Rachel Garrison

2010

2010-09-07T10:18:00.003-05:00

Baby Announcement

2008-10-29T14:58:00.004-05:00

I am quite pleased to announce the safe arrival of Grace Marie! She was born to Ryan and I on October 19th (exactly 9 months and two weeks after the wedding!) at 7:09pm. Gracie weighed in at 8 lbs. and was 21.5 inches long.

I am loving being a mom and all of my anxieties that I had when I first found out I was pregnant have been put to rest. Caring for her has not been a problem and I am continually amazed by Gods planning. I doubt that people would realize a baby is therapy, but it it is excellent therapy for me in many ways. Picture little snaps and buttons that work on fine- tuning motor skills. Or even singing to her as voice therapy (good thing no one else hears!) Or if I am holding her in my left hand, it forces me to do things with my right arm that I normally wouldn't have done without thinking. It has been neat to see. So not only am I blessed with a beautiful daughter, but God has seen fit to keep challenging me!

Thank you for all your prayers for me during pregnancy. I had a wonderful pregnancy and am now enjoying discovering how agile I am without a belly!

March Reception In Nebraska

2008-05-26T13:35:00.000-05:00

"Thoughts On This Last Year" by Rachel

2008-05-25T20:15:00.001-05:00

Today marks one year of knowing Ryan in person. That has got me thinking about how much my life has changed in the past 12 months. Just about every area is different except for my first name. I have learned a LOT, and I thought I would share some things.

1. God is good.

I truly believe that. I don't really understand why the events happened as they did, but thru it all the Lord has been there for me and though the road has seemed long - I don't have to talk to many people in the medical field to know that my being alive is a real miracle.

2. Love is Amazing

I am not sure where I would be without Ryan's constant love, encouragement, and help. I attribute a lot of my recovery to him. I know that it hasn't been easy for him but he has never once shown that. He got a lot more than he bargained for this last Fall, but not once did he make me feel like he only was there out of duty. I will always be indebted to him. Going thru all that I did, while still single, makes me cringe inside.

3. I am Loved by a Lot of People

Everyone's prayers, support, and encouragement has blown me away. I am so thankful that people were so quick to pray for me and have their churches pray too. Especially that first weekend - when my brain was not responding and they thought maybe I had serious brain damage. So THANK YOU!

4. We Take so Much for Granted

Learning to do all of the basics again was frustrating, humbling, and a real challenge. I never once appreciated talking, eating or walking - but when you suddenly can only dream about doing those things (and then it seems like a BIG dream) - you think about things differently. I had to learn to be completely reliant on others for literally everything. And that was a challenge because I am naturally a pretty independent person, but it is rather hard to be when you can't do a single thing for yourself. Not being able to talk for multiple weeks was very eye opening. You don't realize how much you communicate with facial expressions (or simply your eyes when I couldn't even make any expression). You can learn to respond fairly well, but if you ever wanted something initiated - well good luck. Thankfully, I had RuthAnne there a lot and she can read me pretty well. Mom too. And Ryan got the crash course!

5. It Isn't Over

I still need everyones continued prayers. Specifically for my right side. Fine motor skills with my right arm are still a challenge. When it comes to things like writing - well let's say it is improving but I have the handwriting of an old lady. I can walk pretty well but I would love to be able to run again.

6. I am Pregnant

Trying to stay out of the limelight hasn't been my strong point lately. PLEASE pray for me though! I know God is in control (that is something that keeps getting driven home - you can have a plan or idea about your life, but we really don't have a whole lot of say in the matter sometimes). I am due the first of November and would covet everyone's prayers for a complete recovery by then. I know that in the scope of where I have been to where I am at now, it is totally feasible.

Iowa Reception

2008-03-31T17:20:00.002-05:00

Iowa Reception

-and Rachel's Birthday Party!!!

Come and eat some "grilled-on-the-spot" BBQ!

When: Sunday Afternoon, May 11, 2008 2-5pm
Where: The Garrison Farm 15496 250th Ave
Directions: http://maps.google.com/maps?q=15496+250th+Ave,+Centerville,+IA+52544,+USA&sa=X&oi=map&ct=image
NOTE: on this map, JR-J27 is labeled 450th Street on the street sign

RSVP: ph# 641-895-8112 or IowaReception@gmail.com
(call or email if you have any questions)

--Please share this information with anyone who doesn't have access to email.

Marriage Certificate

2008-01-05T15:21:00.001-06:00

The Vows

2008-01-05T11:17:00.001-06:00

Rachel and Ryan saying their vows at the Garrison Farm, Friday night (Jan. 4th). Make sure to respond to the post below if you want an invite to the receptions in March/April!

Mandatory Reading For All

2008-01-02T19:45:00.001-06:00

Ryan and I have decided to get married now rather than later. This will avoid the stress of trying to figure out what date I will be better, when the photographer is available, the caterer too, etc. I realized that I am so tired of waiting and having it all so up in the air. I know people will be disappointed, but I hope they will understand.

We will have a reception later in both Centerville and in Johnson when we know for sure that I can relax and enjoy it and also the weather will be a lot nicer. We'll still have the photographer come to the reception so that we'll have good family pictures and an album.

So, this is the plan. If you would like to attend one of the receptions, please send an email to rrbaltz@gmail.com and when we have all the info, like dates, specific locations (one in Iowa and one in Nebraska) we will send you an 'official' email invitation. EVERYONE is welcome, but you will just need to let us know if you want to come.

So that's the latest news. This will be quite the week for us between this and the birth of Titus! (RuthAnne and Josh's new baby)

We are forever grateful for all your prayers (and continued prayers) and support. This will be the final update to this blog. Thank you all who have walked this incredible journey with us. We are truly grateful.

- Love,

The Baltenspergers, Garrisons, Fusons, And All Others With HealRachel.com.

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-26T20:53:00.000-06:00

Ryan and Rachel

-opening one of many gifts-

Good evening!

I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas! It was such a blessing to spend the day with Rachel and Ryan and to celebrate SO much. We have much to be thankful for.

Rachel had Physical Therapy today, here in Centerville. After PT, they headed back to Nebraska for a family dinner and then off to Kansas City tomorrow for her HBOT seesion. Then tomorrow afternoon they will come back to Centerville for the weekend. She has gotten alot of road time with Ryan in his truck...she has definitely enjoyed the week off that Ryan has taken to spend the holiday with her.

Rachel hasn't used her cane or wheelchair in several days. She continually show progress. I would venture to say we see something different, new, improved...everyday. Rachel's speech is also continuing to improve. She starts singing lessons next week! We have heard that singing lessons is an excellent form of speech therapy. Probably because of the amount of vocal control it takes to sing. This will be a new adventure for her.

Thank you for all the prayers!
RuthAnne

Nebraska!

2007-12-22T19:11:00.000-06:00

Rachel and Nancy Baltensperger

Yummy!
Rachel, Emily and Anna

Rachel has been enjoying herself in Johnson with her future in-laws. Anna (Ryan's sister) write:

Note from Anna Baltensperger,

"This is the first weekend to have Rachel at our home since the first of September!!! We are delighted to see her continued progress and for her to be here this weekend! With Allyn & Emily also home, we feel very blessed to spend time together with family.

Yesterday, while the boys occupied themselves with outdoor projects, we girls were busy in the kitchen making "fastnachtchuchli". This is a holiday tradition for the Baltenspergers originating from our Swiss heritage. We spent hours rolling walnut-sized dough balls into paper-thin pastry and then frying the delicacies. (The rolling pin was part of Rachel's Friday therapy!) Though the fastnachtchuchli's take lot longer to make than to consume, the taste is worth it!"

Going To Nebraska

2007-12-20T09:33:00.000-06:00

Rachel is excited today. She is on her way to Nebraska to celebrate Christmas with Ryan's family this weekend. She has a HBOT session this morning and then she will head to NE. Ryan and Rachel will come back on Christmas Eve day and be here in Iowa to spend Christmas with us. I am SO thankful Rachel is home and able to have Christmas with all of us. What a blessing!

There has been some wedding talk...but no plans or dates set yet. They will wait till the first of the year to decide when to make this BIG day. They will check dates with the photographer and the church...we will definitely keep you informed as to when, where, and how to RSVP, etc.

I am sure I will have several pictures for you all. Anna, Ryan's sister is really good about taking pictures. And then we'll have pictures from the 25th.

Merry Christmas to you all!
RuthAnne

More Winter

2007-12-15T16:52:00.000-06:00

GOOD AFTERNOON!

We apologize if these updates are not timely as the weather has interfered this week.

It is snowing and snowing!!! Frosting all the ice with white. Winter wonderland if prepared.
We had no electricity from Tuesday to Thursday evening. Some are still without electricity within 5 miles of us! We had fun with kerosene lamps, cooking on our wood cook stove and plenty of hot water with gas hot water heater.
Rachel indeed is home. She begins her third week home today.
She is focused on continued improvement.
Her body keeps responding to her desire to be 100% recovered.
In this process of communicating to you how well she is doing, we ponder what words will give a true picture of her progress, her challenges and her limitations at the moment.
She DESIRES and is THANKFUL for your prayers! So thankful!

HOW TO PRAY?

For her speech to return to normal. She does speak clearly, her voice is low with minimu, sounding like she is recovering from a cold. Listening closely to her for understanding her exact words or we break into laughter at what we 'think' she said and then find she was saying nothing of the sort. We are finding that in general, we humans have preconceived ideas about what someone is going to say before they finish their thoughts.
For her right arm to return to full function. Her left hand's fingers can manage the piano and computer keyboard keys. Her right fingers are bumble-some and frustrating, but functioning individually (improvement as of the last couple days!)
Walking to be normal. She walks with a cane by herself in the house or to the car. -She does need someone there to steady if she gets off balance or mis-steps. No wheel chair in the house. We only use the wheelchair to go to Kansas City for the HBOT (hyperbaric oxygen therapy) twice a week or shopping.
For her coughing to completely stop when she drinks. It happens enough that it is frustrating to her.... it makes a mess and if you are in the line of fire when she spews and coughs at the same time...it's embarrassing for her. This frustrates her but she handles it well with laughter. But then she doesn't want others to think that she doesn't care that she does this, but what can she do? Cry? or Laugh? She chooses to laugh! It is easier on all of us and we know that this is something that will disappear soon.

WHEELCHAIR, CANE, WALKING WITH HELP?
Last night we had an interesting discussion about walking vs. wheelchair and the response that others give her. Her goal is to walk by herself, of course. Rachel's goal is to walk and do so without a cane or help from others.........well, when walking alone, she looks like the drunken friend or family member, so she should use the cane as the 'sign' to others of weakness....without a cane, well, she is perceived as having a substance abuse problem.

When in a wheelchair she is treated very well. People make concessions for her.

So it is just interesting. She is not opposed to the wheelchair but then must practice walking at home, using the wheelchair in public. This now answers the question for me why people who look like they don't need a wheelchair use one because it is better culturally to use the wheelchair than trying to be strong in standing but looking too weak or unstable to stand and too strong to sit in the wheelchair. So, our thinking is....she can walk into a public place with help. Since she is unsteady on her balance sometimes and sways, the looks she gets are not that of mercy (and previous to this I would have been no different in my thoughts either); but when in the wheelchair, accommodations are made for her. Walking with a cane is getting better, but she still needs one person to assist.

HBOT therapy is going well. Since she has come home her lung capacity measured by the inspirometer has gone from 500 to to 2000 regularly and 3000 when really trying. Our lungs, they say, hold 5,000. Healthy people can get the meter to read 3500-5000. Most people do not use more than 500 which is called shallow breathing. She has pushed the meter up to 3500 once or twice.

Ryan comes here to visit every weekend. He is the best therapy for Rachel!

We appreciate your prayers. We pray you will give thanks for all you are able to do and for all that Rachel has achieved since September 6. She is a walking miracle.

To GOD be the GLORY GREAT things HE hath DONE!

Crystal

Ice Storm

2007-12-13T22:25:00.000-06:00

Fun times in Southern Iowa. We have had enough ice to last us the winter. Some people got power yesterday and some didn't get any until today. The storm hit here Monday during the night. It's nice that Dad and Mom (where Rachel lives ;-) have a generator and wood heat! Josh and I stayed with them on the farm Tuesday night instead of staying in our cold apartment.

Rachel is doing well. The ice has been a challenge, one that she has taken on with courage. Walking on all the ice has been interesting, but she has done well with it. Today was Physical Therapy, he worked her hard for the full hour.

Rachel and I spent time this afternoon, when the power came back on, doing some last minute Christmas shopping online. I noticed that Rachel is able to type with her left hand and use a couple fingers with her right hand on the keyboard. I bet typing is still very frustrating since she was very quick at it before.

Tomorrow (Friday) Rachel goes to Kansas City for another HBOT. She missed Monday and Wednesday because of the storms that moved in. So, I'm sure she is ready to have another treatment, so she can finish up her 20 sessions, sooner than later. -they say it takes about 20 times to see a real improvement.

Thanks for understanding the delay in the update.
RuthAnne

A Week Home

2007-12-08T17:41:00.001-06:00

Good evening,

I just realized that it was Saturday, time for another update. Ryan is here for the weekend, he got in last night and will stay till Sunday evening. They both really look forward to the weekends together.

Rachel's week was good. She had her HBOT twice on Wednesday and Friday and will go 3 days next week as well. We had our first snow storm on Thursday, so she didn't make it into town for her PT session. It seems to be emotional on Rachel to be home. I know that she really enjoys being home and being in a familiar environment and surrounded by lots of people who deeply care for her. But, being home must be hard because it is a constant reminder of all the things that Rachel can't do, yet. Like walking through the kitchen, but not being able to make a meal for the family like she used to. Rachel said that it was hard to just sit there after a meal is over and not help clean up afterwards.

Rachel's right hand is still improving, she noticed yesterday that she is starting to regain control over her ring finger. Before, she couldn't move it.

Continue to pray for Rachel's spirits, we know that disposition one of the keys to health.

Thank You!
RuthAnne

HBOT

2007-12-05T16:03:00.000-06:00

HBOT stands for Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy.

