Update #44 on Kevin

Last night, Kohl manned up and watched over his dad all by himself. Of course, he had the help of a very capable loving staff. We were at the hotel last night. This morning we got up, had breakfast and took Jacob to school. We came back are getting ready and then running some breakfast up to Kohl before going out for some away time. I feel like we have been doing fairly good at balancing time with Kevin and time by ourselves. In fact, on many of the nights we are supposed to stay at the hotel, before leaving Meadowbrook, I think I could stay here again tonight. However, we aren’t naïve enough to think that we could do that for long before burning out. So we discipline ourselves and come back refreshed.


We spoke with Kohl on the phone this morning. He said his dad had a good night last night. And this morning Kevin is one of his aware states. When I speak of aware and asleep states, we have come to learn that even in a coma people can experience times where they are more at rest than others. When he is aware, we aren’t sure if it is clear or more of a dreamlike haze. We have heard many stories where people remembered what was said around them while they were in a coma. We’ve heard very few where the person did not remember. I wonder if in that sense it is like a ‘dream-state’. When you wake up in the morning, do you always remember your dreams?

So this morning, Kevin is in an aware state. He is also moving different parts of his body. These are the exciting parts of the day. I’m glad Kohl is getting to be there to experience it. But you know there was a subdued sense of calm last night, when Kevin seemed to be sleeping hard, and when he exhaled breaths his mouth kind of blew the air out of his lips, as people often do.

Some might say during a time of life like this that there is nothing else worth praising God. However, I find this to still be true. God is still on His throne. God is still in control. In times, when we should be pulling our hair out and giving up, we find peace that is beyond understanding (this is after, of course, pulling a few hairs out and threatening to give up). God sustains us. God has still provided for us a way to spend eternity with Him. God still offers this as a free gift to any who would accept it. God is still providing clothes, housing, food and laughter to our family. God is still there. God listens. God hurts with us, when we hurt. He cries when we cry. He pulls us to Him when we allow it.

You know some think this life is it. I don’t. I believe from God’s Word that there is an eternity after this life. This life is merely a chance for us to practice following God for an eternity of being with Him. I have heard time and eternity described this way. There are two birds. One on each side of North America. One on the West Coast. The other on the East. Each bird takes a grain of sand from their side and flies it to the other. The time in which it takes for them to complete swap out every grain of sand in this fashion would be only a speck in eternity. And technically, not even a speck, less than. This life, with its hurts, pain and sadness is not all there is. And for that I find reason to continue praising God.

For those of you, who would like to help the family, there are still a couple of great ways. Meals and housing. We seem to be pretty good on money for the prayer bracelets right now. At least for this first order. If you would like to help with meals, please let Jeff Congdon at Sandusky Avenue Christian Church know. It makes it so much easier on us than trying to coordinate meals on top of everything else. His cell number is 918-408-7680. For lunches, it usually only needs to be for 3-4 people. Dinners and Lunch/Dinner on Saturday, and Dinner on Sunday need to be for about 10-15. If you can make these meals, delivery them or pick them up at a drive thru, our family would be very appreciative. With housing, we are still looking for our next solution (starting next Monday). Some of the options still cost money, but being close to Kevin’s facility would be a huge blessing in many ways. You can still contact Brian Jennings at Highland Park Christian Church. You can reach him at 918-627-0783.

This was supposed to be a short morning update. Sorry about that.

Thanks for everything that you are doing for Kevin and his family,
Matt, Angie and family
_______________________________
http://www.prayforkevin.com/ (to read all the previous updates)
http://prayforkevin.blogspot.com/ (same blog, different address to get there)

Update #43 on Kevin

I remember Kevin bringing home the 45. For those of you too young to remember vinyl records, a 45 had a single song on one side and a “b” side single on the other. Normally, it was a great radio song, and rare was the time you got another great song on the other side. I think it was a in a peach colored sleeve. He pulled it out and put it on the turntable. It was….King Tut. Steve Martin, the comedian, did this song about the boy pharaoh of Egypt. I can still see Kevin dancing around to it. I played it for him tonight on my MP3 player.


Kevin has had a restful night. Eventful in a good way. The only thing is he had a fever earlier tonight. After some Tylenol and cold rags it has gotten under control. The pulmonologist (lung doctor) started him on a new antibiotic that will take care of the bacteria found in his secretion sample from Saturday night. It should also help with the remaining pneumonia. Kevin still has his antibiotic for C-Diff (until the 21st of September). It will depend on when Kevin has a negative test though.

Angie and I are at the hotel tonight. We found out that we will be at the Hampton Inn until Monday. Thanks so much for all the offers and help. We are working on our “residence” starting Monday night.

Kohl is staying with his dad tonight and Taylor is supposed to arrive from Midwest City sometime tonight. She had to take care of some loose ends during the past couple days.

