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Today we are going to backtrack of why and how we arrived here. This blog is excellent for communicating with family and friends, but part of its function is a tool and hope for prospective candidates with similar injuries. Apparently a biography was to be initially given. Wayne’s truck/car accident occurred on Oct. 19, 2004. He had a cervical contusion at C-4/5 level. A contusion is similar to a bruise. The edema or swelling may be temporary or may be as permanent as if the cord was severed. Spinal cord injuries are classified as complete or incomplete. Luckily, Wayne’s was incomplete. He also had a fx. left scapula, 9 fx. ribs, contused lung with hemothorax. He did not have a scratch or bruise on his body, but was left paralyzed, unable to move from his neck down. He had surgery on his neck for stabilization. Several days later he had resp. difficulties and required intubation and placed on a ventilator. He was finally weaned off the machine 2 months later. He was an inpt. in Rehab Institute of St. Louis, Missouri for 2 months. We rejoiced Feb. 10, 2005 when Wayne came home. He traveled by van with a lift to rehab ( approximately 60 miles one way) 3 times a week for approximately 3 months. Wayne does approximately 5 hrs. of rehab daily. Jarrett Buckner, a caregiver stays with Wayne while his wife is at work. Wayne uses an electrically stimulated bike that fires his muscles to turn the pedal s 2 hrs. daily. He uses the highest resistance possible. This is the bike that family and friends graciously helped us purchase so he could use it daily. He also has an arm ergotomer that is like a bicycle for his hands. He does this independently for 30-40 minutes daily. We have a standup frame that enables Wayne to stand up with support for 30 min. We also have electrical stimulation through small electrodes on his arms, abdomen and legs to stimulate nerve and muscle growth and increased strength. He also does range of motion exercises, flexibility exercises, bowflex machine and during the summer hydrotherapy in the pool and whirlpool for circulation. I am his wife and I’m prejudice, but my husband is the most motivated, strong willed and courageous man I know. His faith, family and mental strength ( was Popeye mentally strong?) remain consistent. Visitor after visitor have said, ” Wayne I don’t know how you do it- I couldn’t. ” Please don’t think this has not been a constant twenty -four seven struggle. No one but Wayne could tell you. For God has said, I will never leave you; I will never abandon you. Hebrews 13:5. Wayne has always worn THE BIG DOG t-shirts. The kids and grandkids have always known this is a good present for whatever reason. The expression – what counts is not necessarily the size of the dog in the fight, it’s the size of the fight in the dog! This describes Wayne. He has regained strength and movement in his arms in the past 2yrs 8 months. He has sensation in various places on his legs. We pray for hand mobility, general strength and increase in sensation and movement. God Willing Wayne and Deb
June 14th, 2007
Greetings! I apologize for no blog yesterday but we had a busy day and a long one. Most important, Wayne is doing well. He is still very lethargic from the medications but is having no problems. Let me give you an idea of Wayne’s expectations. Months ago he was asked realistically what would be a positive outcome with the stem cell injections. Being always very straignt forward, honest and sometimes blunt, he compared himself to Popeye. He hoped the stem cells would be his can of spinach and his strength, sensation and mobility would recharge his body explosively. Well, that’s not exactly how it works but that is his dream. Wayne returned to his room and realized he was craving a hamburger. He stated may be he should be Wimpy instead of Popeye. We will attempt to simplify the stem cell goal. The cells are undifferentiated and they hopefully migrate to the site of injury. In time and with the acceleration by growth hormones, the stem cells will replicate and hopefully repair the connection where the contusion exists. We have no definitive changes at this time but we’ve just begun this new fight. A wise message from a family member was emailed. Keep pushing and fighting, don’t dwell on the results. Let them happen when God is ready for us to have them. Do everything we can to maximize our time in healing while we are here. “When Fear and Worry test your faith and anxious thoughts assail, Remember God is in control and he will never fail.” Yesterday was spent in rehab for 5 hrs. Wayne’s PT Dr. can’t be 4ft10in and 85 lbs. but is very strong, diligent and caring to Wayne. Bedtime was very early last night , we were exhausted. Today we were surprised with the sun shining for the first time in the morning since we arrived. Wayne and I have always been outdoor people so we knew good things would happen today. While in rehab it rained again but we decided to be brave and get out of the hospital for lunch. Wayne has not been out since we arrived and I was out for about 2 hrs. Guess where we went to eat? – McDonalds!Despite being told the volume of people on the streets, alot of construction , we decided to brave it. We are told handicap people are not seen out in public in China. We have seen no wheelchairs. Well, when Wayne started rolling down the sidewalk in his cadillac electric wheelchair ( well its not the Red Sea that parted) but a path was made. People blatantly stared, followed, even wanted to touch some part of the chair. We enjoyed the sun, McDonalds and life. We admit to being culturally sheltered, but this has been such an eye opener, motivater and feelings of gratefulness we can’t begin to express. The modern comforts we enjoy and so take for granted. I have to make one comment about the weather. Women, your worst hot flash EVER, can not compare to this continued heat and humidity. I promise never to complain at the office about the temp. again. The hospital has a washing machine for us and then it dehydrates the moisture. Every building you see clothes are hanging from the ceiling on balconies. We’ve had towels outside for 48 hours and they are still damp. Wayne and I would again like to thank everyone for their encouragement. We know we are blessed. We heard our grandchildren were asked where Grandma and PaPa were. They replied, “at China’s house.” For God has said, I will never leave you; I will never abandon you. Hebrews 13:5 God bless you all.