We are excited to be able to use this therapy for Rachel. She will be going 3 days a week to have 2 treatments done each of those three days. If you 'google'. HBOT, you find neat information on how is has helped many people with several different types of problems. Here in the US, it is most commonly used for divers and burn victims. In other countries, they use it for stroke rehab and get great results. The closest place we found to do this is 2 1/2 hours away - northern Kansas City area. Anyway, today is Rachel's second day using this therapy and we are looking forward to seeing results. After her session on Monday, her breathing capacity increased and her speech became even more understandable. The experts say that it takes up to 20 treatments to see super significant changes, so give us a couple weeks and we will all be curious to the results.

Rachel's time home has been good. She gets to shower as often as she wants, choose when she wants to do therapy, and have great food to eat. Madonna's food was decent, but there is nothing that replaces food from home and smelling it cook. Rachel had her first Physical Therapy session with a PT in town, yesterday. It went well. He is really impressed with Rachel's progress in the couple months and has been following the story even before he knew he would be her Physical Therapist here at home. Rachel was proud of her bodies ability to do whatever the PT asked her to do. Her right arm was able to perform well and even was able to give some resistance with it. Yeah! She'll have 'official' PT twice a week. But Rachel is very motivated and does alot on her own at home.

I am thinking that soon Rachel will be able to update her own blog :-) and share with you all her thoughts, prayer requests and achievements.

Let's pray for quick results with this HBOT!

~RuthAnne

HOME!

2007-12-01T09:40:00.001-06:00

Ah, the day has arrived. Rachel is home. Everyone is all smiles and enjoying having her in Iowa with us. The trip went well, an uneventful, 4 hour car ride from Lincoln to Centerville.

There were several tears from the staff at Madonna as they told Rachel goodbye. Her smile will be missed in the hallways and gym.

Wednesday, Rachel walked 250 feet without stopping and then another 100+ feet all in one session. Because her activity level has increased, the doctor said she can go off of blood thinner. She is now medication free!!!

Thursday she did her last set of therapies. Mom and I went to lunch with Rachel and 3 of her therapists. It was considered 'therapy' (or maybe just a good reason to hang out together one last time). Emily (Ryan's sister) was there Thursday and Friday to see Rachel off.

Carol -PT, Rachel, Katie -Speech, and Stacy -OT

Friday we packed up her room and were checked out by 10am. Joyous! Rachel walked out the door of Madonna. Go girl. 8 weeks ago, they asked Dad and Mom what our goals for Rachel were upon her dismissal. Dad said he wanted Rachel to be talking and walking by that time. The case worker looked at him in disbelief and kept her comments to herself. Clearly she thought our expectations were too high.

Rachel and RuthAnne -(due in 4 weeks!)

Leaving Madonna!

We got home mid-afternoon. Did some therapy, hung out as a family and Amy and Jonas (Rachel's brother and wife) brought over supper. It has been a long time since we have eaten together as a family. Ryan was able to come last night as well, he is so faithful to be with Rachel. I think they will be counting the hours each week, waiting for the weekends to come around. Rachel will get alot of good speech therapy talking on the phone to Ryan each night. ;-)

Esther-11, Emily -13, MaryAnne -5 and Rachel

Thank you for all your continued prayers! It is amazing to watch them be answered.

~RuthAnne

Going Home!

2007-11-28T15:35:00.000-06:00

Yeah! Rachel gets to go home on Friday. She is looking forward to being home with the family and doing more 'normal' type activities as her therapy - day in and day out. She will be doing some Physical Therapy with a therapist in town. We have exercises from Occupational Therapy to do at home. Speech Therapy will be all day, every day ;-) and Recreational Therapy will be game time with the family.

Monday, Rachel made brownies in therapy and is washing the dishes in the above picture.

I called Rachel on Monday night (I came to Lincoln on Tuesday). We talked for 30 minutes and she was completely understandable. We had a great chat. Yesterday, Rachel signed her name with her right hand! Two weeks ago, she had almost no control over her right hand fingers. And she did a grip strength test today. With her right hand she only registered 1 or 2 pounds ten days ago. Today, the little tester registered 25 pounds of grip strength!!! Huge improvement. Today in PT, Rachel walked 250 feet without stopping. On Monday, they thought it would be a week or more before she could go 250 feet without stopping. Two days later, she masters the challenge. She also was able to stand up from her wheelchair with zero assistance.

We are having all the nurses and therapist sign Rachel's quilt that she got from Naomi. They all feel honored that we ask them to sign. Several of them have stopped us in the hall and are saying they are sad to see Rachel leave, that they enjoy her being around.

We will still be doing the updates when Rachel is at home. Thanks for checking in.

~RuthAnne

A Truly Happy Thanksgiving

2007-11-24T14:35:00.000-06:00

Rachel had a good Thanksgiving. She spent the day with Ryan's family at the house we are renting. They had turkey, all the food that goes with it and a fun game of Scrabble. Anna, Ryan's sister, sent a couple pictures from the day and a note that I will include at the bottom. Ryan is with Rachel this weekend, Nancy (his mom) will be with Rachel on Monday and Mom and I will be with Rachel from Tuesday - Friday. She comes home on Friday!

This is how Rachel and Ryan do it: No handicap parking, no ramps, and riding in a BIG diesal truck (Ryan's). This was Rachel's first ride in the truck since being in the hospital. I know they both loved the challenge.

Nancy, Rachel, Ryan coming into the house were Thanksgiving was celebrated. David is behind with the wheelchair, 'just in case'.

David/Nancy Baltensperger, Rachel and Ryan, G'ma Fass, Emily and Allyn Weddle

-playing scrabble.

From Anna,

"Rachel never used the wheelchair at the house. Ryan encouraged her to just walk from the truck to the chair inside the living...and did fine! Dad just had the wheelchair behind her in case she did need it or something.

In one of the pictures you'll notice us hovered around a game - Scrabble. I caught Rachel and Ryan laughing gleefully after having racked-up a bunch of points in the word they had placed on the board. (We played in pairs) Infact, Rachel and Ryan creamed the rest of us in that game! Not fair that Ryan had the smartest person on his team!!!! (Rachel provided alot of the spelling/placement ideas on their team, as pictured of her pointing with her finger in one of the pictures.)

Even though it was a "different" thanksgiving (in that we were spending it at a random apartment in Lincoln versus at home on the farm), it was a memorable and encouraging just to know that Rachel has come a long ways and is continuing still at the same speed or perhaps faster!"

Smiles,
Anna Baltensperger

The Double Date

2007-11-21T10:39:00.001-06:00

Ryan, Rachel, RuthAnne & Josh We had a great time Saturday night.

Joy

2007-11-21T10:22:00.000-06:00

Today marks her 77 days since the stroke and the 50th day at Madonna. I just reviewed the posts from the beginning of her journey and am amazed how Rachel is recovering.

DISCHARGE DATE: NOVEMBER 30

LAUGHTER and JOY

From the beginning, when all looked bleak for Rachel's recovery, we held on to "The Joy of the Lord is your Strength!" These were the first words Rachel heard when she came out of sedation. These words are put to song but what about putting them to life? If you would observe Rachel day in and day out in her room, in therapy or at mealtimes....she is happy and laughing. She is the only patient who smiles and laughs . This makes it so easy for Ryan, the family, the therapists, and the nurses. She is just s delight! Honestly, I have not seen her feel sorry for herself during her time of challenge.
Her tears have been all about WHEN.....WHEN will she be back to normal. When will she be married.

Yesterday we talked about getting married. She wants to be able to walk down the isle and to be able to care or herself first. A noble goal. In light of that, she isn't planning on getting good at the wheel chair or trying to learn to be independent by depending on handicapped facilities. Another noble, thought-out goal of her own. She would rather be assisted or go slow until which time she can do things easily on her own. She wants to mentally work with her body to get it back to full function instead of accommodating its weaknesses. Go girl!

Now for her progress report.

RIGHT ARM

She has much more strength in it......raises it above her head and is eating with it which is amazing! When she grabs something, her fingers now will release when she wants. This is new this week. Before she could grab but not let go....how frustrating!

RIGHT LEG

The shaking in the right leg comes now only when it is very fatigued from therapy. If it starts, she has figured out how to help it stop. She is able to lift her right leg to take normal steps vs. dragging it into the correct position.

WALKING

Yesterday she walked with one therapist and a cane that she barely uses. She is able to walk farther and farther in her 30 minute sessions. She also maneuvered the steps for the 3rd time. Each time she does the steps, she does better than the time before. Her right leg did not shake much during this process.

BATHROOM

She has full function and good control (meaning she can hold it or release it when she goes). Think about how this simple, taken-for-granted function is wonderful when it works and so limiting when it doesn't. PLUS, she doesn't have to spend a lot of mental time trying to coordinate when she drinks liquids, has therapy and will have to go to the bathroom. She is sitting on a regular stool and able to get out of the wheelchair, stand up, turn and sit without assistance....just someone there to 'spot' her in the event of imbalance.

SPEECH

She is speaking much but would like to speak with more volume and definitely wants to sound normal. Currently her voice is low and labored. When her lungs get to full function, this will continue to improve. She talks on the phone to Ryan. The nurses understand her pretty easily although we still must pay close attention when she is talking.

Continue to pray for her knees so they do not lock back when she walks, more strength and pray for planning the date of her wedding.

With Thanksgiving tomorrow, I leave you with this verse:

Nehemiah 8:10 And Nehemiah continued, "GO and CELEBRATE with a feast of rich foods and sweet drinks, and share gifts of food with people who have nothing prepared. This is a sacred day before our Lord. Don't be dejected and sad, for the JOY of the LORD is YOUR STRENGTH."

HAPPY THANKS GIVING!

Bless you all who hold Rachel in your heart and prayers,

Crystal

Food!

2007-11-17T11:32:00.000-06:00

So the big news is that Rachel got upgraded to level 5 foods....which means she can eat and drink anything! She was surprised how easy it was to go from level 3 to 5, but so hard to go from level 1 to 2 and 2 to 3. A couple hours after she was upgraded, she looked at me and said, "That means there isn't anything I can't eat!"

Friday, yesterday, Rachel walked 300 feet in her morning PT session. We are thinking that is twice as far as she had previously walked in the same amount of time. She also did the set of 4 stairs again (it's been a week since last time). The stairs went alot better. Coming down is a bit more challenging than going up.

Today we get to go out for a couple hours. Tonight we are going to go out for supper. Rachel will get to ride in a car and eat 'real' food. We are all excited. It'll be a double date, Rachel and Ryan, and Josh and I.

Yesterday, Rachel attempted to raise her right arm (the weaker one) above her head completely... and this time it went all the way up! Another breakthrough.

Specific prayer requests:

Rachel walks out of Madonna unassisted
Right leg stops shaking
Right thumb, ring and pinky finger gains full function

Have a great weekend!
RuthAnne

6 Weeks in Nebraska

2007-11-14T15:08:00.000-06:00

Good afternoon,

6 weeks ago Rachel left the hospital in Iowa City. Rachel couldn't talk or move anything but her head and right arm (barely).

I have only been gone for two days and there has been improvement. So fun. Josh and I left Sunday night and I got here this morning around 10am. It's the little things I notice. Rachel can scoot forward in her chair by herself, which takes a good amount of trunk control. When she stands, most of the time she does 98% of the standing herself. Rachel's right arm is continually improving, just slow. But when I left on Sunday, she could not lock and unlock her wheel chair (a cam action) with her right hand/arm. Today, it looks like it's not a big deal, she does it easily. Rachel also did an arm exercise that she had done two weeks ago and got to see huge improvements with her right arm. What was really neat is that Rachel commented that she could see the big improvement. She doesn't usually get to see the big changes like we do because she lives with herself everyday.

As far as we know, Rachel's release date is November 30th. It was originally today, but they extended it. A good thing. 2 1/2 more weeks of therapy in her favor before leaving. A couple of us got okayed to do transfers with Rachel. Transfers are where someone assists in getting Rachel from the bed to the wheelchair or from the wheelchair to the car. Now we can take Rachel out for a couple hours when she has some free time. Yeah! -Starbucks, here we come :-)

Rachel's right leg is also getting stronger. The shaking is still there, but it seems be getting more manageable. She is walking a bit faster and with less effort.
Oh, and when the nurse turned her back on Rachel, she sat up in bed by herself! She used her left hand on her bed railing to help assist. This is definitely a first!

Watching a miracle,
RuthAnne

The Quilt

2007-11-11T10:03:00.000-06:00

If you click on the picture, it should enlarge it.

Yeah, It's Saturday!

2007-11-10T15:52:00.000-06:00

Rachel always looks forward to Saturdays. They work her hard here through the week, and on Saturdays and Sundays, she only has a couple therapies. She is resting today and getting ready for another tough week. Josh and I are here for the weekend and impressed with her continued progress.

On Friday (yesterday) Rachel walked 100 feet with only one person assisting and no rest breaks. Then she walked over to the stairs and climbed up and down 4 stairs. Go girl! Her goal that was set when Rachel got to Madonna was to walk 10 feet with 2 people assisting her. This 100 feet was accomplished at the end of a day at the end of a long week.

Thursday, Speech Therapy, okayed Rachel for level 3 foods and straight water (she's been on level 2 with thickened liquids). Now she can have breads and ground meat. Level 2 was no breads and all soft foods that aren't sticky (like peanut butter).

SOOooo.... this means Rachel's PEG tube came out Thursday afternoon!!! Rachel is one 'happy camper'. She was more than ready to have that tube out of her stomach, it was always getting in the way of her clothes, therapies, and constantly sore. Rachel laughs, because it looks like she has two belly buttons :-)

It sounds like Rachel's treadmill therapist doesn't want to work with Rachel on the treadmill because of the shaking in her leg. So she will be taking the week off from the treadmill.

Rachel specifically is asking for prayer for this shaking that occurs when her ankle is quickly reflexed, mostly in walking. The shaking hinders her walking ability. (and for her knees that wants to lock when she stands or walks).

Check back in a couple hours and I'll be posting a picture.

