8-14-03
I lift up my eyes to the
hills-
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
the maker of heaven and earth.
Psalm 121:1-2
Dear Family and Friends,
Yesterday, (Wed.) we met with Dr. Ono for an update on Tim. He mentioned several things:
Tim does have an infection in his chest, and also in his blood. They were able to identify the two bacteria that were involved, and tweaked the antibiotics accordingly.
His fever is still up and down, so he can't be medivacced yet. Maybe next week.
His liver is showing some dysfunction. The cause hasn't been determined yet.
The doctor said he is watching Tim carefully and trying to protect him from getting MRSA, which is the bug I was telling you about before.
Tim seems to need to have fluid removed from his lung about every three days.
Even with all of this, Tim is hanging in there. All of these things I mentioned can become very serious issues, in and of themselves, so please pray about them.
On the encouraging side- I was elated to see one test that they did to check his brain stem activity showed an improvement. Now don't get me wrong, the activity was still very minimal, and definitely not normal, but for me it was a small victory. Praise God! Finally, instead of things getting worse, a move in the right direction.
It's hard to discern sometimes whether Tim's movements are a direct response to what we say. Sometimes it seems like it is, and other times, it just seems reflexive. However, he definitely has a pain response. Today, the nurses let me help wash his hands. One of his hands has a broken bone, and even though we were being very careful, Tim kept jerking his arm. He didn't react that way with the other hand. Also, last night we had stepped out of ICU for awhile, so that the medical staff could do some work on Tim. When we returned, Tim was breathing very quickly, and his BP and HR were extremely high. If was as if he was upset. I stroked his head and talked to him, and within seconds he seemed to calm down. And what's more, when I kiss him his heartrate goes up! (Sometimes) :) After 20 years, I've still got it! Things like this keep our spirits up.
Today, the couple driving the van that collided with Tim were at Tim's bedside when we arrived. They brought us some beautiful flowers and a gift. It was difficult to communicate, but we all ended up in tears. We felt so bad for them and they felt so bad for us. Please pray for them.
We appreciate hearing from all of you. Your letters, emails, cards, and kind words are so encouraging. I especially appreciate hearing from those of you who've been through similar experiences with a loved one. You help us to hope.
2 Corinthians 1: 10-11
On Him we have set our hope that He will continue to deliver us,
as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf
for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.
Love,
Carole and the Kids