Day 137 - Sunday April 29, 2012

All in all a good day.  We spent time resting, reading, playing on the ipad and visiting.  Because of the frequency Bridgett was unable to go to church.  We have an appointment with the urologist on Tuesday morning.  Everyone thinks it is just hypersensitivity with the brain, so hopefully he will be able to give us something to get that under control until the time that the brain heals enough to regulate itself.  Arrianne gave a talk in church about priesthood blessings and how they have impacted her live and the lives of her family.  I did not get to hear it but I did get to read it.  Jenn and Steph said she did a great job.  She spoke about the priesthood blessings that Bridgett has had.  We definitely know that the priesthood has blessed our lives and our little Bridgett.  We know that she has been blessed to be healed.  We are living the miracle.  With the severity of her brain injuries the doctors left us with almost no hope.  Already she has progressed much past where they predicted.  And we have the faith and hope that she will continue to progress from here.  Thank you everyone for your prayers for Bridgett and for us.  We feel the power of your prayers and know that it makes a huge difference in her recovery! Please don't grow weary of praying for her (and for us)! Today Bridgett took another long bath.  It does feel so very good to her to soak in the warm water.  It will be nice to be at home where she can go and get in the hot tub when she wants to.  I had been thinking lately that perhaps Bridgett doesn't remember that her ears were previously pierced and that is why she says she doesn't want them pierced now-- and says maybe later.   I asked her to reach up and feel her earlobes and tell me if her ears had been pierced before.  She felt and said apparently yes.  I said you got your ears pierced when you were 16.  How long have your ears been pierced and she said six years!  Most of the time she is foggy on her correct age so that was great to hear!  I said you have lots of earrings so do you want to re-pierce your ears and she said yes. So, the next time we talk about it I will have to have her go through the steps again or at least ask her if her ears were pierced before. And I want to find a place that will pierce both ears at the same time. Since her hair is very short, her sisters really want her to re-pierce her ears. Jenn and Tyler and the boys came over to visit in the early evening and that was fun.  We are trying to see each other all we can before we leave for Montana.  It will be great to leave for home but bittersweet since we will be leaving our little sweeties behind.

Day 136 - Saturday April 28, 2012

Today we did some shopping with Bridgett.  She was feeling energetic and did great.  First we went to Target, then to Good Earth and then to another health food store Jenn told us about.  Afterwards we picked up Chinese food and headed home.  We were gone for almost three hours altogether and Bridgett did great.  Arrianne picked up some clip-on earrings for Bridgett at the mall at ICING because Bridgett doesn't want to get her ears pierced right now.  She said she does want to pierce them--just not right now.  She continued to sing-song phrases off and on but most of the time did actual talking today.  Bridgett was happy all day and said lots of cute things.  Again she was up pretty early and stayed up til 10:00.  Tomorrow will be a day of visiting and then next week is pretty well crammed full of doctors appointments; she has appointments with specialists every day next week and we will have to travel to Salt Lake every day except Thursday although we have local appointments that day.  We hope to leave to Montana the following week.

Day 135 - Friday April 27, 2012

Another great day.  We went to see Dr. Roberts first today.  Since he is seeing Bridgett weekly he can really see a difference every week and boy does he see a difference!  Afterwards we saw Cameo a massage therapist that worked on Bridgett's neck and shoulder.  She said she can usually get to the bottom of the pain issue with neck and shoulders in two appointments!!  Amazing! She said that light traction would help Bridgett and explained what needs to be done--on an inversion table.  She worked on Bridgett and then we set up for another session on Tuesday.  Bridgett's trach scar has been hurting lately so I asked her about that.  She used to work in the medical field.  She asked me what kind of surgeon closed the trach hole--and I said no one closed it--they just had her cough to pop it out and put gauze on it. She rolled her eyes and said that a plastic surgeon or another surgeon should have closed it.  Now there's an adhesion and that's why its hurting.  So, she lightly massaged it and showed me what to do daily on it.  She said in three weeks or so that it will quit catching and things will be much better!  Also, she said that for a year Bridgett should put SPF 50 on any scars when outside--hourly.  You'd think that someone would have mentioned that to us!  Anyway, we are finding out now so that the important thing.  Afterwards we hurried back to visit with Aunt Debbi and Grandma Noland.  They played cards with Bridgett and then I ran to the pharmacy and they left before I returned.  We had a quiet evening.  Bridgett is now asking for water to drink...I finally got her off of drinking gatorade all the time which is great!  She is changing in the way she wants to eat so that is exciting as well.  I think she is slowly remembering how she eat before and that's great!  I forgot about something that happened at massage therapy on Thursday.  I was out of the room for a short time and LeAnn was talking to Bridgett and mostly telling her stuff about her wreck.  Bridgett said that sounds very sad.  Then she said if I got hurt this much I hope the driver of the truck is OK.   I wouldn't want him to hurt like I do.  She's such a sweet girl!  LeAnn said she almost started to cry.  Then of course she told me and we both almost started to cry.

Day 134 - Thursday April 26, 2012

Today Bridgett had her best therapy yet again!  Speech therapy went amazingly well.  Bridgett's short term memory is really improving.  She did some memory tasks that she couldn't have done at all last week I believe.  We had a great session with LeAnn.  Next to see Shane.  Bridgett rode the bike and did 8 flights of stairs on the stepper.  She also got to do that wii game again with the marbles and the balance platform.  She easily got to the 5th level (out of 8 levels) by herself with no prompting from Shane.  She missed getting the last marble in at the last second when it was just ready to go in each time.  Shane told Bridgett that if she likes video games she should try playing them again.  We hurried to see Josh for the last of our three cranio sessions this week.  His parents were there and I got to meet them for just a quick second.  His mom encouraged me to call her--which I have meant to do but just have not gotten around to it.  Bridgett continued to sing things for most of the day although she talked in at least half of speech therapy and physical therapy.  When I ask her why she is singing she says because she can.  Josh says her brain in going through some healing and it is taking her through phases.  Jenn came over and spent the evening with us.  It was great to just sit around and visit with each other.  It seems like we don't get to do that often enough.  Arri was done with school as of yesterday so last night was her first night of not studying and she was around to visit as well,  It was the great end to a great day.

Day 133 - Wednesday April 25, 2012

Another great day for Bridgett!  She stayed up until 11:00 last night and then woke up fresh at 7:00.  She has been sleeping a solid 12 hours for as long as I can remember.  She only napped for 20 minutes today and didn't go to sleep until 10:00.  She had energy all day long.  I took her to her craniosacral appointment and then we stopped at Jenn's for a short visit.  Afterwards we came home and got a call that Grandma and Papa Noland were stopping by on their way home from Arizona (in 10 minutes).  We had been playing cards with Bridgett--the first time in weeks that she's felt good enough to play games.  When they showed up they played with her for quite a while too.  She did really well and good see fairly well with the large print cards although she squinted her left eye most of the time.  After a while they stopped and Arri sang a couple of songs.  Then Bridgett got up and played a song on the ipod and sang Ala-freakin-bama and danced for them.  It was cute.  After that she sang most of her phrases instead of talking "just because she wanted to".  We showed them pictures of Stephany's amazing cake she decorated.  Bridgett sing-song talked to Mark on the phone before bed.  She was happy and energetic all day!