RuthAnne

Try This:

2007-11-08T11:14:00.000-06:00

Okay, news update. Some of you who can't see the pictures or the addresses probably need to go to www.Microsoft.com and download Internet Explorer 7 or go to www.Mozilla.com and download Firefox. Both are free. I personally recommend Firefox, it works MUCH better than Explorer. After that, you should be able to see all the goodies on the side of this blog just fine. And that will probably help those of you who can't leave posts.

-Josh

A Dream

2007-11-07T08:31:00.000-06:00

Hello Everyone,

My name is LeAna, I am a good friend of Julia Garrison (Rachel's sister). I recently had a dream that I feel God used to remind me of how important it is to pray for the Garrisons and hope that it reminds you to continue to faithfully lift up Rachel and her family before our Lord!

In my dream, I walked into my kitchen and saw a newspaper lying on the table. I picked it up and started to read, noticing a picture of myself. I started to comment on it when I noticed out of the corner of my eye that my older brother, Evin, was sitting at the table.

Evin lives a few hours away, so I was thrilled to see him and excitedly exclaimed, “Evin!!!” as I gave him a big hug. He let out a little moan as if in pain and slowly, with slurred speech, said something like, “You better stick with the neck hug.” I was confused and pulled back quickly to ask what he meant. He motioned slowly and with much effort to show me that he was in a wheelchair with a headrest and supportive boards in front and behind him to help him sit up. He gave a half smile as if to say, “It’s OK,” but upon realizing the condition he was in, I broke down and wept. I wept to see him in that condition, and also at the realization that I had been so caught up in my own little world, looking at myself in the newspaper, that I had not even noticed him there.

I woke up crying, and continued to cry for a few minutes until I fully realized it was just a dream. Even after realizing this, though, I still had a hard time holding back the tears at just the vivid memory of “seeing” him like that, even if only in a dream.

At this point, I felt that God was putting it strongly on my heart to pray for Rachel, the rest of the Garrison family, and Ryan. It occurred to me that in my dream, I knew in the back of my head that Evin was OK - that he was going to recover. And yet, it absolutely broke my heart to see him in such a state.

I speak to Julia on a nearly daily basis, and am updated frequently on Rachel’s physical progress. I often forget that though she survived against all odds, this doesn’t mean that it’s an easy road from here on out. I’m sure that there are days for her when she is terribly discouraged, and days that it hurts Ryan and her family to see her so changed.

So as we continue to praise God for the incredible progress that Rachel has made thus far, let’s not forget to implore Him to give strength, joy, and hope anew each day to the Garrisons and Ryan.

“May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all." -2 Corinthians 13:14

LeAna Negron, New Jersey

Mom writes from Lincoln:

Rachel just asked me to put on the blog to pray for
-her walking on the treadmill every Tuesday and Thursday mornings (10:30am CST)
-her legs would be coordinated with God's help vs. pharmaceutical intervention
-that the spasms in her legs will disappear (they show up with exertion and fatigue)

Rachel's right side has good muscle tone.

The therapists say Rachel is one of the hardest working, determined patients they have seen.

We are all pleased with her progress, even though the list of things she can do without assistance is short, but growing!
Therapy is a very long, laborious road for all involved.

Prayers have been answered in abundance! In light of that, let me ask you.... would you consider praying for a touch-from-God miracle?

-Crystal

Isaiah 45:18,19  "I am the Lord," he says, "and there is no other I 

I publicly proclaim bold promises. I do not whisper obscurities in some dark corner. I would not have told the people of Israel to seek me if I could not be found. I, the Lord speak only what is true and declare only what is right."

Pictures

2007-11-03T16:07:00.000-05:00

Rachel and Ryan. Fun to see them standing together. Sometimes Rachel wears tape on her right arm to help with the muscle stimulation.

The treadmill. The harness helps support Rachel's weight so that she can work on her gait pattern.

A Year In 3 Weeks?

2007-11-03T10:39:00.000-05:00

Ah, another day in Lincoln, Nebraska. I am sitting in the room with Rachel and Speech Therapy is working with her. Rachel is reading an article out loud to us. Very cool. She is talking more and more. Thursday night, Ryan was not able to spend the night, so he called and talked to her. They talked for an hour on the phone! Rachel said that she thought he understood at least 80% of what she said to him on the phone. Either because he repeated it back to her correctly or responded appropriately. Yesterday, they did a test with Rachel to see how much air was escaping through her nose instead of it coming out of her mouth. The test went well. Little, if any, air comes through her nose. The lady that did her test had never seen Rachel before, but had heard about her. And that 'test lady' said that she thought Rachel had progressed at least a years worth in just a couple weeks. She said that it had been a very long time since she has seen someone progress so quickly, going from not speaking at all to speaking this well.

Your prayers are powerful!!!

Yesterday, Friday, Rachel walked on the treadmill for the first time. It went well considering it was the first attempt. I guess the first attempt usually doesn't go well at all, but I would say that it went well for her first time and being at the end of a very busy day at the end of a long week. Rachel was a bit frustrated with it. Some of the frustration Rachel is having is coming from her right leg. Her right ankle/leg shakes kinda like a spasm when quickly flexed (just like in walking). The medical condition is called 'clonus'. Her next treadmill session is on Tuesday and Rachel is concerned about the shaking. She does not want to use medication to treat it, but allow her body to figure out how to control the muscles appropriately.

So let's pray fervently for Rachel's right leg, so that her walking progresses rapidly. The therapist's say that Rachel has good strength, so strength isn't as much of a concern as the shaking and spasms that interfere with walking.

Rachel is also asking that you pray for her right arm, it is still weak. She is trying to eat with it, but needs alot of assistance to scoop the food onto her spoon. Rachel was right handed before and really wants full function of her right hand.

The doctor doesn't want to remove Rachel's feeding tube that is in her stomach for another week or so. Rachel is not using the tube for anything, so it is just a waiting game. Rachel is able to swallow all her pills.

Thank you for all your support,
RuthAnne

Quick Tip

2007-10-31T17:22:00.000-05:00

To those of you you have tried leaving a blog post/comment and it hasn't worked out for you, see if these tips help.
-Click on the the word "comment", it is in green at the bottom of each post.
-Then write your comment in the box to the right and sign your name.
-Below this box are 3 options for posting:
1. Google/Blogger name (only few people have blogger names).
2. Other (you can put your name in and leave the web part blank).
3. Anonymous (make sure you have signed your name to the bottom of your note in the box where your note is).

Hope this helps!

Another Swallow Test

2007-10-31T16:56:00.000-05:00

Good afternoon,

I have been gone for two weeks and it is good to be back! Josh and I were in Arizona for business, so this is the first day in 15 days that I have seen Rachel. The longest I have been away from her. She is doing great! All of our prayers and her perseverance is paying off. Rachel is speaking so much. I would estimate that 80% to 90% of what she is saying is understandable. It takes a little bit of hanging out with her to get the hang of how she sounds, but it is easy to pick up. Her voice is airy, so some of the 'th', 'sh', 'st' type sounds are hard. Today she worked on getting the 'd' to sound different from a 'th' or 't' sound.

You can see Rachel trying SO hard to do everything to her best ability. She definitely is not a slacker. On Friday, Rachel will get to walk on a treadmill assisted with a harness. The harness will take off however much weight needed so that Rachel can work on her gait and walk for longer amounts of time without getting worn out. I guess the key is practice, practice...not necessarily strength. Today in Physical Therapy, she walked a least 50 feet and later got in and out of a car. Rachel said that it is weird to be excited or to be told 'good job' in doing things like getting in and out of a car. Or like in Occupational Therapy to be told 'good job' in taking spices out of a cabinet. Doing things that used to be every day type movements to being complimented on doing them. I thought that was interesting that she shared that with me.

Rachel had another Swallow Test today. She got upgraded to the next level. There are 5 levels. She was at the beginner Level 1. And now is at Level 2. Which means she can now have liquids that are nectar consistency, mostly meaning anything that is a bit thicker than water. Drinks would include: shakes, drinkable yogurt, tomato juice, smoothies, etc. Before she could only have liquids that were thick enough to use with a spoon. And her food was upgraded from a complete pureed food diet to a soft food diet. Examples: scrambled eggs, some cereals, soft vegetables, ice cream, pies with only a bottom crust, etc.

Naomi said that the quilt is coming along very nicely and should be done this week! I don't think Rachel knows about it, so we are very excited for her to receive it. I will be taking a picture of it with Rachel when it arrives.

Thanks to everyone supporting us!
RuthAnne

7 Weeks

2007-10-27T12:36:00.000-05:00

Good Morning,

This week was a really good week again. Every day there is obvious progress! Therapists and nurses remark about how well she is doing,
Ryan's Grandma Foss visits weekly and is always so surprised at how much more she is doing.

Now for specifics:

SPEECH
This week, in answer to prayer, she is able to speak more clearly.
Her lip, cheek, tongue, neck muscles have relaxed and come more up to speed. When she tries to tell us something, she first tries to say it and then uses her Lightwriter DECtalk tool if we cannot 'get it'.

WALKING
Yesterday, Friday, she was able to walk 40 steps 3 x's = 120 steps in one session. At the end of 40 steps she would sit in the wheelchair for 3 or 4 minutes and then go again. Her right leg was able to lift some enough to take each step. You know, if one leg drags heavy, kinda hard to walk.

SITTING
When situated, Rachel is able to sit by herself; her balance is good.

PERSONAL CARE
No catheter, no trach. no diaper,and no accidents!
100 % dependant on others for her needs - she can brush her own teeth and blow her nose!
Her goal this week is get the stomach feed tube out.

ATTITUDE
She is known as the happiest patient that a lot of the nurses have ever seen. Rachel still has some tears (of course) but she is quick to smile and laugh. At the beginning of the week I asked her if at any time during this event she had wished she had died. This question took courage on my part to ask because of the unknown answer. Rachel adamantly shook her head 'no' and said 'no'.

The Family
Some may wonder if our home is mayhem with me being with Rachel in Nebraska 4 hours away, 4-5 days a week. The honest answers would come from Phil, my dear husband, or Julia, our wonderful 21 year old daughter living at home (who has been a God send to us - she moved home 2 weeks before the accident).

On arriving home each week, I am greeted with smiles, the house is in order, and I am ready for a cup of coffee. Family is a blessing! We just watch and wait each week to see how God is working to heal Rachel and through this touch lives! Praise God from whom ALL blessings flow.

Rachel wants you to feel blessed if you are able to eat without a bib!!

WHAT TO PRAY FOR SPECIFICALLY
Her speech and swallow! Wednesday she has a swallow test. If she passes this endoscope through the nostril test, she will get to graduate from pureed food to something appealing to the eye....yeah. Oh for the simple things in life!

With love,

Crystal

P.S. I am not overwhelmed with emails in my inbox.....if you feel compelled to email me, please do! Would love to hear from you whether I know you or not. (email is listed with the addresses on the right)

Today's Update

2007-10-24T16:36:00.000-05:00

Today is Wednesday....time for an update.

We are so encourage by everyone's interest and prayers. We are also encouraged by this week's wonderful weather. I spend Tuesdays through Saturday morning with Rachel, usually with one or two of Rachel's sisters or brothers with me. Last week Julia (21) and Emily (13) were here. This week Micah (9) is with me. He brought his roller blades and school books. Being from the country, he enjoys the sidewalks.

After 3 days being away, I continue to see Rachel's strength improve which means her posture, eating, breathing, speaking and moving from bed to wheelchair and back is getting easier, but still with two assisting. Being 5'11", she pretty well towers over most nurses or therapists.

From my point of view, she is making good progress daily. The therapists all remark at how full her schedule is. She is busy. This makes these days go fast. Her day starts at 7:30 with her first therapy at 8:00. Two breaks. Her day then ends at 3:30. Supper is at 6:30.

From Rachel's point of view she continues to wonder 'how long' will she be here OR be like this? My answers vary. Today I said to her that she would be here until........then I stopped and asked her to fill in the blank. She looked at me and started to cry.

Actually, she has cried off and on all day. Then she types to me on this voiced mini keyboard (a wonderful tool) that she hates crying like this. She feels she is a crying time bomb. Rachel said she has never cried like this before. Having read stories of people in physically challenged situations who wished they were dead.........I did muster up the courage to ask her if she had ever wished that. She quickly and assuredly shook her head 'NO!'

I do wonder what all she thinks about. Her overall attitude is very cheerful -laughing a lot. But as each day melts into the next, she indicates she is just wondering how long. She is especially sensitive when people mention the day's date or the time of year.

Today she blew her nose by herself for the first time! And in Physical Therapy, she walked 50 steps, that is with 2 people at her side. Rachel's right foot has a difficult time moving forward, so someone helps that leg along. She can bare her weight on each leg as the other one moves forward.

The verse for this week for me is I Corinthians 2:9: "Eye has not seen, ear has not heard, nor has the mind imagined what God has in store for those who love Him."

Thanks for your prayers, thoughts, & generosity!

Crystal

Count It All Joy

2007-10-20T11:03:00.000-05:00

Good Morning Friends,

Another day at Madonna and so glad to be here. The staff, nurses, therapists and Doctor Zeng are great....easy to get along with and cheerful to boot. Plus our prayer was answered for a house to open up for us to stay here at Madonna, within walking distance.

So...............How is Rachel? Good question. I ponder how to answer. When people come to visit her for the first time, they tear up even though they trying to be brave, Then they tell her how wonderful she looks.

Comparing her progress from the night of September 6th (the ER and surgery) to now....Rachel is doing great.

Comparing Rachel now to how she was September 5th, just 3 days before her wedding -well, she is challenged to the max in every aspect. She remains cheerful. The nurses all remark at how easy she laughs and smiles. It's true. And she does continue to add to her bottle of tears that God says we have.
"You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book." - Psalm 56:8

But, all in all, we have much to be thankful for.........her vision, hearing, thinking, memory, touch sensations are great.

She has movement and feeling in all four limbs, her heart ticks right along with blood pressure and rate being great. Digestive system is working and there is obvious progress in all four limbs. Oh yes, and her bladder is working great...no more, well, catheter or diapers.............I mean hey, life here is reduced to simple body function focus! Every lil' improvement in every lil' area gets praise!

