David and I couldn't wait to get on the road this afternoon to see how Jason was doing and also to see his new temporary home. As we rode up the PA turnpike and got closer and closer the ride became prettier and prettier. Once off the highway and onto the road the hospital is on the houses got larger and larger and we passed a beautiful golf club and suddenly came to the entrance sign for Bryn Mawr. It's a beautiful drive up to the main building with mature trees and open grassy fields. We saw people in wheel chairs and walking along paths around a pond with gazebo area and bridge and then there was the large outpatient and in patient buildings. We parked and rode the elevator up to his room and felt so relieved when we saw him. It just felt like the whole air around him was different - as though he knew this was a different chapter. His eyes were open and he was looking right at Carolin. Though we didn't feel he reacted too much to us he clearly knew who Carolin was and while we were with him watched in amazement as he once again took his arm and pulled her head onto his shoulder and seemed to lightly rub her back. Once she picked her head up he reached out and touched her cheek. It brought both of us to tears to see him clearly interacting in such a definite way.
He became uncomfortable soon after so we weren't there long before he got an injection for pain and was soon sleeping again.
As Carolin described the long hours of assessment he had today with all the different therapists and his reaction we were once again brought to tear filled eyes. A few highlights:
When asked if he lived in Texas he shook his head no.
When asked if his birthday was in May he shook his head yes.
When asked to take a wash cloth and wipe his face he did. (Not sure if this was a good response but he then threw the washcloth!)
They put a few drops of juice in his mouth and he swallowed.
They put him in a special wheelchair that can hold his head up and Carolin got to take him for a little walk around outside which he seemed to enjoy. (The feeling is that he may be using a regular wheelchair in less than a week.)
The nurses told Carolin that it was amazing that he was even there as the average patient with the severe injuries he had/has usually don't arrive from the trauma center until at least a month after an accident.
Because he seems to be slowly waking up more and more the professionals working with him want to really keep at it each day so even on weekends and holidays such as this one he will start a vigorous program immediately.
Later in the day Jason looked at Carolin and mumbled clearly enough for even her Dad to understand, "I love you". If he wasn't there to verify it we would all think she surely imagined that but he heard it too! To us it's obvious that he is having moments of lucidity and no matter how fleeting they are there and should keep getting longer.
So after close to three weeks of agony for all of us who love Jason it is a day that proves more than ever that some miracles have already occurred and we are sure they will continue! Please keep those prayer chains going because we need them more than ever to continue to give Jason the power to heal, heal, heal to all that he was both inside and outside and be ready by early November to hold his little girl. He just has to be and we won't stop believing!
Just a quick post tonight to let everyone know Jason was transported to Bryn Mawr Rehabilitation Hospital this afternoon and is now in his new room. Tomorrow he will have assessment testing done and hopefully by early next week we will know more about the total plan they have for him to regain the parts of his brain that will need retraining. We do know that learning to swallow so he can eat again will be a priority - once he does that he can get the PEG tube out and be totally tube free at last. He's already lost weight which as we all know he can't afford to do!
We are really anxious to get to the hospital tomorrow afternoon and see Jason's new surroundings and take a peek at the areas where he will be doing a lot of the hard work he has ahead of him. I'm going to bring my camera and will try to get some hospital pictures but if anyone is interested here is the website:
SAVE THE DATE! The fund raising event I mentioned last night has a confirmed date - The Jason Shepard Benefit Event will be held on Friday, October 12 near Frederick, MD. As Jason's brother's and sister's give me information I'll let you know more details but I do know that it is going to be HUGE and will include a Silent Auction. ( They have already had some pretty astounding donations for that and haven't even posted a request yet!) For those of you coming from out of town they are hoping to get a block price at a local hotel so I'll let you know as soon as I do. The important thing is mark your calendars!
(I know there are many people who want to help by holding additonal benefit events and I'll definitely keep you informed of them as I hear of them.)
I feel like I just haven't said enough or found the right words to tell all of you how much your continuing interest and loving words about Jason mean to both of his families. For me it feels like each kindness adds to the angel wings holding my heart up a little longer.
Many of you have asked how you can help. A benefit fund has been set up to help with Jason and Carolins expenses. We will have much more to follow, the donate button bellow will take you through the process.