Thanks for praying,
Matt, Angie and family
_______________________________
http://www.prayforkevin.com/
http://prayforkevin.blogpsot.com/

Update #42 on Kevin

I thought it would be good for us to give you a list of specific things to pray about, then as we knock them off, we can celebrate the progression as given by God. Pray for…

1) The scar from his major fracture on his right side of his head.
2) The remaining stitches to be loose & area healed enough to be removed from his right side.
3) Right eye opening seems more sluggish than his left eyelid.
4) Right eye is very red and sensitive to touch.
5) Some infection is in the right eye.
6) Started having a fever this afternoon, but it has already started going back down.
7) Bowels to function.
8) Stomach to produce only the amount of bile necessary for healthy function.
9) Stomach to digest normally.
10) Respiratory rate to stay normal.
11) Pneumonia to be cleared up.
12) Right lung to be fully healed after the puncture.
13) Vitals to stay normal.
14) More purposeful movement in his head.
15) More purposeful movement in his arms.
16) More purposeful movement in his eyes.
17) More purposeful movement in his legs.
18) More purposeful movement in his neck.
19) Consciousness to fully return.
20) Facial fractures to fully heal.
21) Speaking ability to return.
22) Brainstem swelling to be reduced.
23) Areas of the brain that had damaged to be completely healed.
24) Ability to walk to fully return.
25) Memories to be intact.
26) Short term memory to be intact.
27) Short term memory to be intact. (that’s a joke on me!)
28) Learning ability to be unrestricted.
29) All others of his brain to retain full functionality.
30) All normal life functions to return intact.
31) For the nurses and doctors to be encouraged.
32) For the staff of Meadowbrook to have clear minds for making wise decisions.
33) For the family to remain unified, strong and full of faith
34) For everyone involved to be pointed to God.

Thanks for praying,
Matt, Angie and family
_______________________________
http://www.prayforkevin.com/
http://prayforkevin.blogspot.com/

Update #41 on Kevin

When we were growing up, we liked The Monkees. The show. The music. The guys. So as I type I am playing Headquarters, their third album. Also, I am younger than Greg and Kevin, so sometimes I was seen as the pesky little brother. I think I relished in it a little too much. With Greg, I could just tap him as he walked by. Seconds later I would receive the wrath of a kick to the leg, all worth it when I watched him squirm at Mom’s disapproval.


With Kevin, all I had to do was mess with his relationships. Tease him about the girls that sent him perfume soaked letters, or asking when they were going to get married in front of the girl he was with…..bratty I know. Kevin would get so mad at me! Later, as I got older and matured, my brothers and I became more than brothers, we became best friends.

Kevin has been having a good day. He has had far less secretions and the Respiratory Therapists have said each time they came in (every 2 hours) that his lungs were sounding good, so good they didn’t have to suction him. He has hardly coughed in the past 12 hours and he doesn’t have the rattly sound when he is breathing.

He is sitting in his blue neuro chair right now. His eyes have been open for most of the time he has been in the chair. Also, albeit slowly, his eyes will blink. He is doing this more regularly today. He has also been tracking some with his left eye. Angie was holding his head straight in the chair, because he kept letting it lean to his left side. One time she stopped and she saw him trying to pull back up himself.

Last night when his nurse was cleaning out his eyes, she went to wipe out his right eye. I was standing on his right and saw him grimace. He closed his left eye tightly (his right eye was being held open for the cleaning). Both his brows were furrowed. And his mouth clenched. She also said he try to pull his head away while she was cleaning his eyes. Apparently, he did NOT like it.

Greg just got here. We are going to get some lunch at the cafeteria while Angie hangs out with Kevin. We already got some lunch for Angie. Kevin can keep listening to the Monkees while we go.

Thanks for praying,
Matt, Angie and family
_______________________________
http://www.prayforkevin.com/
http://prayforkevin.blogspot.com/

Update #40 on Kevin

It’s been awhile since I updated you on Kevin’s flood situation (for those just joining, Kevin’s house flooded while he was in TICU – His youngest son, Jacob, lives there with him). I believe they have taken everything out that can be taken out (furniture, property, ruined kitchen cabinets, ruined bathroom cabinets, ruined carpet, lower sections of sheetrock on the walls needing replaced, etc….). There are just a few more details to take care of before the restoration work can begin.


Kevin’s digestion has been up and down. It seems to be okay but the problem seems to be more related to his stomach. Because Kevin is being tube fed, his body is confused. It knows he is getting carbohydrates, nutrition, etc… but it assumes it needs to make more bile to break down these components. Kevin also seems to have a very sensitive gag reflex. Whenever they come in to suction him, his reflex is to gag and when that happens he often brings up the extra bile that is being produced by his stomach. He is having more regular B.M.’s but now there is this issue of stomach acid. They started him on a new acid reducer today.

This morning, they also sent off a sample to be tested for C-Diff. If he doesn’t have it any longer then my understanding is they will take him out of isolation, which means no more gloves to touch him and gowns to be close to him. If he still has it, they will keep monitoring it and testing for it.

Several of you have told us that you have stayed away at different times due to not feeling well, or being around others who are not feeling well. I want to say thank you. Thanks for not just being considerate but recognizing the very real threat to Kevin’s recovery that could be caused by the addition of a flu or virus. I appreciate that.