On the flip side, she cannot do almost anything for herself. Watching her day by day, I realize more intensely how each day we are given is a gift. The fact that you or I can walk to use the computer, sit in the chair and get up again without assistance or fear of falling.....with that we can rejoice!

Rachel's progress this week is~~much more agility in her right arm!! Go girl! She stands and sits down with two there to assist her and that is getting much easier as each time she is able to give herself some 'oomf' to help get up and she doesn't just plop down......she is gaining control.

With each eating session (she says eating is just another therapy session) she uses her right hand as well as her left. She is still eating pureed foods and drinking honey consistency liquids. Have you ever heard of thickened water.....her choices are pudding, honey or nectar consistency, but hey, it is wet. They even offered thickened pop or juices. I have to tell you that the facial expressions of the therapists or nurses are not so convincing that thick liquid is so wonderful.........and Rachel? she is a good sport about it.

Her goal and desire is to have her stomach feeding tube out by the end of October. With this in mind she is very motivated to practice swallowing and I am motivated to massage those muscles that are important in swallowing. Lemon juice triggers swallowing too! Actually, that is what the speech therapist does....swabs the back and sides of her tongue and the roof of her mouth with tart lemon which stimulates her swallow reflex.

For those of you who have been praying, we covet your prayers for Rachel's swallowing, so that it continues to improve beyond expectation -then she can 'get on with other things' ... I just cannot imagine her predicament.

Continue to pray for Rachel's mind that she would be filled with continued courage, determination, and energy.

About every day we hear of some great story of those who have passed through Madonna and have walked out with no signs of having ever been in a helpless state. This is our prayer and vision for Rachel!

We are blessed to have this website that keeps all of you who pray informed so you can continue your prayers.

Today she has 2 therapies and 3 meals.....the rest of the time we will spend outside enjoying the sunshine today. Everyone else in town will be at the Cornhuskers game!!

With a grateful heart,

Crystal Garrison

Progress Report

2007-10-17T17:38:00.000-05:00

Greetings Everyone,

Progress! Lots of progress to report, she's been moving fast here in the past several days. I'm going to report in a 'bullet list' format:

- She can step! She can actually walk 10 steps while holding onto something for stability, and with some assistance with helping her right leg move forward.

- Her facial muscles are getting stronger. Previously, all she could do was smile, but now, she has more control over her expressions, lips, chewing, etc.

- She is working on learning how to brush her own teeth.

- She is working with the physical therapist on sitting upright for 1-2 minutes without any assistance.

- She has been feeding herself with her left hand. Her right hand is still lagging a little, but she can eat with no assistance with her left. Rachel is eating all three meals a day.

- Speaking of eating, right now she is eating 'pureed' food (which is food that has been through a blender), but they are considering upgrading her to a diet of more challenging texture. They will be doing the endoscope (video down her nose) in the next day or two and assess whether her diet can be upgraded.

- Even though she has been given an electronic tool (keyboard) to help with communication, she is required attempt the word or phrase verbally before using that tool so as to encourage vocal strengthening and development. When RuthAnne is around, Rachel will sign letters to her to form words.

- THIS IS THE KICKER - As of right now, Rachel has accomplished many of the goals that were originally set for her for November 14th.

Whew, that's a heckuva list. The bottom line: Rachel has been working her tail off...and it's showing. We're quite grateful that she is progressing so quickly, and only encourages more prayer, even as we see prayers answered.

Today, the family was able to move into a 2 bedroom unit close to the Madonna facility. It has been offered for use of Rachel's friends/family for the duration of her stay at a very discounted price.

I always like to keep these posts 'down to earth', but answered prayer is answered prayer, and at this point, she has more ability than some of the Doctors thought she might EVER regain.

All The Best,

- Josh

"Trading Spaces"

2007-10-14T12:06:00.001-05:00

This is what happens when you leave Rachel with Ryan, Josh and RuthAnne. We do things without asking the nurses :-)

The 'Inner Game'

2007-10-14T10:57:00.000-05:00

Greetings Everyone,

This Sunday brought about quite a surprise. RuthAnne and I are in Lincoln with Rachel right now, but spent the night with David & Rachel Akridge (who have been extremely hospitable by opening their home up to us).

We were walking into the entrance of Madonna this morning, and no sooner had we stepped into the front door than Rachel comes flying by in her wheelchair, right in front of us! Evidently, Rachel and Ryan were out walking before we got there, and decided to ambush us as we walked in. We all had a good laugh.

Rachel is still progressing. Yesterday, she only did about 30 minutes of physical therapy, so it was a bit of a "recovery day" for her. She did spend much of the day laughing and goofing around with all of us, which was nice.

She stood quite a bit, and has been devoting much time to practicing her transition from sitting to standing. She still needs much assistance to do that, but is getting stronger.

She is also sleeping better. Previously, she was waking up multiple time per night, needing to use the bathroom or other needs. For the last 2 nights, she has only woken up once.

The biggest challenge to her speech at this point is her ability to move and manipulate her tongue and mouth. We said the alphabet yesterday, and while she can make noises and sounds, she is making the sound from her mouth and nose, so that it is a very 'nasal-ish' sound. In other words, she's not talking exclusively through her mouth.

Even though Rachel done a fantastic job in keeping her spirits high, there are times when she has doubts about herself, and in moving back towards a full recovery. Even though she is progressing fast, she wants to progress faster. She is very aware of her status, and she wants to get back to normal ASAP. However, this is a process, so having the patience and fortitude to work through the process will be a challenge as we move forward.

ONE IMPORTANT CHANGE TO NOTE: At this point, Rachel will be working hard, day in and day out. Meaning, she will be participating in much of a routine, so we will be updating this blog twice per week now, on Wednesday's and Saturday's. That way, we will have more new information each time the blog is updated (so we actually have something to talk about). We have a balance to strike, between giving every little detail and giving very general information.

We recognize that there are all types of people reading this information, and we are very grateful for everyone that makes the effort to read this blog. We feel that updating twice per week will be frequent enough to give a good update with measurable progress, but also not providing so much info that it turns into 'overkill'.

Thanks for all your support,

- Josh

P.S. - For those of you that sent your names in, thank you. If haven't done so yet, then go make it happen. If you don't know what I'm talking about, refer to the previous post.

A Request and Gift!!

2007-10-12T09:57:00.000-05:00

Rachel did this stepping maching for 20 minutes yesterday! The lady to the left is her Physical Therapist and the gentleman on her right is a volunteer and I am standing behind her.

Friends,

A friend of Rachel's, Naomi, is making a quilt for her. Naomi needs our help. What Naomi is doing is putting together a quilt for Rachel with the names of people who have been/are praying for her. If you have been praying for her, please send your name (as you want it to be written on the quilt, ie. Bill and Sandy Smith or the Smith Family, etc.) and state or country -it will be cool for her to see where everyone is from. Send it to me at ruthannefuson@gmail.com

I don't think Rachel has grasped how many of us are praying for her :-)

You may know people who are praying but they don't have access to the blog/internet. If you would be so kind as to include those individuals as well when you send your name, that would be great.

Thank you!

RuthAnne and Naomi

P.S. Yes, we will be taking a picture when it is finished so you can see the finished project. :-)

More Notes From Mom.

2007-10-11T18:16:00.000-05:00

Today marks the 8th day at Madonna Rehab.

Yesterday afternoon, RuthAnne and I took Rachel outside to enjoy some fresh air and sunshine. While talking, I told her of a story that I heard of a 14 year old girl who had been in an accident and could not walk and was told she would never be able to walk. After many people praying for her, one day this girl got up and walked totally healed. Even though Rachel can’t talk, she responded. She burst into tears. Now maybe one would think that telling her this story wouldn’t help her. Valid point. Except that the whole theme of being at Madonna is to set goals and achieve them. The combination of the prayers of the network of saints, the efforts of the rehab staff and therapists, and the diligence and belief of the patient all play a part in seeing Rachel meet her goal. From the beginning, every verbal prayer I have heard prayed for Rachel has been one of total healing~~~so, I told her this story.

To keep her from crying more, facing her I looked up and joked that Ryan was coming. She stopped crying and then I had to tell her that I was joking. She was laughing at my behavior technique. Then, to my surprise, I looked up and there was Ryan approaching her from behind and so I told Rachel, “Ryan IS coming.” Of course, she rolled her eyes........then he leaned over and kissed her on the forehead......his arrival was timely! (And surprised me!)

Today is another day and goodness....people here keep things moving.

Here is a list of today’s Joys:

Rachel was able to use the NuStep TRS4000 for 20 minutes....it is a stepping machine that she can use in the sitting position, which works her legs. Now keep in mind that she has a therapist and volunteer at her side to stable her and to keep her legs positioned on the peddles. She liked this machine!

--Optometrist evaluation-went very well. Rachel was able to differentiate a very small drawn stick object on a board 15 feet away. Her close up and distance focus is good. They will work on fine tuning her focus, it's almost perfect.

--She was able to stand with assistance today for 10 minutes (intervals of 1-2 min apiece) while standing with help she was able to reach up almost shoulder level with her left hand. Her right hand/arm needs prayers!

--She is able to sign the alphabet with her left hand! She struggles with some of the letters, but RuthAnne is able to decipher almost everything. Prayers are being answered for Rachel!

--Rachel's voice is getting stronger. She can say the sounds 'M', 'L' and 'W' with vowels attached to them. At the end of today's second session, she could say, "My name" in one breath. Tomorrow morning, the Speech Therapist will be giving her breakfast. Her first meal!!

Do we even begin to know and discover the possibilities of prayers? So, don’t just stand there, pray something! Not just for Rachel’s struggles, but for your struggles too....may you see the possibilities that prayer has in changing your life struggle into a prayer answered!!

I John 5:14, 15 says so plainly:
“And this is the confidence we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us: and if we know that He hears us,whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desire of Him.”

Thanks for checking in on Rachel’s progress and for your comments! ~ Crystal ~

A Note From Mom

2007-10-10T16:54:00.000-05:00

Today marks one week here at Madonna Rehab. It has been a really good week too.

The verse: ‘The Joy of the Lord is our Strength’ has been our theme since the onset of Rachel’s journey.
These 8 words have kept us all going forward, seeing God orchestrate every detail these 5 weeks!

Being at Madonna has continued to comfort us with the joy each therapist, nurse, doctor and worker exude with their team effort to heal Rachel.

Now, RuthAnne and I (Rachel’s mom) arrived yesterday morning. I hadn’t seen her since Friday and RuthAnne hadn’t seen her since last Tuesday. We are staying with David and Rachel Akridge (Rachel and I know and worked with this couple from Summit Ministries in Colorado) here in Lincoln, they have graciously opened their home to us until a house with Madonna opens up. RuthAnne and I are amazed at the improvements she has made. God continues to answer our prayers of healing for Rachel.

Since being in the hospital in Iowa City, Rachel wasn’t able to wear her engagement ring. Last night
Ryan put it back on her finger. This morning we asked her if she liked the ring back on...her look
was priceless. Ryan’s love for Rachel has a huge healing affect.

We want you to know that Rachel enjoys the cards and your posts on the web; so please keep posting your words of encouragement and prayers for her OR some story that you remember of her. You know, we will tell her what you wrote (which is fun) AND she will be reading this chronicle of her days since the ‘event’ as soon as she has access to the computer....

Here is a list of today’s Joys:

Rachel’s vision is really good as she did the Brock String therapy today....the therapist is happy about this and Rachel is even happier.
The PICC line for blood draws was removed~~one less thing attached to her body.
The TRACH removed!!! This is huge to her as this was a great source of irritation for her...now all she has left to get rid of is her stomach feed tube. That should be out as soon as her tongue can handle the food in her mouth AND she can eat enough to keep her energy.
She was able to stand for one minute with 2 people steadying her from wilting which was much better than yesterday.
The speech therapist just stopped by and said that Rachel can say ‘Yah’ and “No’ clearly so she wants her to say that instead of head nodding. She is pleased with Rachel’s improvements daily.
Rachel stays busy all day with therapy and some rests.........this helps to keep the days interesting and productive for her. One week ago she could only handle being up in the wheel chair one hour. Now she is fine with 7 hours!!!!

You probably wonder of Rachel’s emotional side.
Does she cry?
Is she frustrated?
Does she wonder ‘why?’
Yes, she does cry....perhaps every day at some point.
Why does she cry? Because she is frustrated, but not because she wants to give up.
She is frustrated with her fine motor skills not working as well as not being able to care for her body....how humbling...
We take these simple pleasures in life for granted UNTIL they are taken from us.
Yes, she does wonder why this happened.

How do we communicate if she cannot speak except to say ‘yah’ and ‘no’? Well, she has a board that
has the alphabet and with her left hand she can quickly spell out what she is thinking and the questions she has......the hitch in this method is with the interpreter (us) trying to remember and follow the sequence of letters.........sometimes she can spell faster than what we can remember and then......she ROLLS her eyes =) We are getting better at remembering.

Continue to pray for Rachel’s miraculous healing. According to I John 5:14, 15 ..... “And this is the confidence we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us: and if we know that He hears us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desire of Him.”

“Prayer is faith passing into act." Richard Cecil

Thanks everyone for being there. The Christian family is beyond compare!

With heartfelt love,
Crystal Garrison

One Week At Madonna

2007-10-09T21:30:00.000-05:00

Good evening,

Rachel had another good day here at Madonna. Mom and I got here this morning and hung out with her all day through her different therapies. Nancy (Ryan's mom) has been here this weekend during the day and Ryan comes in the evening.

It was great to see the improvements that Rachel has made in one week. I left her Tuesday night in Iowa City and she has been here since Wednesday. She is getting physically stronger every day, even the therapists can tell a difference from one day to the next.

Today, the Speech Therapist gave her a banana to eat and she did very well with it, I'm not sure if it was cut up or mashed, but Rachel loved it.

The doctors/therapist all meet in the morning for their weekly meeting to discuss Rachel's progress and will determine further goals/plans. We are curious to see what they say. The Pulmonary Doctor will see Rachel tomorrow and make the final say if she can have the trach out. She hasn't used her trach for a week, so we see no need for her to keep it. We thought he was going to stop by on Monday, but he got postponed for some reason.

