Robin's Progress Report--6/15/08

I apologize for being uncommunicative for the last week. Robin's Mother, Father, and her Sister-in-law arrived on Monday. Her Father and Sister-in-law went back to North Carolina on Thursday, but Mom stayed to help with Robin. I have been trying to work while they have been available to stay with Robin. After work, I've gone to the hospital and stayed (usually) until 10:00 or so, then gone home to do chores before going to bed. I really just have not had time to compose a message. Please forgive me.

Robin has continued slow improvements since her surgery. My last message was a week ago on 6/8. She had just received her "turtle shell," a hard plastic brace that provides support for her vertebrae and helps immobilize her while the bones are healing. Physical Therapy helped her walk a little bit with her turtle shell and a walker.

Well, after that first attempt to walk, Robin only walked two other times in the next seven days. It seems that when the therapist arrived, they sat Robin up on the side of the bed and took her blood pressure. Of course, after lying down for almost two weeks, when she sat up, her blood pressure dropped, so the physical therapists walked away and didn't return that day. When I found out what was happening, I hit the ceiling. I asked the nurses to start sitting Robin up when PT showed up on the floor, and to give her a chance to adjust to sitting before they blew her off for treatment. By the time PT arrived, her BP was good enough for walking. Unfortunately, she lost several days of therapy before I figured out what was going on.

Robin was in the hospital longer than she should have been because there were no beds in the rehab hospitals around Clear Lake City. Saturday night, Clear Lake Rehabilitation Hospital had a bed open, and she was transferred by ambulance to that facility at 9:00 PM. On Sunday, They got her up out of bed, bathed her, dressed her, put on her turtle shell, walked her, put her in a wheelchair and showed her around the facility, fed her in the cafeteria, and had her sitting in a chair for an hour or so. Quite a change from the hospital Physical Therapy treatment. I am hopeful that she will progress rapidly in this environment. They told us that she would receive an hour of PT on Monday, then they would increase by 15 minutes each day until they get to three hours a day.

Several folks have asked how John and I are doing. I cannot speak for John, but I am totally exhausted. Although I have not been doing anything physically demanding, the trips back and forth to the hospital, the late nights, and the various stresses we've been through seem to have drained me of energy. Some of our friends have provided food, but when you don't get home until after 10, well, it's not a good time to eat.

I'll close for now. Need to get to bed. I want to thank everyone for the prayers and thoughts of support for Robin and for John and me. I have received many e-mail responses to my earlier messages, but I am spending most of my time at the hospital, so I am unable to reply. Please continue to pray for a speedy recovery for Robin. Once we get her back home, things should get better for all of us.

Thanks again to everyone,

Love to all of you,


                  Robin, Larry, and John