Day 132 - Tuesday April 24, 2012

This morning we went to the dentist to get Bridgett's crowns placed.  They were a little slow getting us back into the chair although onece we got back there the dentist placed the crowns pretty rapidly.  I was sitting down by the end of the chair and anxiously asked if they fit OK.  He said they were just fine.  He said that Pat had mentioned to me that they might move but that he (the dentist) did not think it likely since the teeth have been like this for so long.  It's actually been 19 weeks since the wreck tomorrow.  Bridgett's reaction was......it seems like there's a lot of teeth in my mouth!  I said yes it probably seems weird since you haven't had teeth there for so long.  I leaned up and looked as best as I could from where I was and with Bridgett laying back.  I said it just looks different seeing teeth there I guess.  We are used to how it's been now.  When they were all done and sat her up and she smiled I immediately thought--somethings wrong with these teeth but I couldn't decide what.  I said to the dentist--doesn't it look like one tooth is longer or something.  He looked uncomfortable to me and said well go home and see what you think and if I need to make an adjustment later I will.  I didn't want to say anything really in front of Bridgett because I don't want that to be what she remembers first--something about how we don't like her teeth. We came home and I was already upset.  When the kids saw her they were all upset too.  I couldn't get a hold of Mark and finally had to leave for Bridgett's craniosacral appointment.  Off we went and I tried to relax so that Bridgett would be relaxed too.  BTW we didn't discuss any of this in front of her.  I want her to feel really good about how things are.  Craniosacral went awesome.  I am so thankful we found Josh.  He totally came in just to meet us and left immediately afterwards for another appointment.  He came into Provo so that it would be easier for Bridgett.  Anyway, things went great there and then we went to Jenn's house to let her see Bridgett's teeth.  Jenn's opinion--they look great, just not like Bridgett's teeth used to look.  Really that is how I felt when I saw them--they just don't look like they used to.  We had Bridgett's orthodontist send up actual photos to  match the teeth exactly or as close as they could, so I felt very frustrated.  In the end Mark called and talked to them and they said there's nothing that can be done.  The only way to get them off is to cut them off and that would be very traumatic and might completely compromise the teeth.  So--we will all just have to adjust.  Tyler said later that we'll all probably get used to them and they'll be fine and I think he's right.  It just that we all want Bridgett to look the same and so that's upsettting.  Anyway, just another bump in the road I guess.  In the evening I went and got Costa Vida for some of us, including pork nachos for Bridgett because she used to love those.  When I got home she very happily ate them while we all listened to music on her ipod.  After a while she started singing along and I got some video of that.  Then she got off the stool and started dancing to the music along with Steph and Arri.  After quite a while they graduated to the hallway by the bathroom sinks and mirrors where Bridgett said she could see herself.  They danced and sang for over an hour altogether!  Bridgett hasn't had this kind of energy for a long time!  It was so good to see her acting like herself and dancing and making hand signs etc.  I called Mark and let him hear her sing and then I called Jenn and let her hear Bridgett because she says she always misses cool times.  I explained that there's been nothing much to miss for a long time, probably since she passed out and fell.  I am so excited about this craniosacral stuff!  Bridgett was up until 11:00 and finally everyone quieted down for the night. 

Day 131 - Monday April 23, 2012

Today was a great day at therapy sessions.  LeAnn said that Bridgett had her best speech therapy so far.  First of all, Bridgett remembered LeAnn and Shane's names, with some prompting.....she picked them from a list of three names.  She remembered her age.....this is from short term memory that she remembered from the sign that I have posted in the living room.  She did really well at the quizzing that LeAnn gave her.  She did the buzzer game and did the 2-1/2 minutes perfectly without forgetting what she was doing.  She was very clear mentally and answered several questions just like she would have before the accident....like LeAnn asked her what she liked to cook and she said she didn't really like to cook...TRUE! During physical therapy Bridgett was freezing cold so Shane took her outside.  Her had her walk on the rocks again for balance and she did well.  Afterwards he had her walk around the building.  Then he had her walk back the way she had come by memory while counting backwards by three's from 100.  She did great.  She did the elliptical and the bike as well after she got warm outside--it was 85 outside and she was in long sleeves and sweats, all black.  She did warm up finally and stayed warm by exercising when she got inside.   Bridgett continued her reading on Kasey's Kindle.  All in all a good day.

Day 130 - Sunday April 22, 2012

Quiet day today.  We had planned to go to church, but Bridgett woke up feeling nauseous.  Later in the day she felt better and we went to Jenn's in the late afternoon for a visit.  We are trying to get in as many visits with Jenn as possible before we leave to Montana and it's not that far off.  I am trying to think of places to go and people to visit here in Utah before we leave that might help Bridgett with her memory.  I sent an email to Brother and Sister DeGraff and I am hoping to hear from them soon.  Brother DeGraff was Bridgett's history teacher from the 7th grade until graduation, so she basically watched him teach  hundreds of times.  He's definitely a big part of her long term memory.  Also, we started contacting people that Bridgett knew here in Utah and had a long term relationship with that she might remember, several of whom did not know about her wreck; Bridgett had lived here in Provo for the last four years.  When we get back to Montana there are some people there that she had a long term relationship with and we will be in touch with them---most especially spending time with Scott, Jaclyn and Weston. Although they were able to be here for two weeks, it was while she was in a coma.  We have been able to Skype with them though.  Hopefully, being in our home and those familiar surroundings will help, as well as going back to the log house where she basically grew up.  She didn't "live" in the Bigfork house very long before she moved to Utah.  Going to the shop (our business) and walking in the field by the shop and the log house will all be very familiar to her.  All of these things we hope will help her long term memory return.  Oh, playing with the dog will help--a few weeks ago she asked if she could go outside and play with the dog!  Little by little she is remembering pieces of information so we are encouraged.  Actually her short term memory is doing better all the time and that's great. When she reads I am asking frequent questions about what she just read or something on the page before and she's getting better about that all the time.  Also, I posted a sign with her age where she can see if all the time during the day and that's helping her remember her age--of course short term memory of seeing the sign.  I am trying to think of some things she can do with her hands, as that helps brain function as well.  She never really got too much into crocheting or anything, although maybe we will try it.  She did play the piano some--we should try that.  She will probably be more motivated to do that when we get home.  Speaking of home--it does sound good to be home.  I have tried not to think about that too much and just focus on the things that need to be done here and take care of the most pressing matters--but since we will be home soon I can take a minute to think that it will be good to be home!  Oh, off and on Bridgett says the funniest things.  I was just thinking about something she said at PT on Thursday.  Shane asked her if she wanted a drink and she said yes.  He said I'll get you a nice cold drink and then he remembered about her teeth and how I always tell him it can't be cold and so he said to her...cold or medium?  She answered cool would be OK as long as it's not too cold to swim in!  That was funny on two planes......funny to think about swimming in the water but also because when she went with me to Philadelphia to see the macrobiotic counselor he told us that people drink ice cold water even though they would never swim in it that cold.  He said so why do people put that cold water inside of themselves to cramp up their stomach?  So, I don't know if she was remembering that because we talked about that often or if her mind was just really thinking that way.  You never know what will trigger memory.  Speaking of that Jenn said to take her to Cafe Rio because she loved eating there.  I have suggested buying a salad from there for her to eat but every time she has said no.  Perhaps she doesn't remember what it is....because she does love those salads.  Maybe if she smells the restaurant her mouth will water and she'll want one!  Also, Jenn said to get out her perfume for her to wear.  I know that smells are so powerful.  I was doing the extracts while she was in the hospital to try to wake her up from the coma.  I'm glad that Jenn thought of it so that we can remember to do some of those things again.

Day 129 - Saturday April 21, 2012

Today we went with Arrianne to get her haircut.  We took two cars.  I talked to Clint while he was washing Arrianne's hair.  He knew about Bridgett's accident from Jenn (he cuts her hair too).  I reminded him that Bridgett sat in his chair in October while Stephany had her hair cut and he remembered all of us actually.  I even found a picture on my phone and showed it to Bridgett.  I talked to him about what we should plan on with Bridgett's hair while it grows out.  He said it looks cute as a short messy cut (it does) and to leave it that way as long as we can.  He said he could clean up the back a little and so I will stop by something to have him do that.  Clint said you can do the short messy look until the hair is 4-6 inches long.  Of course it's getting longer all the time; I should measure it.  Anyway, Bridgett and I went back to the apartment and Steph stayed with Arri while she got her hair done.  In the afternoon I took Bridgett to see Joshua for craniosacral work.  He said her cranial fluid was moving better; that's good.  He actually worked on her for 90 minutes instead of an hour after getting my permission.  Afterwards he gave me his mother's name and phone number; she said I could call her just to talk or to get some information.  Also, he suggested that I might want to schedule Bridgett for three days in a row of craniosacral.  Joshua has a 6-1/2 year old son that is handicapped and is/was tube fed.  I guess I didn't ask enough questions but anyway Joshua decided to do an experiment and did craniosacral work for 10 days in a row on his son.  Before he started they would put food in the boys mouth and he roll it around and spit it out.  By the tenth day the boy would put food in his own mouth, chew it and swallow it.  They were able to drop one tube feeding because of that.  So, he said there is power in doing it for days in a row.  I said he should check his schedule and find a time that will work and schedule us before we go back to Montana.  Bridgett continued to remember the names of her therapists, with a choice from three names like Lisa, LeAnn or Leslie...she'd pick LeAnn each time.  Or Brad, Dave or Shane and she'd pick Shane each time.  I asked her about extended family again.  I asked if she knew who my parents were and she said grandma and grandpa...grandma and grandpa what I said...she has remembered my maiden name before (she told someone her mom was Kathy Hall) and she remembered again.  Then I asked about Mark's parents and she called them grandma and grandpa Noland.  Instead of grandpa we call him....and she said papa.  Then I asked about my brothers and sister, her uncles and aunts.  She got each of them if I gave her a first letter of their name.  Also we did Mark's siblings.  She didn't remember any spouses today, but each day there's a little more. We talked about her cousins and she remembered who they were if I gave her a list of names from each family...aren't they my cousins...etc.   We read twice today.  We are using the Kindle all we can while we have it. 