A little over two weeks ago David and I almost lost our beloved son, Carolin almost lost her husband, Allison, Aaron, and Brian almost lost their brother, Carolin's parents and siblings almost lost an in law who has become very important to them. Two weeks ago yesterday so many peoples lives changed because of our common love and respect for one very special man. We are all bonded by the prayers we prayed together that Jason would live. And together our voices were heard and Jason is going to make it physically, despite some obstacles thrown in his way. Now he is about to start the next part of his journey - really the hardest part - to fight to come back to us as he enters rehabilitatio
There is much news to share tonight! Tomorrow morning Jason will leave the wonderful care he's received by the very special staff in the Neuro Trauma Unit at Lancaster General Hospital and make the trip by medical transport to Bryn Mawr Rehabilitation hospital near Philadelphia, PA. He will be one hour from Carolin's parents house and three hours from all of us here in Frederick, MD. Carolin will be provided with free housing right next to the rehab hospital and will be involved in all of his many types of therapy. Even their dog, Tokala, will be allowed occasional visits in hopes this will be a big spark for Jason.
Medically the infectious disease doctor says J may not even have had pneumonia the 2nd time around and is pretty much thinking the reason he spiked the high fevers and became so sick last weekend was due to a bacterial infection in his blood due to all of the tubes he had. His white blood cell count is now normal as are all his vital signs. What now remains is the continued healing of the many broken bones he suffered and the healing of his brain.
One big concern has been with no income coming in and Jason's medical insurance only covering a few months of rehabilitation, how to help him, Carolin and their soon to be baby girl pay for ongoing costs. With the help of several people we are happy to give you a way to donate if you would like to help financially. The link is above and you can also find it on Jason Shepard Fan Club page on FB.
There are also fund raisers being planned - I know Aaron, Brian, and Allison and their spouses are all planning a very special one that I will give the exciting details out to everyone as soon as things are firmed up.
The most touching news today was that, O.A.R, Jason's very favorite band, who he has followed since their beginning in the Rockville/Gaithersburg, MD area many years ago, responded with a beautiful note on the Jason Shepard Fan Club Page after being contacted by his brother, Brian, (and I've heard another friend did as well). Thank you so much! There is no doubt this will be a highlight of Jason's recovery! Hurry up J - we can't wait to share this with you!
Despite Jason's right lung remaining infected he is managing to make some progress.
He has a fluctuating low grade fever but hasn't needed any additional outside source of oxygen help since yesterday. You know he's happy to not have anything on his face!
Carolin reports that when the neurologist came in early this morning Jason really did well and did everything he was asked. Two fingers up, thumbs up, and lifted his leg.
He also opened his eyes, reached out for Carolin, and rubbed her face for a minute.
Despite being told there is no way to know what he is processing and at what level I am believing as time goes by he will indeed know us all and continue working hard to regain what he has lost. I want to believe that he will move in leaps and bounds and defy the odds and by November 9, when his little girl is due, he will witness the miracle of her birth and hold her in his arms!
It was a good night for Jason - no fever spikes and no need to raise his oxygen needs. Always glad to get those morning texts from Carolin so we can start our day with our hearts slightly more relaxed.
We did find out that the repeat blood test came back positive for bacteria again. For now all of the antibiotics he's on should take care of that and by tomorrow the culture should show what it is and if anything needs to be changed. Thank goodness Aaron asked the trauma doctor to get the ID doctor involved or Jason could have gotten much sicker before they discovered it!
He also had an EEG today which was clear and showed no sign of seizures. They did decide to keep him on the anti seizure medication for 6 weeks as a precaution.
As of this evening Carolin reports he is resting well with little to no fever and on room air only again. So whatever drugs he's on something is working well against that nasty bacteria.
We all are so thankful to God above for the amazing healing Jason has done in just two weeks. He's made it thru two life threatening events the first week to this already! He's been such a fighter it seems like not too far a leap to imagine him fighting this hard in rehab too. We should know in the next day exactly when he is going and can start up the next road.
Back home again but our hearts are still with Jason.
After feeling so good when going to bed last night it was awful to hear that Carolin was called at 3:30 this morning and told that Jason had spiked another fever and had possibly had a seizure. The nurses did tell her that he had been put on anti seizure medication right away and his fever was already down so there was no need for her to come to the hospital. A bright spot was that even after a rough night he still gave a thumbs up on command when one of the Dr.'s came in this morning. That's all of you working thru him - he is not giving up no matter what gets thrown his way!
