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.)