July 17 - Day 33

We are grateful for all the prayers offered to Lord on Dean's behalf. His friend, Chris, shared this Psalm with him today, "My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him. In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God. Trust in the him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us."(Psalm 62: 5,7,8) God hears our prayers and we are instructed to "pray without ceasing." (I Thessalonians 5:17). 

Dean made some progress in therapy by holding a toothbrush and keeping a grip on it as he pulled it out of his mouth. He began breathing on his own around 8am and the plan is to let him go as long as his vitals are stable. The secretions in his lungs tend to thicken when he is not on the ventilator but he is doing well coughing them up on his own. Every couple of hours the respiratory therapist gives him a few extra breaths and suctions his lungs which stimulates a cough. This evening the nurses gave him his lion and he responded twice to grabbing and throwing it. He has displayed purposeful behavior with his right hand several times; however, these responses are inconsistent by no response, delayed response, and purposeful response. Once Dean is able to breathe on his own for 72 hours, the Rehab we have chosen will accept him! We thank the Lord that each step forward is one day closer to bringing Dean home! 

Some have inquired about Dean's facial appearance. On June 15th, the doctor sat me down in a small, cold room to tell me a wife's worst nightmare. I was sick to my stomach with unbelief when I first saw my husband in the ICU with a rod drilled into his left skull, neck brace, several tubes in his mouth, gauze under his nose full of blood, both eyes swollen and purple, lips doubling in size, his head as round as as a basketball, burns and scrapes on his legs, his skin tight with fluid that in days added an extra 30 lbs, bags of blood for transfusions, various needles piercing his skin, monitors, and every kind of machine possible in the ICU attached to him. I know God's hand is upon Dean especially after all the trauma his body has endured. It has taken weeks, but every day his face is looking more like the Dean we all know. Much of his facial fractures are beneath the skin and we believe God is at work healing the inner complexities of his face, brain and body just as we see daily improvements on the outside. The most notable facial difference is his left eye and cheek. This eye was initially thrust forwards lacking the support of his eye socket and cheekbone but it is slowly setting back into place as the swelling reduces. Continue to pray for this eye to be miraculously healed...each day it looks better! His left pupil has been larger than his right pupil since the accident. There will be a day when Dean himself can share more details of God's healing power and we can all rejoice in our Lord together!



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