sleeping beauty wakes

today, anna started to wake up. we are so thankful, words can't even express it. it started maybe yesterday with her right hand movements. she seemed like she was reaching for me as i was saying goodbye to her, but i didn't want to make too much of it. but this morning, when mom got to the hospital, anna was obviously reaching for her ventilator tube with her right hand. and then, when mom was talking to her, her heart rate was spiking. the nurses said that her movements and reactions do seem purposeful now and that this is the beginning of anna waking up. thank god!

other developments today just got better. she opened her right eye for a bit. she is still under sedation and on a pain killer, so everything today was surprising for how sedated she should be. then, after her wrists had to be restrained so that she didn't take her breathing tube out, she figured out how to reach the other direction and she pulled her catheter right out!

i feel like this is the anna we all know and love -- feisty, tricky, stubborn and smart! today was a good day. i think they will continue to wean her off the sedation tomorrow. and i imagine we'll get lots more news on tuesday when dr. manning, anna's neurosurgeon, comes back to see her.

thank you all so much for the positive thoughts, energy, and prayers. it's working! keep sending anna everything you've got!

love,

molly

breathing easy

today hasn't been as eventful as yesterday, but anna's progress is steady. she has now breathed on her own for a day and a half and her sedation medicine is slowly being decreased, which will make it easier for her to wake up when she's ready.

her heart rate, breathing rate, blood pressure, and temperature have all been better and more stable today. her body swelling is going down now, too, so she's looking more like herself.

today anna's eyes have moved a bit under her eyelids. this is not voluntary movement and it doesn't mean she's waking up yet, but before, her eyes were totally still and unmoving. every little change seems like progress. she is, as i write, squirming a lot as she gets her teeth brushed.

today, anna's friend dan came to visit her. dan is probably anna's best friend and our whole family really loves him. he flew in this morning from portland to see her and could only get today and tomorrow off work. it was hard to watch dan see anna like this, but he was great. he held her hand and talked to her and visited with my parents and i for a few minutes. he'll come back to sit with her for a while tomorrow before he has to go back to oregon.

yesterday i went to mom's work and asked ann swanson if she'd organize some meals for our family so that my mom doesn't have to think about cooking for her and grama faye and so that my dad can keep working and coming up to the hospital each day. ann & all the ladies at the historical preservation office have done a great job with the "meal patrol" and we're really thankful. we are blessed to have such support. please keep the thoughts and prayers coming.

love,

molly

the marathon begins

today is the 5th day that anna has been in the hospital. we know a lot of positive things, given her traumatic accident. she is young and healthy and a fighter. she has no broken bones. she is able to breathe on her own (as of today) and all of her hands and feet respond to physical stimulation. her body involuntarily moves more every day. she has no paralysis.

the accident
late friday night/early saturday (8/22) morning, anna was in a motorcycle accident. she was a passenger. our family did not know the boy she was riding with. she was wearing a partial helmet. she likely landed on her head and slid a bit on the left side of her face, her left shoulder and her left arm. the accident was where capitol blvd. turns into vista, near the train depot. the officer on the scene thinks he arrived within one minute of the crash. anna was having trouble breathing when the EMTs got to her. she was rushed to St. Al's and was sent up to the ICU around 4:30 am.

the injuries
anna's injuries are mostly just in her head. she suffered from a very small fracture at the back of her skull, road rash on the left side of her face, her left arm, and her palms. there was a gash in her left arm near her elbow that got some stitches. the head injury is called Diffuse Axonal Injuries (DAI). this is the kind of injury a person gets from rapid acceleration and deceleration. the most mild form of DAI is a concussion. shaken baby syndrome is also a form of DAI. her primary doctor, the neurosurgeon, dr. manning, has a lot of hopeful things to say about anna's injuries and condition. her injury is a few (probably about 4) small shears in her brain tissue. the doctors don't know enough about the brain to know what those small tears are affecting yet. we won't likely know until she starts to wake up.

how things are going & how they're going to go
anna is still in a coma. dr. manning said this morning that most people with this type of injury begin to wake up after about two weeks. until then, anna is resting and healing. her body is working hard and most of her systems are working. they turned the ventilators off today and anna has been breathing on her own all day. the breathing tube is still in her mouth, but she is breathing through it by herself. if she does well like this, they will take the tube out and see if she can breathe and swallow and handle her saliva without worry. that test should happen in the next few days.

dr. manning said that the recovery process for anna's kind of injury is typically about 9 to 12 months and that we don't really know what the outcome will be. we have to be patient and we have to be hopeful. i was reading in a book that the hospital gave us today a letter from a brain injury survivor. the letter said the best thing his family and friends did for him was stay positive, inspire him to be positive, and share in all the small successes in his recovery.

i will try to keep this blog up to date as the days and weeks go on.

my family and i are so thankful for all of the love and hope and healing vibes and prayers that are being sent anna's way. thank you all so much.

love,
molly