A tech today told me a couple things when I got here today. She said that earlier when she was doing some Oral Care for Kevin, he kept biting down on the utensils. She would ask him to open his mouth each time he did this so that she could keep working on him. Each time he would open his mouth when she asked. Also, she said he was grinning on his right side of his mouth at her. He stopped and she asked him to smile for her again and he grinned again. I guess this happened a couple times! There have been a couple times where we thought Kevin was trying to smile, so it is cool that it seems he is progressing.

I am including a photo of Kevin. It is Kevin doing something that came very natural for him…talking on his cell phone. Over the years, Kevin had several cell phones, sometimes two or three at the same time (with several numbers). It is rare to see him without the phone on his ear or his finger not texting. This photo was taken by me at a Tulsa Drillers baseball game that Kevin got several of us tickets too. I remember thinking this was a good photo because embodies a favorite pastime of Kevin….talking on the phone. Those of you that know him, know this is true.

We appreciate all of your prayers.

Matt, Angie and family

_______________________________

http://www.prayforkevin.com/

http://prayforkevin.blogspot.com/

Update #39 on Kevin

If you’ve ever seen The Amazing Race on TV you know that it is a show about several two member teams in a race around the world. They travel from country to country doing different tasks and advancing to win the final prize. One of those tasks is called a Roadblock. A Roadblock is a task that only one team member may perform. Sometimes it is to eat a huge bowl of local traditional cuisine that is disgusting to the American palate. Sometimes it is to wade chest deep in a mud swamp searching for clues. Sometimes the team member doing the Roadblock takes a long time, sweating through the task, crying out, tiring out, wishing they had let the other team member do the task. Meanwhile, the team member sitting out is just waiting. They sit there watching. Watching while others complete the task. Watching as their teammate, who is usually a loved one, is feeling frustrated, getting worn out, wishing to give up. They cycle between cheering for them, annoying them, getting frustrated that they are taking so long to complete the task.


Sometimes I think we are in the middle of a Roadblock. Kevin drew the short straw is doing the task. We sit on the outside looking on, waiting for him to complete the task. We hope that he has almost finished what his body is doing, never really knowing how long it will actually take. Sometimes we cheer him on, sometimes we get frustrated it is taking so long, and sometimes I am sure we annoy him with some of the things that we say to him.

We talk about the progression in these updates. We celebrate the little steps that Kevin makes. We talk about the down moments too. For every time Kevin moves his eyes, there are ten or more times that he doesn’t. We look back a couple weeks ago and know that there are things Kevin is doing now that he did not do then. It is like climbing a mountain using toothpicks for climbing gear. It is like rowing across the ocean using spoons as paddles. Are we moving forward? Looking back at the last three weeks it is undeniable that we are moving forward, but at times it feels like a snail’s pace.

That’s why we celebrate things that in normal life we wouldn’t even notice. A pinky here, a ring finger there. He had a third B.M. tonight after we left for the hotel. Natural? Yes. Significant? Not normally, but now…yes. Greg (my other brother) and I were standing on each side of Kevin. Greg had been talking to Kevin during one of the moments that his eyes were opened. Kevin had finally started lowering his eyelids. We tried asking him to open them a few times. Greg started telling Kevin a story anyway and upon getting to the cool part of the story, Kevin started reopening his eyes. After Angie and I left for the evening, we heard that a family friend was holding Kevin’s right hand and Kevin began squeezing back. His fingers were opening and closing several times on our friend’s hand. Really cool. Pinky. Ring Finger. All fingers. Baby steps.

I talk about the pace because I want to accurately portray what is happening. It is a marathon, not a sprint. If you try to run a marathon with a sprints’ pace, you will pass out or drop out. We ask that you continue to pray for the family as we journey this voyage together. Pray for us as we wait when there is nothing physical for us to do. Pray for Kevin to be healed and better than before.

In one of the last updates, I mentioned a way for those working at AA can help. I just found out that Greg’s supervisor and manager set it up to make it easy for those wishing to donate a day to Greg. All someone has to do is go to the administration desk located next to the injury counselor’s office in the admin building (near the credit union) to donate vacation time.

Also, it is looking like Friday may be our last day at the Hampton Inn. The greatly discounted rate we have will last until then. Right now, I am exploring options for those of us out of towners to be close to Kevin. There are two extended stay facilities very close to Meadowbrook. To get the great rate, we would need to pay for each month up front (around $750) for the month. Still researching options, but this may be what would work for six of us.

Thanks for reading. Thanks for praying.
Matt, Angie and family
_______________________________
http://www.prayforkevin.com/
http://prayforkevin.blogspot.com/

Update #38 on Kevin

Nick. Heath. Jarrod. The Barclays. If you ever watched the TV Western called, The Big Valley, you know their names. My brothers and I loved that show growing up. We even had the characters divvied up. Greg was Heath. I was Jarrod. Kevin was Nick. Tall, dark haired and the self titled protector of the Barclay clan, Nick was a good choice for Kevin. I bought the first two seasons of Big Valley at Wal-Mart for us to play for Kevin. I think I’ll put one on after I finish writing this update.

