I justed wanted to thank everyone who has kept up with my blog. I know I do not post as often as I should but it means a lot that so many of you check it regularly.
Let me just take a few minutes and let everyone know what has been happening in therapy. ITS HARD! That about sums it up really. During my first stay in rehab I was non-weight baring on my left arm which means the therapists kind of took it easy on me. Since the Doctors have lifted my restrictions I think my therapists want to make up for lost time by working me hard. I have never in my life experienced something like this before. The simplest of tasks seem to take so much longer now. I am working on transfers from my wheelchair to the exercise mat and doing tasks like long sitting and short sitting. I work on getting my balance and strengthening my trunk so that I can stabilize myself when putting on pants or a shirt.
I have been having some pain in my left shoulder which the doctors said was inflammation. During the past few sessions I have had steroids applied to my left shoulder. AMAZINGLY I can now bench 600lbs! Barry Bonds has NOTHING on me! jk. They are not anabolic steroids so my muscles will not impress anyone........as if they did before anyways! Since this accident I have learned to never take anything for granted. I guess some things we just have to put in God's hands! I believe my sister said it best, I was unconscious when she made this comment but it is very true. "God does not promise us this world will be easy, but he DOES promise it will be WORTH it!" -Thank you Amanda I think of those words often!
I have not given up on my legs and I will NEVER give up on them. They say this injury takes a long time to know anything and my body is changing everyday. New feelings and sensations are constantly going through my legs. Some say it takes 6 months to a year and sometimes a few years after your injury before you can truly know what you have in your legs. I KNOW that with ALL the prayers that are going up in my behalf that the Lord will bless me. I have already seen so many blessings that I can not even begin to list. ONE DAY....ONE DAY!! I have to keep the faith because without believing I can guarantee I wont make it thought this ordeal. I know I WILL make it though however and I know this through my faith in God.
I humbly ask that everyone please bring me before God so that he can touch my legs and make me whole again! I thank everyone for there love and support. I get encouraged by each and everyone of you! KEEP THE FAITH!
I LOVE YOU ALL,
IN HIM,
Brent
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Back to Rehab! Good News
Well its Sunday evening and I just spent my first few days back in Rehab! It was good coming back and seeing so many familiar faces! I have come along way since my first visit since I can now use my left arm. I remember my first visit here it hurt to move my arm a few inches now I am pushing a manual chair without any problems. My arm is still a little soar but I should be able to be OK during this round of rehab.
On another note I have what I BELIEVE to be PROMISING NEWS! This news is nothing to jump up in the air about but I am encouraged by what I heard.
My prognosis in medical terms is a T-10 ASIA-A spinal cord injury. Let me give everyone a little lesson on what that means. Bare with me because this is actually good news! The T-10 is the LEVEL of injury which means that may T-10 vertebra was the last level which I have feeling. The ASIA scale is tells the motor and sensory function that is available. ASIA-A is a complete injury and the worse meaning NO motor or sensory. ASIA-E is normal with both motor and sensory functions. There is also ASIA-B, ASIA-C and ASIA -D. WELL........ on Saturday I was down in therapy when my PT asked me......."what level of injury were you again?" I replied "T-10 ASIA-A". My therapist said that in the charts I was listed as a T-11 ASIA-B which is an INCOMPLETE INJURY. I was SHOCKED!! Well the lead Dr. decided to weigh on the safe side and kept the ASIA-A rating BUT one Dr. DID think I was a possible ASIA-B. I have become a T-11 level injury which means I have full feeling and movement at the lower vertebra now. However, I am still listed as an ASIA-A complete injury!
I am encouraged by this news. I am sorry for the boring medical jargon but it would be hard to explain this news without everyone understanding my level of injury. I am getting A LOT of feeling back in my legs! I can not believe it! The other night when my mom was putting lotion on my feet I could vaguely FEEL which foot she was touching. My feet always feel constricted and I feel them pulsing. Some of that is normal but my Dr. told me that I should be encouraged that my spine was not completely severed. I FIRMLY believe that I will be considered an INCOMPLETE INJURY! In order for me to be healed I need prayers from EVERYONE. Not only can I NOT do this alone but I need the prayers from everyone so that the Lord will hear me calling out and work a miracle through me. I have already seen so many miracles since my accident. The fact that I am even ALIVE is a miracle itself. Next on my list of things to do is work as HARD as I can in rehab and pray to God for healing in my legs.
I would like to thank EVERYONE who continues to pray for me and check my blog for updates. If I could I would individually thank everyone for there support and encouragement. I will make it through and I know that God will never leave me through this ordeal. Please continue to remember me and bring me before God.