Day 128 - Friday April 20, 2012

We went to the office where they are making Bridgett's crowns today for a last minute color matching and check for fit.  Everything looks good and the crowns will be ready Monday afternoon.  They will set the crowns on Tuesday morning and what a good day that will be!  Afterwards we stopped for a very short visit with Jenn and then headed to Dr. Roberts office.  Our appointment there went well.  One thing I found out--Bridgett is always having so much neck pain, shoulder pain and so many headaches.  Today she was hurting pretty badly before we got to Dr. Roberts.  He is also a chiropractor although that is not what we are seeing him for.  He took a minute to do some releasing on Bridgett's traps and her headache went almost completely away.  I told him that the rehab guy keeps telling me that she doesn't have tension and he sees no reason for pain and Dr. Roberts raised his eyebrows.  There's lots of tension and I'm sure pain to go with it he said; this is not just because of the brain signals having a problem.  He said you've got to get this worked on.  I told him we have an appointment for craniosacral on Saturday and then massage next Friday.  He thinks these things will definitely help.  As an update to yesterday with Bridgett remembering the speech therapists name--today I asked in the morning and in the late afternoon--what is your speech therapists name?  She couldn't remember so I said it starts with an "L" and she said LeAnn right off!  That's improved short term memory!  Also I asked for the physical therapists name and said it starts with an "S" and she said Shane?  It's great to see this progress!!  During the afternoon my mom came by with my older brother Frank who was here for his daughter's graduation.  I was so happy that Frank took time out of his schedule to stop by (he lives in Vegas).  Bridgett visited for a bit and then went to the bedroom for a nap.  We all had a very good time and it was a very relaxing for me.  He's only in town for two days so I was happy he could spend so much time with me.  In the evening I asked Bridgett do you recognize these names:  Jackson, Jaiden, and Justus?  She said they are my cousins aren't they?  This is the first time she's remembered anyone from the extended family and just by talking about them.  I said who are their parents and she said Dave and Danni.  Later I said do you remember these names: Aaron, Michael, Heather, Ashley and Emily.  She said they are my cousins too aren't they.  I said who are their parents and she said Aunt Susie and Uncle Sayre (Sayre is their last name, it's actually Uncle Scott, but perhaps in her mind with a brother Scott this is the differentiation).  Anyway, it was very exciting.  Later I tried doing some more relatives, but by that time Bridgett was tired.  Tomorrow we'll try again.  It's great to see daily progress in her memory.  BTW Bridgett read with the Kindle twice today, for about 5 minutes each time.  Tomorrow we will try for more reading!

Day 127 - Thursday April 19, 2012

Every day it is an adventure to see what else Bridgett can remember!  I asked her about some more scripture mastery scriptures and although she didn't remember them all, she remembered quite a few!  She is always the most clear in the evening--I may have said that before--so I pick evenings to ask her things like this. Also in the evening she sat around with Steph and Tyler (Arri was at a concert) and sang songs that she used to like and she remembered the words to the songs.  She also remembered many of the gestures that the girls had made up when they sang together.  That was fun!  Of course, remember that even in the hospital she was remembering Disney songs!  At the brain injury support group they talked about how important music is.  In fact they said that there was one patient who could only speak one word but she could sing about 50.  And the craniosacral guy, Joshua, said to listen to a lot of music.  So, all of these things were exciting and fun.  Now for the day---we had speech therapy and physical therapy.  Both went great.  First speech--I brought the Kindle that Kasey had lent to us and interestingly enough LeAnn brought her Kindle for Bridgett to try out.  So, we had a side by side comparison of apples to apples and you could clearly see that at this point Bridgett really needs the keyboard Kindle--or at least the non-touch screen Kindle.  The large Kindle is what Kasey has--but it costs like $379.  Bridgett read for LeAnn and then LeAnn told us that the thing that will really helps with the brain is reading and that is what she assigns patients to do.  Of course, before now it has been too hard for Bridgett to read much.  And, since she has started reading many things are improving--we have already noticed it and it's only been a few days!  So, I am excited!!!  Next LeAnn asked Bridgett some questions about herself and she did pretty good on memory.  LeAnn asked Bridgett if she remembered her (LeAnn's) name and she didn't so LeAnn told her.  About 10 minutes later she asked if Bridgett remembered and she said no so LeAnn gave her three choices of "L" names and Bridgett picked the right one.  Then a half an hour later LeAnn did the same thing only this time the prompt was that her name started with an "L" and Bridgett remembered.  I am inserting here......after we had physical therapy and then went home I also asked Bridgett and just had to give her the "L" hint and she still remembered!  I asked again when it had been 3-1/2 hours and she still remembered!  YES!  LeAnn will be excited to hear about this!  Back to speech therapy now...LeAnn did that game where she plays a tape and the guy says words.  Every time he said a "B" word then Bridgett was supposed to push a button.  It's long--I started watching the clock after a bit and he went for two minutes while I watched--so I think it was like a three minute thing.  Anyway, Bridgett got every word except one and what was better and made LeAnn so happy--she remembered what she was doing for the entire time and even afterwards she could tell LeAnn what she was supposed to do.  That was a big improvement!  Next she read sentences for Bridgett to repeat.  Bridgett's good at this.  LeAnn started with 7 word sentences, them up to 15 word sentences and Bridgett did great.  Also, LeAnn quizzed her about the sentences afterwards and Bridgett had good recall and remembered everything.  Next LeAnn did short three and four sentence stories and asked comprehension questions.  Bridgett got most of these without prompts and the ones she missed she got with the prompt.  Bridgett's assignment--to read.  My assignment--to post very short phrases about Bridgett around the room--I am 22, I live at Alpine Village Apts. etc. Oh, to insert again--Bridgett went to the bathroom at home before we left and made it through both one hour therapy sessions and back home before needing to go again!  (the evening was not so good again, but at least the day was better!)  Next we went to physical therapy.  Bridgett rode the bike and did the stair stepper thing.  Also she walked outside on the rocks again and did very well.  Shane had her walk along the curb too.  When we went inside he talked to us and said that Bridgett is doing well at most things including balance etc.  He said that all she really needs is to increase in stamina and strength.  He knows that she hurts but believes that as she continues to do things anyway the brain will heal and things will quit hurting.  It was a good day and he and I could both see that she was feeling better than two weeks ago.  So all around it was a good day and I feel so good about things.  Also I talked to an experienced massage therapist who worked in the medical profession for over seven years.  She has so much experience with injuries including lots of knowledge about TBI.  She will see Bridgett next Friday.  She said she felt very good about the craniosacral guy, especially when she heard that he had a TBI too and she said to continue with him.  She also said to continue with Dr. Roberts.  She said that Bridgett is in a great window in time to have work done.  About the memory...she also said that she had a client who didn't remember long term for many, many months but then it all came back to him.  So, she said just hang in there and do everything you think that may help--which is what we are doing!

Day 126 - Wednesday April 18, 2012

It's been 18 weeks--just over four months since the accident.  Most of the time Bridgett remembers who we are (the family) and some basic facts about herself.....where she was born and her birthday, where we live now.  It's been great having her remember things she previously had memorized.  Today was great because although she has been doing some reading......she spent pretty much all of OT reading!  Kasey got out his large Kindle and away she went.  Bridgett loves Alice in Wonderland and when given a choice of several things to read she picked that (yes!  she knew she liked it I think).  She read 25 pages of the book--in large print.  We started out with the third to largest font but her eyes got tired so she removed her reading glasses and Kasey switched to the second to largest font which is on average about 35 words per page.  That was great!  Kasey was impressed.  He made some helps for her--placing orange tape on the left side so that she would look all the way to the left and placing a bright green "button" on the page button so that she could see where to turn the page and perfecting her guide strip.  Then part way through he had someone else from his office come in and she listened to Bridgett and began to quiz her.  When Bridgett couldn't remember what happened she had her go back a page and try to figure out.  It was helpful for me to hear how she did it so that I can do the same thing with Bridgett at home. She said part of the time just let her read and part of the time ask comprehension
questions. Anyway Kasey then told me that I could borrow the Kindle for the week to see if it works out.  He also lend me an adjustable easel type thing to put on the table in front of Bridgett as she reads.  It will hold the Kindle so that her hands are free to use the reading guide.  All in all a very neat system!  Afterwards Dr. Freestone checked Bridgett's eye to see if anything unusual was happening.  He said that everything looks fine.  He believes that the pain is from strain as the brain attempts to force the eye to move past the mid point.  Continually all day the eye is being forced to it's limits and it's causing fatigue for the eye.  He said that patching the eye will help.  Bridgett mostly hates having the eye patched but we will see what we can do.  Then we all stood in the hallway and talked for a few minutes--Dr. Freestone, Kasey, Bridgett and I.  I had her repeat D&C 82:10 for them.  I said it's good she's remembering things even if it's not consistent--she may forget later and then remember again.  He said anything she remembers is good and a sign of healing in the brain.  After we got home Bridgett sat down with Arrianne and Steph and did more reading.  Later on she was saying things that showed deductive reasoning.  Arrianne commented that the reading seemed to help things along.  In the evening Steph was sitting looking at something on the ipad.  She said to me--do you know that Jackie Chan is "in" Kung Fu Panda?  I said which animal and she said the monkey (I think!).  I turned to Bridgett and said do you know who Jackie Chan is and she said isn't he that guy that makes martial arts movies!  That was great!  Little by little--every day a little more. 