Kevin is sitting in his blue neuro chair. Throughout the night, he coughed up quite a bit. That’s a good thing, but it can also be tiring, especially if it is constant. This morning he seemed to have a more restful period. Around noon, the Occupational and Physical therapists came in to work on his range of motion. They started and said its okay to start working on his left arm and leg (where the blood clots were). Around that time we discovered that he had a B.M. today! That’s good news. So they did a quick clean and placed him in the blue chair.

Three people in the past few days have either felt or seen his pinky on his right hand move. This morning I was holding his right hand, and I laid it down. I was watching his hand and saw his ring finger move.

We appreciate the visits to Kevin. Our family has definitely been in encouraged by those who have come up. When you come, remember that we believe that Kevin may be hearing things we are saying in his room. Please be careful about mentioning or asking about what future he may or may not have in front of him. It’s hard enough for him to fight this, we want to encourage him with positive reinforcement! And of course, we want it all bathed in prayer! If you have questions, please feel free to ask them, we may just pull you aside to answer them.

Oh and by the way…I couldn’t wait until I finished this update. I had to turn on the first episode of Big Valley for Kevin. I put it on a table right in front of his eyes. I was standing behind the portable DVD player and I saw his eyes flicker when I told him I was putting Big Valley on for him. I seemed to look up at me above the player and back down to the DVD player, back up at me then back down to watch the episode. I hope he can hear it over the beeps and whistles in the room.

Just when I thought we were going to have a peaceful afternoon. The RT came in and suctioned and he started throwing up. They have it under control, but now they have to give him his bath. I helped them lift him back into his bed from the chair. He had another B.M. too.

I’ll close this one, by saying we just got back in here. He’s all washed up now. Resting peacefully…we’ll try Big Valley in a bit.

Thanks for praying,
Matt, Angie and family
_______________________________
http://www.prayforkevin.com/

Update #37 on Kevin

My family’s tradition is to go to lunch together every Sunday after church. Even on Sunday’s when we were at different churches, we would call or text each other to connect up so that we could decide where to go. This morning, several in the family went to church together. Then we went to lunch together. This is the first time we have gone to lunch together after church since Kevin’s accident. Since we are all going through this together, we were able to drop any guards and be ourselves. Through this tragic experience we have had to learn how to laugh together, even when at first it feels like you will never laugh again.


I keep thinking about the movie “Sleepless in Seattle”. I won’t ruin it for you but there is a person dealing with a tragedy. When asked how he deals with it, he replies with the following reply…

“Well, I'm gonna get out of bed every morning... breath in and out all day long. Then, after a while I won't have to remind myself to get out of bed every morning and breath in and out... and, then after a while, I won't have to think about how I had it great and perfect for a while.”

Whew….straight to the depths of my soul. We have felt incredibly blessed by how God has provided for the family during this amazingly difficult time. We have also felt God soothe us, after dealing with stress after stress throughout this situation. That does not mean that things feel normal for us.

Kevin had been somewhat still today, but tonight Angie started challenging him to cough. After a bit, he started coughing and opening his eyes some. It seems to tire him after awhile, but Angie kept pushing him to cough. It shows cognition, understanding and the ability to respond. Respiratory told us that it is more painful if they have to stick a suction down his trach than for him to cough it out on his own. So we encourage him, even when it seems like such a long slow process.

We were told by the night nurse coming on duty that Kevin had finally had a B.M. today. It must have been around the time of his bath, since the family didn’t know about it. I’m looking forward to speaking with Kevin’s doctor tomorrow, since he has had a replacement over the weekend.

We have the TV on now for Kevin. It is on an arm attached the wall. It is sitting directly in front of Kevin’s face. We will be trying all sorts of stimulation.

We’re still looking forward to him getting over isolation from the C-Diff (intestinal illness). At Meadowbrook they will look for one negative test for C-Diff from a B.M. before taking him out of isolation. They said that once he is out of isolation, there is a possibility to take Kevin outside. That will provide other stimulation. Once per month, they have a pet day where you can bring pets to see the patients. Brinkley would love to see his “unca” Kevin.

Thanks for joining us on this journey. It means so much for you to go along with us. Thanks so much for the long emails, the short messages, the notes of prayer, the quoting of scripture, etc….. You have meant so much to us.

Thanks,
Matt, Angie and family
_______________________________
http://www.prayforkevin.com/

Update #36 on Kevin

So there have been some ups and down today, but mainly ups. Things may seem to move slowly, but they actually seem to be moving quicker than they should.


Kevin has been breathing only wall-flow since yesterday at 1:35 PM. That is going on a day and a half!!! It has definitely exceeded their expectations here at Meadowbrook. However, they do continue to be positive and optimistic about the future. Not even at night did they need to give him a rest. Kevin is doing great.