A few times during the day they did put bags filled with ice under his arms and he was given Tylenol to help keep the fever from going up as well and it all seemed to work because most of the day he wavered between 101 - 99.5. At one point they did have to put his oxygen mask back on but by late afternoon he was back to just the nose prong air. He is no longer acting like his head hurts and slept pretty much all day. His face, which has been etched in so much pain for the past 12 days seemed to relax as the hours went by so we are really hoping it is easing up a tiny bit for his body.
Later in the day the infectious disease, (ID), specialist came in and examined Jason. He had blood drawn to see if he had any bacteria growing in his blood stream. He was not ready to make any guesses as to what to rule in or out but did say that when a patient is lying in bed for a long time and has lots of tubes going in and out there is more of a potential for bacteria to grow. As a precaution he changed his antibiotic to a different broad spectrum one, added a second antibiotic, and an anti fungal to cover all bases. As it turned out one of the blood cultures did show positive signs of bacteria - but the other one didn't so they drew more blood this evening to determine if the positive result was just a contaminated sample or if he really does have something going on. We should have the results of that in the morning and if it is positive as well we will hopefully know by Tuesday just what bacteria it is and treat accordingly.
The ID doctor did tell us he does not have a UTI. Good - he doesn't need any more to deal with than he already is!
So we start another week with hope in our hearts that once we are on top of these medical bumps we can get back to working on the challenges ahead with Jason's brain function. We really have been so grateful that these bumps have been fairly short and solvable.
We are so grateful to Lancaster General Hospital for providing a free apartment to Carolin as long as she needs it. The Doubletree Resort, where Jason has been working for over a year now, (and Carolin's brother works as well), has been incredibly generous to our family and opened their arms to us staying with them each chance we get to visit our precious son.
Both sets of families continue to be overwhelmed with people's generosity, kindness, and thoughtfulness. Prayers continue in different churches, temples, synagogues and people's homes. Thank you, thank you to everyone for loving Jason as you do!
What a rough day so far for Jason which means a rough time for all of us as well. The description of this being a roller coaster is physically a good description with feelings going from up to down and down to up and back again and your stomach dropping out from under you all within hours.
This morning Carolin texted us that Jason was running a high fever, (I later heard from the Dr. it had been up to 105 early this morning), and his chest xray showed his right lung was showing additional fluid. He's also been grabbing his head and grimacing so it was pretty clear he was having head pain. They packed ice bags around him and the fever did come down a bit. The Dr. ordered a CT scan of his lungs as well as a sonogram. (That was to make sure everything was okay with the PEG tube they put in yesterday.) It was an anxious ride to Lancaster worrying that this would have serious consequences for his still fragile lungs. The bright spot we did keep in mind was that through this he was holding his own breathing wise and on room air only.
My sister had picked me up on her way from VA to the hospital and as we walked down the hospital hallway on the ground floor we saw someone pushing a gurney. As they came closer Margie was the one who recognized it was Jason. It felt like a small wonder that we had crossed paths with him on his way to the CT scan! He looked so good to me despite his fever - nothing covering his face not even an oxygen mask. His eyes are close to normal size despite lots of bruising still visible and with the stitches out you can see skin rather than heavy black thread.
I joined Carolin and her Dad when he came back to his room and it felt so good to hold his hand again. He had been given Tylenol and started on a broad spectrum antibiotic and his fever was already down to 102 which was a relief. Finally we got to meet with the Dr. who told us after much consulting on Jason's test results the conclusion was that the PEG tube was in place perfectly but that he did have a pneumonia in his lungs that was a bit more involved than the original one last week they had been treating. He's now on a broader spectrum antibiotic as well as Tylenol. They do suspect his head pain is from a sinus infection and he may have a possible UTI but both of those infections will be taken care of with the new antibiotic.
Carolin asked the Dr. to fill Aaron in and after speaking with him Aaron felt strongly about getting an infectious disease consultant just to rule anything extra out and the Dr. readily agreed so that will happen soon.
So as we've heard this should just be a bump in the long road. Please keep those healing prayers raising up - he really needs them now and we appreciate every loving thought he feels.
Steady progress being made! Jason didn't need the left chest tube put back in which was good news. The had him back on the CPAP machine yesterday to help with the pneumothorax seen on the morning's chest xray but that is off today and he had been on just oxygen most of this morning Now I just heard from Carolin that they took that off and are seeing how he does totally on is own. Yay!