Day 125 - Tuesday April 17, 2012

Today was a good day.  We went to Jenn's house so that Bridgett could have some acupressure work done.  So, Jenn said that every one's chi is messed up to some degree, but that she could hardly feel any energy movement at all on Bridgett.  She was specifically working on her bladder meridian.  I said so what do we need to do about that and she said unblock it!  Bridgett did a good job of relaxing and let Jenn work on her.  I told Jenn that we need to actually schedule appointments with her or otherwise life gets in the way so we scheduled to see her again for acupressure on Friday.  I am also thinking about other ways to get chi moving.  Jenn said that exercise helps chi to move so walking is good--we do this at rehab plus even when we don't "go walking" she gets lots of walking and getting up and down going to the bathroom!  I started writing down every time she goes...nineteen times between 5:43 pm and 9:18 pm.  I am going to keep a 24 hour record to give to the doctor.  Speaking of doctors...Dr. Speed's office called this morning and said that her culture from the 6th did grow out bacteria but not at a high level.  They said that Dr. Speed wants her on bactrim.  I reminded them that she is already on amoxicillin for her teeth which I had told them the day before.  They said to finish that and then do the bactrim.  She will finish the first antibiotic on Thursday so Friday we will start the second one.  I also talked to the dentists office today.  They received the actual pictures of Bridgett's teeth from the orthodontist (thanks Dr. Stebbins!!! you are great!!) and sent them to Pat who is making her crowns.  We will meet with him on Friday morning to make sure that the crowns will fit...remember there is that issue that since they did not put temporaries on her teeth might have moved.  We will also discuss the coloring of the crowns.  Bridgett always wanted to bleach her teeth and the crowns will not bleach out so Mark and I decided to have them do those teeth a little whiter and then she can bleach the others to match.  I have been busy sorting and categorizing all the many receipts that we have accumulated so far.  We have set up a special needs trust and I got a "company" set up in QuickBooks to keep track of all expenditures.  You can't believe all the Explanation of Benefits we have received from the insurance company so far...pages and pages like over 80 a week.  Then all of these have to be reconciled against the actual bills to make sure that everything is correct.  Anyway it is a daunting task but forward we go.  I downloaded Alice in Wonderland onto the ipad and in the afternoon we did some reading.  It is frustrating trying to guide Bridgett without accidentally touching the screen but I put a piece of paper on the screen and that helped some.  Kasey had suggested a piece of plastic and that would be much better I'm sure.  It's still quite the juggling act--holding the ipad and pointing without touching the screen and trying to stay at the right distance for Bridgett to be able to read.  I think we will try sitting at the table tomorrow.  I am still contemplating getting a Kindle as well. In the evening Aunt Debbi stopped by.  We showed her the ipad games that Bridgett is working on and did some of them while she was there.  After family prayer one of the kids--maybe Tyler-- asked her if she remembered this scripture....D&C 82:10 and she quoted it perfectly.  Of course, those are like the lead in words for a scripture.  She had already done the Articles of Faith since Tyler missed hearing her as he was gone to Billings.  Little by little I guess we can retrieve information! Oh, I also left a message with the Moran Eye Clinic about Bridgett's left eye hurting all of the time.  She closes it most of the time and says it hurts.  One of the first days that she did this Tyler asked her why she was closing it and she said because she is blind in that eye.  I said what!  Then I said can you see light and she said yes.  Is everything just really blurry and she said yes.  I don't know if something has changed with the eye or if the brain is just getting better and acknowledging that there is a real discrepancy in her vision between eyes.  I talked to Kasey about it last week and he said to give Dr. Warner a call at the Moran to see what she thought.  Maybe they need to see her again before we leave to Montana.  Anyway hopefully I will hear back from them soon. 

Day 124 - Monday April 16, 2012

Today we had speech therapy and physical therapy.  LeAnn asked me to bring in Bridgett's book that I made telling about her life.  We spent some time going through it.  Bridgett remembers some things...she USUALLY remembers her birthday, although today she thought the month of her birthday was October, she remembers her family (usually), etc.  She does not remember her favorite color or food etc.  LeAnn thought the book was great.  Eventually she did tell me that she had one client who was a young father who never got his long term memory back but he learned a new life and was happy.  She said to not worry about the old memories just move forward.  I said what about all that long term information in her memory--22 years worth.  Then I asked Bridgett to repeat the 13th article of faith.  I gave her the first words and she did it fast and flawlessly.  Also the quote from Thomas Jefferson.  I said these things are long term memory and she said yes.  LeAnn said that Bridgett is obviously remembering some things.  She said just move forward and perhaps more will come back at some point.  Anyway, Bridgett had to go to the bathroom and she remembered how to get there from LeAnn's office and that was a first.  At home I yesterday I started doing this--she always asks where is the bathroom even though we go there MANY times a day so now I say see if you can find it and she always does.  She has lost the confidence that she can find things or remember things.  LeAnn and I told her to just guess at things--she's usually right.  So, we are slowly working on that.  We went over the ipad games that Bridgett has been working on and there were some that LeAnn hadn't seen before.  She said that the naming app is very good because it also asks you to describe and categorize things.  I knew that was good from talking to Shar.  After speech therapy I had Bridgett try to walk us the right way to Physical therapy--it's quite a little walk down several halls--and she did just great on that too.  Physical therapy went well.  Bridgett walked on the treadmill for a while.  Next she walked the beam for balance followed by walking a line on the floor frontwards and backwards.  Next she hit a balloon in the air in front of her as she walked down the hallway.  Then Shane did some stretching out because Bridgett's back was hurting.  She said that he believes the pain is just the brain signals confused because none of the muscles have any tension.  Shane talked to Bridgett about using the therapy pool next session and it was decided that we will do that.  After therapy she was cute because I told her that Tyler was back from drill so in a few minutes she said can I go home and see my brother Tyler?  The rest of the day Bridgett was alert and happy.  She visited with everyone and she was very sweet and cute.  She stayed awake late although she did take a very short cat nap on the couch.

Day 123 - Sunday April 15, 2012

Today was a pretty quiet day.  Mark left to Montana and arrived safely.  We spent some time with Jenn and the kids.  Bridgett's teeth are just hurting a little and they said that for a week they may hurt.  Thank you all for your prayers in her behalf.  Since they did not set the temporaries we are hoping that the teeth don't move too much and there is no problem setting the crowns a week from Monday (the 23rd).  It will be nice when the whole process of the teeth is finished and there are no more worries on that front.  Otherwise, things are pretty much the same--generalized pain all over and urinary frequency.

Day 122 - Saturday April 14, 2012

Today we had an appointment for Bridgett to have a massage.  Massages have been recommended to us by several people including Dr. Speed, the neuro rehab doctor.  He specifically mentioned acupressure.  Jenn found the name of a guy that specifically works with clients who have disabilities of some kind. In fact, this therapist had a TBI himself about 14 years ago.  His name is Josh and he of course has some first hand experience and insight so that was good.  He specifically did some craniosacral therapy.  Towards the end he did some acupressure as well.  He said that he recommends that she take colostrum to help repair the brain.  Also, he recommends that we take her to see things that are stimulating for the brain--museums, parks, etc.  He said to listen to lots of music. Josh also said that everything that she does with her hands will help her brain to heal. When doing the massage he was trying to work on her brain but also to address the urinary tract issue.  She did really well at her appointment.  She made it about 50 minutes before she had to take a bathroom break.  Most of the time that Bridgett is awake she is going to the bathroom like every 10 minutes.  Of course since I go with her every time we are doing lots of walking back and forth and standing up and down. It is hard to get other things accomplished.  When she is at therapy etc. the frequency slows down somewhat, but she is still going every 25 minutes approximately.  This has been going on for quite some time now.  To recap--the doctors did a urine culture and there's no infection.  We did five days of Phenazopyridine and that slowed things down a bit while she was on it but now we are back to going lots.  They were going to do another culture, but the dentist put her on antibiotics and they said that the antibiotic is at the same dosage that they would use for a UTI.  So, she is on that until next Saturday and we are waiting to see if things get better.  So far there is no change.  We are not sure but the doctors think that something is up with the brain signal for urination and as the brain heals that things will get better.  I would have to look back in my notes, but this has been going on for a long time.  I'm sure it's frustrating for her although she doesn't remember how long its been since she last went.  She just says that her feet or her legs are getting tired--from lots of walking and getting up and down I guess!  We scheduled to see Josh again next Saturday.  I'm glad that he works on Saturdays for a few appointments since we are usually busy during the week with therapy appointments and doctor appointments. 