The wall-flow is just like normal air, with just enough pressure to boost the air through his tube. Try breathing through a straw, and you’ll have a better understand why even healthy lungs need a boost from wall-flow. At first one of the main differences was the humidifying device added to the wall-flow air. Yesterday, they added a heating element too.

Because he was on a ventilator, gunk was pushed down into the bottom of his lungs due to the pressure the vent provided. Now that he is off, a goal is to get all that junk and gunk coughed out. Kevin has spent a better part of this morning and much of this afternoon coughing it out.

One of the only downs today is that because he was coughing so hard this morning, he threw up twice. The cleaned him up each time and he has done better each time. Another down is that he has not had a B.M. in several days. They have him on medicine for that, but hopefully, will not take much longer to go.

This afternoon, Kevin was placed in a neurological chair for several hours. Whenever Kevin is moved around (rolled, moved, etc…) he seems to be roused from a sleepiness. One of the doctors today, Dr. Smith (a pulmonologist), said it is normally for them to wake and sleep and wake and sleep. It is getting easier for us to see the difference. It was difficult in the beginning since some of the difference are slight.

While in the chair, Angie stood by his side and encouraged him to cough harder and get the stuff out of his lungs. Each time, Angie would tell him to cough, he would. And whenever his eyes started closing, she would tell him it wasn’t time to sleep yet and to try and stay awake. She continued getting him to cough and helped him clear his lungs.

Thanks for stopping by, sending cards, encouraging us through messages and most of all, praying for Kevin’s healing and the family as they continue to go through this tragedy together.

Thanks for everything,
Matt, Angie and family
_______________________________
http://www.prayforkevin.com/

Update #35 on Kevin

So, we found out that last night they did give Kevin a rest for a few hours from breathing. They took him from CPAP and put him on Assist Control on the ventilator in order to give him some rest. They had him set at 12 breaths per minute. Assist Control allows Kevin the opportunity to initiate any breath and the machine gives it to him. This allows Kevin to be fully rested on the ventilator except for triggering, as long as there is adequate flow. Also it makes it so Kevin can breathe spontaneously without working. For more about it read http://icmtutorials.com/rs/mv/page6.htm.

But when the doctor was in this morning he said that essentially Kevin has been breathing on his own for over 24 hours. Around 5:30 AM they switched Kevin back from the vent to CPAP again. Then at around 1:30 PM they took Kevin completely off any machine, vent, CPAP or otherwise and put him on what’s called “Wall-Flow”. It comes out of the wall, but it is just the same as room air. It has the same 21% of oxygen that is in room air. One of the main differences is that the air has humidification. That helps with his secretions. Yesterday, they put him on some allergy medicine, so helpfully that helps with drainage too.

Kevin’s had his eyes open quite a bit today, but not a ton of reaction. It is slow, but seems to be progressing forward.

Another way to help the family would actually be a big help to me and the rest of the family. Greg works at American Airlines, like Kevin. Not sure if there is a way for people at AA that have an extra day that they could give up to give it to Greg because it would really help the family. The reason is that there are many tasks related to the house construction after Kevin’s flood like going through the warehouse that is storing Kevin’s personal belongings in order to sort it all. Greg is also taking care of things for Kevin like getting documents procured and taking care of financial items for Kevin and family. Of course, Greg is also here at the LTAC helping with the care of Kevin on top of all that. If Greg has to go back to work it all falls to us. This would be a great help to me personally.

Thanks so much for everything that you are doing for our family and Kevin!

Thanks for praying,
Matt, Angie and family
___________________________
http://www.prayforkevin.com/

Update #34 on Kevin

Real quick update…


Kevin has been breathing on his own for over 24 hours!

Also, the doctor said he was very positive and impressed with Kevin’s improvement.

Another quick note is that the red bracelets that have “Pray for Kevin” imprinted on them are in the process of being ordered. They will take about two and a half weeks to get in.

There are 188 members of the Facebook group “Pray for Kevin”. There are 237 people receiving the email updates . And the blog http://www.prayforkevin.com has been viewed 2,612 times by 1026 people in five days!!

Thanks so much for all the prayers, support, encouragement and love!

We appreciate it!

When I talked with Kohl earlier, he told me that they had put Kevin in a neurological chair. Kohl said his dad’s eyes were open and Kevin had movement throughout parts of his body.

Keep praying and thanks,
Matt, Angie and family
_______________________________
http://www.prayforkevin.com/

Update #33 on Kevin

For Kevin today was a good day. Each nurse or staff person that came in treated him with respect and wanted to know about him. Not just medicine but who he is. Refreshing for him to be seen as more than an object. The doctor came in and was very encouraging. He is going to read through Kevin’s medical records and start making orders tomorrow (Friday). He is the first doctor to actually acknowledge that his seasonal allergies could be affecting his secretions. He wants to get him on some allergy medicine to combat the drainage.


The Occupational therapist and Physical therapist came in and worked on Kevin’s range of motion. They also sat him up manually in bed, positioning him so his feet hung off the side of the bed. One of them stood in front of him, the other supported him from the back. They kept him in that position for about 8 minutes, until his respiratory rate started increasing.

