesn't sit well with Dad or us at all. But like I said, we're working on fixing it with the facility's management.

Overall movement in Dad's body is still showing some improvements. Mobility in his arms and legs is slowly coming back, and he's able to do a few more things on his own. Hopefully, this too will continue to progress over the coming months.

As for Mom, she is staying with Dad in Raleigh and visiting him each day. We found a place just down the road from the facility that does long-term stays. After some haggling, we were able to get them to come down on the price just enough to make it somewhat affordable. The room has a little dinette in it, so she's able to cook for herself. One of family's friends wanted to see Dad, so when he came down to visit, he brought Mom's car to her from Richlands so she can save on travel expenses. While he was there, he also gave Dad a much needed haircut, which made Dad feel a lot better.

The house in Richlands has a contract on it and we're in the process of doing the same here in Danville. As last reported, we found a house that fits Mom and Dad's needs and we're praying that the owners will accept our offer. There will be a shortfall between the price of the house here and what they'll get for the house in Richlands. But we're trying to get the payments low enough to make it affordable for Mom and Dad in the coming years. As soon as we have more info, I'll let you know.

Well, that's all for now. We'll continue to keep you posted on Dad's progress and everything else going on with him and Mom. Take care of yourselves, and thank you so much for your continued support and well wishes. They mean more to us then you will ever know.

Team Jerry all the way!!!