Slow and Steady

Larisa is making progress, slow, but steady. Since her last surgery on her foot, she has had several uneventful but good days. There has not been a whole lot to report, so I waited until I felt like I had enough to pass on. I suppose this is a good thing...

This weekend they did remove her trach. She is breathing well on her own. The opening is still opened, they just keep it covered. I am under the impression that it will close up on it's own over time. Larisa still has the draining pump in her thigh, where the femur was broken. Today the doctor said it would need to be there for at least another 3-4 weeks. The reason for the pump is to continue to drain out the debris, but also helps to circulate the blood flow as the bone is healing. They have cleaned it several times. The last cleaning was very painful for her. The gauze had dried to the wound and it took and hour to get it off. Once they did get it off, they needed to clean the inside of the wound as well as cut off any dead tissue. Cleaning it will only be done as needed.

Her ankle on the foot that was broken has an open wound on it from the accident. Right now there are staples that run up the inside and the outside of the ankle. Over time the wound will close up and regenerate new skin, but a skin graft will be needed. They also have indicated that there is a chance that a skin graft will be needed for her thigh. That will require a graft about 6 inches by about 4 inches. Doctors will determine that later, as they watch how the leg and wound heal.

Today they did have her sitting in a wheel chair for about 30 minutes. At the end of that 30 mins, she was done. The pain had set in. They got her back into bed and gave her some pain meds to help take off the edge. She does have a pic line in that had been used for getting medications into her quickly. They really are not using that, and plan to have it removed prior to being transferred to a rehab center.

It looks like she will be relocated on Wednesday or Thursday of this week to a rehab center. The location of that is undetermined. They are checking out a couple of places and working with a case worker to put her in a facility that will best meet her needs. It is narrowed down to 2. We hope to know tomorrow where and when she will be going. Very exciting news, this only means her progress has been great!

She had a good weekend. She loved visiting with friends and family. She even asked to put a little make up on....That truly is a highlight for her and great medicine for her emotions. I think her family and friends are going to be a positive resource for her as she recovers. She did ask to see some pictures of the first couple of weeks. Nurses that had seen her at the onset of the accident and have been back to see her, they just keep saying how good she looks. She wanted to see how she did look. Chantel showed her the pictures and she said it made Larisa tear up. I think she realizes how far she has come and how blessed she has been. Chantel said that as Larisa's mind becomes clearer, she is realizing more and more how blessed she has been and how many people have been praying for her. Overwhelming for both of them.