Starting at 9:10 AM the Respiratory therapist switched Kevin over to CPAP, which means Kevin was breathing on his own. When we left tonight, he had almost gone twelve hours breathing on his own!! He had only gone two the day before. The RT was so impressed. She had said she was going to put him back on with low settings to give his body a rest. What a great first day in the LTAC.

Several times throughout the day, Kevin would open his eyes and move parts of his body. It is still limited, and not in any real order, but he has done great so far. This is especially true in his condition. A few times, Kevin raised either his left corner of his mouth or both corners after being suctioned. He was asked on different occasions to open his mouth for the nurses to suction his mouth and two times he opened his mouth at that time.

Please spend some time thanking God for bringing Kevin so far in just a few days. Tonight is the third week anniversary of his wreck. Kevin has come a long way in those three weeks too. Pray for God to heal Kevin’s mind and body. Pray for our family as we navigate some of the hardest decisions and issues that we may ever have to go through in our lifetime.

Note also that Kevin cannot have any fresh flowers or balloons, but can have cards or pictures to hang up in his room.

Thanks so much for your prayers and encouragement.
Matt, Angie and family
_______________________________
http://www.prayforkevin.com/

Update #32 on Kevin

What a difference a day makes….


This morning we met with doctors, nurses, physical therapy, respiratory therapy, neurosurgery, etc…. all to get an idea about Kevin’s condition. They were planning on discharging him and we wanted to see where things were before we left. We asked questions about where Kevin has been in comparison with how far he has come. We asked about thoughts regarding progress to expect in the next month and what improvements and setbacks they had seen so far. We got a great deal of information. I think a few people were a little put out by the questions, but most people understood.

Kevin’s finger wasn’t broken and his neck’s fractures were stable and still aligned making it so he could be transferred today. Still on antibiotics, Kevin is working through the C-Diff. His transfer took place around 5 pm in a shiny ambulance. Our caravan headed over to Kevin’s LTAC. We came in, having already visited once to check it out last week, and we have continued to be bowled over with how much we like it already.

The LTAC is named Meadowbrook and he can accept visitors. Although right now, due to the C-Diff, you still have to gown and glove up to go in. The difference between here and TICU at St. Francis is that our whole family can go in at the same time. There is also free pop in the cafeteria 24 hours a day. Those things are minor to the quality of care that we have already seen from the staff. They treat Kevin not only as a person, but as a family member. His first night’s nurse even said that she sees him as a brother and will treat him as if he were her brother. What a refreshing feeling. His room is directly next to the respiratory nurses station. There is even a window from their station straight into his room.

The other cool thing is that Meadowbrook is at 31st & Memorial behind all the hotels. It is in fact directly behind the Hampton Inn that we have been so fortunate to have provided for us. We can actually walk next door for a shower and breakfast! Kevin’s in room 133.

Earlier today, before leaving TICU. They switched Kevin from the Ventilator to CPAP. He breathed on his own for about two hours. When they tested his blood they found that his PO2 (Oxygen) levels were a little low so they switched him back to the previous low settings he had been on. This was also good preparation for the transfer. When I asked the Physical Therapist upon arrival if that was normal to have that reaction when doing trials for getting off the vent, she said “oh yeah” dismissing it with a hand wave, then said with a huge smile, “we can fix that!!” Man, this feels like a good night. On that note, I am heading to bed. They brought us in with two recliners for sleeping.

Thanks so much for your prayers and thoughts. It means so much for the family.

Thanks,
Matt, Angie and family
_______________________
http://www.prayforkevin.com/

Update #31 on Kevin

So, like I previously mentioned, things are moving fast. They are still planning on moving Kevin today to an LTAC here in town. They are trying to get some final things scanned, such as a new X-ray for Kevin’s neck fractures before they move him in an EMSA vehicle. They are also X-Raying his right hand to determine if he has a broken finger or not. It’s interesting how they can get the reports back and read in an hour when they want to move him out. I asked the social worker why the move was happening in the early afternoon as opposed to the late afternoon which is what she told me yesterday. She said well the insurance is already calling to see why he hasn’t been moved yet. That’s not right. I don’t want them rushing things through. (ten minutes later) I just went back and discussed the matter and now it will be at least late afternoon.


Good news is that Kevin is now breathing on his own. It has been about an hour. It is with a CPAP machine. Basically, Kevin is initiating every breath he takes. The machine only gives him a low amount of pressure support, kind of like a boost of air whenever he starts the breath, but it is low. It’s at a 5, which is about as low of support as it can go they said. Also his PEEP is at a 5, which the Respiratory Therapist told us is also really low. She said is probably just enough to make sure air is going through the tube. That means when it’s not there, it shouldn’t be needed.

We’ve been talking with all the different disciplines (departments) of Kevin’s care. Asking about how far he has come in their opinion and what goals we can expect in the next month. Most of it has gone really smoothly.