Your prayers have a noticeable impact!
~RuthAnne

Fun With Numbers

2007-10-07T20:30:00.000-05:00

Greetings Everyone,

Today, we wanted to actually spell out specifics of where Rachel is at, and where she is going.

Where She Is At

Right now, Rachel is cognitively all there. She can understand anything we throw at her, whether it's old memories, math problems, or other 'mind benders'. There is no question that her mind is very sharp, and so far, we cannot detect any difference mentally from where she was before this all happened up until now.

Physically, she has a challenging road ahead of her. She can make sounds, but she's not currently speaking. She can move her arms a little bit, but not enough to really manipulate anything. She can read just fine, but she can't hold a book. At this point, she can't pick up objects, or even 'high five' us. She can eat soft foods, but she's not moving her body much below her neck. She can move things a little bit, but not much. The hope is that where there is little movement, more can be built.

Where She Is Going

By November 14th, the medical staff wants her to be able to accomplish the following:

1. Be able to provide assistance in getting in and out of a wheelchair.
2. Be able to regain 25% of her physical ability, which includes standing up without anyone to balance her, sitting up on her own, etc.
3. Be 50% understandable in her speech.
4. Only require 25% help in feeding of semi-solid foods.

This will be her first benchmark, and hopefully she far exceeds it. However, much prayer, sweat, and work will be required to reach it. No doubt, she has had an amazing journey in the past month, and the chips have fallen enough for us to all get a baseline of ability, of where she is actually 'starting from'.

From this point going forward, "work" is the name of the game. She will be doing plenty of it, so if you want to mail an encouraging card, gift packs, or random objects of affection, you can do so at her new address. She has her own room, and the staff has given her the freedom to decorate it any way she chooses.

So to sum, if you are looking for some very specific things to pray for:

1. The ability to move her tongue, and verbal communication.
2. The ability to move and control her arms.
3. The ability to move and control her hands, fingers.
4. The ability to move and control her legs.
5. Faith.

Thanks for your care,

- Josh

Consider This...

2007-10-05T18:02:00.000-05:00

Greetings Everyone,

It appears that the staff at the Madonna Rehab Hospital have no problem working Rachel to the max. Since she has arrived, they have made it clear that the only reason that she is there is to build her strength and health back up to a level where she can function independently. They have a very strong philosophy of 'do it yourself', which is quite different from a traditional hospital.

Here are the highlights so far:

1. She starts work at about 9:00 AM. She bathes, helps get herself dressed, and prepares for the rigors ahead.
2. She had an endoscope put down her nose yesterday, so the doctors could see her swallowing muscles function. They even burned the video to DVD for us. We're going to put it on UTube. Not really. The results were good, she can swallow decently, and she will begin with a soft-food diet today.
3. They stand her up on her own feet several times a day, and take her to the gym several times a day as well. It has been made clear that hard work will be needed in order for her to regain her strength, and so far, she has had a great attitude about that work. They are constantly putting forth challenges in front of her that are a bit more difficult than the previous task.
4. She is beginning to point to letters to communicate however, on Monday, she will have the Trach removed (yeah!). At that point, they will begin working with her in getting her 'speech muscles' (tongue, throat, etc) back up to par.

They weighed her upon entry to the facility, and surprisingly, she hasn't lost much weight. This is a good thing, as she has basically been immobile for the past month.

Phil and Crystal are the two that have spent the most time with her the last few days, and in the very limited amount of time that they have been at Madonna, they have seen a pretty dramatic improvement.

They have a tentative release date of November 14th, however, that will be evaluated and re-evaluated each week that she is there. They can hold her for much longer than that, depending upon her progress. Meaning, if she keeps progressing, they will keep her there longer.

RuthAnne and Crystal will be spending the week with her starting this Tuesday.

ONE QUICK THING TO CONSIDER: It has now been a month since this whole ordeal began.

30 days ago today, it was questionable whether or not Rachel would live.
28 days ago, we were told Rachel would probably be a vegetable.
27 days ago, we were told Rachel would probably be on a ventilator (breathing machine) for the next 6 months.
21 days ago, they concluded that Rachel's 'swallow muscles' were so weak that she might never be able to eat on her own again.
14 days ago, we were told that Rachel would probably be stuck in the hospital in Iowa City for 2 - 3 months of pre-therapy, just getting ready for true rehabilitation.
6 days ago Rachel was still waiting to get out of the ICU.
4 days ago we didn't know if Rachel would even be accepted to Madonna for rehab.
3 days ago, Rachel arrived at Madonna for full rehabilitation.

And now, here we are...

Pretty amazing to consider, eh? We think so. If you ever wonder if your prayers are being heard, just look at the time-line listed above. Thank you for all your support.

- Josh

Big Day In Lincoln

2007-10-04T20:20:00.001-05:00

Ryan and Rachel at Madonna Rehab Hospital. (Nancy, Ryan's mom in background)
Ryan is working with Rachel's left arm.

Rachel has been at Madonna 1 1/2 days and it is totally different than a regular hospital. Yesterday, they downsized her trach to a 4...so half the size of the first one. They may take it out tomorrow, if not tomorrow then on Monday.

Mom and Dad have been there since she arrived. Josh and I have yet to go and visit, we are looking forward to seeing her and her new place. The staff sounds amazing. Dad said that the staff are all friendly, direct, helpful, and are glad to answer any question-anytime. I have no doubt that Ryan will be there to visit Rachel everyday...living only 40 minutes aways. I envy him for that reason. We live about 4 hours away.

The rehab sounds pretty intense. They said that the only reason that Rachel will be in bed during the day is to rest/sleep if needed. All the different therapist will start working with her once or twice a day, working up to 3 to 4 times a day. Presently, she has a speech, occupational and physical therapist. So that is a minimum of 3 times a day (of therapy) working up to 12 times a day between the 3 of them. They work Monday through Friday, 1/2 day on Saturday and take Sundays off.

Today, she got to wear clothes for the first time in 4 weeks! Shirt, pants, socks and shoes. I am sure she loved that. They sat her on the side of the bed, worked on her core muscles, had her stand a bit, put her in a high back wheel chair and took her to the gym for a bit.

They are still in the 'assessment' stage of the process. From the testing they did, her mind works very well. Her reading comprehension is good, and so are her reasoning skills. Her vision seems to be 98%...the only hang-up is an occasional double vision. They couldn't figure out when the double vision happens, but it is rare. At this point, not a concern. Rachel's since of touch is excellent. The Physical Therapist had her do some new exercises that had not been done before. There seems to be innervation to all muscles, even if weak, a little bit means that it can be built upon and fully regained if Rachel so desires.

Tomorrow Speech Therapy is going to do one of those swallow test (tomorrow) where they have a camera inside her throat and video her swallow to make sure everything is working properly. Today they gave her ice chips and had her do several facial and swallowing exercises. Imagine not tasting food for a month? I am sure she is motivated to get this figured out. She is frustrated that she cannot talk yet, her vocal cords do work and air is getting to them...once again, Rachel will have to relearn this technique that we take for granted.

I am sure that Rachel will be sleeping very well tonight. She worked hard today and put everything she had into her first full day at Madonna.

New Address!

2007-10-03T16:57:00.000-05:00

In Lincoln:

Madonna Rehab Hospital
c/o Rachel Garrison
5401 South Street
Lincoln, NE 68506

(spell out the word 'south')

Yeah, we have an address for Rachel. Thank you for your patience :-)

I just talked to dad, and he is very impressed with the facility and staff thus far. We haven't heard much about what the future looks like...yet. But the 'word on the street' is that Rachel's trach will be out soon...somewhere between 5 - 10 days. So we'll see.

~RuthAnne

En Route

2007-10-03T13:01:00.000-05:00

Presently Rachel is being transported to Lincoln via ambulance. Mom is riding with her and Dad is in their vehicle, following behind. Josh and I returned home late last night.

We all are curious as to what the next several hours and days will look like. I believe that they will start assessing her and begin to figure out her 'starting point' either upon her arrival today or first thing tomorrow. By Friday, they should have a general idea as to how long she will be an inpatient at Madonna. When she gets released from Madonna, then she can continue therapy with them as an outpatient.

The rooms for the patients are private and one person is allowed to spend the nights with her. Rachel is free to decorate her room however she likes. From the pictures we saw, Madonna is very spacious. The bedroom is nice and big, easy to maneuver. The grounds cover 22 acres. Madonna does have housing available to the family, on a first come basis. From what we understand, there will be an opening on Friday. :)

For some more info:
http://www.madonna.org/

and for specifics go to
http://www.madonna.org/progs.htm

FYI:
Candlewood Suites in Lincoln has an agreement with Madonna and gives a discount to those visiting someone at Madonna.

Thankyou for you continued support,
~RuthAnne

To Lincoln

2007-10-02T16:07:00.000-05:00

Friends,

Yes, Rachel got accepted to Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital in Lincoln, Nebraska. Rachel gets transported tomorrow around 8am and will arrive early afternoon. As more details come, we will be telling you about them.

~RuthAnne

Moving Forward

2007-10-02T09:32:00.000-05:00

Good Morning Everyone,

Well, we are all excited today, as it is the day that we will get word whether or not Rachel will be accepted into the Madonna Rehab Institution. She had her interview yesterday, and that went very well. Two nurses from Madonna came to evaluate her, and let us know what is to be expected while she is there.

It appears to be a top-notch facility, and all the therapy concentrates on getting the patient back to a level of normal functioning. They have practice houses, practice restaurant's, practice cars, practice garages, and a host of other simulation environments where they will take a patient, and work on coordinating the movements in that environment. Their goal is to get a client to a point of normal functioning as fast as possible.

The program appears to be very intense. They only uniform she will be wearing is sweats and workout clothes. Their baseline of activity begins at 3 hours of therapy per day, and builds from there. We asked what she would be doing the rest of her time there, and the lady laughed a bit and simply said "she will be resting during the rest of the time".

Ryan went back home yesterday to get some work done this week. RuthAnne, I, Crystal, and MaryAnne are holding down the fort here. Rachel continues to show marked improvements each day, whether it's stronger coughing, fine motor movement, eating ice, or something else. She has a great staff of nurses working with her on the General Neuro floor that she's on now.

As soon as we get an answer from Madonna, we'll put up a short post to announce it.

- Josh

Donation Information

2007-09-30T20:11:00.000-05:00

Warning! This Is Not A Solicitation!

But...there has been much interest expressed for submitting donations toward Rachel's recovery. Even though Rachel has no insurance, the Lord has provided much throughout this process, and we have full faith that all needs will be met. That being said, all donations would be received with gratitude, and if you would like to directly impact her recovery process, you can make checks out to:

Heal Rachel Fund
15496 250th Avenue
Centerville, IA 52544

It goes without saying that all proceeds would go directly towards incurred recovery expenses. That's it.

I C U Later.....

2007-09-30T19:34:00.000-05:00

Did you get the headline? ;-)

YES, Rachel moved out of the ICU and into the 'Neuro General' floor. To be specific, she is on the 6 floor, JCP -east wing. She is sharing a room, we haven't met the other patient yet. I think it is a elderly women. We got Rachel all settled in around 5:30pm and then went and grabbed some supper. We just got back and Ryan headed back to be with her for awhile this evening and the rest of us (Mom, Josh and I) will go visit in a bit.

I will have to get her new address and post it on here for you all. I'm sure that any mail that is already in the mail will get forwarded up to Rachel.

Since Josh and I have been gone a couple days, it was very good to see her again today. We were able to see improvements. Rachel has definitely gained some mobility in her right arm. When we left on Wednesday, she could hardly engage any muscles in her right arm. So that is great. Her neck and upper back have definitely strengthened as well. She definitely has a ways to go to control specific muscle movement. The areas that she seems to be working on by herself is her mouth and hands.

She still has some secretions, but is able to cough anything up when needed to.

Let's pray that Madonna will be able to take Rachel soon and begin their intense rehab soon. We should now more about this tomorrow and let you all know.

~RuthAnne

Ryan's Back!

2007-09-29T16:50:00.000-05:00

Rachel's nurse, Lisa, helped Rachel get ready for Ryan's visit this weekend. Lisa shaved her legs, armpits, brushed her teeth and did her hair. I'm sure Rachel is very thankful for such a thoughtful nurse. Ryan got in at 9:30am, he left early if he has a 4 1/2 drive :-)

Yesterday, the doctors put in a smaller trach. They went from a size 8 to a 6. I guess when she no longer needs a size 6, there is a good chance they will take the trach out and let it heal. Rachel made it through the night without having to have her secretion manually removed. So she must either be having less of them or is doing a better job coughing them out on her own. (probably a combinaion). Thanks for the continued prayers in this area.

Rachel got another hour of sunshine today, she LOVES being outside. She has had a several visitors today.

At 1pm on Monday, Madonna is coming to assess Rachel. This is the Rehabilitaion Center in Lincoln, NE that we have heard great things about. We will be very curious to what their prognosis is and when they think she will be ready for their rehab facilities.

Rachel has been working at controlling her lips, mouth, tongue...all her facial muscles. The speech therapist said that doing those movements all throughout the day will definitely help her. With a smaller trach in, it should be easier for Rachel to have more control with her swallowing. The sooner this is accomplished and she regains all the necessary movements to make what she swallows go down her esophogas to her stomach (and not her lungs) the sooner she will be able to take out the feeding tube.

~RuthAnne

Sunshine! You Make Me Happy, When...

2007-09-28T18:23:00.000-05:00

Skies are gray!

We've all heard that song, right? Well, we are all pretty happy today, as Rachel got her first exposure to sunshine in over 3 weeks this afternoon. The nursing staff, as well as the physical therapist, wheeled Rachel out on a top-floor solarium (fancy name for a 'balcony') where Rachel was able to soak up some sun for about an hour. This was undoubtedly good for her, both in disposition as well as physical health. The girl was finally able to get some fresh air.