Day 121 - Friday April 13, 2012

Today was a good day.  We met with Dr. Roberts and then headed to Salt Lake to meet with Kasey at the Low Vision Clinic.  I took the book that I made for her that tells about her life.  I had added some new pages that she had never read before.  I showed Kasey the book and had Bridgett read two of the pages that she hadn't read before.  When she finished he turned to his two students that were observing and said this is what sometime happens.  You plan a very good day and then things have changed so you scrap your plan and improvise.  He said that Bridgett was doing so good he needed to shift gears.  Her reading was a lot better.  He did a text where he puts up a white board with the number 0-9 and times her while she finds each on in order.  It was a night and day difference from when she started there.  Next Kasey got out some worksheets and had her identify the letter A in a string of letters.  She did OK but when he used a reading guide she did much better.  Then he got out his ipad and his Kindle and showed us things.  He had Bridgett read in the largest font from the ipad.  She needed the largest font but could then read just fine.  He used a piece of paper as a guide.  This is where I see the benefit of a Kindle...you can touch the screen and nothing happens so you can use your finger as a guide without changing the screen in any way.  Hmmm.  So in that light Kindle would be better for her right now.  But the apps on the ipad are better.  We need something that can handle both!  The very thing that makes ipad great--the touch screen--is it's limiting factor right now.  Anyway, we talked about memory.  Kasey suggested we get her a watch that displays clearly the date including the day of the week so that she can stay oriented.  Next session we are going to work on using the calendar app.  So anyway, things are coming along.  I was glad that Bridgett was feeling better since it's been a rough week for her.  Later on after we got home she wanted to go for a walk, although we just walked once up and down the hallway outside and then she was tired and wanted to rest.  Then she wanted to go driving.  Mark said you can ride with me but you can't drive and Bridgett agreed to that.  He suggested going to the Golden Spoon and she said that would be OK.  We drove to Orem and went into the Golden Spoon--where Bridgett used to work.  She did not recognize anything.  The gal that was working was very sweet.  Mark introduced Bridgett and she said her name was Beth and she had worked with Bridgett for a bit although we hadn't met her.  She was very nice.  I asked her to have the manager, Kira, call us as Bridgett was good friends with Kira.  I am hoping that she can meet with Kira and this will help her remember things.  We also plan to take her to the Liahona Preparatory Academy and meet with Brother and Sister DeGraff to see if that sparks memories.  Brother DeGraff would be thrilled to know that today I asked Bridgett if she remember the quote by Thomas Jefferson that goes....if a nation expects....and she filled in with the entire quote.... " If a nation expects to be ignorant and free in a state of civilization it expects what never was and never will be."  As I said before, the brain is a very complex thing.  It is strange what the mind remembers and how sometimes things are so clear and other times they are not.

Day 120 - Thursday April 12, 2012

Exciting news this evening!  Just before bed after we had family prayer I felt like I should ask Bridgett if she remembered the Articles of Faith. For those of you who aren't LDS, these are a list of 13 statements that explain what we believe.  Most of them start "we believe"  I gave her the first few words (at least two words after we believe) and she repeated EVERY ONE OF THEM!  Wow!  That was huge!  The 13th one is pretty long and I had to give her one word in the middle, but she got it!  When she got into bed I asked her who was the prophet that translated the Book of Mormon and she said Joseph Smith.  Who is our prophet today and she said Thomas S. Monson.  Stephany asked who was the prophet before that and she had to give her the first letter of his first name but she got Gordon B. Hinckley.  Of course, the memory is an interesting thing.  At the same time she is remembering these things she doesn't remember other things that you would think she would remember...what day it is for example.  But, in bits and pieces things are coming back.  She can still spell like crazy and has been able to do that almost as soon as she could talk.  She occasionally misses one letter but not very often.  Most of the day Bridgett was still feeling "sick" and she slept and only woke up to eat or go to the bathroom.  I had to cancel her therapy appointments.  Her ears are hurting.  She's on antibiotics so I guess if she has an infection that should take care of it.  The rehab doctor's office said it would take care of the UTI as well if she has one.  She had to take Lortab for the pain in her teeth again today.  They gave us a prescription for 14 so apparently they are thinking that it is likely that she will need pain meds for a few days.  Tomorrow we have an appointment with Dr. Roberts in American Fork and then on to the Low Vision Clinic to see Kasey.  I am hoping that she feels well enough to go.  Since we are planning to leave next month every day of rehab is important. 

Day 119 - Wednesday April 11, 2012

I think that we will plan to leave to Montana sometime after the 8th of May.  We can stay in the apartment as long as we want to.  We have rehab appointments scheduled until the 17th, but the kids would definitely like to go home before that.  I might stay with Bridgett and let Mark and the girls so home and keep Tyler here to help.  We just don't know at this moment.  So the next problem--how to get Bridgett home.  Driving is definitely out of the question.  I don't know if she will be able to handle all the commotion of the Salt Lake airport or not. We have a few weeks to figure it out and hopefully a solution will come to us! There is an airport in Provo but I don't know if any of the airlines that fly out of there fly into Kalispell.  I will do some checking on that.  We are also still in the process of finding out if there is adequate therapy for Bridgett.  For sure there is no low vision therapy, I did find out that much.  Today we went to the place that is making her crowns.  They did some matching for color for the crowns.  Bridgett was bleaching her teeth before the accident.  Whatever color they pick for the crowns will stay the same so if she wants to bleach later they need to put in lighter material now.  So, it's a juggling act somewhat.  Also, the guy at the crown place said it's a little problem not having temporaries on now as the teeth can move somewhat without them.  Then it is challenging to place the crowns.  I said so it's important to get them the sooner the better.  We already asked for a rush order and with paying extra they can get them by the 23rd of April.  Otherwise it would be another week.  I wish that they could get them even fast!  Their office is next door to the dentist.  Actually that building has quite a few dentists in it as well as doctors.  Anyway, he said that we could come in next week, part way into the process, to check and make sure that everything is OK.  That would save adjustments when they place the crowns so we will try that.  The man was very nice.  Bridgett was still very sleepy today and her teeth were hurting.  I gave her Lortab throughout the day.  The dentist's office said that the antibiotics are routine in order to avoid any infection.  Bridgett has therapy tomorrow so hopefully she will have more energy.  The rest of the family either has a cold or is fighting a cold, so perhaps she feels crummy from that too.  Mostly I just tried to let her rest.  Her appetite was good.