God Willing Wayne and Deb
June 13th, 2007
Wayne woke up this morning and stated he had been waiting for this day for the past two years. Brittany had kept a journal while we were in SLU Hospital, Select Hospital and St. Louis Rehab. We reminisced about the high and low points of those 5 months. The tragedy and change of life is there, but the love, compassion, new patience, peace and strenghtening of our faith is overwhelming. Family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, even strangers, young and old have given us overwhelming support. We also thank all the churches and prayer circles- Draw close to God, and God will draw close to you. We had P.T. this morning for 2 hrs. 11 a.m. and Wayne is not to eat or drink. At 2 p.m. we transferred him to the procedure room. It’s now 7:30 p.m. Wayne returned at 3:30 and has been asleep since. Everything is stable. But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31 God Willing Wayne and Deb 2:30 wetrans
June 11th, 2007
June 9th Saturday
We are all up again early. They have kept us busy and we’re like sponges trying to soak up new knowledge, trts. and the culture. Wayne had P.T. twice today and the Drs. cont. to seem impressed with his strength that he has regained. Everyone that knows Wayne has heard about his electrical stim bike that he rides 2 hours a day 7 days a week back home. He also has maxed out on the resistance he can use. He is on a first name basis with the inventor of this bike and he has replaced more chips than any other pt. ever. We again thank all the people 2 years ago that contributed their time and money to help purchase the bike. The P.T. dept. here has never heard of this bike so we are trying to get info for them. Our P.T. Dr. is 24 yrs. old. In China students go directly from high school to med. school. When our system was explained for a physician they simply asked – why take so long? Tonight we have found the black market DVD’s that are sold one block away for $1.00 We are setling in – but all kinds of emotions are surfacing with less than 48 hours before Wayne’s first stem cell injection. We did have interesting company today. The CEO of Beinke Biotech Co. who developed and provides the stem cells brought a visiting physician from Africa who is interested in expanding the program to his country. He requested to be with us during Wayne’s injection and for followup. PLEASE research, spread the word and pray for acceptance of stem cell research and injection in the U.S.A. Somehow our country has lost sight in trying to cure and ease the pain that paralysis, nerve injury and multiple other diseases create. This is not cloning, not aborted fetus – but the natural umbilical cord from delivery that is simply disposed of. When Fear and Worry test youe Faith and anxious thoughts assail, Remember God is in control and He will never fail. God Willing Wayne and Deb
June 10th, 2007
June 7 Thursday
Wayne, Deb and Jarrett arrived safe, hungry and tired. We departed for St. Louis on June 6th at 8 a.m. and arrived at Nansban Hospital in Shenzhen, China on June 7th at 8 p.m. Our time difference is 11 hrs. later. We immediately were exposed to a different culture. To give you a quick synopsis – the city of Hong Kong was spotless and reminded one of Emerald City in The Wizard of Oz. There are no advertising billboards and so clean. The people are very efficient and always in a hurry. There are so many people and no place to put them. High rise apts. are everywhere. They do not consider it rude but on the road and getting on elevators stay out of their way. The hospital is large and impressive. The foreign stem cell candidates are all on the 14th floor. Surprisingly, Chinese candidates are elsewhere. We were impressed that Wayne was seen by a physician within one hour after admission. It was quite a challenge to explain Wayne’s life and rehab the past 2 yrs. and 8 mos. since his accident. There were memories we wanted to forget. The Drs. and nurses speak little English, but are willing to learn and are very friendly. The 3 of us stay in his hospital room. We unpacked and a surprise was found in our luggage. Our children Brandon, Christi, Brittany and grandkids Connor and Carlee sneaked a scrapbook of pictures, encouragement and lots of love. Several verses and quotes were included that we’d like to share with you on our journey. We pray for a miracle God Willing Wayne and Deb
June 10th, 2007
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June 9th, 2007
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