On Remembrance Sunday....

Well time is passing as Rog has been in hospital for 2 months now. Lis has posted an update on his Facebook page :

"This has been the most positive week so far. Rog is now in his 3rd month in Addenbrooke's hospital, still sadly, being fed through the nose, but at least he is gradually returning to normality. The physiotherapists are working him hard during the week and are pleased with his progress. Now he can speak, albeit in a slurred manner, he is interacting with other people in the bay. Two psychiatrists have been to see if he is depressed. Rog said no, just totally fed up ( not a good expression to use in his case) with being in hospital and desperate to come home.

He still has a long journey to make, but at least I feel this week he is on the road to recovery. His brother John and wife, Jo, are coming today so they will cheer him up.

Regarding John's Movember money raising for Headway, he has raised over £600, so far. Many thanks to John and to his sponsors who come from far and wide. 
He still has a long journey to make, but at least I feel this week he is on the road to recovery. His brother John and wife, Jo, are coming today so they will cheer him up.
Regarding John's Movember money raising for Headway, he has raised over £600, so far. Many thanks to John and to his sponsors who come from far and wide. 

He still has a long journey to make, but at least I feel this week he is on the road to recovery. His brother John and wife, Jo, are coming today so they will cheer him up.Regarding John's Movember money raising for Headway, he has raised over £600, so far. Many thanks to John and to his sponsors who come from far and wide. "

The original aim of this Blog was to get ideas for keeping Roger occupied in hospital and perhaps the time is nearing when that becomes important again.  Hopefully he will manage to post more on his own blog and manage to get some conversations started there.
If anyone wants to add to the collection that John is raising for Movember and Headway here is the link http://www.justgiving.com/johnlapthorn

Tracheotomy Removed Today

Lis has just posted on Facebook the good news that Roger has had the tube removed today and can speak at last.

"At last something positive has happened: Roger's trachy has been removed from his throat and he is able to speak. His speech sounds a bit slurred but I'm sure that will improve. He certainly seemed more like his normal self today, worrying if Tim had taken out insurance on his new mobile gadget. 
Fatigue after physio is still a problem but we knew it would be a long old haul. This is a roller coaster ride but at least it was on a high today, especially as Tim and Amandine were there to share the joy of hearing him speak again."

Also Lis added some news that Roger's brother is raising money for Headway a brain injury charity.

"Oh, I forgot to say that Roger's brother, John, is raising money for Headway, the brain injuries association, in this month of "Movember". He is growing a moustache and a beard. There is a link below, if you would like to support him. Many thanks to John."

This was from his brother John

"For friends of Roger please go to www.justgiving.com/johnlapthorn and the mystery will be solved. Thankyou."

Lets hope the recovery continues.

Halloween update

Well some of you may have noticed that Roger has accessed his own blog from his mobile phone, though it was a single line "Still in hospita".  Rather than paraphrase I will paste in Lis' Facebook posting today.

"This has been a very busy and enjoyable week with sons and grandchildren being here with me in Burwell so I am behind with the update. 
Rog has been undergoing intensive speech and occupational therapy since being in J2. He is getting used to his speaker valve and Tim and Chris have been able to talk to him for the first time in nearly 7 weeks. 
I took his mobile phone in and since then have received a few text messages. So, as you can see, things are moving in the right direction.
Roger's swallow is slightly better - fingers crossed this continues to improve. However, his double vision is still making him feel giddy especially when he walks.
The therapists are wonderful, firm, encouraging and kind. We are lucky to have such a good hospital in Cambridge with its own severe trauma ward for patients with brain injuries.
Our delightful little grandchildren have really cheered him up and, although Rog is totally knackered after all his daily therapy, just knowing they are there stroking his hands has been lovely."

Feeling better...

Five days since I last posted an update and Lis has made 2 in that time.  On Monday nothing seemed to have changed very much and the only good news was that a deaf friend had visited who was able to understand Roger by being able to lip read which had give a bit of a boost.  

