More Photos

These photos keep posting out of order.......

Going down the exit ramp--very steep, very narrow, a little daunting but he did great!

Tom and Me inside the lobby of the museum. He was cold, so he's got his jacket and a blanket hanging over the support strap he wears around his chest.

Tom and Michael in hall.

Tom going up the ramp to the High Museum entrance. There were others on the trip but Tom went first.
[We weren't allowed to use photography inside the museum exhibits.]

Update for Jan. 27

Hard to believe it's been a week since I last posted....and an eventful week it's been....

Trip to Museum
The trip to the High Museum was fun and fairly easy. There is a long ramp to get to the front doors. The doors are not handicap accessible, and we were told that we were supposed to enter through a different door, but no one knew that. We left through that door and the guys had to execute a very narrow and surprisingly steep ramp to get to the bus. Tom has been certified in all the building codes, and was skeptical of whether this ramp was up to code. It was a bit scary, but he and the others made it down just fine. (photos to follow)

We enjoyed the Andrew Wyeth collection. It was Tom's first time being in public in the wheelchair, and it seemed quite normal to be buzzing around the place. I think that there are so many people nowadays in grocery stores and practically everywhere roving around on those motorized skooters and carts, so a man in a motorized wheelchair is no big deal. No one stared or looked weird at him. We were told that the patients' first time in public can sometimes be traumatic because people are staring at them, but Tom didn't feel that at all.

Blood Clot
Sunday night, Tom developed a blood clot in his left leg. The leg was swollen to about 50% bigger than his right leg. This can be very dangerous, although since he had had a filter put into him right after his first surgery, it was less dangerous. Without the filter the clot could move to his lungs or worse, and can cause a stroke. I don't understand all this, and I wasn't here when the doctor explained it to him, but he says that the clot could stretch from his hip to his knee! They did an ultrasound to see it.
They put him on a stronger dose of blood thinners than what he was already on (a preventative dose that all quadroplegics get at first). He then had to stay in bed for 2 days with his legs a little higher than his head, some of the time. He hates being in bed because it's harder for him to breath. Plus when you have to stay in bed, you can't go to all your therapy and classes, and so you are behind in your therapy. We keep trying to have a normal week or even a normal day or two around here and it's been impossible. Some new challenge to deal with every few days.

As of today, the leg is still quite swollen but he's taking the blood thinners and he's allowed to be up in his chair going to therapy.

Improvements
His pneumonia is completely gone. He rarely coughs. He's off oxygen totally.
He can pretty much feed himself.
We've gotten most of the bladder and bowel issues taken care of, finally.
His swallowing is almost effortless now, due to biofeedback and swallowing exercises. He only starts to choke rarely and it's not frightening like before.
His blood pressure is normal, which is good for a SCI patient....most have low blood pressure which causes them to feel faint when sitting upright.
The cervical collar on his neck has been removed and the surgery is OK.
He's finally off the soft diet and is able to eat normal foods.

Concerns
He is experiencing quite a bit of pain in his arms and shoulders, particularly his right shoulder, which he injured many years ago and had surgery on. We think it's because he's having to use these arm muscles to do way more work than they ever did, such as for feeding himself. Because of his injury, there is not as much nerve impulse getting to these muscles and it hurts when he has to work them so hard.

Update on David
Many of you have been asking how David is doing. There's been so much going on that I haven't updated you.
David had a serious "crash" and had to be revived and taken to ICU. He was in serious condition there for at least 2 weeks. The last I saw of his wife, she said that he would be going home to Boston (on a ventilator) and he will have a 24 hour nursing care. He missed his kids very much and wanted to go home. I'm not sure if they've left or not, but they were getting ready to go. I told his wife that we would all keep him in our prayers.

Tom has a new roommate. He's Michael, from Louisiana. He's 18 and was injured in a truck accident. He was in worse shape than Tom at first, but because his injury was "incomplete," he is beginning to be able to move a few fingers and a thumb. We are very happy for him since he's got his whole life ahead of him. We feel that he will be walking eventually. Please keep him in your prayers. I'll show a photo of him with Tom.

