Someone has something new today!! Well, newish. Shannon had her trach swapped out for a smaller trach, in hopes that she will be able to cough stuff up a little bit better. She also learned how to do the quad cough on HERSELF....which is like trying to give yourself the Heimlich maneuver- sans chair or standing. AND...she got to wear a special vest that vibrates to try and break stuff up in her lungs so she can cough it out. (I would have paid good money to have been able to talk to her while that was going on.....hiiiiiiiiiiii mmmmmmOOOOOOOmmmmmm....) Hopefully all of that will help with her lung congestion issues. Actually, I learned today that what's going on with my sweet girl is that her normal mucus- what we all have in our bodies to make them work properly, just isn't getting flushed out like it is with the rest of us. So chalk that up to something else fun that happens when you have a spinal cord injury.
Shannon was able to practice transferring to her wheelchair from her bed again today, and is making progress with that, and she also tested out some shower chairs to decide what kind will work best at home. Sounds exciting, right? Well, if you needed a shower wheelchair to use every day, you'd probably want to test them out to make sure they are easy to use and fit you well.
Speaking of showers-- and bathrooms, I don't think I've ever thought more about showers in my entire existence. Have I mentioned our shower adventures yet? Well, here is my repeat, if yes. Shannon needs a roll-in shower that's at least 5ft by 5ft to accommodate her shower/commode wheelchair. In addition: she needs a handheld shower head- we are doing two of them to keep her warmer, a rain shower head above, several grab bars, the ability to stow her bathing products at her level, and heat lamps to stay warm. We have decided that Shannon is a chameleon. She needs a heat lamp to maintain body temperature. AND.....she also needs heat lamps above her bed, because that is where she gets dressed. After that, she has to bundle up until her body temp gets back to an acceptable level, since she doesn't have the ability to shiver to raise it on her own temperature.
And...did you know that wheel chair height vanities are very difficult to find? Especially with drawers. But since we are SO VERY BLESSED and know someone who does custom cabinetry (I'll plug you Burkard Custom Cabinetry), we are having one made for her. So the next time you hop out of bed and head for the shower; consider how little you think about the process, and how easy it's been to do it practically every day of your (adult) life. (I know about those teen years when you didn't bother to bathe for days at a time). I, personally, have learned what a blessing it is in my life after helping Shannon with it recently.
There are two people that have been indispensable to me, especially lately. These two kiddos. Jake is all the muscle work that needs to be done. He has hauled SO MUCH STUFF around in the last couple of months. He was tossing around 80lb cement bags like they were feather pillows. (Okay, maybe not tossing....but he did haul them from the truck to the basement bathroom area) He's been the clean up crew, the go find the tool, the basically anything we need. When he isn't do that or school work (or the trampoline, or the game system) he's playing with his nieces to give Krisha a break from the nieces. And Krisha- she's been entertaining the nieces (and is officially cured of the "mom, I really want a younger brother or sister" syndrome. The nieces are wonderful, but it’s been an adjustment for her to have little people around all the time) so Rachael can help me, and she also has been helping clean, sort through things we are getting rid of, and has been keeping our oven humming with baked goods to keep us all happier. She's even made dinner a few times, and does other odd jobs we need her for. It's a true team effort here.
Please continue to pray for Shannon's cough to improve in strength, for her core muscles to get stronger, for her to be patient with herself and willing to have others help her, and for her to be comforted and at peace with her current condition. Thank you for your love and prayers! We are keeping (mostly) sane because of them.
Today's Calendar Meme:
And a little bit of Disney wisdom:
You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.
A.A. Milne- Christopher Robin, Winnie the Pooh
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