I LOVE YOU ALL,
IN HIM,
BRENT
On another note I have what I BELIEVE to be PROMISING NEWS! This news is nothing to jump up in the air about but I am encouraged by what I heard.
My prognosis in medical terms is a T-10 ASIA-A spinal cord injury. Let me give everyone a little lesson on what that means. Bare with me because this is actually good news! The T-10 is the LEVEL of injury which means that may T-10 vertebra was the last level which I have feeling. The ASIA scale is tells the motor and sensory function that is available. ASIA-A is a complete injury and the worse meaning NO motor or sensory. ASIA-E is normal with both motor and sensory functions. There is also ASIA-B, ASIA-C and ASIA -D. WELL........ on Saturday I was down in therapy when my PT asked me......."what level of injury were you again?" I replied "T-10 ASIA-A". My therapist said that in the charts I was listed as a T-11 ASIA-B which is an INCOMPLETE INJURY. I was SHOCKED!! Well the lead Dr. decided to weigh on the safe side and kept the ASIA-A rating BUT one Dr. DID think I was a possible ASIA-B. I have become a T-11 level injury which means I have full feeling and movement at the lower vertebra now. However, I am still listed as an ASIA-A complete injury!
I am encouraged by this news. I am sorry for the boring medical jargon but it would be hard to explain this news without everyone understanding my level of injury. I am getting A LOT of feeling back in my legs! I can not believe it! The other night when my mom was putting lotion on my feet I could vaguely FEEL which foot she was touching. My feet always feel constricted and I feel them pulsing. Some of that is normal but my Dr. told me that I should be encouraged that my spine was not completely severed. I FIRMLY believe that I will be considered an INCOMPLETE INJURY! In order for me to be healed I need prayers from EVERYONE. Not only can I NOT do this alone but I need the prayers from everyone so that the Lord will hear me calling out and work a miracle through me. I have already seen so many miracles since my accident. The fact that I am even ALIVE is a miracle itself. Next on my list of things to do is work as HARD as I can in rehab and pray to God for healing in my legs.
I would like to thank EVERYONE who continues to pray for me and check my blog for updates. If I could I would individually thank everyone for there support and encouragement. I will make it through and I know that God will never leave me through this ordeal. Please continue to remember me and bring me before God.
I LOVE YOU ALL,
IN HIM,
BRENT
Friday, March 21, 2008
Friday- March 21st
Brent was admitted into Baptist Rehab this morning!! Praise God! We are very thankful that he was cleared for rehab Wednesday, and there was a room available at Baptist so quickly! Brent is working hard on his rehab. Mom said the doctors were very impressed with his progress. Keep up the hard work Brent! We are so proud of you!
Brent was admitted into Baptist Rehab this morning!! Praise God! We are very thankful that he was cleared for rehab Wednesday, and there was a room available at Baptist so quickly! Brent is working hard on his rehab. Mom said the doctors were very impressed with his progress. Keep up the hard work Brent! We are so proud of you!
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Wednesdays Appointment With Ortho
Brent is cleared for rehab!! Thank you all for all your prayers concerning todays appointment!
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Its about time Brent wrote another post
I have heard everyone ask me to write more on my blog so I thought I would do so. Where should I begin though?!?! So much has happened to me over the past week so I guess I should just tell you everything.
I have been working out everyday doing strength training so that I can impress my Doctors when I go back into rehab. My friend Joe Monan has been over at my apartment almost everyday and he works me hard. I usually have to change shirts cause I am sweating profusely when he leaves. My left shoulder is getting a lot better. I do not have any pain in it right now and I only feel pain when my arm is extended really far. I am going well past 90 degrees in every direction with just minimal assistance. We are trying to get my shoulder ready for THIS WEDNESDAY the 19th at 10:15 AM! I ask that everyone PLEASE remember to pray for me and my Dr's appointment. I will have X-ray's done on my shoulder to see if everything is still screwed in and if my shoulder will be cleared to bare weight. When my Doctor (who actually did my surgery) looks at the X-rays and clears my shoulder for weight baring I will go BACK into the hospital to finish my rehab. I will be doing in-patient rehab which means I will be staying at the hospital and going to rehab for 2 or 3 sessions a day EVERYDAY. Physical therapy then Occupational Therapy, Recreational Therapy and sometimes if IM LUCKY i get to do physical and occupational therapy at the SAME TIME! FUN STUFF! Those days are a blast (SARCASM).
