Drawing by Rena

This is a drawing Rena did last January. Her art teacher at Clague submitted it for a show at the UM in the Art and Architecture building.

Continued Progress

We finally seem to have a handle on the nausea.  Rena has been feeling much better the last 2-3 days and has a much increased appetite.  Her arms and hands have gotten much stronger and she is beginning to work on some crafts, which reduce the tedium of being in the hospital.  She has not required oxygen for several days, except during physical therapy, and so the main obstacle to going home is her reduced mobility.  She is making significant improvement every day and we hope that she will be mobile enough to go home in a few weeks. 

The battle with nausea...

Rena is making real progress with physical therapy.  She has transitioned from exercises that were focused only on arm and leg movement to those that help with balance and core strength.  It is very difficult for her and is not helped by the fact that she has nausea about 90 % of the day. The doctors are trying to manage the nausea, but it is a complex problem and it is not clear what exactly is causing the nausea. 

For entertainment we are working our way through the first three seasons of "Bones", which were given to Rena as a gift from Nate's sister Melissa.  Although it is very morbid, and pretty disgusting at times, it is Rena's favorite show.  She wants to be a forensic entomologist.  For anyone who has seen the show, Rena's favorite character is Hodgens, who uses his disgusting knowledge of bugs and slime to solve murders. 

All that and a bag of chips..

Rena ate a bag of small bag of chips last night!  It was very exciting because she was able to and wanted to eat solid food (nausea is often a problem), but also because she was able to eat them with out any assistance.  Her hands are a little shaky, but she was able to get all the chips into her mouth on her own.  This was a real milestone.

Today the PT and OT therapists brought Rena down to the therapy clinic for a tour.  Getting in and out of the wheel chair is a little painful, but once she is in the chair she seems to do pretty well.  With the help of some special arm supports on the wheel chair she was able to paint a small bird house.  She is looking forward to bringing it home to join the hummingbird and finch feeders that Papa got while he was visiting.

Rena has found her voice!

Rena is doing very well.  She is able to speak much more easily.  Her mobility is improving as well.  She can wave her hand, scratch her own nose, and make small movements with her legs to get more comfortable.  She will continue with physical and occupational therapy this week.  Although it is very tough for her, it is nice to see that it is working.

Rena has had several visitors to brighten her spirits.  Thursday a therapy dog came into the room for a short visit.  On Saturday some former UM/NFL football players stopped in and took a picture with Rena.  Nate's aunt Rita came for the weekend and gave Nate and I a much needed break together for a few hours Saturday and again today.  My aunt Linda and Uncle Jim, and cousin Karen stopped in to stopped in to say hello.    We all enjoyed the company and change of pace. 

Back on 7 and making small improvements

We are back on the 7th floor and out of the ICU.  Rena is continuing to make small improvements.  She is able to speak in whispers and her mobility is improving.  However, we expect to be in the hospital for some time yet, mostly because she will continue to need physical therapy.  Her lungs are improving significantly, but she still requires oxygen through a nasal cannula. She sleeps most of the time and is really only able to watch movies or TV when she is awake.

Recuperating

Rena is doing well.  She has transitioned from pressurized mask (such as used for sleep apnea) to regular oxygen mask, and today is getting oxygen through a nasal cannula. This transition is important towards getting her back to the regular cancer ward and then home. She is experiencing a peripheral neuropathy and will require physical therapy every day for a while. Today was her first real day of physical therapy and she got quite a work out.  The neuropathy means that for now she is unable to do simple things for herself, such as scratching her nose etc., and so Nate and I have been on the job helping her to be more comfortable.  This is a temporary condition and she has improved a lot in the past few days already.  Today was the first day that she wanted to watch T.V. I never thought that would be a good thing, but it is nice that she is comfortable enough and alert enough that she can be distracted.

Extubated!

After 2 long weeks on a ventilator, Rena has finally been extubated.  So far everything is going well, she is breathing great, and getting plenty of oxygen. She is having trouble speaking because her throat is sore from the tube. She is still pretty weak and we are helping her to  move her legs around to keep them flexible and get things circulating. We continue to read to her to try to keep her spirits up.  She is very relieved to be free of the tube and is mostly resting.