Update on Carrie Moore Krack

John Krack, husband of Carrie Moore Krack, daughter of BJ newsroom retiree Tom Moore, sent updates to BJ Alums blog. The main, encouraging elements:

She’s wide awake, very alert, and oriented. She remembers minute details from the past. She doesn’t remember the first trip to the ER on Jan. 1, or the last two months, except maybe some bits and pieces.

She remembers hospital people she talked with recently, even remembering some names.

We went through about 20 of the cards you’ve sent to her. Some she was able to read, and others (particularly those with longer messages in cursive handwriting) she wanted me to read to her. She commented on the beautiful cards, chuckled at the humorous ones, understood the messages, recognized the senders, and really appreciated your thoughtfulness.


Click on the headline for previous updates on Tom's daughter, who was hospitalized with meningitis.

Update on Caroline Moore Krack by husband John

No major changes since last report. We're still in "wait and see" mode, but there are some positive indications. She's moving around more, and she seems to respond somewhat to voices by rolling her head and moving her upper body. She's moving her arms and legs, but not in response to any particular stimulus. She does a fair amount of stretching and yawning and facial contortions as if trying to wake up from a sound sleep. This evening when we got there she fully opened her eyes for the first time, and was blinking normally, but didn't show any indication of recognizing anything or following motion. She repeated this later during our visit. I interpret this as a good sign that her neurological function is beginning to return. We're told that she'll be taking baby steps for awhile, and this whole process will likely take some time. There's no typical pattern for people coming out of these situations, so we just go day by day looking for small improvements.

Caroline and father Tom

They've had the respirator set to respond to her inhalations with an assist (rather than force breaths into her) for a couple of days, and she's been doing pretty well. They turned off the respirator yesterday to see how she'd do on her own, and she lasted about 15 minutes. They tried today, and she went about 5 minutes. They're going to try again this evening. We're told this behavior is not unusual as they're weaning people off of respirators.

They hooked up a feeding tube yesterday to give her some calories. Prior to that, it had just been IV glucose to support metabolism and keep her from starting to break down fat, which creates toxic by-products.

Her vitals have been stable, but BP runs a bit high so they have to reduce it with drugs to relieve stress on the heart.

They plan to do another MRI Monday or Tuesday to check for any changes since the last one.

Bottom line: They're monitoring, providing support as necessary, and waiting for her to wake up. There's been collateral damage, but we don't know what impact it's going to have. The brain is a complex organ, and each person responds differently. Several people who've had experience with these types of patients have told us that they've seen people in worse condition who have recovered quite well.

Your cards are starting to arrive. Thanks for sending them. I took some in today and showed and read them to her, and I'll continue to do this until she can read them on her own. I also took in an IPOD with a bunch of songs and have been playing them to her through headphones to give her some auditory stimulus.

People have asked how I'm doing. The answer is 'reasonably well, under the circumstances.' I'm at her parents' house (Tom and Dot Moore), about 2 miles from the hospital. I'm sleeping and eating reasonably well, but am not yet ready to turn my attention to much else, and probably won't be until I know she's out of the woods. I'm not used to these waiting games, but don't have much choice on this one. Those of you who've been through anything like this know that it's a gut-wrenching experience, made more so by the uncertainty of the outcome and the timeframe. I greatly appreciate your prayers and support and concern. Please don't be too disappointed if I don't send an update every day. It simply means that nothing much has changed. I'll let you know immediately if she makes a breakthrough.

Thanks to all of you who've offered help. Our next door neighbors are looking after our house (thanks, Jim and Paula), I can pay bills online, papers are stopped, and the PO is holding my mail, so I'm OK for now. Future direction will be decided as Carrie's situation becomes clearer.

Thanks again for all the positive energy you're sending her way. If previous fowarders would do so again, I'd appreciate it. I've added to my distribution those who have sent me emails directly, so you'll get dups, but won't have to wait for forwarding. 'Till next time, (with hopefully GREAT news) .....

