New Year Update

It has been 4 1/2 months since Christian's accident.  He has made steady progress and is set to come home on Feb. 8.  He will continue outpatient therapy at Mentis Neuro Rehabilitation three days/week.  The therapy will continue to be Physical, Occupational and Speech with the main goal being to prepare him to return to work.  Christian will take the NeuroPsych evaluation again the week of Feb. 13th.  Based on the results of the testing we will have a better idea if he will be able to return to work and drive again.

Christian had CT Scans of the back and brain a couple weeks ago.  The back scan showed that his back is continuing to heal nicely.  His current limitations physically include no lifting over 25 lbs and no jogging/running until June 2012.  He will do one more CT scan of the back and see the back surgeon again in April.  At that time the back doctor is expected to release him.  The brain scan showed increased fluid along with some blood in his brain.  The fluid is in the front of the head and is pushing on his brain slightly which could be hindering his progress mentally.  The doctors are going to continue monitoring the fluid with the hope that it will reabsorb.  He will have a follow up brain scan in the middle of February to see if there are any changes.  If there isn't and the Neuro Rehab doctor feels it is making a big enough difference on his recovery he will push for the surgeon to drain the fluid.  This would require Christian to spend a night in the hospital, but is a relatively simple procedure.

Christian's recovery has been very good considering the extent of his injuries.  His current deficits are to the executive functioning part of the brain.  This higher level of thinking is the last to come back in the recovery.  His deficits are a slower processing of new information, his ability to multi task, on the spot problem solving with more than one activity going on, and short term memory loss.  Outpatient therapy will continue to work with him on these things.

If it is felt that Christian will be able to drive again he will have to go through a drivers training course.  This program is specifically for people who have suffered tramatic brain injuries.  He will be put on a simulated course and tested.  Based on his results, they will recommend how many hours of retraining he needs.  Once he has completed the training he will be able to go take the drivers test again.  If he is able to return to work, he will start back at a reduced work schedule and work his way back to FT work.

Christian has been doing volunteer work out in the community while at Mentis.  He will continue to do volunteer work here in Katy once he comes home.  He has been very lucky to have such good doctors and therapists, along with so much support from family, friends and the community.

11th Week Update

Co-Written by Christian himself......

I know it has been a while since we have updated. A lot has changed over the last couple of weeks. Christian has moved to Mentis Nuero Rehabilitation facility. This is his acute after care (which he refers to as his halfway house - He is half way home) At this facility he has multiple therapies a day in the form of classes. He feels like he is back in school. His day's consist of group therapy, physical therapy, walking with nurses, coping & adjusting, current events, memory, workplace communication, along with a weekly outing. This is to help him regain his everyday living. He has cleared his amnesia PTA (Post Traumatic Amnesia) and he had a brain deficit test to see where he is at with his brain function. He did better than they anticipated given the extent of his injuries and how long the PTA lasted.  He will be retested again at the end of January/early February, and at that time (based on his results) they will determine if he will be able to drive again and return to work.  He is getting day passes on Saturday and Sunday, he gets this time to come home and spend the weekend with his family. He is still limited on what he can do physically with his back. The back brace is scheduled to come off on December 7th. After that he will still have restrictions for the next three months. No lifting over 20 pounds and no running.  His release date is February 8th, 2012

We were grateful to have Christian with us on Thanksgiving. It was nice to have everyone together.

Christian and Alisa would like to thank everyone who participated in the Golf Tournament. They were overwhelmed with the support from everyone. Thank you Aunt Teri (Teri Thompson) for all your hard work and dedication on putting this together. Also to Ken O'Donnell for opening up his restaurant and welcoming everyone back after the tournament for a wonderful dinner. Also to his staff for donating their time and tips back to the family.

We want to give thanks this holiday season to everyone! We are very grateful.

Progress in week 5

Christian is finishing up his final week at TIRR. He  no longer has to wear his neck brace.  The back brace will remain on for another 7 weeks.  He is walking with little assistance.  Christian cleared his post tramatic amnesia test last Thursday. He will now be able to begin laying down new memories. He is still experiencing the confusion and it can last for several more weeks into months.

Christian will be moving on to Mentis Neuro Rehabilitation on October 19th. This is a post acute facility where he will be living for 1-3 months depending on his progress.

Thank you to everyone for your continued support and the amazing turnout t the dine and donate night at beyond the glory.

3 Week Update

It has been three full weeks since Christian has been at TIRR. This week he passed his swallow test, started writing words (not in a straight line and on the messy side) and walking with assistance. He is still very confused and still suffering from post traumatic amnesia. With him passing the swallow test he is now able to eat a modified chopped diet. With the traumatic brain injury the biggest progress will be made between 3-6 months with slow continued progress after that up to a year. No projecting his outcome as each brain recovers differently. 

The tentative release date from TIRR is October 19th, If insurance approves they are recommending he be moved to a post acute facility where he will live from 1-3 months with continued Rehab. 

Alisa continues to participate in his daily therapy's and the boys are still visiting on the weekends.

Dine and Donate - DATE CHANGE

Please see the attached flyer, They have changed the date and now Beyond the Glory has upped the percentage to 40% back.

Please come and enjoy!! Thank you

First Fundraiser Next Week

The first fundraiser is all set for next week. I hope many will be able to attend. Thank you to Teri for getting this set up so quickly. Please make sure to mention this when you are there.

1st Week at TIRR

This was Christian's first week at TIRR. TIRR is a rehabilitation center. This is where Christian receive's all of his therapy. He has three types of therapy. Physical, Occupational and speech. Therapy will be 5 days a week. Three hours a day. As he progresses they will incorporate group therapy.  The first week is a transition week. He was still pretty sleepy and not fully alert.  He has done well with the therapy with a little bit of frustration. Alisa brought the boys to see him last Saturday. He was very excited to see the boy's. Today was the first day that he has been very alert. He is starting to wake up more and is making a lot more improvement. They splinted his left hand and taped the shoulder. We are looking forward to more progress this week.