Tobias' Recovery

My sister brought me to the General Aviation section of the airport and we found the company in charge of the flight.  I've never flown on a private jet before and I wasn't sure what to expect.  Luckily it seems to be a very easy operation.  There is no terminal, per se, but rather each company has a building that backs up to the tarmac.  When you enter the building, it looks like a hotel lobby inside, but instead of heading to the elevators after one checks in, you head out the back door to the tarmac where the business jet is waiting to take you to your destination.  Pretty slick, except that in our case there was no jet waiting for us.  The check in lady had no record of our aircraft and asked me for the tail number, which I, of course, didn't have.  I gave her my itinerary, but she couldn't tell what jet in her schedule could be the one that Tobias and I are supposed to be on. Minutes before I was on the phone with the hospital while we were still ...

Tobias had a good day today.  His heart rate was in the 80s and dropped into the 60s after his shower.  He spoke well when I used the hot washcloth and cold liquid tricks, and he ate as well as he has ever done.  It was a good day to count as our last day in the rehab hospital. I didn't hear back from the air ambulance company about whether I need to bring my own food and water for the flight.  It's late now and I'm just going to throw myself on their mercy.  I would expect that they will have planned food for all expected passengers and I've consumed enough calories in the past several weeks that I would be fine fasting for the entirety of the trip.  I've been a whirlwind of activity getting Tobias' things ready for the flight and I don't care whether they have food for me or not at this point. Tobias had several visitors today.  His grandma and aunt went on a walk with us, he had some college friends drop in to wish him well and his cousin came to sa...

Tobias was quiet today.  He seemed tired and struggled to speak.  He did well eating, however.  He is better able to open his mouth and I hardly had to pry open his jaws for the first 30 minutes.  He tired at that point and I have stopped forcing him to continue.  "Forcing" is misleading in this case because Tobias continues to communicate that he wants to eat more, but he can't chew, swallow or keep his eyes open.  I don't know if this is a case of the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak, or whether he doesn't really understand the question I posed to him. On the way to the hospital, I pass over a major railroad line and I have been blocked several times to allow a train to pass.  Today I was held up to allow a long freight train to lumber by, but it turned out to be a lucky break.  I couldn't see the end of the train and experience taught me that it could be 10 to 15 minutes before the gate would lift up again to allow traffic to pass....

It's 6:45pm and Tobias is resting comfortably with a heart rate of 75.  The neuro team performed an angiogram on Tobias at 1pm and kept him until 4pm for observation.  The neurosurgeon found me before the procedure to let me know that everything was ready to go, which was a thoughtful gesture, and he followed up after the angiogram to give me a report on the results.  He suggested that I wait for him in the seating area of the rehab hospital cafe and he even sat down with me for a quick chat to make sure that we are all right and that he answered all our questions.  I think he was also just being personable and considerate.  Tobias' angiogram was clean.  The doctor told me that he has the blood vessels of a twenty-two year old in his brain and that there is no evidence of any bleeding risk for Tobias.  From his perspective, it looks like whatever caused the bleed was a singularity.  The doctor still doesn't know what caused the bleed. The angiogra...

I got a call this morning while I was still at my sister's home that the angiogram that the neurosurgeon was supposed to perform on Tobias tomorrow had been moved up to today.  This was good news and the timing of it couldn't be better.  It would happen after Tobias' therapies were completed and not interfere with anything.  Yea.  I was happy that we would check this important item off the "to do" and avoid any last minute dramas. I took the chance to take Tobias for an hour long walk outside in between his morning therapy sessions.  I had more time for walking because he wasn't allowed to eat anything through his mouth due to the surgery at 4:30pm.  The weather has been beautiful and I was too warm with my coat on.  I was originally planning on walking for 30 minutes, and then stretching Tobias' feet and taking his arms through some range-of-motion exercises.  He seems so relaxed outside, however, that I walked with him right up to his speech the...

I got to see Tobias again today.  I tested negative for Covid again at noon.  The CDC guidelines are that a fully vaccinated person only needs to quarantine if they have spent 15 minutes within six feet of a Covid positive person.  I spent two seconds within six feet of a person who later tested positive.  He was likely not even infectious when I saw him because he had just been exposed the night before.  I was playing it extremely safe, but I'm relieved that I wasn't infectious and didn't expose anyone to Covid.  I still got tested before coming to the hospital and also got the booster shot today.  So far my arm is only a little sensitive at the needle spot, but I may have symptoms tomorrow.  I didn't have symptom for either of the first two Pfizer vaccinations so we'll see how I do with the Moderna booster. Tobias had a high heart rate again today.  It was over 100 almost the entire time and I saw it creep into the low 120s.  I gave To...

I stayed home at my sister's house today, self-isolating in the bedroom and only going out for lunch and bathroom breaks.  I have no Covid symptoms and tested negative yesterday, but I'm playing it safe.   Tobias had a special day today.  He gets tired of the monotony in the hospital and wants to stay outside as long as possible when I take him for walks, even if it is just to pace back and forth on the same 50 yards of sidewalk concrete.  Today he was in for a treat.  The physical therapist and the occupational therapist arranged for a van to bring all of them to a local aviary and botanical garden.  This was a welcome change of pace and provided a surge of new sensory stimuli for Tobias.  As a little boy, he was fascinated with birds and we couldn't go for a walk without his pockets getting stuffed with any feathers he found on the way.  He is intrigued by biology in general and enjoyed seeing different plants and fauna.  His eyes were...