Helpful Visitors
Tom's sister and brother-in-law, Pat and Frank, came from Houston to visit. I put them to work since Tom was going to be in class on Wednesday till 4 pm. They helped me clean up a mountain of junk from the garage and haul a load of stuff to the dump. Much cleaning needs to be done before we can renovate the house for Tom's return. I appreciate Pat and Frank's willingness and ability to help.

Workmans' Comp Claim
Our claim was denied, but we knew that that was not unusual. We are meeting tomorrow with a lawyer who comes highly recommended. We will file for a hearing and I believe that it takes 2 months to get the hearing, but I may be wrong on that.

Cards, Letters, Gifts, Money, Visits, Prayers!!
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! We really are in awe of the outpouring of love and concern for Tom, and for our family. We have been truly blessed with friends all over the world. You all make going through this much easier.

Thanks to all of you for your support.

Michele

[photos to follow]

Workman's Comp update/First Outing

Hi again,
Our claim for workman's comp got denied. The lady from the insurance carrier sent us some copies from a code book or something that supposedly showed their case, but when I read them, it seemed to me that there was a section that proved our case. We now have to get a lawyer and file for a hearing with workman's comp.

We have the name of a lawyer who specializes in this kind of case--his name was given to us by a guy who has a more severe injury than Tom's and he defended him. Hopefully this won't drag on too long or be too expensive.

We've talked to several people who are familiar with this kind of claim and they all say that we have a claim.

ALSO--
Tomorrow (Sat.) Tom goes on his first outing. The rec. department here takes patients on trips to various places, and Tom wanted to go to the High Museum, which is Atlanta's premier museum, and has recently undergone extensive renovations. I got a friend to conduct the tea party I was supposed to do on Saturday so I can accompany Tom on his first trip out in public. He's most concerned with the temperature since it's cool outside and his body temperature regulation system is really fouled up. He is either freezing or he's got a fever. He's almost always real cold and we put several blankets on him. I'm nervous that the trip is for several hours and he will not be able to leave if he's uncomfortable until the whole group is ready to go. I'll take a tote bag with a blanket in it, and we're dressing him warmly. We're also hoping that he doesn't have a serious coughing spell while there.

Other than those concerns, (and the additional concern of him handling/steering his power wheelchair) he's excited to be leaving the confines of the hospital.

Michele

One Month Anniversary

Sorry to be so long since my last post.....much has been happening--some good, some not so good. But we're taking it one day at a time, and are making steady progress.

Monday, Jan. 16, was the one month anniversary of Tom's accident. Hard to believe it's been a month since I got that fateful call from the Grady Hospital Trauma Unit that perhaps I didn't know that my husband was in a car accident and was in their emergency room. I asked if he was OK, and all they would tell me is that he was alive. And that they had him in the "red zone." That didn't sound good. Then when I got there, no one would let me see him or even tell me his condition until the doctor came to inform me of what no one else was allowed to tell me....that he had no feeling and couldn't move from his chest down.

That seems like old history now. Here at the Shepherd Center, we see people who are in the very same condition as Tom; we see those who have more use of their arms and upper body than he has; and we see many who are in much worse condition than him. If we had only gone home after this hospitalization and had not been around so many other spinal cord injury patients, it might be easy to say "woe is me," but being here makes it easy to count our blessings and be glad for what arm use Tom does have, and be excited at what all he's able to learn in order to function in an almost normal life.

He's had x-rays on his throat/swallowing mechanism to figure out what the problem is with his swallowing. The good news is that there isn't anything seriously wrong enough to require surgery; the bad news is that there is some sort of scar tissue or something that is the result of his 2 neck surgeries, and this makes it difficult for him to swallow without having some of it go into his windpipe. The answer to this is that he has been on a soft diet for weeks, and he has to drink a sip after each bite. And the better news is that he just began working with a therapist who is giving him swallowing exercises, which include biofeedback where they video him swallowing and he can watch what he does and learn how to swallow more effectively without choking. He just started this and he says it's helping him a lot. Yesterday they allowed him to eat a normal diet, rather than the soft diet, and he's very excited about that.

