Surgery

Michael is scheduled to have surgery for friday. He has had a complication and they need to go in and repair some parts. Just another fringe benefit of his situation.

Other news is that he is going to undergo a regime of treatments for the NMDA problem. A test came back positive again and the treatment is basically a type of chemo. It may help him to get better sooner, and should not hurt him. We will begin that treatment in about 3 weeks after he gets over the surgery.

Other than that Michael is doing pretty well. He has made improvements in many areas, but not as rapid as I had hoped. Maybe the NMDA treatments will help. I still hold a lot of hope for my young man.

Pops

Breath of fresh air!

Not only is the location here at Pate, a breath of fresh air but so are the staff. We are amazed at how different Michael is responding to everything here. He is being treated with respect and compassion, and is totally meshing well with all 15 other residents. We play games and try to include anyone who is able to participate. He frequently pats another resident on the shoulder while passing. One man in particular has takin a liking to Michael, probably because he has a son his age. We call him the cowboy because he really is! He plans on showing Michael how to put birdhouses together. We have gotten to know all of the folks here and their stories,and it has opened our minds to a whole new world that we never gave much thought to before. This place has a "Family" feeling to it. We brought our Michael Jackson dance WII game this morning and entertained all of the residents and staff. We try to do alot of fun things when we are here visiting. It is so nice to see him smile. He is still as sweet as ever. We are still waiting on a test result, but meanwhile Michael is being well taken care of. Please continue to pray for his doctors to find a diagnoses so he can be treated once and for all. It is a good day. Post from Mom

Healing up

Michael is settling into his new digs pretty well. It is quite a different setup with open spaces and kind of a busy, community living arrangement. It is working well with him because he is just one of a crowd and is not singled out. He just fits in with everyone else and nobody gets excited if he wanders around. It is a large ranch with a nice recreation center, walking, and a hoops goal! We have seen almost no aggitation in the last couple of days, if he wants to leave we just give him some time and space and he walks it off and we can then redirect him to play some basketball or play a game. Less stressful on him and everyone else.

We are still awaiting some NMDA test results that if positive would require significant treatment. In a way we are hoping for the tests to be positive because it would explain a few things. We should know in a couple of days and will let you know. Otherwise, medically he is mending from many rubs and abrasions. He has one major problem with a finger but it is healing and hopefully when it gets better he will not have to worry about infections and such from open wounds.

For now I can tell you Michael still remembers how to shoot pool, play ping pong and basketball, that kind of stuff. Wild what he naturally can retain. He also has not lost his lack of patience. One of the other patients was playing uno with us and was kinda slow in making choices, so Michael just kind of looked at him and said come on dude! But overall he is returning to his sweet self, he just wants to be normal again.

orange you glad I'm here

Good news! Michael was moved to his new digs at Pate yesterday. It is a scenic, 95acre ranch. I saw horses, goats, and a donkey, {he and Michael should get along well}. The house he is in has open living spaces in the middle, and bedrooms off both ends much like a lodge. We are hoping the open spaces and ability to have choices will suit him better. We decorated his room with the stuff everyone sent and it looks like Michael. He did very well up until about 7:30 {at which time he needed meds and shut-eye} when he told everyone in a loud voice "just leave". The problem with his request is that he shares this abode with 15 other people. The staff quickly moved the other residents. Michael spotted the oranges on the counter, and someone whispered to Ashley, "I think he is going to throw it." You guessed it......he did. It was actually kind of comical, him standing in the kitchen throwing oranges at the staff. They quickly scrambled to remove the apples off the counter. He calmed down after his meds and shower and went to bed. I spent the night with him on a rollaway, and he slept 12 hours staight. This place has a rec-room with a pool table, ping pong, large screen TV and other games. I think we will spend alot of time down there when we visit. Post from Mom

Antsy!

We are still waiting on insurance approval to move Michael to a new rehab. As you can guess, he is getting very antsy! He is on an oncology floor, so they have to keep him fairly sedated but, the care he is recieving is great. His wounds are healing, he is getting much needed rest, and he is being cared for with compassion and respect. Please everyone pray that we get him into a place where he can start to recover. Ashley is here for the week, and he enjoys her company alot. On a humorous note, Michael still has that competitive drive when playing games. If he is losing, he trys to play a card that is obviously not correct, and when we object, he says "thats not cool". That is all for now. Thanks everybody for all your love and prayers! Post by Mom

It's great to be a Tennessee Vol

Updating from the hospital. I am watching Michael put away an enormous lunch after a morning spent playing Jenga, Uno and Domino's. I came in Wednesday to help transition Michael- we are in the process of finding a new rehab facility for him. I can tell that he has made neurological improvements since my visit in March (speech, aggression, confusion are all better). The speedbump that he is dealing with at the moment is primarily physical. Without saying too much, it is important that we find a new rehab facility for Michael.

When I got here, he looked at me and said "Tennessee!" (A fabulous greeting, in my opinion.) We walked the halls chanting "I said it's great to be a Tennessee Vol"- any UT fan knows how this goes. He even sang a little Rocky Top with me.

So, for now the plan is:

A. New rehab- we are touring a place this afternoon.
B. Continue getting Michael back to Michael, as much as we can. There are moments where it is clear he is in there.