Most of yesterday he was very sleepy which was a good thing as there was so much excitement the day before. They did put a NG tube in so he could get that good nutrition going again which we were glad to hear -but in typical Jason style he pulled that out during the night! So we are expecting that they will put a feeding tube into his stomach today - called a PEG. That should be more comfortable for him as he's made it quite clear he is not wanting anything near his face! (And with good reason!)
Yesterday they did start some PT and OT but he was too sleepy to care much. Carolin continued today's good report saying that he was more responsive this morning. He also had most of his stitches removed today. So two more yay's!
Our prayers for him to live and live without breathing help have been heard and it looks like Jason is physically coming through this with flying colors. We had lots of grim sounding stories of what could happen but though there have been a few bumps - it feels like we are out of any physical danger.
Now we are hoping everyone will become, as one of his friends said, his prayer warriors, for the power of his brain to regain it's normal function. That as each day goes by it will slowly but surely recognize all of us and respond well to the therapy they have started at the hospital and will continue when he's ready to move to the rehab facility.
There have been such beautiful messages posted on all of our FB pages and emails and we know some people don't even know Jason that well but have joined in our fight out of the belief in the courage and strength of the human spirit and prayers really working. I wanted to share a few so everyone can get just a little idea of what a special person J is:
Jason, the world is better with your vibrant spirit and kind heart. All of the people you have touched, are now touching you with their prayers and love... I am praying that their love will become such a tangible reality to you and it will energize your body through the healing process. I do believe God works miracles, and it seems he's already working one in you. ♥ I will be praying for you.
Praying for you Jason. I've not forgotten your strong spirit; you make an impact on people
Out of tragedy comes triumph..out of darkness comes light, out of storms comes the sun, out of tears of sadness comes tears of joy. I believe in you bro...I believe out of your sleep, you will awake. I believe I will see your shining face, big bold eyes, and great smile in the near future.
May all the prayers continue around the world from family and friends and give J the strength he needs to heal and come back to us- love you so much bro we are standing strong and united as a family right by your side
There's a light at the end of every tunnel, and for each and every bad situation there is an equally good one just waiting for the right moment to shine.
God pays attention to the detail and it had been so cool to see how many people are praying for you. It speaks so strongly about the man that you are and the affect that You have had on others that so many love and Care about you J Shep!! Rooting for you.. Continuing to pray for you... And expecting God to carry you through this!!!
Prayers, hope, healing, and the strength to walk out of that trauma care center...on your own...are all coming your way, Jason. He's carrying you right now, so there's only one set of footprints in the sand, but when you wake up, there will again be two. You can do this--
Again - there are no words to tell all of you what this support means and is doing for Jason as well as us. It's not always easy to stay positive but for me, as I'm sure all of his family, every time I read and hear how many people care and are rooting for him it makes it just a little easier.
Yesterday morning had lots of progressing excitement but after giving the thumbs up twice earlier and then pulling his central line for the ventilator out himself, (which also included his feeding tube), he was pretty exhausted. They tried to get a nasal feeding tube in but had to retry and at that point Jason had had enough and his breathing started to decrease. They first just gave him some additional oxygen but the doctors felt he needed a bit more help so he was on the CPAP machine when we went yesterday. But even before we left last night they had already lowered it down to 40 so he seems to be stabilizing again and the plan for today was to just having him on an oxygen mask with no pressure involved. The CPAP machine will be on stand by but I have a feeling they won't be needing that! So it looks like there will be no tracheostomy done - amazing when just 7 days ago we were told he would need to be on the ventilator for at least 2 more weeks!
It was very tough seeing him even though he looks amazingly better than when we left him on Sunday. His swelling is really down and he looks much more like our Jason.
All of the cuts are healing and the places he needed stitches look less angry. And seeing him without that huge neck brace and not having the ventilator forcing his chest in and out was a beautiful sight. So now we are entering the next phase which is going to be tougher for us all as he comes around. Carolin said he had been opening and closing his eyes most of the day and the entire 4 hours we were with him he had his eyes open more than closed. It's so hard to say what he sees or recognizes. His eyes are still pretty swollen and extremely blood shot. He is blinking and moving his eyes from whoever is talking to him to another person talking - though his head doesn't move and he is favoring his left side. (Which makes sense since the worst of the damage to his body is on the right side.) There is no way to know if he knew who we were but both David and I felt a strong connection as if even if he might not be placing who we were he knew we were very important to him. David, as before, got a strong reaction, and it seemed he was trying to tell him something but most of what comes out is a moaning sound which just broke us up.