On a good note something is happening with my legs I cant explain it because its hard to describe a sensation. However.... I will do my best to describe what I am feeling. I constantly have constricting feelings throughout my legs almost as if I am wearing tight pantie hose, NOT that I have ever DONE that but I am trying to paint a picture for you.....hahaha Maybe thats a picture you don't want me to paint but you get the idea! Anyways, when I lay down in bed after sitting up for a long time the constriction gets tighter. Its not painful but I can tell something is going on down there. When my mom puts lotion on my feet I can feel a tingling sensation when she touches the bottom of my feet and the tingling sensation follows her finger through my feet. I can not FEEL the touch of her finger but through the tingling I know when she touches my feel and when she stops. I closed my eyes and had her pick a foot and I would tell her where i felt it. I got most of the feeling correct they were VERY FAINT but i could tell which foot was being touched through the tingling?!?
I PRAY that God will answer my prayers and give me my legs back. My life has been turned upside down but I will NEVER give up. I will beat this thing and not let it beat ME! I will work as hard as I possibly can and put the rest in God's hands. There is only so much I can physically do the rest has to be God's will. I do not know what plan he has for me but I BELIEVE that through faith and prayer that God can heal me! The bible talks about faith being so powerful that the Lord performs miracles based on that faith. I know it can move mountains and I know that God can heal me. I am not going to put limits on God's power. No matter what Doctors or anyone else says I will ALWAYS believe. If God should decide not to grant me this request then I know he has something better in store for me. Who knows, maybe I will use this tragedy to bring others to him and in that case I can not think of anything more important. However, if the Lord SHOULD decide that my life would best serve him with two legs then that will be the biggest blessing. My prayers and prayers of some many people are what gives me encouragement. I could NOT do this without the love and support of so many people. I will do my best to make everyone proud!
I continue to ask that you PLEASE continue to keep me in front of God. Please keep praying for me! It is NEVER too late for God to work a miracle. I see miracles everyday some small and some large with prayer and faith I believe I can be one of those miracles. Thank you all SO MUCH for your continued love and support!
I LOVE YOU ALL,
In Him,
Brent
I have been working out everyday doing strength training so that I can impress my Doctors when I go back into rehab. My friend Joe Monan has been over at my apartment almost everyday and he works me hard. I usually have to change shirts cause I am sweating profusely when he leaves. My left shoulder is getting a lot better. I do not have any pain in it right now and I only feel pain when my arm is extended really far. I am going well past 90 degrees in every direction with just minimal assistance. We are trying to get my shoulder ready for THIS WEDNESDAY the 19th at 10:15 AM! I ask that everyone PLEASE remember to pray for me and my Dr's appointment. I will have X-ray's done on my shoulder to see if everything is still screwed in and if my shoulder will be cleared to bare weight. When my Doctor (who actually did my surgery) looks at the X-rays and clears my shoulder for weight baring I will go BACK into the hospital to finish my rehab. I will be doing in-patient rehab which means I will be staying at the hospital and going to rehab for 2 or 3 sessions a day EVERYDAY. Physical therapy then Occupational Therapy, Recreational Therapy and sometimes if IM LUCKY i get to do physical and occupational therapy at the SAME TIME! FUN STUFF! Those days are a blast (SARCASM).
On a good note something is happening with my legs I cant explain it because its hard to describe a sensation. However.... I will do my best to describe what I am feeling. I constantly have constricting feelings throughout my legs almost as if I am wearing tight pantie hose, NOT that I have ever DONE that but I am trying to paint a picture for you.....hahaha Maybe thats a picture you don't want me to paint but you get the idea! Anyways, when I lay down in bed after sitting up for a long time the constriction gets tighter. Its not painful but I can tell something is going on down there. When my mom puts lotion on my feet I can feel a tingling sensation when she touches the bottom of my feet and the tingling sensation follows her finger through my feet. I can not FEEL the touch of her finger but through the tingling I know when she touches my feel and when she stops. I closed my eyes and had her pick a foot and I would tell her where i felt it. I got most of the feeling correct they were VERY FAINT but i could tell which foot was being touched through the tingling?!?
I PRAY that God will answer my prayers and give me my legs back. My life has been turned upside down but I will NEVER give up. I will beat this thing and not let it beat ME! I will work as hard as I possibly can and put the rest in God's hands. There is only so much I can physically do the rest has to be God's will. I do not know what plan he has for me but I BELIEVE that through faith and prayer that God can heal me! The bible talks about faith being so powerful that the Lord performs miracles based on that faith. I know it can move mountains and I know that God can heal me. I am not going to put limits on God's power. No matter what Doctors or anyone else says I will ALWAYS believe. If God should decide not to grant me this request then I know he has something better in store for me. Who knows, maybe I will use this tragedy to bring others to him and in that case I can not think of anything more important. However, if the Lord SHOULD decide that my life would best serve him with two legs then that will be the biggest blessing. My prayers and prayers of some many people are what gives me encouragement. I could NOT do this without the love and support of so many people. I will do my best to make everyone proud!