Day 118 - Tuesday April 10, 2012

We got Bridgett up at 6:35 and took her to the bathroom and right to the dentist's office.  Once there we did last minute paperwork and they let us come back and stay with Bridgett while they got her comfortable and sedated.  We waited in the waiting during the dental work and they came and got us when she was ready to wake up.  Of course it was hard waiting but I brought the computer and worked on my blog among other things.  I thought I would make some calls but I was so keyed up and emotional I didn't feel like talking.  Somehow it brought back many memories of things that we have already been through and I started crying a few times.  But this should be the last time she gets sedated!  Hurrah!  They didn't kick us out being with Bridgett until about 7:30 and then came out somewhat after 9:00 to tell us that they were through and cleaning up after the impressions.  They said that when they start waking her up we could be with her.  By the time they came and got us she had opened up her eyes once but said she wanted to sleep more and went back to sleep.  I held her hand while they told us how she did and by the time the anesthesiologist finished reporting she started opening her eyes and talking a bit to us.  She was groggy and her mouth somewhat swollen but she was waking up and talking coherently so we were happy.  Mark helped her into a wheelchair and we took her to the car.  On the way to the car her neurosurgeon called to check on her progress.  I gave her a short report and by that time we were ready to go back around the block to home.  The dentist's office gave us a prescription for Lortab as well as 10 days worth of antibiotic (I didn't ask why but will call tomorrow).  They said she might be groggy for up to four hours but that she could go home and go right to sleep--sleeping on her side.  We literally waked her to her bed and she slept for two hours.  When she woke up she was starving and wanted to eat.  BTW they did give her Novocaine as well, so her mouth was numb they thought for about two hours.  The two hours had passed and she said she wasn't numb (but who knows) so I offered her soft things--hot cereal, yogurt, etc. but she wanted french toast (surprise, surprise!).  She ate two pieces and then asked for more and said she was starving.  I made two more pieces and she ate both of them.  Perhaps she will actually want to eat now!  It was funny and made us all happy too!  She went back to sleep for about an hour then woke up hungry again and ate two ravioli from yesterday's birthday dinner.  Oh, I forgot--when she woke up the first time and was walking down the hallway she said why do I hurt all over? This is her usual question quite a few times a day for the past few weeks.  I often answer that it is because of her brain injury or her wreck but sometimes I just say I don't know.  This time I said I don't know but how does your mouth feel. She said my mouth is the only thing that doesn't hurt.  That was cool!  About three hours after we got home she said her mouth hurt some so I gave her the Lortab hoping to get it down before the big pain arrived.  Bridgett slept most of the day, waking to go to the bathroom or to eat a little bit.  She was a little more awake in the evening just before bed and we talked in the bedroom while she was getting ready to sleep--like we always do.  I sang a little bit of I Am a Child of God and asked if she remembered that song and she said yes.  What meeting on Sunday do little children go to and sing that song I said and she said Primary!  We were all excited that she remembered that.  I asked what she went to during high school early in the morning and she said seminary!  Stephany asked about young women's and she had to say young and then Bridgett answered women's.  I was so excited and happy I started crying.  I had been sad earlier about her amnesia and praying for comfort and this was it!  I had read that if you take the length of the coma (three weeks) and multiply by four (12 weeks) that is the average length of amnesia.  So, that was 15 weeks and we are at 17 weeks.  Of course, we are talking averages but it is a little worrisome.  I had consigned myself to the fact that it is possible that she might not remember her childhood--but the long term memory also holds the information we have accumulated through the years....who was the first president of the United States, etc.  That would be so hard to lose all that knowledge and have to relearn everything!  So, I am seeing light at the end of the tunnel.  Many things I read say the same thing--the longer the amnesia the more severe the brain injury.  So, we will be patient and bit by bit her memory will hopefully return.

Day 117 - Monday April 9, 2012 Bridgett's Birthday!!

Today is Bridgett's 22nd birthday! She had a good day.  Bridgett had therapy appointments today because with the appointment for getting her teeth done tomorrow and the possibility that she might feel poorly the next day and needing to get two appointments in this week, it was unavoidable.  She had physical therapy first and then speech therapy.  Shane was out of town this week, so Alan saw Bridgett instead.  He said he's not as fun as Shane but he would try to do the best he could.  He had Bridgett ride the recumbent bike first.  She was tired and didn't pedal very hard, but he kept encouraging her and she would speed up.  Next he took her outside to walk on the large rock border and had her walk along two of the borders.  He said this forces the brain to work on balance and further stimulates the brain.  Bridgett did pretty well, although on the way back she was a little more unstable and he held onto her for a bit of the time.  Next he took her in and had her on a balance board, first that rocked side to side.  He had her play catch with me while he spotted her.  Next she had to stand on the balance board while it could rock front to back.  She immediately started a rapid shaking forward and backward.  She said I don't even know what's happening.  He said your brain is trying to reset itself and establish balance.  After a bit it settled down and then we played catch again.  Next he had her balance on half ball type things.  She did pretty well and at first he said you make that look too easy.  After a bit she started to lose her balance, but corrected.  Next she walked on the treadmill, followed by rapid walking down the hallway.  On to speech therapy.  Bridgett's vision was good today and she did well at the visual tasks.  She did sorting of playing cards by suit and organization by number.  She did some writing, and recall.  We talked about her birthday.  Last Thursday LeAnn tried to get Bridgett to remember our family traditions from major holidays and she couldn't remember any of them. On Sunday at Jenn's house the people at the end of the table were talking about strange Thanksgiving meals and Bridgett heard them say they had pizza one Thanksgiving.  She turned to me and said I feel as if that was a strange thing to eat on Thanksgiving.  What do we normally eat I said.  Turkey she said.  And mashed potatoes.  So, she remembered something and that was exciting.  Several times lately she has remembered something kind of random, but that we have not prompted her on in any way and that's encouraging.  LeAnn said to me.... I'm sure that you realize that Bridgett is very vulnerable right now.  Anyone could tell her things and she's entirely open to any suggestion.  She said don't leave her alone anywhere, which obviously we don't.  Her memory seems weaker sometimes when we are at therapy, then when we are back with the family in familiar surroundings it is better.  After therapy we went home and got ready for dinner.  I made reservations at the Olive Garden which was one of her favorite places to eat before.  The Olive Garden was so nice!  I explained the situation about Bridgett's birthday and her injury and asked if we could send one person ahead to order for everyone.  They said we'll do better than that!  Get your order together (using the menu online) and email it and we will have the table set and salads and bread sticks down and ready.  They said they would start our meals the minute we came in, which they did.  After we got there, they also said they would buy dessert for everyone.  They were awesome!  I didn't know if Bridgett would want ravioli or ziti, as she likes both, so I ordered both and figured we'd take the other one home for tomorrow.  She wanted the ziti, which is what I really thought.  She was starving and ate 2/3 of it!  Afterwards everyone was stuffed but they said we could get dessert to go, which three of the family did, including Bridgett.  We went home and sang to her and she opened presents and ate the cake from Olive Garden, which looked fancier than our cake although she did blow out candles on our cake.  She put the candles in herself.  Then Jamie showed up and she really enjoyed him coming over.  He brought gourmet cupcakes with him and they looked awesome.  Bridgett went to bed happy and we felt that she had a very good day.  I was glad that she ate well and got to bed semi early since the dentist appointment is at 7 a.m. tomorrow.  No eating and drinking after 11:00, which will be no problem at all!  We will just get her up and take her over in her sweats. The dentists office is just around the block.  Oh, by the way, thanks to the Montana Easter Bunny for the beautiful flowers we received!!

Day 116 - Sunday April 8, 2012

On this Easter Sunday we are so grateful for the atonement and for the great sacrifice of our elder brother, Jesus Christ.  Our hearts are very full and we are very thankful for all the many blessings and the tender mercies of the Lord.  We are daily grateful that our Bridgett is here with us.  We thank our Father daily for the miracles we are witnessing. We are thankful for each of you and the part you play in our lives.  Thanks so much for your love and prayers.  Speaking of prayers, please pray with us for Bridgett as Tuesday morning she will be sedated and undergo dental work for the three root canals and crowns that need to be done, as well as the build-up of the fourth tooth.  She will go to the dentist at 7 a.m. and hopefully it will only take two hours.  It will be wonderful to have it all taken care of and have her out of that pain.  It's hard to believe that she has made it almost four months with the pain of those teeth.  But, at least now the doctors feel that she will be fine during the procedure.  We had a good day.  Because of Bridgett's urinary frequency, she and I stayed home from church and everyone else went with Jenn to sacrament meeting.  For dinner we ate at Jenn's house and she was such a very gracious host.  We had a great time with the kids and visiting with everyone.  Bridgett was feeling a little better in the evening.  Evenings are usually the best time of day for her.  After dinner she took a nap at Jenn's and then we headed home a little after 7:00 so that Jenn and Tyler could get the kids to bed.  I think that Bridgett's pain was a little less this evening as well, as three times I heard her doing her little humming that she does when she is happy.  We are always so happy when her pain is less. Tomorrow is Bridgett's birthday, April 9th.  For those of you who haven't noticed, I always post the next day because by the time she finally gets to bed, I have to hit the hay as well!  I am a definite morning person!  I post early before she wakes up for the day.  Oh, funniest thing...because Bridgett aches all over I suggested that she take a bath instead of a shower.  I got the bath water ready and put in some special bath salts to help with achiness.  So she got in the bath and after a while asked how long she could stay in.  I told her she could soak as long as she wanted.  Several times we had to add more hot water.  After a bit she asked if she could sleep in the bathtub.  Not usually I said, but since I am in here with you it would be OK if you try to sleep.  Then in a few minutes...can you turn off the light she said.  I turned off the light so that she could see that it would be pitch black and she said that's fine.  Well, I can't tell if you're OK so the light has to stay on.  Do you want to put on that eye cover that you use for sleeping when it's dark I asked.  YES!  So, we got the eye cover and she just stayed in the bathtub for like 1-1/2 hours!  She was so much more comfortable soaking in the warm water and afterwards I think she felt quite a bit better.  It was really funny!

