DAY 36 Well….here lately we have had improvements. She is still under. She is now considered neurologically impared. Can also be called semi-coma. Miss Nicole is acting different, moving and reacting in ways that are more consious type stuff. Now when she does this stuff there is not fully consious like we are, she doesn’t do things to command ( lift up 2 fingers Nicole ) no, she doesn’t do this. But she opens her lazy, half opened eye, the good eye, and its too early for her to see, but she does “track” meaning moving her pupil in a way that almost focuses on an object. The injured eye will open less than half here and there. Her legs lift up and bend at the knee alot, her feet end up to 1 side of the bed or the other. They can’t keep her in 1 position, she squirmms out of it! All of this is part of the “waking up stage.” that we’ve been in for a few weeks now. She makes frowns and her pulse goes up when she needs pain med. Earlier this weekend the physical therapist started with her. He used to work, and helped start (i believe) “Bones” with TJ in Sonora. We made instant friends with him when he told us about turning left at the rusted out tractor then right at the boulder to get to this ladys house in Coulterville he had to work on! Dan is perfect, he puts these towel rolls that he makes behind Nicoles back to make her rest differently and relax better and small rolls in her hands for her to grip on to. He puts her in this chair that starts out like a flat bed then it moves her into our sitting position. The first time he does this with a person, he sees how they can tolerate the first hour. Nicole’s first day she did 4 hrs. 2nd day 3 cause her father asked them to go easy on her, 3rd day 4 hrs. Then she got the weekend off, for the chair, not Dan. Then Monday she’ll do er’ again. 4hrs is a criteria patents have to meet for this stuff. They look to see how they keep their head up and if their muscles can handle the load. Its more common for pain med this week since the chair, but far less dosage. And we did go to sedation in that small dose for about 3 days with the chair too. But off sedation now. Nicole still hurts and is sore from her injuries, that is apparent from her pulse and blood pressure. The girl is lucky. The girl is strong. Special thanks to our neighbor Walt and our friends at the Ladder Day Saints for the sacred blessing they gave her this evening. Special thanks to my mom and dad Tim and Sandi Meagher for loving Nicole the same way her parents do. They have sacraficed this entire 36 days like we have, there is no verbal communication to thank or repay them, just free ole’ love. Still checking on the places that we’ll move her to…in time..right now, she’s ok where she is. When you’re sitting in the hospital room and the nurses, janitors, therapists, the workers are walkin’ buy and throw you a big ole’ smile and a wave, or thumbs up when they walk by…you know your heading down a good road. And when your nurse tells you “they were all in there last night doing their own assessments and testing and they all were crying”..you know your heading down a good road. Glenn and I want to thank all of you in this group we have…for going down this road with us and Nicole. There have been many times we’ve referred to your notes to us in the middle of the night when we thought we couldn’t go through anymore. Thank you, from the bottom of our broken hears. Thank you. Talk to you next weekend.
