It’s hard to believe that it’s been 6 weeks since Diana was discharged from Primary Children’s Hospital! Being here felt familiar yet new. We were so calm. Instead of moving anxiously and uncertainly, we strolled through the beautiful Outpatient center, enjoying the lifesized glass animal art on the walls. Dr. Green evaluated Diana and expressed joy with us on how far she has improved. We even went and visited with nurses and therapists in the Neruo trauma unit and they were thrilled to see how far she has come in just 6 weeks.
So how far has she come? I will tell you!
-her left eye lid now opens all the way and shuts at her command (when we left she had no control over it)
-her left eye can focus on one thing at a time with her right, minimizing her double vision (it is still there when she moves it around but only on the far left)
-her eyes move in sync 75% of the time and the left eye can now look up (new thing this week)
-her energy level lasts longer and she can endure more
-she did go to one day of her full school schedule
-she cognativly can focus better, remember more and retain new information
-she communicates a little bit faster and clearer
-she thinks quicker and listens a little bit better to others speaking
-she can tell when she takes tests that she remembers things at a slower processing speed than before, but she still knows and retains what she needs
-she is finished with occupational therapy and they cleared her to begin driving rehab
-she can better relate to the people around her
-she feels hopeful for her college future, and has heard back from U of U that she has a full tuition four year scholarship (she is still holding out to hear from BYU)
-she types and writes with a little more speed and confidence as her left eye focuses better and better
-she is better at remembering and asking for what she needs
So the challenges that remain at this point are her varying energy levels that make it hard to stay in school every day, her varying mood swings, her trouble getting deep consistent sleep (she wakes up and is very restless in the middle of the night), her ability to stay focused, her abiltiy to keep her left eye in sync, and our constant job of keeping her very safe from falls and jostling.
But isn’t it awesome?