Yesterday he fed himself dinner for the first time, including drinking from a cup. His hands won't grasp, so he has velcro straps with a slot that the fork/spoon can fit into that hold it in place while he eats. He uses more arm action to get the bites to his mouth, rather than wrist action like the rest of us. It's tedious, hard work, and sometimes frustrating and messy, but he's plugging along and getting better at it.

He is finally over the pneumonia and feeling good. He is not as weak as he was, and is able now to really get into his physical and occupational therapy, which is hard work. He's able to be up in the wheelchair all day, rather than in bed, and he's getting good at maneuvering the chair. He has to learn to brush teeth, hair, etc., in different ways than before.

One very exciting thing is the voice activated computer system that he is learning to use. It's called Dragon 8 and they say that pretty much everything that can be done on a computer, can be done with the voice activation system. He is anxious to get immersed in it enough to be able to post his own message to this blog.

I have been able to leave on Saturdays to conduct events at Southern Oaks, my business. I line up visitors to come be with him--not so much to attend to his medical needs like before, but to keep up his spirits, and help out a little with getting him blankets, feeding, etc.

I am taking classes to learn how to do his catheters, bowel programs (doesn't that sound fun? It's a program!), respiratory care, bathing, skin care to prevent bed sores, etc. I'm learning waaay more than I ever thought I'd need to know about bodily fluids!

More later.......our spirits are up, our finances are down..... can't have everything!

Michele

Photos

Here are a few pix of Tom at the Shepherd Center.

The top one is him on the physical therapy mat doing arm exercises. His right arm is weaker and tends to fall down, so they put a blow-up plastic sleeve on it to help him hold it up.

The second photo is Tom in his wheelchair. This was one of the very first times that he was in his chair....now he looks a lot better. He's having to wear the cervical collar on his neck for 5 or so weeks, because of the 2 neck surgeries. That's me with him, of course.

Photo 3 is showing the overhead lift that they use to get patients from bed to wheelchair, into shower chair, exercise mats and even into the pool.

If it's not one thing, it's two.....

Our latest concern is something that's been bugging Tom, but he didn't know if he was imagining it or not. It seems that when he swallows, he has a hard time getting the food to go down, and many times he chokes. Having particles go down his windpipe is especially frightening when he can't cough hard, and so it feels like he can't breathe. That's one reason why I stay here so much--to help him cough and keep him from choking. (when he coughs, I or someone has to push hard on his abdomen, below the rib cage and up, to support the lungs as his diaphragm would, if it was functioning. This is very common in his type of injury.)

His doctor decided to check out his complaint just to be on the safe side. Tom had to drink something that would show up in an x-ray, and they took x-rays and movies of him swallowing various things. When they showed him the movies, it was obvious that there is a problem. He has something bothering him in the esophageal area, probably something that occurred in one of the two neck surgeries he's had. We don't know yet exactly what this is, like a flap of tissue, or scar tissue or such. They are consulting with the specialists at Piedmont Hospital to figure it out. He will probably have to be put to sleep and undergo a scope with camera being put down his throat to see exactly what's going on. In the meantime, it's back to the wretched soft food diet, and he has to swallow a lot, and drink a sip of water after each bite. He wants to learn to feed himself but since we're having to be so careful with every bite at this point, he can't risk doing that very much right now.

So, that is our concern and prayer request for the beginning of this week.

Additionally, our continued prayer request is that all this will be covered by workman's comp, rather than our medical insurance. He will receive much better coverage and get everything he needs if workman's comp will pick it up. (he was on his way to a business meeting when the accident occurred, but it was the first thing in the morning before he had been to his office. Lawyers are reviewing the case now.)

Contact Info

Some of you have asked for the address here to send cards or to visit. Here's the scoop:

To send cards/mail:

Tom Cox
c/o The Shepherd Center
2020 Peachtree Road NW
Atlanta, GA 30309

To Visit, he's on the 2nd floor, Room #214-B
Even though it says that visiting hours are in the evening, you can visit any time. He will be in therapy/classes most of the day this coming week.

