Surgery on her foot

Yesterday Larisa had surgery on her foot. Chantel has not had a chance to talk to the doctor since the operation, but was told that everything went well. Larisa was anxious about this surgery. I think probably since all the other surgeries she was not even awake when they took her in. This one she was aware and knew what was going on. Over all it went well and she is doing great. Her leg is still draining quite a bit. It has been achy and they are watching it closely to be sure no infection sets in. The other areas are also achy, but starting to heal.

Her birthday was on Tuesday. She loved seeing a few friends and family members, including her little nephew who "slipped" into see her. It put a huge smile on her face. Despite some visits it was a rough day for her. I think the reality of what is going on and the long term rehabilitation is starting to sink in. She hears her friends talk about things they are doing and feels like she is missing out. I don't think for a minute she is not grateful to be alive, but the reality of the long road ahead is a bit overwhelming.

Physically, everything is going well. The Trach has been decreased to the lowest setting meaning that the opening is on the smallest hole. Larisa is not excited to have it gone, it gives her a great sense of security for breathing and is not as hard for her to do. She still has a lot of mucus in her lungs, and they are still weak. She still needs to work on getting the mucus out - right now it comes out of her mouth and the trach which is easier. Removing the trach it will be a lot more challenging to get it out. They will evaluate daily to see how she is doing.

Yesterday Chantel was able to spend the whole day with her which was really nice. She is still resting and sleeping quite a bit, but does have more awake time. She is doing physical therapy, which also takes a portion of her day. She does have a portable DVD player, but has fallen asleep within minutes of it starting. At this point, we are trying to put together somethings for her to do during the day. If you have any suggestions, please pass them along so that we can have a variety of things to help take her mind off of the clock ticking.

We hope that by the end of the weekend we will have some additional information about where and when she will be leaving this hospital. It will be to some rehabilitation location that has been undecided.

We are so grateful for the progress she has made. We are overwhelmed by the out pouring of love, generosity and concern that has been shown to Larisa, her immediate family as well as her extended family. She has fought a good fight and continues to show her determination to get better daily. I think the hardest times are yet to come as her body begins to heal and in time reteaches all the parts that are broken how to work again. Thank you for your prayers and kind words. We truly believe that through prayer and faith in Christ we can overcome even the toughest trials and that we are NEVER left alone. What a blessing to know that truth.