I continue to ask that you PLEASE continue to keep me in front of God. Please keep praying for me! It is NEVER too late for God to work a miracle. I see miracles everyday some small and some large with prayer and faith I believe I can be one of those miracles. Thank you all SO MUCH for your continued love and support!
I LOVE YOU ALL,
In Him,
Brent
Saturday, March 8, 2008
A NEW POST!
Well its Saturday night and I thought it would be a good time to post on my blog. This has been a really good week. I have been working hard in rehab and I am looking forward to going back into the hospital to finish my rehab once my shoulder has been cleared.
As far as my day to day life I can not say it is easy. In fact my life is a lot harder than I ever imagined. I have a lot to be thankful for but at the same time my future is uncertain. I firmly believe that with God I can get through this terrible tragedy. Everyday I pray for complete healing and with faith I know it is possible.
The support that I have gotten is unbelievable and it makes me feel so loved. Others have been a witness to the love that has been shown to me and it leaves an impression on them as well. I constantly hear people giving praise of the works they have seen from my church family and that is a testament to the kind of people that go to Pleasant Valley. I have also been shown unbelievable support from my family back home in Florida (I miss them a lot!)
Everyday I wish this never happened to me. However, a friend of mine summed it up the best saying instead of asking God why this happened to me I should be asking.....why NOT me!
I will continue praying and asking God to heal my body and in the mean time I will continue doing my best to give him the praise for the blessings that has been giving me. I ask that everyone please bring me before God so that others can be a witness to the miracles and that the Lord can be praised through my suffering. Jesus suffered more than i will ever suffer and he did it WILLINGLY! I have had so many surgeries and broken bones but my suffering was nothing compared to what Jesus went through and that is what gives me strength throughout this entire ordeal.
Please keep praying for me, I KNOW God hears it!
I LOVE YOU ALL!
In Him,
Brent
As far as my day to day life I can not say it is easy. In fact my life is a lot harder than I ever imagined. I have a lot to be thankful for but at the same time my future is uncertain. I firmly believe that with God I can get through this terrible tragedy. Everyday I pray for complete healing and with faith I know it is possible.
The support that I have gotten is unbelievable and it makes me feel so loved. Others have been a witness to the love that has been shown to me and it leaves an impression on them as well. I constantly hear people giving praise of the works they have seen from my church family and that is a testament to the kind of people that go to Pleasant Valley. I have also been shown unbelievable support from my family back home in Florida (I miss them a lot!)
Everyday I wish this never happened to me. However, a friend of mine summed it up the best saying instead of asking God why this happened to me I should be asking.....why NOT me!
I will continue praying and asking God to heal my body and in the mean time I will continue doing my best to give him the praise for the blessings that has been giving me. I ask that everyone please bring me before God so that others can be a witness to the miracles and that the Lord can be praised through my suffering. Jesus suffered more than i will ever suffer and he did it WILLINGLY! I have had so many surgeries and broken bones but my suffering was nothing compared to what Jesus went through and that is what gives me strength throughout this entire ordeal.
Please keep praying for me, I KNOW God hears it!
I LOVE YOU ALL!
In Him,
Brent
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Sorry it has been awhile!
I apologize for my delay in posting on my blog but I was having some computer problems. Well not really computer problems so much as forgetting the password haha. Now that I have fixed the problem I will try to start posting more frequently.
Recently I have been working out and trying to rehab my left shoulder. My new friend Joe Monan has been coming over to my apartment and putting me through a pretty strenuous workout. If someone were to watch these workouts you might laugh at how easy it looks but I am doing the best I can with my shoulder! My range is getting a lot better in these last few weeks. I can raise my arm up to the side and out in front of me a few degrees. With assistance I can raise me left arm over 90 degrees (which is straight out). I need to get my arm stronger so that I can do these exercises without assistance.
Let me give everyone a little lesson in physical therapy. Everyones arm has three movements which makes up your entire range of motion.
1) Flection: This is moving your arm straight out in front of your body. I can currently get my arm to a little over 90 degrees with assistance and about 20 degrees by myself.
