Day 603

Wednesday 12/21/22

Anel is stable.

If you haven’t heard, Anel had stroke number three. We’re currently in the ICU. While the bleed was rather significant, the deficits are minimal compared to the previous one on April 21'. So if she remains stable and the internal bleeding doesn’t start again, we should be heading home in several days.

Here’s what happened

Monday started great. Anel’s voice was strong, and she was excited about school. That afternoon everything seemed ordinary when I picked her up. Our routine was the same. I was at the school’s door when she came out and pushed her chair to the truck. I had the same jokes, and she had the same comments, nothing new. In the truck, she had her snack, a pear, and I kept my mouth shut so she could eat in peace. A girls gotta eat without being questioned, right? Once she flicked that pear core out the window, I fired up the questions. How far did you walk today? Did you pedal today? Am I awesome, or am I super awesome?

Some responses made sense. Others, not so much. I asked, “Babygirl, I think you know what you want to say, but the wrong words are coming out. Is that correct?” She shook her head yes. We agreed to take a pause.

I called her rehab facility; they said she had difficulty communicating and requested Tylenol around one due to a headache. “Babygirl, they said you had a headache today. Do we need to go to the hospital?” “No,” she responded firmly. The rest of the ride home was quiet.

We went through the usual steps at the house with little talking. She had the routine downs; shower, face creams, dinner, etc. I was watching her, and she didn’t miss a beat. She was even able to get some more words out. Her vitals were good. She could squeeze my fingers tight, push and pull my hands, lift her legs, touch her nose, feel me touching both legs, both arms, all the little things I’ve learned by watching. Her face wasn’t drooping. Something was off, but it didn’t seem enough to push her.

She slept well. No issues. Tuesday morning was typical. She was still having a hard time talking, but no other issues. Pate had agreed to keep a close eye on her. Before I dropped her off, I asked her again, “Babygirl, are you sure you want to go to school today?” “Yes”

Tuesday afternoon, the ladies came out and talked to me before they brought her out. They all seemed to agree that Anel wasn’t talking well, but other areas were strong, i.e., her walking. The ride home and the evening were similar. She showed improvement. We talked about going to the hospital. We agreed to let her sleep at the house again and that if she weren’t better in the morning, we’d need to check it all out.

She slept well, and Wednesday’s morning routine came together nicely until breakfast. She wasn’t able to keep her coffee down. We both looked at each other and finally agreed it was time.

Many doctors who helped her twenty months ago saw her today and remember her well. They commented on how much better she was doing now than the last time they saw her.

The plan

We’ll hang here, eat good ol’ DoorDash, and hopefully be discharged before Christmas.

Every hour she gets the neuro test; touch my finger and then touch your nose, squeeze my fingers, hold your leg up for 5 seconds, etc. All these little tests provide a cognitive baseline. If her neuro baseline or vitals stray, she’ll get bumped to the top of the CT list. Otherwise, she’ll go twice daily for CTs when the schedule is slow.

It’s similar to when you have a cut on your finger, and the blood immediately clots. Then the complicated process of platelets and proteins coming together at the right time to form a scab begins. So we’re monitoring the cut in her head to ensure it “scabs” over properly.

Even though this stroke is an entirely different experience than the last one, Anel still needs miraculous healing. A touch from her Creator to rid her body of MoyaMoya. Thank you for praying with us and surrounding us with love.