He is clearly in horrible pain which shows in his eyes and honestly I don't know that anyone could be reacting clearly under that duress. They are limiting his pain meds as they are afraid if he is too far under it will cause his breathing to decrease so it's a very fine line. He can't get comfortable and when the waves of pain hit him and he kind of jerks his body and his leg begins to shake. Carolin, David, and I were taking turns calming him down with soothing words until the worst of it passed. At one point Jason reached up towards David's face but he is clearly having a depth perception issue - not unusual at this stage - when David saw that J was having trouble he put his hand up and Jason definitely grabbed it and wrapped his fingers around David's hand. We both felt he was crying a few times in response to our speaking of how much we loved him and were proud of his fighting spirit. We talked to him about imagining all of you out there lifting him up with your love and prayers and are hoping somewhere in there he is registering and feeling that.
When it was time to leave it was gut wrenching, whether we imagined it or not, it once again felt like he knew who we were and his eyes filled with tears. Thank God for Carolin who stands calmly by his side and who he clearly feels so much comfort from. David quietly hummed the Hallelujah song and he seemed to like that. They did give him a slow drip of some pain medication as we left and he seemed to relax again and doze a bit more. What a relief!
Another significant thing he did that could be meaning he is more and more remembering Carolin is that he was playing with her wedding ring which is something he did before the accident when they would be watching TV or talking. He kind of rubs the top and twists it around and that takes some good coordination. It's all those video games that may just have kept that dexterity okay! Hopefully it won't be long til he is back to playing them with those of you who are his "game" pals!
Dance Dance Revolution in competition, as usual, with Aaron
Wii Bowling
After we were able to tear ourselves away we were driving back to Frederick when Carolin called up with an unexpected update - they were taking his chest tubes out over night! Another step already! She also spoke to them about how can he sleep when in such pain and they were going to give him something to relax his body.
Usually the neruologist comes in by 6 a.m. but Carolin's been sitting by Jason's side and no sign of him yet today. But I can tell you that they do have him up in his special chair again and he is dozing at this time. Carolin reports that he was doing so well they just have a nasal tube for oxygen and no mask. On the down side his left lung was showing a small air pocket on an earlier today chest xray. They will do another one at noon and make a decision if they need to reinsert the left chest tube. A good place to focus those prayers and energy on right now!
Our understanding is he will be getting what's called a "peg" tube for feedings which is thru his stomach. There is also talk of starting some therapy this morning which I'm assuming is physical therapy.
So lots going on and the idea is he will finish some neurological testing this week now that they are letting him wake up more and by mid next week he may be moved to a rehab facility. It should be in Lancaster but no definite decision made as it depends on where his main problems are.
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for the ongoing vigil for Jason and being a part of his journey which is far from from over. Lindsay, Aaron's wife, told me last night that their little boy, Cole, has been praying each night for Uncle Jason to feel better and even reminding his parents to pray as well. Yesterday he found the stuffed animal Jason and Carolin brought him back from Disney and brought it to daycare to snuggle with because Uncle Jason bought it for him.
I'll update you again later today. With ever growing hope in all of our hearts -
God is listening so keep speaking!
Everyone must be praying hard because another miracle happened within the last hour!
They had put Jason in a reclining chair to put him in another position and as he lay with his eyes closed Carolin quietly explained that they were taking the vent tube out of his throat. As she watched him and hoped she was making a connection he suddenly opened his eyes wide, reached up, and pulled the tube right out of his throat!
Guess Jason told them what he wanted - and it wasn't any more tubes even if it would be in a different place!
At this time all monitors are showing he is breathing okay with no help at all and if things continue that way there is no need to do anything further breathing wise. No tracheostomy and no feeding tube in his stomach. At this moment the only thing planned for this afternoon is a feeding tube which will go thru his nose and perhaps in a few days he won't even need that!
Needless to say our plans have once again changed and we are now definitely heading up to Lancaster General Hospital early this afternoon. I can truly say I am smiling again!
Somehow as devastating as this has been to all of us we continue to have this feeling that Jason will be different and beat the odds. We are trying to give him as much strength and unity as possible, and all of his friends and family, and even strangers now reading this blog, are making this happen thru their prayers and positive energy.
Someday we will all celebrate together and Jason will have the biggest grin of all of us!