2) Abduction: This is raising your arm out to the side (kind of like using your arms as a wing). I can get a little over 90 degrees with assistance and about 45 degrees by myself.
3) External Rotation: Keeping your elbow against the side of your chest and then bending your elbow 90 degrees. The rotation is trying to move your arm outwards while keeping your elbow against your body. This is VERY difficult for me! Even with assistance I can not even get my arm to neutral (which is straight out in front of me) I currently have a negative range. I can move my arm from my stomach out to straight in front of me but I can not go any further. I was told this is the hardest range of motion to get back. I only have 3/4 of a shoulder so I do not know how much range I will get back. ISN'T PHYSICAL THERAPY FUN!
Next post I will try to teach everyone more about my therapy sessions. In a few months everyone should be able to take the test and become physical therapists (there is a lot more to it than that!)haha.
I have to constantly keep my arm and shoulder moving so I can strengthen my muscles and increase my range of motion in my left arm. On March 19th I have a meeting with my surgeon and he will take x-rays of my shoulder to determine if I can bare weight on my shoulder once I have been cleared it is back to rehab at the hospital.
My legs are still the same story BUT I am starting to get a lot of sensations not FEELING but sensations (which is a good sign)!
I want to thank EVERYONE for there continued support and prayers. I can assure you that I can NOT do this alone and I know that I have so much support from my church family both in Arkansas and in Florida. I will do my best and work as hard as I can to start back on my road to recovery. My legs are out of my hands and ONLY in God's hands. With persistence and prayer I have faith that I will be a miracle. I have already experienced so many miracles since my accident. The Doctor told me parents I had a 1 and 10 chance of surviving the accident (those are not good odds). The Lord saw me through that accident and performed a miracle I know that there are still more miracles in my life for people to be a witness. I give all the Glory to God for all of my accomplishments. I know he will continue working miracles in my life.
Thank you all for your continued love and support!
I LOVE YOU ALL!
In Him,
Brent
Recently I have been working out and trying to rehab my left shoulder. My new friend Joe Monan has been coming over to my apartment and putting me through a pretty strenuous workout. If someone were to watch these workouts you might laugh at how easy it looks but I am doing the best I can with my shoulder! My range is getting a lot better in these last few weeks. I can raise my arm up to the side and out in front of me a few degrees. With assistance I can raise me left arm over 90 degrees (which is straight out). I need to get my arm stronger so that I can do these exercises without assistance.
Let me give everyone a little lesson in physical therapy. Everyones arm has three movements which makes up your entire range of motion.
1) Flection: This is moving your arm straight out in front of your body. I can currently get my arm to a little over 90 degrees with assistance and about 20 degrees by myself.
2) Abduction: This is raising your arm out to the side (kind of like using your arms as a wing). I can get a little over 90 degrees with assistance and about 45 degrees by myself.
3) External Rotation: Keeping your elbow against the side of your chest and then bending your elbow 90 degrees. The rotation is trying to move your arm outwards while keeping your elbow against your body. This is VERY difficult for me! Even with assistance I can not even get my arm to neutral (which is straight out in front of me) I currently have a negative range. I can move my arm from my stomach out to straight in front of me but I can not go any further. I was told this is the hardest range of motion to get back. I only have 3/4 of a shoulder so I do not know how much range I will get back. ISN'T PHYSICAL THERAPY FUN!
Next post I will try to teach everyone more about my therapy sessions. In a few months everyone should be able to take the test and become physical therapists (there is a lot more to it than that!)haha.
I have to constantly keep my arm and shoulder moving so I can strengthen my muscles and increase my range of motion in my left arm. On March 19th I have a meeting with my surgeon and he will take x-rays of my shoulder to determine if I can bare weight on my shoulder once I have been cleared it is back to rehab at the hospital.
My legs are still the same story BUT I am starting to get a lot of sensations not FEELING but sensations (which is a good sign)!
I want to thank EVERYONE for there continued support and prayers. I can assure you that I can NOT do this alone and I know that I have so much support from my church family both in Arkansas and in Florida. I will do my best and work as hard as I can to start back on my road to recovery. My legs are out of my hands and ONLY in God's hands. With persistence and prayer I have faith that I will be a miracle. I have already experienced so many miracles since my accident. The Doctor told me parents I had a 1 and 10 chance of surviving the accident (those are not good odds). The Lord saw me through that accident and performed a miracle I know that there are still more miracles in my life for people to be a witness. I give all the Glory to God for all of my accomplishments. I know he will continue working miracles in my life.
Thank you all for your continued love and support!
I LOVE YOU ALL!
In Him,
Brent
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