Additionally, we are receiving intel that she is getting assessed for rehabilitation purposes over the next few days. The hospital does have a 'pre-rehab' program, which is set up to get patients to the point where they can physically cope with the challenges of a full rehab program. Right now, the family is considering a variety of options, from a state-of-the-art rehab center in Lincoln (about 45 minutes from Ryan) called the 'Madonna Rehabilitation Center'. There has also been talk of a top-secret program that is held over in China, that has purportedly been getting phenomenal results for stroke victims. These are all being discussed, and much will depend upon her baseline of physical ability and lung health.

She will be getting some new visitors tomorrow, so we are sure she is looking forward to that. RuthAnne and I will be heading back up there on Sunday.

Bye for now.

- Josh

A Few Details

2007-09-27T20:28:00.001-05:00

I have heard through the 'grapevine' that there is a desire to get more details on Rachel, her personality while in ICU, Ryan, how he is handling this, her nurses, etc. I'll do my best to answer questions you might be asking and filling in some of those details.

Rachel really enjoys laughing. Some of you know her humor and the things that she thinks are funny. It has been really fun to communicate with her, share stories, and her others share things that make her laugh. Because of the breathing involved, the laughing seems to make Rachel cough better. Coughing and clearing her lungs is a good thing. Besides laughing being good medicine, I am thinking that it is strengthening her body.

Rachel has had a couple wonderful nurses. One of her nurses, Lisa, treats her patients the way she would like to be treated if she was laying there. So, not only did she upgrade Rachel's toothbrush to a 'real' one, she washed Rachel's socks and then she shaved Rachel's legs! Now, that is amazing. Lisa definitely gets lots of points for the time she took with Rachel.

Nurse Erica takes over on the night shift. She and Rachel are friends. I think they stay up 'talking' after Rachel should be asleep ;-) Erica is the one that discovered that Rachel will spell words or sentences out using an alphabet chart and finding the correct letters. Erica always makes sure Rachel gets bathed and has her hair done in the morning. Bonnie (another good nurse) is really good about encouraging Rachel to do things for herself, but at the same time making sure she is comfy. We love these girls!

Not only does Physical Therapy and Occupational Therapy come once a day, but most of us that have spent the last 2 1/2 weeks with her do lots of 'therapy'. Being a massage therapist, I do my best to think about the muscles that I would want massaged and worked on if I was laying there. Josh and I read to her late at night. Josh also enjoys doing range of motion with her, especially her feet, ankles, and legs. Mom does a little bit of everything from being verbally encouraging, massaging, range of motion, researching options for rehab, keeping the doctors on their toes, and keeping in touch with everyone who calls.

Ryan does a great job encouraging her to focus on the movements that needs to be done without being frustrated. Rachel and Ryan do resistance training with her arms, shoulders and wrists. It is really neat to see how patient and persistent he is with her. I don't know who adores the other one more, it is fun to watch them interact. If there are several of us in the room, Rachel spends 95% of her time looking at him. When Ryan is here at the hospital, he spends from 8am to 10pm with her. He takes a hour for lunch, a hour or two in the late afternoon and makes himself leave during the shift change around 7pm to leave the hospital to get some fresh air and eat supper. Ryan left this week late afternoon on Tuesday and comes back Friday night late or early Saturday morning.

It must be so frustrating to have your mind work so well, but then to look at your body and see that it does not move when told to or like she wants it to. Not hearing her voice when she is dying to communicate and longing for that taste of food. Rachel was able to sign the alphabet when she first got to the hospital, but for some reason (probably lying in bed for 3 weeks) she is not able to make her fingers move like she needs to to sign. I have no doubt this will come back. The Occupational Therapist said that the first movements to return are large movements, like shoulders, arms, head, and bending the knees, then comes finer motor skills like fingers, balance, etc.

The life-flight nurse that was with her stopped by to visit Rachel. I guess she looked Rachel up on the 'registry' and came and found her. She said she would never forget that Thursday night with Rachel... My mom got to chat with her. Maybe when I return to the hospital, I'll get to see her. I would love to give her a big hug, she is forever imprinted in my mind.

I'll try to write more 'details' later. Hopefully this gives you somewhat of an idea what it is like...

- RuthAnne

A Note From Mom

2007-09-27T16:18:00.000-05:00

While Josh and I are at home for a couple days, Mom and Dad are doing a great job with Rachel, nurses and doctors. Here is what mom wrote:

We must pray for Rachel's secretions from throat area to BE GONE....these secretions keep her in ICU because they just complicate things. We need to pray too, for her swallowing. The swallow test person came by and gave the test.....Rachel does swallow, a little bit did down her trachea (to her lungs) vs. her esophagus (to her stomach) though the majority did go down her esophagus.....those are the two prayer concerns for Rachel at the moment -secretion to be gone and swallowing correctly. The more she practices swallowing her saliva, moving her lips and tongue, the better it will be for swallowing food and begin talking.

The physical therapist sat her up in a chair.....they were going to take her for a stroll but she had a coughing fit and her heart rate did not come down soon enough for the nurse to feel confident about the stroll. I asked Rachel if she thought she could do more than what they were doing with her and she nodded yes. So, we can pray that more is done with her. The more she moves, the better, of course.

It would be great if more people would comment so I can pass those comments on to Rachel....they can tell how they heard Rachel's story, how they are praying, or how Rachel's story has affected them. We encourage comments!

-Crystal

More to come later, I am working on a post of 'details' for those of you who want more specifics :-)

~RuthAnne

Sept. 26th

2007-09-26T20:28:00.000-05:00

Greetings all,

Today was another quiet day with Rachel. She has been consistently making progress with coughing, sitting up for short periods of time with some assistance, and gross (versus minor) motor movement. She has been sitting in bed for a very long time now, so she has lost some weight, and is starting to become a little stiff. We routinely move her legs, arms and the rest of her body to try and provide some relief. She seems to really appreciate this ;)

RuthAnne and I came home today, for the first time in 3 weeks. Rachel's parents are with her now. We are getting different reports as to how long Rachel will be in Iowa City, anywhere from 1 - 3 months. She has a long road ahead of her to regain back her ability to walk, talk, eat, function normally, etc. But we'll all be there with her.

She is just starting to become more and more aware that she can't really move the way she wants right now. She will look at her hand, and get frustrated when it doesn't work the way she is trying to make it work. Obviously, the most important element in her recovery will be her attitude throughout the process, so please continue praying that she maintains a positive disposition, as well as the faith that she will recover fully.

- Josh

hint - hint

2007-09-25T20:19:00.001-05:00

When you leave a comment/note (by the way, we love hearing from you)... please 'sign' your name at the end of the note. (especially if you click the anonymous) Otherwise we do not know who it is who left it. If you want to be anonymous, that's cool too. Just thought you would like to know that Rachel or the rest of us don't know who is commenting unless you tell us.

Thanks!

Holding Pattern?

2007-09-25T17:03:00.000-05:00

Good Afternoon,

You are all SO faithful to check this daily, what a blessing you are to Rachel and her family. Many thanks.

Today was another day of progress...we continue to make these baby steps towards full recovery. Full recovery is what we are praying for! Rachel spent all day yesterday and today off of oxygen. She was on a little bit in the middle of the night, but she has mostly been breathing room air for the last 36 hours. She still has secretions in her lungs that is a pain for Rachel to get out, but everyday her lungs and chest get stronger. Both Physical and Occupation Therapists were with her today. Ryan was there during both sessions. Rachel is getting stronger with her ability to hold her head up on her own and strengthening her core. I am sure she would love to be able to sit up by herself. There are SO many things to work on when you start from ground zero (or pretty close). I still don't think Speech Therapy has made it back around for an assessment, I think it has been about 1 1/2 weeks since there last visit....and I know her tongue and swallowing have improved since their last visit.

From what I can gather, Rachel's eyesight is getting stronger. She seems to be able to see objects well that are close to her, but she agreed that I was blurry if I stand at the end of her bed.

We talked to a couple of nurses and it seems like Rachel has no need to stay in the ICU, but because the hospital is so full right now, it seems like we are kinda waiting for a place to open up in either IPCU (Intensive Pulmonary Care Unit) or the general Neurology Floor.

It's my prayer that Rachel's lungs completely clear up (no need to go to IPCU), her eyesight becomes 100% and that Rachel is able to move to the Neurology Floor where she will be able to start more intense rehab.

Be blessed,
RuthAnne

The New Office Space

2007-09-24T23:38:00.001-05:00

Here is Josh's 'office'. It seems to be working quite well....who said you needed fancy to get business done?

Another Day In This Journey

2007-09-24T17:59:00.001-05:00

Rachel and Ryan got to spend another day together in the ICU. He leaves tomorrow for a couple days and will return Friday or Saturday.

We are not sure why she is still in the ICU, all her cultures have come back negative - so she has no infection that we know of at this point. Yeah! Rachel is continuing to do very well with her 'trach' and had a good time with her Physical Therapist and Occupational Therapist this afternoon. I don't think Speech Therapy came to see her today...maybe tomorrow? I know that Rachel has been working on her swallowing on her own and is looking forward to tasting food again. It has been over a week since Speech Therapy has seen her.

Rachel had many family visitors today, she enjoyed them. Even her little neice and nephews stopped by. We all had some good laughs at her bed-side. I am sure that when she can talk again, she will have many stories to tell us about her experience in the ICU :-)

Hopefully the doctors will see no need to keep her in the ICU and she will be able to transfer tomorrow to a more 'general' floor. I know that when she does transfer, they will start more specific rehab and get her rockin' and rollin' as quickly as her body will allow her too.

May all of you be blessed.

~RuthAnne

P.S. I'll try to sneak in a picture later tonight, of this office that Josh has rigged in the hospital room where we are staying -I think he mentioned a couple days ago....

Good Times

2007-09-23T15:38:00.001-05:00

Julia, Beth, Rachel and I. She LOVES having her hair brushed and braided. She is listening to her music and enjoying her company.

Russell Moved

2007-09-23T15:15:00.001-05:00

Good Afternoon,

Rachel is having another good day. She has had a several visitors today, which is fun. Rachel is adapting to her 'trach' very well. Oh, and she was able to get a private room in ICU...Russell moved to another floor and they gave Rachel her own room -yeah.

Let's pray she gets out of the ICU in a day or two!

~RuthAnne

p.s. Josh and Ryan are at Rachel's side

Laughter Is Good Medicene

2007-09-22T20:41:00.001-05:00

Today was an improvement!

Rachel woke up this morning feeling much better. Dad and Mom were the first to go and spend time with her. The Doctor and my parents had a lengthy conversation at Rachel's bed side, discussing her progress and random questions. Rachel was very alert during this time, listening to every word. I am sure it was comforting to her to hear first hand how she is doing and the next steps in her recovery.

Ryan got in this morning around 10am. Rachel was very excited to see him. (he had to go home Tuesday afternoon for a few days of work) They spent many hours together today. A friend of Rachel's, Beth, is here for the weekend. So between Beth and Ryan's entertainment at bedside, they kept Rachel laughing for a couple hours -so she was able to take a good nap. If Rachel wasn't laughing, she was contently smiling at Ryan.

The doctors are waiting to see if the blood, saliva and urine cultures come back negative. If so, she should be cleared to move to the 'general' floor. There she will start more specific rehab. Rachel seems to be adapting to her 'trach' very well, I'm curious if they will take her off supplemental oxygen soon.

You guys are awesome!

~RuthAnne (Josh's wife and Rachel's sister)

Tears In Iowa City

2007-09-21T19:25:00.000-05:00

Well, it's official:

Rachel is upset.

She's been crying for most of the day. When asked, she says she's not really in any physical pain. The best guess that we have is that she's probably upset that she is laying in a hospital bed with a bunch of tubes stuck in her.

We're trying to keep her spirits up. We understand that this is a process, and we're committed to helping her get back to 100% health. However, that's not an overnight fix, and perhaps Rachel is realizing that fact.

Whatever the case, please continue praying for peace and strength for her.

- Josh

Trached

2007-09-20T19:29:00.000-05:00

Evening Everyone,

Well, after much consultation, prayer, reading, research, and more consultation, the family has decided today to move forward with a tracheotomy.

Why?

For 3 reasons:

1. Every member of her medical team recommended it. The respiratory therapist, the nursing staff, and 8 different doctors all agreed that doing so would be beneficial for Rachel.

2. Time. You see, after multiple strokes, it is quite apparent that Rachel has some serious physical rehab ahead of her. The longer she sits in that bed, the more challenging her rehab will become. The family (and Rachel) all agree that getting her out of the ICU and into rehab ASAP is priority right now, and her medical team assured us that this would be a step in the right direction.

3. Pneumonia. The danger is that she may get a resistant strain of pneumonia, and the fact that she's not clearing all her secretions puts her at risk of developing pneumonia, which is a very serious in the ICU.

With all these factors combined, the family has had to make a judgement call, and this is it. So she proceeded with the Trach today, it was a brief procedure, and she's in the process of coming back out of sedation right now. Nobody but her mother (Crystal) has seen her yet, but we were told that it was a smooth procedure, no problems or hiccups.

So that's the scoop. On a lighter note, I will soon post a picture of my "workstation" here in the hospital. It is without doubt the most jury-rigged, goofy setup that I have probably ever used, and while I can attempt to describe it here, a pic is worth a thousand words.

Continue praying, and thank you all for the prayers thus far.

- Josh

Pegged

2007-09-19T18:42:00.000-05:00

Good Evening,

Rachel received her P.E.G. today, and that procedure went A-OK. While that should help her with feeding, there seems to be an issue with Rachel's ability to clear the secretions from her mouth and upper nasal cavity. We have been in talks today with the medical staff about the appropriate actions to take, and there seem to be many options, and at this point, we are praying for guidance in making those calls.

As a precaution, the medical staff put the breathing tube back in today. I want to make it clear that this has nothing to do with Rachel's ability to breath, because she can do that just fine. It is getting rid of the secretions from saliva, mucus, etc. that are building in her nasal cavity that is the challenge, and the only reason she has a breathing tube right now is to prevent these secretions from getting into her lungs and causing further complications.

Continue praying. Rachel needs it.

- Josh

Patience

2007-09-18T15:20:00.000-05:00

Good afternoon,

I guess the surgeons are busy here at the hospital. They have postponed the PEG tube procedure until tomorrow around 10:30am. (it only takes about 20 min.) So that is the latest info as of now.