This morning (Wednesday) Lis wrote :

"Roger has been much brighter these last couple of days. Tim, Jo and the children visited on Monday and this cheered him up, especially when Lucien and Amandine climbed on the bed to give him a cuddle. Jo, who sees him less frequently, saw a big improvement.
Yesterday he indicated that his eyes were a tiny bit better. He had them open for much longer than usual. Before I left he wrote down that he wanted me to bring in lots of radio magazines as he is getting bored. Good sign.
Today our nephew, Nick, is travelling from the south west for a meeting in London and making a special detour to see Rog. So what with Chris and family arriving tomorrow it's been a nice family week."

So perhaps this craving for his magazines is a sign of "normality" slowly returning. But he still has the tracheotomy tube.

Friday Update

Progress seems slow and Lis has not been making daily updates as she did for the first five weeks, so there is little to report.

The double vision is still causing Roger problems with balance and it feels like "sea-sickness". Rog is wearing an eye-patch to relieve the problems. (Jokes about pirate radio now expected!) The physiotherapist has been making Rog exercise hard, as a month in bed takes its toll.  This together with the double vision and balance issues makes walking very difficult.

  Lis noted that Roger has now spent longer in hospital than he had in their new home! Relatives have been visiting and supporting Lis, and yesterday he enjoyed a visit from his 2 year old grand-daughter.  Roger has written notes for Lis but all she can clearly read is "Get me Home".  Unfortunately that sounds likely to be some time away, as does any radio related activity.

One month on

Hard to believe that it has been a whole 4 weeks since Roger was admitted with a splitting headache.  Lis has just said that the physiotherapist has had Roger standing up for a short time this weekend. He still suffers from double vision and the promised eye-patch has finally arrived to give some short term relief.  Though still unable to talk because of the tracheotomy he has written some messages and has a sense of humour in expressing mock fear at the prospect of having to be driven by Lis for some months to come.  The transfer from the ICU to a standard ward is unfortunately showing the issues the Health Service has in providing a weekend service due to staffing levels.

It has surprised myself and Lis just how many people have read this blog to see how Roger is progressing. So far it has 100 hits a day. While that interest continues I will keep summarising the information which Lis provides daily.

G3XBM Health Status

This was prepared for publication on 4th October but Rog's blog was locked :

"Roger's wife Lis was amazed at the number of messages of support that have come through this blog and asked me to thank you and give you an update.

Well it is now three weeks since the onset of "the headache" and Rog is still in intensive care at Addenbrookes in Cambridge, It sounds as if the initial problem was exacerbated by a subsequent chest infection which led to the breathing difficulty and the need for intubation.

Rog had a tracheotomy about a week ago, which is better than being intubated,but he still cannot speak without a special valve being attached. He has had an angiogram to help the doctors identify the root cause. He has been very tired as the ICU has little sense of night and day and he doesn't get meals yet!

Yesterday for the first time he was hoisted into a chair for 45 minutes and is hoping to be transferred to the High Dependency ward when a bed is available.

A stressful time for Rog and all his family but slow improvements are being made."

Since then Roger has been transferred to the High Dependency unit, but he still has no gag reflex so keeps the tracheotomy and is unable to speak without a special valve attached and he is being  woken hourly to have his throat cleared.  But it was confirmed to Lis that even when this hurdle is cleared Roger will remain in hospital for several months and will not be out for Christmas.

This morning 11th October  Lis posted the following on Rogers Facebook Wall :

"In answer to Pat's question: Rog cannot speak at all with the trachy in his throat and, of course, this is the most frustrating aspect of his injury. How long will it take for the gag reflex to return? Well, how long is a piece of string?

The reason for his sleepiness is because every hour of the day and night the mucus in his throat is removed by a suction tube. This means that he never has a continuous sleep. Bit like torture.

However, he is much more alert. Yesterday I told him that Lauren had sold something for us on eBay and he mouthed, "How much did it go for?" Also, when friends visited, he wrote on the paper I'd brought in, " Thanks for coming." So there are chinks of light appearing."