Hospital Day #21 - 12/22/23 - A Big Ask…Christmas Treats for all UL the Nurses & Staff???
We have had so many people ask how they can help us, and our main request has been prayer & cards.
But as we prepare to spend Christmas Eve & Day at the hospital, we are so grateful for the many nurses & hospital staff that spend these same days away from their families to care for us. So in honor of their sacrifices, we’d like to bless them in a small way this Christmas weekend.
The Goal: Stock up every nurses’ station in the UL hospital (~25) with some sweet treats to eat on along with an encouraging note to love on the ~1,000 workers over the 6 shifts ahead (Sat-Mon).
How to do it? That is where we need you!!
Can you give towards our goal? If we have $150 per nurses’ station (x 25 stations = $3,750) we can bless them in a special way!
Digital payment is the best, but if you prefer to mail a check, can you please just private message me so I can add it to our total?
If we don’t get enough, we’ll just do what we can with what we get! If we get more than enough, we will try to cover Baptist Hardin Hospital also (where Brittney went through the ER 3 times and also spent 3 days at in November)
Can you help serve? While we could potentially DoorDash all of these treats to the nurses’ stations, I think it would be more personal and cost-efficient to have a small team to purchase, pick up, and deliver to these 25 nurses stations.
If you are interested in being part of this team, please text or message me. It will probably all have to be ordered tonight (Friday) and picked up & delivered tomorrow (Saturday). I haven’t fully thought this through, so there is a lot of flexibility in how to best make it happen :) Once the team is put together, I will connect you all with the group leader and plan!
VIDEO NOTE - The first video show Brittney trying to eat the day after her stroke. The second video shows her eating today, 10 days post-stroke. God is answering your prayers!!
Brittney trying to eat - 1 day after her stroke
Brittney trying to eat - 10 days after her stroke
Hospital Day #20 - My “Tachy” Wife (A Great Day) + Stroke Rehab - What Brittney Lost & Is Working to Gain Back
Today was a great day! We had no major issues other than trying to get to the bottom of why Brittney is having a rapid heart rate (tachycardia) sometimes. The nurses keep referring to her as “tachy” which is great since she so often calls me “tacky.” Sweet revenge bahaha.
She had a second great day in which her headaches were well managed with pain medicine. We are so thankful for this answer to prayer! Brittney didn’t collapse today and did great with her therapy sessions :)
The process of improvement after a stroke seems frustratingly slow but still encouraging nonetheless. The first weeks and months are the most important for a stroke victim’s recovery. Every stroke victim’s brain is affected uniquely, so I thought it would be a great time to share a little more specifically what stroke rehabiltation looks like for Brittney currently and how you can more specifically pray for her rehabilitation.
When Brittney first arrived at the ER 10 days ago for her hemorrhagic (brain bleed) stroke…
She could not remember her birthdate, hometown, address, the current year, the current month, or where she was at
She could not count to 10, read a clock, do simple addition, use numbers to assess her pain level
She could not think through simple processes or the correct order of tasks to accomplish (going to the restroom, washing your hands, eating, etc.)
She could not walk, stand, or use the remote in bed to call the nurse
She could not see to the right (loss of right eye peripheral vision)
She could not identify simple objects or their purposes (TV, phone, pen, glove)
She could not repeat phrases (“no ifs, ands, or buts about it”)
She could not hold her right arm or right leg up for very long (since her brain bleed was on the left side, it affected the right side of her body)
She could not use her right hand to accomplish simple tasks (apraxia)
She could not find the right words to communicate (aphasia)
She could not read, write, or text
She could not watch TV or use a phone
I don’t know how to medically explain stroke rehab, but things need to be “re-taught” so that a new connection is made.
For example…with washing hands…Brittney still had in her mind somewhere how to go about washing her hands. But she had to be “re-taught” step by step how to wash her hands in order to reestablish the connections to make it happen. Not every task needs to be re-taught, but some things become bridgeways that open up more rapid growth.
In the 10 days since her stroke, Brittney has worked hard to regain these abilities and thanks to God…
She can remember her birthday, hometown, address, the current year, the current month, & where she is at
She can could to 10, read the hour hand on a clock, do simple addition, and use numbers to asses her pain level
She can think through simple processes and orders of tasks
She can walk (short distances), stand (for a short period of time), and independently use the bedside remote
She can identify most objects and their purpose
She can repeat most phrases (longer ones are harder)
She can use her right arm and leg with increased strength and coordination - so much improvement already!