To make contributions to a love fund:

Call Alice at Southface
404-872-3549

All Your Comments, Cards and Calls

I have to tell all of you who have commented on the blog and sent cards and sent money and called that we are very overwhelmed by all the outpouring of love and support. It's amazing to get cards from all over the country from people we don't even know, and also fun to hear from friends we've lost touch with.

Please know that we appreciate your support and love and prayers.

As I told a friend earlier, we "feel the love!"

Michele & Tom

Conference with the Doctor

We had a medical conference with Tom's doctor yesterday, where he explained in detail the extent of Tom's injuries and his prognosis for recovery.

This is the first time we've heard "broken neck" and we actually thought that he hadn't broken his neck. But that's what this doc said.

His injury to the spinal cord was at C-6, which is the 6th vertibrae down from the head. At this level of injury, the arms are operational, but everything below that is not. He can raise and bend his wrists, and that is the hallmark of the C-6 level. If the injury were at C-7, he would be able to use his fingers and make a fist, which he currently cannot do.

The rest of him, abdominal muscles, legs, bladder, bowel, skin (feeling and temperature control), all are not functional.

The doc said that in 80% of cases like this, the patient moves up one level with time and therapy. That means since he's at the C-6 level, he could progress to the C-7 level, which would be to be able to use his hands and fingers more. That would be very welcomed. The body only usually moves up one level, which means that in order to walk, he would have to move up many levels, and that's not usually the way it works. In other words, it's highly unlikely that he will ever walk again. Although the doc left room for "divine intervention," which sometimes happens......and zillions of you are praying for.

The muscles need to get a nerve signal or spark in order to operate and if they don't get that from the spinal cord, they will not work or continue to grow.....even if he were artificially exercised. So it's not that he can just work super-hard and he will regain function. Doesn't work that way.

So, here at the Shepherd Center, they anazlye where the person is and help them learn to function at home and work, etc. at what ever level they are at.

Tom will be able to go to work and will use an electric wheelchair. He will be trained on voice activated computer software, that will allow him to do everything on a computer that he does now.

The things they have here are exciting and they really care about their patients. They will design a program for the specific needs of each person. We're very blessed to be here.

He had a few bad days with digestive problems and such, then a good day today. Tonight he's coughing again more than in the past few days. We just can't seem to get his lungs clear. I don't want to leave until he's peacefully down for the night. You've heard of taking one day at a time......we take it more like one hour at a time....

David is having setbacks each day and then a little step forward. It's rough watching him go thru this....

Counting our blessings for the new year

I have to admit that if someone else said Happy New Year to me, I was going to tell them "You mean 'Crappy New Year!' "
But God has showed us in an unusual way that we are blessed......

Tom has a semi-private room and someone was moved into the other bed yesterday. This man is David, a policeman from Boston. A lady ran a red light and ended up in front of him and he crashed into her car. It barely dented the car. But it must have snapped his neck, because he is totally paralyzed from the head down. He can't even hold his head up. Can't move anything except his face, he can't even talk!! He can barely utter strange sounds sort of like whispers. They put in a pacemaker to keep his heart going, and he is breathing with a ventilator machine. It's so sad. His wife stays here like I do during the day, but she leaves in the evenings. Tonight he started making strange noises and when I looked behind the curtains to see him, there was a towel that had fallen down over his face, and he couldn't breath and he couldn't use his puffer/mouth thing to signal a nurse. I got the towel off him and called the nurse. It was just frightening.

I told him that I will be here every night til midnight to tend to my husband and I will be checking on him as well. Two times he made sounds for me when he was in distress. It's just hard to believe that someone in his condition is here by himself. He says I'm an "angel."

So I can't help believe that God has placed us in this position to be of service to this man, and it sure makes Tom's condition seem sooo much better.

Here's to many blessings in the new year.......

Michele