How many times can I use the word miracle? Apparently a lot!! We are so full of love for all of you praying and hoping and thinking of Jason because Carolin told us that this morning during his neurological assessment Jason gave the thumbs up 3 times! There is no denying that was a "purposeful" movement!! We are beyond excited and grateful to God for granting this sign that something is connecting in his beautiful brain. And just to further know it's Jason he wouldn't do it when the doctor asked him but only when the nurse did- boy will we be able to tease him about that when he is back with us!
He is due to have his tracheostomy at 3:30 and while doing that they will be putting a small feeding tube into his stomach. (Up til now his nutrition has been going thru a tube in his mouth.) The procedures themselves aren't long but with prep and clean up it may be awhile. David and I are driving up this afternoon and have to leave tonight but will be grateful even if it's only a few minutes we get to see our incredible son!
UPDATED - We've decided to wait until tomorrow to head up to Lancaster as Jason will probably be pretty out of it this evening but will write as soon as we get any updated info today.
So today will be a big day and I'll have more wonderful news to give you once we get home!
Lots of you asking about the benefit fund information and I hope to have it up in the next update as well.
Each day brings good news and as long as we keep moving forward we're going to get to the top of the mountain!
The most exciting news today is that they did remove his neck brace during the night! Carolin's Mom, Tracey, was there when they did and it was nice to know someone familiar to him was by his side. We feel so fortunate to have doctors and nurses who have shown Jason and our entire family such heartfelt compassion. The hospital tries to set it up so that Jason has consistently been with the same nurses and most have really gone out of their way to go above and beyond in our opinion. One of these is Chris, who is frequently with him at night. When the neck brace came off it was Chris who shaved him and after seeing some pictures of Jason left his goatee on. J will be excited to wake up and find he still has that which he worked so hard for!
Another example of Chris's taking good care of Jason is earlier in the evening when Tracey threatened Jason with Justin Beiber music, Chris said, "No I don't think I could do that to another man." Then he leaned down to Jason and whispered "I got your back man." Not a surprise to us who know Jason that people have gotten so attached to him!
For now his Trauma Doctor has decided they will do the tracheostomy tomorrow morning. This will give Jason's lungs another full day of healing. Once that is done they can start weaning him off of some of the drugs which are keeping him more sedated. So we are hoping that maybe by Thursday the neurological assessment can begin again. Once we have a clearer picture of what we are facing the Dr's will better know what rehab he will be needing.
Today's other news is that they are supposed to try sitting him up in a chair. He keeps trying to sit up so hopefully that will go well.
A lot of people have been asking if they can contribute to a fund for Jason, Carolin, and the baby. Because they are due in 3 months and there will be no income coming in for awhile that is being set up. It will go thru PayPal and right into an account at J&C's bank in Lancaster. I'll post links as soon as they are available.
In yet another example of team power one of Jason's good friends has started a Face book page called, "Jason Shepard Fan Club", which anyone can join. There are so many messages up already!
Today is one week and there will be many more weeks we will need your messages, your hopes, your support, and most of all your prayers each day for Jason to make a full recovery and as so many have mentioned see his big smile.
"Risin up straight to the top Had the guts got the glory Went the distance now I'm not gonna stop Just a Man and his Will to Survive!"
This day has just continued with great news about Jason! Late this afternoon he had his MRI and Carolin called and gave Aaron the results which we got a short time ago.
There is no neck injury! After such a strong impact not even a torn ligament! This means the neck brace he has had the past week is going to be removed tonight. It also showed the collar bone and orbital bones are healing well so definitely no surgery. So now the big decision for the pulmonary team is whether to do the tracheostomy or will his lungs be okay without any further intervention. The fact that we could even be saying maybe he can be off the ventilator all together - when a week ago we were told two weeks on it is incredible. Even if they do decide to do the trach we will be so happy to see him free of all the mouth intrusions.
As far as his brain injury we will have to wait for his neurologist to read the MRI early tomorrow morning. I'm not exactly sure if that will impact the decision above as I know in order to have no tubes at all his brain has to function enough to be able to clear his throat on his own. So it's a bit complicated and he's healing so rapidly physically it seems to change quickly. (Although in reality each hour we wait for changes seems to be twenty four!)
When they did the MRI they did have to give him more sedation medication and once they stopped that he became very aggitated again this evening. Carolin had to cut her conversation short a bit while talking to Aaron as the nurses actually came to get her to calm him down. At this stage in the game this is very unusual to have him responding so to her soothing voice. We are believing this is another sign our Jason is just waiting to wake up and come back to us.
