Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Wednesday, January 12,2011

Hello all,

We are all dug out from the snow, but the storm and a bit of flu in the Bonjo household delayed posts this week.

Josh is doing well, healthy and stable still. Plans to cap and remove his trach will probably commence at the beginning of next week. His nurses think he is more than ready and are pushing for it. This will give him the ability to make a wider range of sounds and hopefully re-engage his vocal chords which were seen to be still uncoordinated when scoped. He is making some low growly sounds, mostly in complaint to the rigors of physical therapy, but also while sleeping/dreaming and today when I told him I had to leave. Grrrr...

His wakefulness continues to grow daily, he is tolerating up to 5 hours in the wheelchair, and is showing much movement in his left hand. With those fingers he explores anything in his grasp, reacting with many physical signs when given one of his small toy robots to hold. He is also using his left hand to reach out for things, to reach across his body and possibly drop things when asked to. All of these actions are painfully slow, and when done to command, seem to take massive thought and effort. His right side seems to be disconnected still and so far he has shown no spontaneous movement in that hand.

Josh is tracking things with his eyes, looking up, down, and to the side if directed.
Once again, these movements are slow or sporadic. Last Friday, he watched his sweet blond nurse, Pat, walk in the room and when she said hello to him, he smiled at her with his funny one-sided smile that I have seen many times. A few spontaneous nods at appropriate moments have cheered us, but he has not been able to nod when asked to in order to communicate with us.

The staff at Bryn Mawr Rehab feels he is doing well, waking quickly and early in his recovery process and that this is a very positive sign. But many small physically accomplishments called functional gains, will be needed to extend his stay at BMR. He must show he can work with and benefit from the physically therapy over the next four weeks. We believe he is up to the challenge. We know his strong will be a huge part of his recovery. And as his amazing brain reboots, re-routes, and establishes new connections, he will continue to reveal his emerging capabilities.

Our hearts are warmed by the support of all who are reading this. To our family and friends on the West Coast, we can feel your love over here in the snow-covered North.
Please send good thoughts of strength and mental/physical reconnection to our sweet boy.

Much Love,
The Bonjos



12 comments:

  1. My heart glowed when I read his reaction to one of his robots being in his hand. I am sending warm, snow-melting love your way. Keeping my fingers crossed every day for a deeper awakening. I think he is well on his way.

    Lovelovelove
    Molly Alpern

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  2. I have never met Josh but have spoken to Mike many times as part of my job at Power Flame in Parsons, KS. I have kept up with his progress through reading the messages posted each day and when I got ahead of myself and thought there were no postings for a couple of days called Ed Passifione to check to make sure that everything was going okay. My thoughts and prayers are with you each day. As a parent I can only imagine what you are going through and can only continue to keep track of you all and pray each day for Josh's continued progress.

    Ronita Spriggs, Power Flame, Inc., Parsons, KS

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  3. left-side action is no surprise- Josh's awesome imagination center has always been the strongest part of him! i'm so glad and relieved to hear about all his great progress, and i'm sure he's working his hardest for everyone as well.



    all my love,
    toshi

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  4. Great to hear his progress so far, thanks for the update - come on Josh, you can do it!

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  5. Dear Mike, Darling and Rose,
    So glad to hear of Josh's progress. We read the blog everyday to see how things are going. Keep up the good work Josh!! You all are in our thoughts all the time. We will keep praying for all of you!!! LOVE YA, Pam, Ron and Stephanie

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  6. Thoughts, prayers and borderline-obsessive worrying from Frey land.
    Peace.
    Breathe.
    Charlie

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  7. on most days I come here many times to check on Josh. please let us know how we can help to extend and help in these days at BMR. Like so many I am here to help in whatever way I can for 'the long haul,' whatever that may be.

    love,
    susan

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  8. The brain is an incredible marvel of engineering. It is a gem inside our heads and we are awed by its possibilities and capacities. One step at a time Josh..you can do it! Keep the faith! Dana

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  9. Great news Bonjo family. We will continue to pray for all. Love & Positive thinking will bring him home to you. Keep up the good work Josh. Judy&Kimmy

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  10. No pressure or anything, but BOY do we all love a post from the Bonjos! :)

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  11. thinking of you all, and praying daily for Josh's full recovery. Sue

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  12. Sending a little Arizona sunshine towards Bryn Mawr... !

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