Rachel is still making baby steps forward in progress. She sat on the edge of her bed with assistance this morning and this afternoon she spent awhile in a chair (I think they call it a cardiac chair) the back of the chair goes to the top of her head so she doesn't have to support it herself. She definitely nodded when we asked her if she likes sitting up. We are also going to take her a cd player and let her listen to some of her music.
She was excited to hear about that :-)

I know everyone is praying and supporting Rachel through this. I can't express how grateful I am for every one of you. Her body is healing more every day. I have been praying for her mind, the mind is SO powerful when it comes to believing whether we can or can't do something. I am curious to know if Rachel really believes she will be able to do anything (let alone everything and more) again.

One of the ICU nurses stopped into Rachel's room and told us that her sister-in-law had almost the exact same thing happen to her, just 3 days before her wedding and she walked down the isle 10 months later. Going from nothing, totally starting over, to 'walking down the isle' 10 month later. I don't know all the details of this lady, but it is encouraging to hear.

Rachel got 15 pieces of mail today, thank you to everyone who has sent an encouraging word -via blog, cards or phone calls.

Until tomorrow,
RuthAnne

Would You Like A Trach With That?

2007-09-17T20:42:00.000-05:00

Greetings All,

First, let me start by thanking everyone for their patience in waiting for an update. We have been waiting and looking at some interesting developments in the past 48 hours. Here's how it goes:

Sunday morning, we (the family) were greeted by the medical staff, as they had a very specific request for us: they wanted to perform a "trach" (I think its proper name is tracheotomy) as well as insert a P.E.G. tube into Rachel's stomach. We were told that the benefit of the P.E.G. tube would be to give direct access to her stomach for feeding. It is a small connecting valve that pokes through her stomach, and is hooked up to a feeding device when it's meal time. Currently, Rachel has been taking nutrition from a tube through the nose into her stomach.

The benefit of the Trach was supposed speed in recovery. Initially, we were told that this procedure would help in clearing her airway, prevent pneumonia, and help in breathing. It is a small opening that is opened at the base of the neck, right above the breast plate. It is a direct opening into the trachea, and might allow better, more efficient clearing of the lungs.

We considered all options, and talked them over with Rachel. At the end of the matter, Rachel chose to go for the P.E.G. tube (which is a very simple, very routine, very 'easy to heal' procedure with little to no risk) and hold off on the trach (which is also very simple, very routine, but not necessarily 'easy to heal', and definitely higher risk).

The primary reason behind that decision is that it appears that she simply doesn't need it right now. We are all rather baffled that the medical team here even recommended it, as she has dramatically improved her breathing, cough, gag reflex dramatically in the previous 3 days. We are surprised that they wanted to move forward with a procedure that could exponentially increase her risk of infection, as well as increase her general 'risk level' as a hospital patient.

If she continues on this path, she will have no need for a trach, or any other form of aided breathing. At this point, she can get oxygen in her lungs with relatively small effort, which is cool.

Tomorrow, she should have the P.E.G. tube inserted. This will be a bedside procedure, and will be performed by a Gastrointestinal team. Yahoo.

On a lighter note, she has definitely had a shift in spirits. She has been laughing frequently, as she is surrounded by cornball joke-tellers. She knows the amount of mail (gifts, flowers, thank you cards) that has been coming in, and no doubt the many prayers have helped tremendously. Russel, her 80 year old roomie, is feeling friskier this past few days, providing a much-needed comic relief. We just have to be careful when we glance over at him ;)

Rachel has also experienced her first good night of sleep since she has been admitted here. She was out like a light last night, this morning, and multiple times throughout the day today. That's a good thing.

I'll post an update after the P.E.G. procedure tomorrow. Until then, thanks for your continued support.

- Josh

Check back in a couple hours

2007-09-17T12:43:00.000-05:00

Good afternoon,

Sorry we did not get a post up yesterday, we WILL have one up today. Continue to keep Rachel in your prayers, she is going to have a minor surgical procedure done this afternoon. Josh will give you an update, explain, and fill you in on the last 24-36 hours of progress.

Blessings,
RuthAnne

MRI Results

2007-09-15T18:26:00.000-05:00

Greetings All,

The results of Rachel's MRI concluded...without a shadow of a doubt...that we are just going to have to wait and see where the chips fall. You see, when the doctors went in and broke up the blood clot, they shattered it into many smaller pieces that were (supposedly) dispersed throughout other areas of the brain to be re-absorbed back into the body. It appears that there is no damage incurred from these itsy bitsy pieces of clot.

There is much speculation as to what could or might be the long term or short term effects of her strokes. We all know what opinions are like, so the responsible thing to do is sit back and let the results speak for themselves, and from a results standpoint, she can breathe and move on her own. However, she has a weak swallow, and she hasn't spoken yet.

She is taking a 'swallow test' on Monday, which will give us a baseline of her ability to swallow and speak.

Today was the first real day that I've seen Rachel really laugh! We told her a few jokes to lighten the very somber mood of the ICU, and she laughed hard enough it knocked her Oxygen mask off. It was pretty sweet.

More than her physical ability, I would have to say that Rachel's attitude needs the bulk of prayer right now. Now, you can't blame the girl for feeling blue...she should be on her honeymoon, and instead, she's sharing a hospital room with an 80 yr old man named Russell that keeps trying to climb out of his hospital gown.

None the less, I am convinced that Rachel's attitude throughout the process ahead will have a drastic impact on the results that are achieved.

All The Best,

- Josh

Rachel's Neck

2007-09-15T18:14:00.000-05:00

Just clearing up a rumor we have heard.

Rachel's neck was never broken. Her spinal cord and her spinal column (vertebrae) are in great condition. The injury was to an artery in her neck.

a little notice

2007-09-15T09:44:00.000-05:00

Dear Friends,

I unlocked the comment link. So anyone may now leave a comment. (before, I think you had to be a 'subscriber' or sign-in).

If inspired, please leave a note for Rachel.

~RuthAnne

So What Is My Story?

2007-09-14T23:05:00.000-05:00

Hi! I'm in the hospital right now, so I sent a telepathic message to my brother-in-law Joshua about what I want written about me ;)

So here's my story...

I'm the second-born daughter of Phil and Crystal Garrison. They have been farmers and ranchers for most of their lives, and for most of my life, I have spent my time traveling, working, and spending time at home with my younger siblings. I've lived in Colorado, New Hampshire, Germany, but was raised in Iowa.

In fact, it was in Iowa that I met the man of my dreams...Ryan Baltensperger. He's really the first guy that I've ever even dated! We met in May, and I'm pretty sure he knew that I was 'the one' right away.

We were engaged in July of this year, and were scheduled to marry on September 8th. I never thought that I could be so happy! However, something very dramatic was about to happen...

On September 6th, I suffered an injury and ruptured my verteberal artery (it's a major artery located in the spinal column). I was life-flighted into the University of Iowa Hospital. The ruptured artery began to clot, and from that blood clot, I had 2 strokes and a seizure. That same night, I underwent an emergency operation to remove the VERY LARGE clot in my brain stem.

I came out of that surgery at 3:00 AM Friday morning. I was acting just fine, when all of the sudden, I stopped responding. My eye wouldn't respond to light, which is a pretty good indicator of someone who is brain dead. But I fooled them! They wheeled me in for an emergency CAT scan, which indicated that I still had brain activity.

Now, a mere week after nearly dying, I am still in Iowa City Hosptital, and attempting to put all the pieces back together. My fiance' Ryan has been amazing throughout this process, he really hasn't left my side this entire last week. So many people are rooting for me, and I fully intend on focusing all of my efforts on rebuilding all my abilities.

My lungs and heart have worked fine from the beginning. Now, I need to work on the motor skills, physical movement, and the process of speaking and swallowing.

So what can I do to help you? Well, to be honest, probably not a lot right now. Hopefully, my story will provide you with the inspiration that comes when we read an amazing story of 'beating the odds'.

What can you do for me? Well, to be honest, probably not a lot. In fact, there are only 2 things that I can think of:

1. Pray for me. For strength. For courage. For perseverance. I'm going to need a lot of each!

2. Send this story to someone that you care about. Someone that you trust. I'm learning that every moment is a gift. And the greatest gift I can give at this point is to help someone else realize that as well. So by passing this on, you allow my story to impact others. And it's good to know that I can impact others...even if I'm just sitting in a bed in a hospital in Iowa City.

- Rachel (as told by Josh)

Another Day of Progress

2007-09-14T14:21:00.000-05:00

Good afternoon everyone,

This morning when Josh and I went down to visit with Rachel, Ryan and my dad had already been with her for awhile. My dad had a good talk with her. She was very responsive to him, kept her eyes open the whole time they 'chatted'. Josh and I got there around 9:30. Ryan, Josh and I worked with her on her signing. We did some of the alphabet and our names. She seemed to sigh when Josh told her to sign my name because it is 8 letters instead of 4 :-) I am SO thankful she already new the alphabet in sign language, the only way for her to communicate until her speaking comes back. Last night when I went to visit her, she signed the word 'up'. We realized she wanted something behind her head to support and hold it up a bit.

Shortly after we were there, Becky (speech pathologist) came in to work with her. Becky said that Rachel seems very well oriented -knew what year it is, what month, and nodded or shook her head correctly to some harder (reasoning type) questions. Becky asked her to smile and pucker her lips, she was able to do both to some extent. It looked like the muscle contraction was equal on both sides of her face. Rachel really seemed to enjoy the ice chips that were given to her for the swallowing test. She was able to chew them, but if she did swallow, it was a really weak attempt. Becky did ask if she had talked at all, to our knowledge she hasn't. Today was the first attemt. When asked to say one, two, three, Rachel was able to say something that resembled a one, but was unable to continue. With the breatheing tube in for 3+ days and a feeding tube in for 8 days, her throat is trying to readjust and regain sensation and control. From what I understand, the part of the brain that the two strokes affected is where the control is for lungs, heart, and throat. Her lungs and heart work great, we are praying that her swallowing and speaking will soon return.

Shortly after the Speech Therapist came in, the Occupational Therapist and then the Physical Therapist came. Rachel should be good and tired from this morning's work out and have a good nap. She also had a couple of visitors today, I'm sure she enjoys seeing new faces.

And, the nurse said that as soon as she is able to sit up, we will be able to take her outside. I sure do hope so. I know the sunshine will feel great!

Thanks to everyone lifting her up in prayer. Her cough is getting stronger every day, which clears out her lungs very well.

Thanks to everyone who has sent card and words of encouragement. She will very soon be out of the ICU and in a regular room, so she will be able to receive more than just cards and emails.

May each of you be blessed!
RuthAnne

Sitting Up

2007-09-13T16:53:00.000-05:00

Good afternoon to everyone,

I apologize that this post is later in the day than usual. Today, I (RuthAnne) am attempting to write this :-)

The picture here to the left is from today, she has a oxygen mask. She doesn't seem to need the extra oxygen, but has it there for support if for a moment she does need it. Her hair is in a pony and braided (the nurse last night brushed it and braided it :-)

Rachel is still making daily progress, I am so blessed to be able to be here with her. With Ryan's dedication of being with her whenever someone isn't, Rachel has someone there with her almost continuosly from 7-8am to 10-11pm.

Last night, Rachel's cough started becoming much stronger. Yeah! The nurse this morning said that her sleep was interrupted alot with her coughing (on her own, which is good) -they hardly had to suction her out at all. Rachel is clearing and moving the secretions out of her lungs much more effectively on her own. Her cough was strong all day today as well. Thank you all for praying specifically for this.

Lori, the nurse that is with her today, has worked in ICU for about 20 years and before that worked on the floor where Rachel goes next. Lori said that Rachel's improvements are SUPER. Two nurses and Ryan helped her sit up with her legs dangling over the edge of her bed at around 2pm this afternoon. Rachel is able to lift her head up, but not strong enough yet to keep her head held up. I was able to be with her when they sat her up at 4pm and Lori said she did even better with her head. She was able to hold her head up and move it from side to side. All of these movements are labored and slow, but she can do it. :-) We asked her if she was tired of sitting up, and she said no. I thought that was a good sign -she must have enjoyed it some. She then said she was tired and ready to lay back down. Lori said to think about how tough it is to move after just one or two days laying in bed when you are sick, let alone being in bed and not moving much at all for 6 days.

Right now she is getting a MRI, not sure if we will get the results back tonight. We'll update you tomorrow if there is anything to report on her MRI.

Oh, one of the nurses and I were signing through through the alphabet - she was refreshing her memory and I look down and Rachel is doing the whole alphabet with us. Lori said that it is really good that Rachel seems to sign correctly because the same part of her braing that effects talking and swallowing, can impact her ability to be able to communicate. So it seems like she is able to not only understand everything we are saying but able to have the desire and ability to communictate back to us.

All of you who are praying, continue to be bold in your prayers. Specific requests are for continued improvement in muscle control, the ability to swallow (the sooner she can swallow, the sooner she can be off her feeding tube!) and that the infection in her lungs totally clears up.

I am unsure what we would do without all of you!

Thanks from the bottom of our hearts.

~RuthAnne

Sign Language

2007-09-12T13:04:00.000-05:00

Good Afternoon,

Today or tomorrow, we should be receiving Rachel's long-term care report. This report will be the "game-plan" that we will follow as go through the recovery process.

We now have a base-line of ability to work at. She has demonstrated that she can see, can move her legs, arms, hands, feet, and breathe on her own. She isn't speaking right now, and we don't know when the speech pathologist will begin working with her.

RuthAnne and I read aloud to Rachel for about 1/2 hour late last night, which she seemed to enjoy. Every time I stopped reading, she would open her eyes until I began reading again. We then did some exercises, and ended the evening with her tearfully hand signing that she loved us.

Ryan is holding up well, as are Phil and Crystal (her parents). Now that we seem to be out of 'crisis mode', we are all focusing our energy towards the coming weeks and months, as Rachel literally re-builds her life. I would advise everyone reading this note to take full confidence in the fact that Rachel has nearly an "unfair advantage" over others in a similar situation, namely:

1. One of the most competent medical teams in the nation overseeing her recovery.
2. Unmatched support from friends and family.
3. A uncommonly healthy background, leading up to this incident.
4. A strong, stubborn mind ;)

For prayer, focus on her ability to speak and swallow, as well as the right side of her body, as it seems weaker than her left side.