The nurses and respitory staff have told us Jason and the amazing support of his family and friends have really touched them. And each day we hear of more and more people of every faith joining the wave of prayer. Jason has always been a gentle peace maker and one day soon I hope we can show him all of you who have united in prayer for him. Keep praying for our sweet man!
Will it really be a week tomorrow since our world changed?
We've had so many people asking what happened and I know I would be asking the same thing so here is what we now know:
Jason was due in to work at 8 a.m. on Tuesday morning. Since it was pouring rain out he left early to give himself extra time. He was traveling North on the highway about 1/2 way to work when it looks like he hydro planed, and the passenger side of his car slammed into the end of a guard rail. Unfortunately, unlike some guard rails which have their ends buried in the ground, this one ended above the ground and went through the car pushing the passenger side of the car into Jason. The roof collapsed around him and the car ended up partly in the South bound lanes. And this is where the miracles begin, (aside from it being the passenger side and not drivers side that went into the rail).
A policeman, who happened to be making a U turn from North bound to South bound saw the car within seconds of the accident and was calling for help immediately. When he got to Jason the rest of the car was soaking wet but Jason was still dry.
Though the entire car was destroyed Jason's seat was not. He does have a gash across his forehead where the roof collapsed but it collapsed around him.
The accident happened within minutes of one of the best Neuro Trauma Centers all over. There is no doubt if he hadn't been he would have had to have been flown to one and lost precious time. In the emergency room he was treated by very experienced trauma doctors and nurses.
Because they had to cut him out of the car and then had to find who to call it was almost 45 minutes after the accident until Carolin received a call that he had been in a "fender bender". She sensed it was more than that because Jason himself didn't call.
Thank goodness her father drove her because when they arrived she was faced with a lot of commotion and information.
At that point we were in the middle of our two week vacation in Maine. We got the phone call from Carolin just after 9 a.m. that Jason had been in a serious car accident and was in critical condition and to hurry to Lancaster. It was excruciating to know we had an 8-10 hr drive to get to Jason. I can't even imagine how Carolin got through those hours. She had forgotten we were in Maine and after 3 hours and we hadn't arrived called us. It was everyone's worst nightmare. Along the way we did get updates - he had brain damage and was going into surgery...he had multiple broken bones and a broken jaw...all sorts of bits and pieces as they were being told to Carolin and not all true once he was assessed.
I had written in my first blog post about his injuries and though there are many he does not have a broken jaw and did not need brain surgery or orthopedic surgery.
There was an article and pictures of the car in the local paper if anyone wants to look.
I did finally see the pictures last night and it is both horrifying and unbelievable to see the true miracle of how he could have survived.
Again your prayers surround him and keep them happening - please don't forget to keep him in your thoughts as often as possible. I keep imagining you all cradling him up.
Love to all of you and hopefully I can report even more good news by this evening!
All I have been praying for as my birthday gift today has been for Jason to be well enough to get his MRI today and the results to show he can get his neck brace off and that tracheotomy.
We got the exciting news from Carolin early this morning that they put him on the CPAP machine and he is basically breathing on his own! Not too long after came the awesome news that he opened both of his eyes twice!
And now we've gotten word that they have just ordered the MRI which means he is stable enough to go in the machine and finally make sure he has nothing wrong that requires the neck brace. If that is the case he can get the trach and be way more comfortable when he wakes up.
A lot of things going on in the past day. As his sister, Allison, has posted, " lots of mini miracles happening!" Even with some setbacks this week he's still staying strong and continuing to fight!
Though he remains unconscious those of us in the room when they try to brush his teeth can truly see that Jason spirit. He definitely does not like when the nurses do anything around his mouth and yesterday while they were using the little soft brush to do so he bit down on it and wouldn't let go! The nurses were still talking about it into the day and it gave us all more inspiration to cheer for our J.
Then last night again while the nurse was working around his mouth Carolin was by his side, (as she usually is), when he got agitated. The nurse said to Carolin, "Is that his eye open?", and sure enough his left eye definitely was and he was trying with his right. (It's too swollen right now to get open.) It only lasted a very very short time but we will take it! Carolin said when she then put her forehead to his he calmed down and allowed the nurse to finish. There is no doubt in any of our minds he reacts to Carolin's voice.
This morning his trauma doctor did report a small deflation in one area of his left lung but wasn't too concerned since the monitors showed no significant change. Through out the day they have lowered the vent settings lower and lower and at this point he is doing most of the breathing on his own. We continue now to wait for the go ahead to do the tracheotomy - hopefully by Tuesday. Then on to getting that brain up and going!