Day 115 - Saturday April 7, 2012

Bridgett continues to be in pain; she says everything hurts.  Of course, not everything, but it feels like it because her insides hurt everywhere, as well as her back, neck and head.  The Lyrica does not help.  Her kidneys hurt quite a bit although they say there is no infection--in fact this afternoon she said she needed to go to the hospital because her kidneys hurt so bad.  I finally gave her a lortab for pain, which the doctor had prescribed before.  It didn't take away all the pain, but she quit saying that she needed to go to the hospital.  I talked to a gal whose son had a TBI.  She said that a "low grade" constant infection that is strep or staph can reside in the urinary tract and not show up in the culture.  It causes many symptoms, but the frequency is one of them.  Anyway, whatever is the problem we need to find out because it is fairly interruptive of normal life!  We worked on the ipad as well as did flashcards and Bridgett did well.  She still doesn't like to wear the reading glasses, but they do help.     

Day 114 - Friday April 6, 2012

Today Bridgett had a really good day.  She was laughing and joking with us.  She is still having frequency but it is calmed down...yeah! We had an appointment with Dr. Roberts, whom Bridgett has seen in the past (before the accident) for energy work.  She seemed to recognize him somewhat and she immediately fell into the routine of testing and treatment.  He was able to relieve some of her pain immediately..yeah!  We had a very nice visit with him.  Bridgett was so funny and kept us laughing and smiling.  He said to her...Bridgett you still make me laugh.  He said afterwards...she didn't lose any of that great personality! That's how I feel.  Some days she doesn't feel well, but she is still our Bridgett.  Afterwards she seemed so much more like herself, I guess without so many pain  distractions. Dr. Roberts said he thinks that she is doing great, and we love hearing that from anyone. This is funny--for some reason when Bridgett eats (pre accident) she always leaves one bite on her plate.  So lately she is doing that same thing.  She will leave one bite and then a few minutes later say she is hungry and wants something else.  It's never been about that she's too full I don't think.  It's just a habit to stop before she's full.  Anyway, more and more we see her doing things like that...things that she has always done.  It's very reassuring to us.  More and more her language usage is improving.  There is an app on the ipad that I really love called naming.  One of the tasks shows a picture, asks for the name, what does it look like, where do you find it, how big is it, etc.  That's a great thing for her to work on.  We have learned that all of the information is still in her brain, it just has to be re-categorized and re-filed. This was funny...Thursday at speech therapy LeAnn was giving her lists of 3-4 words and asking what they were.  Bridgett always finds new and unique ways to look at things, which I have commented on before.  Anyway, she asked what a bracelet, watch and cuff link have in common, of course wanting to hear that they are all jewelry.  Bridgett said they are all things you wear on the wrist.  And of course, that is correct!  I love it when she comes up with things unexpected that are also correct! 

Day 113 - Thursday April 5, 2012

Therapy went well today.  Bridgett was a little distracted in speech therapy, but remembered what she was supposed to be pushing the buzzer for during the two minute tape, so that was an improvement.  LeAnn tried to get her to do some remembering about past holidays with the family.  Bridgett was unable to remember anything about our traditions etc.  Then LeAnn did some describing of words and Bridgett did awesome.  Next she read short paragraphs and asked questions afterwards.  Bridgett remembered most of the points of the paragraphs.  So, I think this indicates that her short term memory is improving.  Things like remembering text words is not part of long term memory.  I forget what they call it but it is remembering things that you do repetitively.  She has obviously done well at that and I'm sure most people do.  Of course, most TBI patients also remember long term memory.  But, we will just recreate that for her I guess.  When you are told stories long enough you begin to believe they actually happened, or you remember the incident described from the description, not from the memory.  Physical therapy went pretty good.  We talked about Bridgett's hypersensitivity and Shane said it could be hormonally related and it is that time of the month.  Actually she has had this happen like three times and I think it has always coincided so we learn something new every day.  This also helps us to see that it will pass shortly.  It is pretty miserable for Bridgett--literally everything hurts.  Every part of her body is signalling pain and sensitivity.  She keeps asking--why does everything hurt.  Since her short term memory is still building she can't remember what I last answered so she is wondering all of the time. First Bridgett walked on the treadmill.  Afterwards Shane worked on loosening her neck and shoulders as they were really hurting.  Next we went on a walk through the hospital and Shane had her try to remember the way back.  She did remember that he told her to take only left turns, so talking it through she said she needed to take right turns even though she thought she needed to walk left.  She corrected and we made it back after the discussion at the first turn.  I think her brain was set on left turns even though logic told her that she needed right turns.    In the evening I went the the Utah Valley TBI/Stroke support group that meets once a month.  Jenn went last week with Bree.  It was very informative and I realized that compared to the issues they were discussing Bridgett's language is doing awesome for this short after the accident.  She has very little trouble finding the correct words.  Of course, when it comes to expressing feelings etc we don't really do that much, so that could be different--defining more abstract things.  I feel at this point the memory is the issue.  I talked to one of the moderators (Carol) afterwards and she said that the stuff that occupational therapists do helps with long term memory. Carol is a speech therapist professor at BYU.  She of course is very knowledgeable and it was great to be able to talk to her.  I think all of the therapists do a lot of the same stuff just in a different way.   Anyway, right now Bridgett isn't getting much occupational therapy--hers is aimed at the low vision angle.  The low vision problem is the most important thing for her right now, but the occupational therapy would be great.  It's too bad that we can't do both, but the low vision clinic is considered occupational therapy.  It will all work out I'm sure--we just need patience.  Dr. Speed tells us that the largest strides are in the first year.  At the support group they said the first six months are the most critical, but the whole first year is important.  We are coming up on the four month mark (April 14) and so we are thinking about these things in relation to what our plan in for the future.  Oh, another neat thing is that Carol said that she could email me a lot of resources if I wanted them.  I said you bet I do!  She also will send me the name of a counselor that counsels families.  She said this woman watched her sister get hit by a car and thrown and land on her head.  As an adult she had so many issues following.  She definitely understands the issues that we face as family of the victim.  I will be anxious to talk with her as well.  I am very glad I went to the meeting and will plan to go every month, either here or in Montana.  The group is for TBI/stroke survivors and their caregivers. 

Day 112 - Wednesday April 4, 2012

Today was a pretty quiet and uneventful day.  Bridgett rested quite a bit.  My mom and my brother Justin came to visit around noon and we had a very good time with them.  Justin always has so many fun stories and it's always good to do some laughing!  The other kids had some doctor and dentist appointments so we had that going on.  Bridgett is telling us that everything hurts still and her insides feel "gross".  Her joints are cracking a lot.  I'm sure that she is still feeling achy from the impact of the accident and I don't know how long that will last.  Mark reminded me that his neck still bothers him from his accident 32 years ago (BUMMER!).  Jenn gave me the name of a very good massage therapist that had a brain injury himself.  Tomorrow I will call him and get an appointment and see if that helps at all.  We broke down and got an ipad for Bridgett and we have been installing apps that will be therapeutic for her.  There are some very interesting apps to be sure!  Also, books for her to read.  Apparently you can change the font so that the words are very large.  We will experiment with that tomorrow.  Also, we have speech and physical therapy tomorrow.

Day 111 - Tuesday April 3, 2012

Today we headed to Salt Lake, first to see Dr. Speed, the rehab doctor, and then to see Kasey at the low vision clinic.  Our appointment with Dr. Speed went well and the problem that Bridgett has been having with urinary frequency was very apparent.  She went to the bathroom as soon as we got there to the hospital.  Then we went again five or so minutes later when we got to his office.  We visited for a bit and then she had to go again.  Then  about 15 minutes later she asked to go again.  He distracted Bridgett by having her do some things he was going to have her do anyway, regarding balance, eyes etc.  The urinary frequency was the first question on my list of questions, so he could see the problem in action!  He ordered a urine test and we discussed some other things besides infection as being the problem.  I wondered if having a catheter for weeks has caused a problem..an irritation maybe.  He said possibly and in that case a medication taken for a few days would help.  Otherwise the frequency problem could be addressed with another med.  Or if there is an infection, they will take care of that.  She has no other symptoms of an infection and the frequency happens sometimes and not other times.  We will see what they find out.  We also discussed these problems.

• Fatigue.  He said this is a common problem with TBI and should get better.  He agreed with Shane that she can take up to four naps a day, each lasting for about 30 minutes.  Then after 30 minutes we should wake her.  He also advised us to start up the Ritalin every day in order to help her "wake up" for activities.
• Possible secondary concussion when she fell:  He said she very well did get a secondary concussion, however, he said it doesn't really matter.  She already had such an insult to the brain, the concussion is "small potatoes".  He said it's like you already have this big mountain of dirt.  What does it really matter if you throw a shovel full more on it.
• Getting her root canals done.  I was wondering if this will cause any set backs, now that she is finally back on track.  He said, no, go for it.  So, we will get the teeth done next Tuesday. 
• Endocrinologist:  I said they haven't contacted us yet, but it doesn't seem the passing out was because of this problem.  I explained that the neurosurgeon's office had said they think that things will get better on their own and said not to worry about it right now.  He agreed that it didn't really matter at this point.
• Thirst and hunger:  I said both are improving, but she still probably doesn't drink enough.  Apparently this is common with TBI patients.
• Aches and pains--hypersensitivity.  She still is pretty hypersensitive to touch, pain, heat/cold, etc.  He suggested Lyrica to help.  I will investigate some natural products first and then use the Lyrica samples to see how they work if nothing else helps.
• Acupressure: He suggested that this may help her.  Great!