Also, Dr. Fell, the neurosurgeon finally graced us with his presence. His last notes on Kevin were on August 31st, nine days ago. Then He had told us he would be back in a couple of days. I told him how disappointed I was that he did not follow through with what he had told us. He apologized. He went on to examine Kevin. Of course, Kevin didn’t do any of the things he has been doing when he was examined by Dr. Fell. So he said there hasn’t been any change. I told him that others had done the Kleenex in the eye test and Kevin’s left eye blinked all three times. He tried it again and said there was some blinking. I told him Kevin had started opening his eyes on Sunday and had done so at different points since. I told him how different parts of his body were moving, and some in reaction to stimulus in sitting and moving to the neurological chair. He then replied, I guess we have had some progress. He hadn’t looked at the latest CATscan from Sunday yet, and when I asked him about it, he asked if we wanted to see it. Angie and I had seen it, but Greg and Taylor hadn’t. I still wanted to look again to hear his views on it. He said there is still swelling around the Basal Ganglia (where the brain stem connects to the brain). Also, swelling around a couple other spots. This hasn’t changed his view that Kevin is up against very big odds.

We still need to meet with the head of trauma nursing and the main nutritionist/dietician. This is going to be another long day.

Thanks for praying for Kevin,
Matt, Angie and family
_______________________________
http://www.prayforkevin.com/

Update #30 on Kevin

So, things are moving quickly. We have been told that the hospital is wanting to discharge Kevin to a Long Term Acute Care Center, or LTAC. There was great confusion today, because they were wanting to discharge him today, but there were pending evaluations to do, such as the ultrasound.


We went through a mountain of confusion of meetings today. Meetings with several doctors, head of nursing, social worker, etc…. Basically, unless there are any surprises, Kevin will be discharged tomorrow afternoon. We will be in meetings all morning tomorrow with different departments to work out a plan of progress for Kevin.

Pray as we go through this crazy process. There’s fog ahead that keeps us from seeing everything clearly. We can only lean on the One who sees clearly in any fog. The One who we know never leaves us.

Thanks for your prayers,
Matt, Angie and family
_______________________________
http://www.prayforkevin.com/

Update #29 on Kevin

So I had forgotten a few things and there were other new things.


Earlier Kevin had made a face when they were suctioning out his mouth. Also, the past two days he has bitten down on the suction tube.

Ventilator stuff – they have been doing weaning Kevin off the ventilator. He has been on only 2 breaths per minute for several hours and is doing good. After 5:30 PM they lowered his pressure support down from 15 to 14 then a little while later lowered it to 10. The PEEP is still at 5. Doing good.

Some family were back with him a little while ago and he was moving his eyes (irises) around. And his left eyelid blinked after someone asked him to blink. It wasn’t immediate, but he hadn’t been blinking prior to it.

We have been told several times by nurses that they have never seen a family that has been more compliant and helpful in cleaning out a room and following guidelines. Really? Our family?

His virus is not airborne, and that is why we do not have to have masks. His treatment is for ten days and we will have to keep wearing the gowns and gloves until he has three straight clear tests! Not sure when they will start testing him or the frequency of the tests. I guess we’ll wait and see.

We have pillows and blankets. Thanks for all the offers!! We ARE allowed to take new blankets in. We will have to wear gowns and rubber gloves to sleep in the room tonight! Won’t my hands get all pruny??

A couple other items –

A few people have already responded about helping with bracelets. Thanks! We can definitely still use a few more. We hope to know how many we can order by tomorrow.

If you are able and want to help with meals at the hospital, we can definitely still use meals! Lunches seem to be the hardest to fill, but lunch or dinner is just fine!! Right now that haven’t been too many that have responded to Jeff, who’s acting as our food coordinator. His number is 918-408-7680. Also, I found out tonight that our 742-DINE account is almost exhausted. The meals really help our family to focus on Kevin and his medical care. Just one of those background things that we don’t have to worry about. Thanks for those who have given before! If you want to give money toward 742-DINE, just call them and tell them you want to give to gift account 4374300, for the Crosser family.

Not sure where things are at on the hotel bill, but if you would like to give towards our housing expenses at the hotel, get in touch with Brian Jennings at Highland Park Christian Church. The number is 627-0783.

Thanks for the unbelievable help so far! Thanks for all of your prayers and thoughts.

Matt, Angie and family
_______________________________
http://www.prayforkevin.com/

Update #28 on Kevin

A few things to update.


First, Kevin got a stomach infection last night. He was susceptible to this because of the antibiotics he was on for pneumonia. The bacteria is called C. difficile or C.diff. Not sure how long they expect him to be on the meds for that. Hopefully, we will find out a plan of action for treating that. If you want to read more check out the Mayo Clinic’s website about it (http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/c-difficile/DS00736). Pray for God to heal him of all illness, including the new infection. Right now, visitors have to put on gown and rubber gloves, washing their hands before and after putting the gloves on and taking them off. We also have to remove, wash and clean everything that we have had in the room and they have asked us not to introduce anything new into the room right now. He is on the antibiotic for ten days. They told us they can’t tell us NOT to sleep in there at night, but they would discourage it. So, now we have to figure out what to do for blankets tonight, if we decide to still stay here, which we want to do.