More updates are soon to come.

- Josh

Rachel's Breathing

2007-09-11T14:43:00.000-05:00

Good Afternoon Everyone,

Well, Rachel is definitely improving. She no longer has the breathing tube in her mouth, which is a huge step in the right direction. At this point, it can be said that she is not on any type of life-support at all, other than feeding.

She can open her eyes and make eye contact. She hasn't spoken yet, but has good control over her body.

As some of you may know, Rachel knows sign language. Well, Rachel's sister, RuthAnne, was in the room alone with Rachel. Rachel...all on her own...was able to sign 'I Love You' to RuthAnne. Ryan (her fiance') then entered the room, and Rachel was also able to sign 'I Love You' to him as well.

The medical staff continues to show surprise at the speed which Rachel is recuperating. All of the prayers have no doubt played a tremendous role in that, as well as the many family and friends that have actually shown up to visit Rachel.

We will be posting more pictures very soon now. Also, you may post your own comments below.

All The Best,

- Josh

Sign In!!!

2007-09-10T15:37:00.000-05:00

Please reply to this and comment about who you are and if you or organizations you know are praying for Rachel.

There are people praying in Mongolia, Austrailia, Africa, Europe... many who have never met Rachel!

Your prayers are making a daily difference.

Pregnancy Test

2007-09-10T15:00:00.000-05:00

Saturday night I (Anja) wanted to head to Iowa City before picking up Rebekah Barnes from Des Moines Airport. I realized it's not on the way, but wanted to see Rachel and thought her sister, Julia, who was managing the phone calls and household 2.5 hrs away would like to go see her. The last time Julia saw her was when she was at the hospital in Pella.

We talked about how good Rachel was doing on the way to Iowa City. Listened to some music and enjoyed meaningful conversation. We even talked about how despite Rachel doing so well, she's still in ICU and tubes are hanging everywhere. Not a pretty site.

Julia was trying to sustain her tired body with watermelon, and her blood sugar was definitely low. I spent a little time with Rachel, Ryan and Julia and my heart was gladdened to once again see how well Rachel was progressing. I needed to head to Des Moines and wanted to leave some time for getting lost on the way. So I sort of rushed out of there to find the family and just check in with them. They were down in the cafeteria.

So I navigated my way through the maze and found Pa Garrison and Maryhorn walking back to see Rachel. Finally found the rest of the clan and was surprised that they were all wondering where Julia was. I kept insisting that she was with Rachel in ICU, but they kept asking where the Emergency Room is. Finally I got out of them that Julia had fainted. This didn't really surprise the family as Julia is known for ... well fainting.

Apparently after I left, the helpful male nurse was overly descriptive regarding the mucus removal process. Julia started feeling light headed and realized she was getting close to fainting. She had enough cognitive power to realize sitting on a chair would be helpful. Unfortunately the chair had wheels and she definitely missed it, hitting the floor with her head. Eyes fluttering, speaking in gibberish, and her body shaking all seemed indicative to the medical professionals around her of a head injury. Julia and those closest to her (not in proximity, but in her family) realized this was just typical symptoms of previous fainting spells.

Non-the-less, she was strapped tightly to the board (this left a mark for 45 minutes - it was painfully tight and they would not loosen it even though Julia asked several times promising to not move her head), put on a bed and rolled down to the Emergency Room. She loudly and coherently was demanding to get off this ride, but they would have none of it.

Dad and Maryhorn were at this point at the reception unit by the ICU and waiting to get permission to see Rachel. As they were waiting they see this gurnee rolling past them. Dad definitly was like, "Is that my daughter". Maryhorn thought it couldn't be RAchel, "not enough tubes". Then they heard a confirming voice, "Hey Dad". Dad didn't really know what to do ...

Just before they got to the emergency room Mom caught up with them and demanded, "Julia get off that board right now". Julia wanted to but had insistent nurses who would have no deviance from their plan. Being the obedient daughter she is, her response was, "I would Mom, but they have me strapped down."

Alone with the middle aged nurse in the emergency room she found herself in some awkward situations that you just can't write about. If you ask her, she'd probably love to tell you though. One funny thing is that they insisted on her taking a pregnancy test. They were a little skeptical regarding Julia's virginity (she in no way looks pregnant!).

Thankfully the test came back negative.

There's been much discussion about this and it has been a bit of comic relief for us.

So, the next time you are about to faint in the hospital - take care. You never know what kind of tests they are planning on performing on you.

Tube has been removed

2007-09-10T14:40:00.000-05:00

Amazing how quickly things can change. Sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. I got word that they were putting the breathing tube back in, but while they were working with Rachel they decided to try other options.

Instead of putting the ventilator tube back in (someone with more medical knowledge should be updating this), the doctor decided to try sucking the mucus out with a tube through the nose. This seemed to help. Currently she's doing better and they can use a "nose trumpet" to get the mucus out of her lungs.

They also moved the bed so she can be upright.

Currently everything is looking positive. Her vitals are stable. She's less responsive (expressive) today, but it's probably the stimulation of so many visitors over the weekend, the morning exhaustion, and she had been given food a while ago. Rachel also had a physical therapist working with her this morning. The exiting thing this morning was that Rachel was able to lift her left leg and bend her knee. She's also been able to give lateral resistance on her left leg. So good!!!

Rachel is still running a bit of a fever. Again, this is good because her body is doing it's function - trying t to get rid of the infection.

Please continue to pray for wisdom with the doctors. Mom would like the doctor to consider putting Rachel back on Magnesium. Pray for wisdom there. Also pray specifically for her lungs.

MaryAnne decided to stay the night with her mom and us in the hosptial. She's been such a light in the dimness. MaryAnne is the youngest of the 8 kids and has never met a stranger. Such a joy to hear her reaction to seeing Rachel (something like), "Rachie looks like she's sleeping". All the kids reacted well ... but you'll have to read a post about Julia's exciting visiting yesterday.

2007-09-10T10:53:00.000-05:00

Monday Morning - breathing tube removed!

2007-09-10T09:57:00.000-05:00

Greetings!

What joy it is to be able to report that they were able to successfully remove the breathing tube. Rachel was sedated last night to allow her a chance to really rest up. Sunday was a critical time as swelling and additional blockages often show up during the first 72 hrs.

Rachel is able to squirm and move around even more. They have her sitting up more and I'm sure she is aching to communicate even more with us.

Please continue to pray that her lungs will be strong enough to cough up the mucus in the lungs. Currently this is the only concern. If she can't then they will have to put a tube in to help her remove that junk.

We'll keep you posted, but this is amazing progress! Please keep praying.

~anja~

First Hand Accounts of How Jesus has used this in your life.

2007-09-10T09:48:00.000-05:00

Please reply to this post with comments about how this has affected/awakened YOUR relationship with Jesus Christ. Both sides of the family are believers in a living and loving God. Both sides know that Rachel's amazing recovery is due to the kindness of Jesus Christ working in her life. We are praising His name. Though we are all extremely grateful that modern medicine has advanced and can seem to work miracles, we know there is a limit to human wisdom. I am grateful God decided to extend Rachel's life her on earth for a while longer. That doesn't always happen, and we are witnessing some of that in other patients' lives. May Jesus really bring peace and comfort to those families.

Sunday Morning

2007-09-10T09:08:00.001-05:00

This is Ryan and Rachel Sunday evening. The sign under the monitor is a reminder to turn the "food" off at 2 AM. They're getting ready to take Rachel off the oxygen since she's basically able to breathe without it.

Strange seeing Rachel this way. The strong woman we love. She looks beautiful with her eyebrows done, a nice tan, and other beauty things done for the wedding.

Greetings Everyone,

It has been a quiet 12 hours, but here is the latest:

1. Rachel continues to respond tremendously well. She is continuing to show improvement in recovering. She has developed a low-grade fever, which is actually a very good thing. When she had the breathing tube inserted at the emergency room, she vomited a bit, and some of that ended up in her lungs. Tests have indicated that she does have a mild lung infection, which is being treated with anti-biotics. However, the fact that she has a fever indicates that her immune system is working properly, and responding as it should. That's a good thing.

2. At this point, the plan is to remove the breathing tube tomorrow morning. This will improve Rachel's comfort here tremendously. and will allow her to communicate verbally.

3. There have been some requests for a mailing address where she could receive letters, flowers, balloons, cakes, cookies, cards, money, pets, etc. We ask that you send letters, but hold off on the other items until she is transferred out of the intensive care unit, so that she can receive them properly. That address is:

Rachel Garrison
SICU 5JPP
200 Hawkins Dr.
Iowa City, IA 52242

4. There is no indication of brain swelling as of now. The day is not over, but that is yet another positive sign.

Again, thanks to all of you for your continued prayers and support. It is amazing to see how 'words are becoming flesh', right in front of our eyes. Pray and focus on continued strength, and continued healing.

All The Best,

- Josh

Sunday Evening

2007-09-09T22:00:00.000-05:00

Good evening everyone,

Well, as of 7:52 PM Sunday, there is no indication that Rachel has experienced any brain swelling. It was a great, productive day. She received MANY visitors today (and if you were one of them, thank you), so she got plenty of stimulation today.

Not a whole lot to report at this time, just more progress. She responded well all day, and tomorrow morning, she should have her breathing tube removed. This is going to be the first real point of evaluation, as we will see her without a breathing tube or sedation. Up to this point, we haven't really been able to see exactly where her starting point of recovery will be. Tomorrow, we get a glimpse into that, and might possibly begin physical therapy.

Right now, we ask that you pray for Dr. David Diehl, his wife Cathy, and their family. They are in need of our support. At this point, we have seen an amazing process take place as Rachel has begun the healing process. Let us help Dr. Diehl and his family begin the healing process as well.

All The Best,

- Josh

Saturday Evening

2007-09-09T00:00:00.000-05:00

Good evening everyone,

Another highly productive day. Rachel is demonstrating progress by the hour at this point, with continued progress in motor movement and consciousness. Tomorrow will be a mile-stone, as many patients that undergo this type of trauma can experience swelling of the brain on the 3rd day from the event. Make sure to keep Rachel in your prayers tomorrow.

At this point, it should be communicated that all here have been first-hand witnesses to the power that prayer has had upon Rachel. She has surprised even her most pessimistic viewers with the phenomenal progress she has made in such a short amount of time.

This event has revealed that the people involved in Rachel's and Ryan's life have a faith and a passion that defies circumstance. For all of your support, we would all like to extend our heartfelt thanks and gratitude, and let you know that all the prayers, all the devotions, all the phone-calls and emails to rally support...

...IS WORKING..

More to come,

- Josh

Saturday Morning

2007-09-08T09:00:00.000-05:00

Hey Everyone,

Progress has been made in the last several hours. The night nurse kicked us all out for the night, so as to let Rachel relax a bit. Evidently, that helped things out, as she has been making substantial progress since then. As of this posting (7:03 AM) Rachel is responding to and acknowledging questions. She is shaking her head "yes" or "no" to each question, and seems to know who is speaking to her.

Additionally, up to this point, she has been experiencing muscle spasming in the legs and feet. In the past several hours, that has ceased, the muscles in those areas are now relaxed. She is still demonstrating direct motor control of her body as well, wiggling her toes and specific limbs when asked. The staff was very pleased and excited for her progress last night...and we are too.

The staff informed us that progress won't be made on an hourly basis for some time. They confirmed our thoughts that it would be slow-going at first. She still has a respirator assisting her breathing, so she is not talking yet.

So everyone knows, she is staying at the University Hospital in Iowa City.

I'll be doing my best to update everyone every 8 or 9 hours on facebook and email. Stay Tuned.

- Josh

Friday Evening Update

2007-09-08T00:00:00.000-05:00

Hey everybody, this is Josh Fuson (RuthAnne's husband), with an 'on-the-scene' update.

To sum, Rachel's condition has been stable for the past several hours. Last night, she underwent a procedure to remove a blood clot from below her brain stem. We are tentatively assuming that the procedure was successful. She was done with the procedure at approx. 3:30 AM, and has since been under the watchful eyes of 3 different teams of specialists.

As of this writing (9:47 PM), Rachel has been quite responsive to verbal commands. We can ask her to squeeze our hands, move her legs, flutter her eyelide, etc. Because she is on a respirator, she is not speaking.

We are waiting for 2 things right now:

1. We are waiting to see if any brain damage was incured from the brain clot, and if so, how much. We are waiting to see where the chips fall, so that we have a base-line to begin with. From there, the obvious goal is to work with her to get her back to 100% health. I've been known to be stupidly optimistic, but I think that is a very realistic target at this point ;)

2. We are waiting to see what happens on Sunday. You see, for many patients that undergo similar procedures, the 3rd day can introduce brain swelling. Today, Friday, was day # 1. Direct your prayers towards Sunday, as that will be a mile-stone in this event.

Ryan (her fiancee) and both sides of the immediate are holding up remarkably well. Be bold in your prayers, as we serve a powerful God. The doctors need wisdom, the family needs strength, and Rachel needs healing. If anyone would like to have a conversation, you can reach me at Rachel's cell phone (641-895-1881) or my cell at 641-856-7555.

- Josh

Friday Morning

2007-09-07T12:00:00.000-05:00

Dear Friends,

Your prayers are needed. Rachel is in very critical condition. The situation the family is possibly imminently facing is deciding weather or not to take Rachel off of life support. Yesterday afternoon during a routine neck adjustment an artery (in her neck) became compromised and started to bleed, which caused bleeding in her brain & an aneurysm. She's since suffered a few small strokes & a seizure. She was life-flight-ed to Iowa City & rushed into emergency surgery to break up the very large clot in her brain. The surgery did not go well. For a while she was in a quasi stable state. Briefly after the sedation began to wear off she was responsive to voices. Then she became unresponsive, (eyes were not dilating) & was rushed into a cat-scan. We're waiting on the results. Rachel is in a life-&-death situation. The family is in crisis mode. Please pray.

Thanks, Emily Humble (friend of the family)