I'll end now with another post from Allison's FB page, which I think says it for all of us, "if I didn't before I certainly believe in the power of prayer. I believe with all my heart he is going to be that miracle story. He is my amazing brother and has amazing strength- keep it up J and keep the prayers coming everyone! Thank you for all the love and support!"
I have such good intentions of posting several times a day! Hopefully my foggy brain will do better starting next week.
There is no question in any of our minds that the prayers continue to be heard so please keep them coming. We continue to see improvements - over the last 24 hours more than one.
In the early morning hours today his right lung collapsed again due to that chest tube getting a clog. Fortunately this was discovered very quickly as they had just taken a chest x-ray, (as they do periodically during the day), and saw it. The nurses were amazed that none of his lung monitor numbers changed. It appears his left lung has healed enough that it was able to take over and make up for the right! Incredible when just over 36 hours ago his lungs were so sick we almost lost him due to him becoming agitated when some medications were lowered.
All of his lung numbers remained stable and this afternoon they continued to lower the vent numbers and actually let him start doing more of the breathing on his own. He is doing great with that!
He is slowly showing signs of waking and we are eagerly looking forward to some communication that will start him on his true journey.
We can't begin to express how much all of the prayers coming from literally around the world, including Kenya, England, Australia and China - literally around the world- are helping Jason and his families. We are convinced that is why he has had a good day today after a tough one yesterday.
It has been in the nurse's words, "an awesome day for Jason." All of his numbers are looking better and overall his need for ventilator support is very slowly decreasing. They are still expecting he will need breathing help for at least another week and plan to put a tracheal tube in as soon as they feel his lungs are well enough to tolerate the procedure. This should make him more comfortable, allow the nurses to care for his mouth area better , and relieve irritation to his vocal cords. Once that happens and his lungs are stronger the neurologist can start working on decreasing his sedation and making his neurological status the priority again.
Another thing that made our day was Jason passed the 72 hour mark since the accident and his trauma doctor saying he feels Jason is out of danger of any worsening brain damage. He is still in critical condition but each little step is something to give us hope for a full recovery!
We do believe in the power of prayers and miracles and we do believe in the power of the love going up around the world surrounding and healing him.
Thanks to everyone for such an unbelievable outpouring of support for the Shepards and Johnstons in all of our united love for Jason! As much as we would all love to respond to all of the supportive calls, texts, and messages, I know everyone understands we are overwhelmed. Carolin and I thought this blog would be a good way of keeping all of the people who care so much about him updated and will try to post several times a day.
I will do another update shortly with exactly what happened but wanted to get you all the information you want first.
Jason is considered in critical but stable condition at Lancaster General Hospital which is one of the best trauma centers in the country. He is on the Trauma Neuro Unit as he does have a very badly bruised and swollen brain and has not woken up yet. There are some positive signs as he has been responding to pain stimulus and can move all of his limbs. He broke his collar bone as well as most of the ribs on his right side which caused multiple punctures to both of his lungs, causing them to collapse. As a result he had to be put on a ventilator - one of the hardest things to walk in and see. Almost all of the bones on the right side of his face were broken and though initially thought he would need surgery the orthopedist took a good look this morning and said he will not need any orthopedic surgery. For now the priority is getting his lungs healed and that ventilator out and him breathing on his own. We are praying like crazy he will then wake up and come back to us the Jason we all know and love. As we've been saying, "he's a Shepard and he is strong!".
We wanted everyone to know our hearts are full with all of the wonderful offers to come and visit and you are welcome to come to the waiting room to support the famil which we have all really been bouyed up by. For now we are only allowing immediate family back to see Jason as he is not supposed to be stimulated in order to give his brain time to heal. He does get very aggitated with too much. It's agonizing not to be able to do more than hold his hand and quietly tell him we are there when we just want to wrap our arms around him! We do know this is going to be a long journey which will involve a several week stay here and then on to a rehabilitation hospital so as Jason heals there will be lots of chances to visit directly with him and he will love it!
Know that Carolin is being sure to take care of their precious little girl and we are all making sure she is getting some sleep when possible and eating some and staying hydrated. She has been amazing - staying strong for Jason and the baby.
We'll up date again tonight and I'll fill in more details of what happened as well!
Again - we can't tell you all enough how your love and outreach to both families has lifted us during this nightmare.
