1-26-11 report on Carrie, Tom Moore's daughter

Email from the husband of Carrie Brack, BJ newsroom retiree Tom Moore's daughter who has meningitis.

The fun hasn't really begun yet. Her mental status hasn't changed much from Monday. She is spending a fair amount of time dozing, and keeps squirming around and moving her arms and legs, repositioning her body to uncomfortable positions in the bed. She tries to pull on the tubes and wires, so her hands have to be restrained to keep her from pulling them out.

She wakes up occasionally and continues to show positive signs, but she's not consistently following enough simple commands yet to get her started on therapy. The speech therapist has been by several times, but Carrie hasn't been very cooperative. She mouths words from time to time, so I expect she might be able to at least whisper when they deflate the trach tube cuff and install a speaking valve, allowing exhaled air to go up through the mouth/nose. She still recognizes people, and wanted a kiss yesterday, which I happily obliged. So we wait, try to keep her comfortable, and tell her positive things. I guess this is all kind of par for the course, but it's hard to see her in this condition.

The nurse did, however, make an encouraging comment today when she said that these patients often go on like this for awhile, then suddenly turn around and want to know where they are, what's going on, etc. This facility deals with lots of patients like this, so I have to trust that they know what they are doing. We'll find out more when we meet with the staff tomorrow to discuss their evaluation and treatment plan.

John


Click on the headline for an earlier report on Carrie's condition.