[Magdalen] Janice update; a modest milestone

[Jay Weigel]

Sounds like she is doing MUCH better than expected and really working hard.
At the risk of sounding cliched I might say "gritty Texas girl"! Do let her
know she has a lot of us cheering on the sidelines. The dull, achy kind of
pain can be dealt with (ask me, I know) but it does get wearing, especially
at the end of a long day or on rainy days; ask the pain management team
about a TENS unit, which is what helps me. She might not be ready for it
yet, but it's something that should be looked into, especially when she's
off the oxygen and more mobile.

And good on you both on your sobriety!

On Monday, January 11, 2016, Lynn Ronkainen <houstonklr at gmail.com> wrote:

> This is so big Don!  I am so glad to hear your status report on Janice's
> recovery and your shared news too!!
>
> (gentle) hugs from Houston
> Lynn
>
> website: www.ichthysdesigns.com
>
> When I stand before God at the end of my life I would hope that I have not
> a single bit of talent left and could say, "I used everything You gave me."
> attributed to Erma Bombeck
> "Either Freedom for all or stop talking about Freedom at all" from a talk
> by Richard Rohr
>
> --------------------------------------------------
> From: <thedonboyd at austin.rr.com>
> Sent: Monday, January 11, 2016 9:56 PM
> To: <magdalen at herberthouse.org>
> Subject: [Magdalen] Janice update; a modest milestone
>
>
>> JANICE UPDATE 11 JANUARY 2016: This week Janice has continued to show
>> remarkable progress. She still has tubes attached to her body but is
>> regaining the strength she will need to do without them. She's able to
>> breathe a higher proportion of room air:supplemental oxygen all the time,
>> with 100% room air some of the time; she's making progress on swallowing
>> which will move her toward normal eating and removal of the tube the puts
>> Ensure directly into her stomach; she's gaining strength that will enable
>> her to get to and from the bathroom and on and off the toilet that will
>> allow removal of the indwelling Foley catheter.
>>
>> This week she has walked (my estimate) 180-200 feet several times each
>> day; she has swallowed cold liquids, ice cream, and mashed potatoes
>> successfully several dozen times with no coughing or choking; and she has
>> begun exercises that strengthen muscles in her thighs and upper arms. In
>> all of these the therapists report that she is gaining more rapidly than
>> they would have predicted for a person of her age with the kind of injuries
>> she has sustained.
>>
>> Pain in her broken neck is still a problem; a dull achy pain is never
>> completely gone and the doctor says that only the passage of time (another
>> four or five months) will eliminate that. Drugs sufficient to cover it
>> completely would so sedate her that she'd be immobilized. (My word, not
>> his.) The sharp stabbing sort of pain is now mostly controlled although as
>> I've said in the past she gets a twinge of it if she turns her head in a
>> certain way. I gather this is expected to improve sooner than the other.
>>
>> MILESTONE:  Janice and I completed a year of continuous sobriety a few
>> days ago, TBTG.
>>
>>