She can communicate pretty smoothly until her brain gets tired
Here are some specific ways to pray relative to Brittney’s stroke rehabilitation!
She is barely starting to be able to read and write again, please pray for rapid and full return of those skills
She hasn’t yet regained her right eye peripheral vision, please pray for that to be fully restored
In depth questioning and reasoning is still very hard, please pray for clarity of mind during the harder sessions of therapy
She can’t handle cell phones, TVs or texting quite yet as they overwhelm her brain - please pray for those skills to be regained soon
Her brain gets super tired, super easy - please pray for her brain to gain endurance
Her body gets fatigued quickly as well - please pray for more physical energy and stamina
I am sure there will be a lot more specific ways to pray for her stroke rehab, but for now, this is a great start. All the therapists, nurses, and doctors are amazed at her progress and optimistic for a full recovery. We know nothing is impossible for our Lord!!
Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”
STAY TUNED…tomorrow we have a challenge to bless all of the nurses and med techs in this large hospital as they work through Christmas Eve & Christmas Day…but this BIG CHALLENGE will need a lot of help to make it happen!
Here is a place where I’ve archived the posts from our 20 days of hospital stays so far. www.jonathancarl.org
Hospital Day # 19 - 12/20/23 PM - Another Collapse but Otherwise a Great Day!
Brittney scared us again with another collapse in the bathroom…but we were able to carry her back to bed safely with no injuries. The doctors are unsure as to why Brittney has had these two collapses, so for now she is staying in bed. Other than this big scare, Brittney had a great day. We are so thankful for your prayers. For the first time since her stroke, she has not been in intense pain with her headache…the pain has been manageable with medicine finally!
How bad have Brittney’s headache pains been? (my lighthearted way of describing Brittney’s pain level this past week)
She won’t eat any sweets
She won’t watch Christmas movies
She won’t fight off needles
She won’t laugh at my amazing jokes
So although she is still extremely fatigued, we are counting it a blessing to have a 24 hour period in which her headache pain was well managed by medicine. We pray it is a good sign of the blood on her brain is starting to be resorbed.
We are still in stroke ICU and have not yet been downgraded. We count that a blessing because their extra help has been needed with her two collapses and many high/irregular heart rate events the past 24 hours. We are thankful for excellent care.
Brittney’s situation is still a bit mysterious to the doctors. Fibromuscular Dysplasia (FMD) seems to be the primary culprit. 90% of people with FMD are women in their 40s & 50s (without me getting into too much trouble, Brittney fits into that age bracket bahaha). We are thankful to have caught the FMD before her stroke which allowed her to have the 4 stents that are facilitating blood flow to her brain on her right side. Her left side carotid and vertebral arteries do not have stents, but are also significantly damaged and blocked. FMD shows up in arteries (primarily in the neck/brain, heart, and kidneys) in a way that produces irregularities in the shape of the arteries. The arteries then tear, block, and bulge, and sometimes rupture. FMD may also be a connection to the 3 vessels that burst in her brain, but the doctors are still not certain why she had the hemorrhagic stroke.
Due to the seriousness of the FMD we should be hospitalized through January 1st with a big blood thinner change on Christmas Day. We are thankful for the doctors many precautions in this very rare circumstance.
We are so grateful for your prayers, we are clearly seeing God answer them. I am no longer feverish and Brittney doesn’t seem to have caught my bug!
Continued Ways to Pray:
No blood clots or brain bleeds
Wisdom for the doctors in all of their next steps
Brittney’s protection from sickness and my continued improvement
Continued ICU care as long as needed and a private/individual room whenever we “step down”
Continued healing of Brittney’s brain from headaches and improvement in her speech, occupational and physical therapies
Increased energy and strength for Brittney
Thank you so much for your prayers, the Lord is strengthening us. While we don’t understand why we are enduring this season of suffering, we know God is with us and for us!
Romans 8:28 “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” (ESV)
Photo captions: 1) Brittney got some extra TLC from her dad today! 2) We are so thankful for the ways our girls are being cared for and loved on in the midst of our prolonged absence from home. Cookie making with Brittney’s grandfather!