John

Caroline Jean Moore Krack, daughter of retired BJ newsroom employee Tom Moore and Tom's wife, Dot, and Minnesota teacher's aide retiree, is in Akron City Hospital with meningitis. John and Caroline Krack have been married for 30 years.

Click on the headline to see the earlier story about Caroline, who at times accompanied Tom to the monthly BJ retirees lunches at Papa Joe's Restaurant on Akron-Peninsula Road at Portage Trail Extension.

Carrie Moore Krack update

BJ newsroom retiree Tom Moore's daughter, Caroline "Carrie" Moore Krack, had a setback Monday. A problem with her tracheal tube caused cardiac arrest till it was solved. She has been returned to her previous facility, Select Speciality Hospital, 200 E. Market.

Carrie began the year battling meningitis at Akron City Hospital.

Click on the headline for an earlier post on Carrie's situation.

1/12/11 update on Tom Moore's daughter

 BJ newsroom retiree Tom Moore, whose daughter Carol is at Akron City Hospital with meningitis, sends this update from Carol's husband of 30 years,  John Krack:

She continues to make a little progress each day. Yesterday she was moving her eyeballs around, nodding her head more in response to questions, and could squeeze my fingers. I showed her some pictures and cards, and read her some cards, and she seemed to understand. When I asked her if she knew where she was, she nodded.

Both her dad and mom visited her yesterday, and I think it was a big help to her to see them. (They've only been in a few times, since they've both had colds. I've got it now, but always wear a face mask when I’m with her.) The MRI was finally done late yesterday afternoon.

Today her mom and I visited her late this afternoon. They had about 6” of snow here, and we waited to give the snowplows a chance to clear the streets. Carrie was in a chair, and more awake/aware than yesterday, but pretty tired. I asked her to squeeze my finger, and she gave an aggressive squeeze. Her mom did the same thing, with the same result.

The nurse said that she asked Carrie earlier if she wanted to go back to her bed, and she indicated no, that she wanted to stay in the chair. Her usual state now is kind of half awake, and generally aware of things going on around her. She was moving her legs and feet pretty steadily today (fidgeting), and her arms occasionally. She’s still pretty weak, and isn’t able to reposition herself to get more comfortable, so she just has to lay there and look around. I read her an email from an old friend that reminisced about exploits in their younger years, and she seemed to comprehend. I asked if she remembered the friend, and she nodded her head.

They’re still working to strengthen her breathing, and she is really uncomfortable with the breathing tube in. It’s particularly difficult because she’s generating a lot of secretions, and can’t swallow or expel them. She coughs, but is fighting the breathing tube. They suction her occasionally, but it doesn’t help for long. She also can’t speak or make noises with the tube in, since it goes in between the vocal chords. It’s hard to see her this way, but it’s necessary to keep her breathing, and it will be a big milestone when she gets it out. So far, she’s been a very good patient.

They gave her some coffee yesterday and today. No milk in it, though, but through a feeding tube you can’t taste it anyway.

I talked to the neurology intern about her MRI. She didn’t have a full report, but said that it indicated no further damage from what they saw last week. Swelling is reduced, and there’s a spot that looks like an abscess, so they will continue the antibiotic treatment. They’re seeing no aneurisms or other blood vessel damage. They’re a bit concerned about apparent weakness in her arms, so will do a test to track the electrical impulses to see whether it’s muscular or neurological. She said the EEG from the weekend hasn’t been processed yet. Overall, the neurology team seems quite pleased with her progress. Also her current nurse, who’s worked ICU her entire career, says she’s doing well.

Her sister donated an old unused IPOD that had a bunch of songs loaded, and I’ve been taking that in for her to listen to. I’m adding some of her favorite songs to give her some familiar music.

So we’re still in “wait and see” mode, but at last we’re getting some “see” along with the “wait”. Getting the breathing tube out will be a biggie, then talking, and waking up completely. There’s still a long road ahead, but I think she’s moving in the right direction. Baby Steps.

Thanks once again for your cards, emails, prayers, and support, and for your nice comments about my reporting. Forwarders, please forward.

John

Click on the headline for an earlier post on Caroline, a Minnesota teacher's aide retiree.