All in all it was a very good appointment.  We got written proof that he recommended therapy closer to home (Provo) because of the problems she had in late February.  He said he was impressed with how she was doing.  We will see him again in 30 days.  Next we had the opportunity to meet up with Bishop Taylor, our bishop from back home.  He was in town visiting and met us up at the University of Utah hospital for a short visit.  He said he was impressed with how good Bridgett was looking and how healthy she seemed.  Those kinds of comments always are so good to hear!  Then we rushed off to our appointment with Kasey and although we were late, he had no other client afterwards, so gave Bridgett her entire therapy session.  First we looked at some stuff I brought with us:  the low vision cards I ordered, the therapy cards I got for speech/cognition (we went through a pack of them with him and Bridgett did great) and then the letter that Bridgett's cousin Tosha typed to Bridgett, using large font so that she could read it.  Bridgett didn't remember who it was from even, so of course didn't remember reading it (which she has done several times).  She read it for Kasey and I only had to point at about three words that she skipped or substituted for another word.  She did  great!  He was impressed at how much better she is reading.  Afterwards she did the Dynavision.  She did great the first time and worse the second time, so we moved to something else.  (she was very tired after the travel etc.)  Next he had her work on his computer with a large screen.  They surfed for free games, chose a couple to play and played them.  She did very good and he was impressed with her attention span.  Then he got out his ipad and they did games on this.  She again did well and I got the name of several games he recommends.  All in all a great day. Then we had to book it back to Provo in a GREAT hurry in order to get back for Arrianne's recital which started at 6:30.  Traffic was not horrible and we made it and dropped Bridgett off to Tyler and Stephany while we went to the recital.  Arri did amazing (of course!).  We got home and things were fine there.  It's like when you leave a baby at home--worrying about things!  Deb was there visiting and stayed for a bit and visited with us while Bridgett napped.  It was her first nap of the day.  Then she stayed up until about 10:30 and finished up the evening visitng and laughing with everyone while we were in bed.  The girls asked her about texting abbreviations:  idk, lol, etc. and she remembered all of them that they could think of!  Of course, she did text a lot so I guess those memories are really etched in the brain!  All in all a great day!

Day 110 - Monday April 3, 2012

A week from today will be Bridgett's birthday and she will be 22.  So, of course the month changes and she has to remember that, and the year changed while she was in a coma and she's trying to remember that--now her age will change!  We are not sure what we will do to celebrate, but we are trying to make plans.  Of course, it is a special birthday just having her alive!  Bridgett had speech and physical therapy today.  Speech therapy went well.  LeAnn actually spent quite a bit of time focused on reading type activities.  This is of course tiring for Bridgett, but she did well.  She had a little harder time with the written questions, as LeAnn printed them a little smaller (18 pt) and that was supposed to be OK.  But, it takes a lot of concentration from Bridgett.  LeAnn said she will print larger in order to let the focus be on the speech aspect instead of the vision aspect.  Physical therapy went well.  She did 10 minutes on the recumbent bike, and ten minutes on the stepper.  She did balance work and we did some talking.  I also missed the first 10 or so minutes and Mark was with her.  I was talking to LeAnn.  LeAnn is going to do some checking for me to try to find an experienced therapist in Montana.  Anyway, it was a good day all around.  Mike, Mandy and the kids came to visit, but I was crashed out.  Every once in a while I just lay down and I'm gone for a while and this was one of those times.  However, everyone had a good visit and Bridgett even remembered that they came when I asked her about it later--that's good!  Tomorrow we see Dr. Speed and also Kasey at the low vision clinic. 

Day 109 - Sunday April 1, 2012

So Bridgett got up and drank a Boost and then instead of napping (like usual!) she wanted to watch conference (yeah!).  She sat on the couch, where she usually lays down.  After a while Mark asked her why she was sitting instead of laying down and she said so I don't fall asleep!  Good idea Mark said.  Later on she did get tired and she did lay down, but she stayed awake for the whole morning session.  We took off and went to Jenn's for a quick lunch and a little visit.  Then we hurried back to the apartment to visit with President and Sister Busick, who stopped in to visit from Montana.  They were in town for conference.  Their youngest son had a traumatic brain injury in October.  It was very good to visit with them.  Bridgett talked/listened for a bit and then headed to her room for a nap.  That digital monitor I got works great and enabled me to come back to visit with everybody.  The Busick's also have a son in the Marines, so they had a short visit with us along those lines as well.  I keep forgetting to mention--whenever we drive in the car, all of the bumps in the road really bother Bridgett's neck.  When we drive to Salt Lake, she wears the soft collar for support.  When we drive around Provo she doesn't wear it.  Going in and out of the apartment complex is always painful--especially hitting the bumps when we cross the gutters.  I put my blinker on and slow way down and most people pass us.  I take the bumps slowly and at an angle to hopefully help them be less bumpy. Everywhere I drive, I try to be mindful of the bumps and avoid them if possible.  I know when people are driving behind me and I slow down around corners (because of the gutters or whatever)or when there are bumps they are probably annoyed.  So the next time you are annoyed about somebody's  driving, maybe they have a passenger (or even themselves) that has had a neck or back injury and they are doing the best they can. Just a thought.  I keep thinking about how Bridgett is so tired and it's probably just the healing process, although she was being given Amantadine to wake her up from the coma.  Perhaps without this drug she is very sleepy.  We will have to ask Dr. Speed on Tuesday.  I don't mind if she is sleepy I just wonder what is the best thing for her--just to sleep as much as she wants or to keep her awake more like the rehab guy is saying.  Hmmmmm......Anyway, it was a very good day.  The conference talks were wonderful (as usual) and so many seemed particularly applicable to our situation.  My heart was very full all weekend.  I learned of the death of several people who we have known or whose families we have known, including the passing of one the daughters of my very good friend Bobbi, the  passing of Melissa's mother (our secretary) as well as of the suicide of the son of one of the Parmenters. Their son was a Marine who Tyler knew. Of course, our family is still mourning the recent loss of my father and we deeply miss him.  In some way or another all of us have great challenges in life and have difficult situations to work through.  At times these challenges may seem insurrmountable.  We wonder how we will ever survive them.  No one is exempt from heartache and sorrow in this life, although we may have different sorrows.  However, we know that the Lord will guide us through these situations and that we will be able to endure them if we trust in Him. In a very small way we can feel the agony that the Savior felt in Gethsemane and we know that He knows the pain we each feel.  Jamie gave Bridgett a beautiful picture of the Savior that says "The way may be difficult at times, but I will always be there."   I pray daily for faith to endure and for inspiration and guidance. I pray for the same for all of us. I pray for each of us to have comfort and healing in our lives.

108 days - Saturday March 31, 2012

Today was a good day.  Bridgett's appetite has returned and she was starving!  She had a 1/2 Boost and two pieces of french toast for breakfast.  Then we went to lunch at Jenn's and she had lasagna, squash, and cauliflower.  On the way home she wanted a Costa Vida salad which she ate part of.  Then about 4:00 she asked for a churro and a taco from Del Taco.  She ended up eating 1/2 of my veggie burrito first, because it looked better, followed by the taco and churro.  Then about 6:00 she ate more of Jenn's lasagna and she followed that with the other 1/2 of her Boost from this morning.  She stayed up until 9:00 when Mark arrived from Montana. Bridgett was so excited to see Mark and of course he was so excited to see her--as were the rest of us! About 10:00, after visiting for a while and then brushing her teeth and getting ready for bed, she announced that she was hungry!  I said let's eat in the morning and she said OK.  Wow!  We had a good day.  Bridgett had fun at Jenn's visiting with the little boys (her nephews--my grandsons) between sessions of conference.  She especially loved getting hugs from them and she really was cute with Caden; she just glowed holding him.  It was very nice outside and she walked around for a few minutes at Jenn's.  Later she went for a drive with us to go to Del Taco, which is just behind the apartment building.  Something tells me that these things remind her of college life before the accident.  Costa Vida is just around the corner as well.   I think the kids often walked out for a taco late at night, since it is on the same block.   It was a good day all the way around.