Second, they are still working on getting off the ventilator. They have lowered the rate at which the machine helps from 4 breaths per minute down to only 2 breaths per minute. He still has a pressure support rating of 15 and they lowered the PEEP down from 6 to 5. The respiratory therapist said she thought that he was doing well breathing on his own. She felt good about Kevin getting off the vent.

They have been putting Kevin into a sitting position a couple times per day. When they move him like that, he seems to open his eyes more. Mary Ann, Angie’s sister saw Kevin’s left eye (iris) move earlier when I was in there.

We are looking at ordering some silicone bracelets that say “pray for kevin” on them. If you would like to help with the cost for this, just send me a note!

Feel free to forward this message on or better yet just have people go and sign up here at http://www.prayforkevin.com/ to receive updates. Look in the top right corner.

Thanks for praying,
Matt, Angie and family
____________________
http://www.prayforkevin.com/

Update #27 on Kevin

There are a few things to note before heading to bed this evening.


First off, Kevin’s eye moved! When the nurse was checking for reaction his iris moved around in his right eye. This morning, when his eyelids first opened, I was talking to him on his left side and Angie was standing beside me. His left eye’s iris was looking straight ahead. I looked away from his face and when I looked back his iris was pointed at me! Also, the nurse said that he has some pupil reaction to light, and that it is sluggish. She said it has had some reaction the past few days, but always sluggish.

Kevin sat in a chair, called a neurological chair, for about two hours tonight. This is to help stimulate his brain and also for better circulation of his fluids. He had already sat in his bed, when they changed the settings to make it sit like a recliner earlier in the day.

If B.M.’s are ‘too much info’ for you, skip the next paragraph. He had been having some stomach issues. This was most likely due to the pain & sedative meds he had to take on Friday for his trach and feeding plug procedures. They make your insides like super glue, therefore he was stopped up. Finally today he was able to become more regular again. Almost too much so.

The reason the digestion issues are important are that they are controlled by the same area of his brainstem that had so much damage. The same area controls his heart, respiratory and ability of consciousness. It is encouraging to see his body getting the first three under control. We are praying for him to now wake up!

Pray for God to help our family to determine when the hospital/insurances/case workers/etc… are really working for us and when they are working against us. Ask God to help us be discerning and wise in areas of which we aren’t experts. Pray that God would send those to us that would be beneficial to advancing Kevin’s wellness. Pray for us to make wise decisions.

I have to say this entire process has been the most excruciating thing I have ever been a part of. At times my mind feels ripped apart. Not only from two worlds, Italy and America, but because I want to trust and follow God while at the same time fighting the temptation to be selfish for my timing and wants. It may sound in emails like we have it all together, but we don’t. What we are striving to do is lean on Christ for our strength, for our peace in the midst of a raging storm and for wisdom. It is not easy to wait on God, but I know from past experiences that it is worth it. I rest in the pattern of God in our life.

In an effort to continue introducing you to my brother, I wanted to share a memory from Angie. Oftentimes, he would show up at our house and upon seeing Angie would immediately begin teasing Angie. If would scrunch up his face and with a furrowed brow say, “you haven’t done your hair today have you?” Angie would take the bait and reply she had, he would raise his eyebrows and ask her if she was sure or needed to check it in the mirror! Kevin is a teaser. Lighthearted and easygoing. We are ready to start teasing with him again!

Thanks for praying for my brother,
Matt, Angie and family

Update #26 on Kevin

Lots to update on. Last night respiratory started weaning Kevin off his ventilator. They lowered the rate at which the vent helps Kevin breathe from 10 to 8 breaths per minute. Then Kevin does the additional breaths, adding up to somewhere between 16-22 breaths per minute. Around 4:30 AM they lowered it again since Kevin had done so well. They lowered it from 8 to 6 breaths per minute. They are supposed to continue doing this every 8 hours as long as Kevin responds well, dropping it by 2 each time. At 2:30 PM they just lowered his breathing rate from 6 to 4 breaths per minute.


The doctor who has been helping this weekend, told us that he thinks Kevin could be reaching a point where Kevin may open his eyes, appear to move his eyes around, possibly say words (either that make sense or not), but still may not be “awake”. If he does get to that point, if asked to draw a number 2, he would not be able to do that. There would be some miscommunication in his brain/body. It sounds like this doctor is giving us a new worst case scenario. Previously, the worst case scenario was that he might never wake up, but this would be different.

He has moved his head a couple times today. His legs were slightly moving a bit too. When the nurses rolled Kevin over to examine a sore that has been healing well on his backside, I saw him open his eyelids. After they rolled him onto his back, his eyelids stayed open for a little while, never fully closing them. He has opened them back up a couple times since then.

The doctor this weekend had ordered a CATscan and it took place this morning. The doctor then gave us the results today. Kevin’s blood clots aren’t visible on the scan. This means they are either too small to show up and are being absorbed by the body, or have already been absorbed. There was no residual blood on the scans, except in one spot. He said it was on the inside of Kevin’s largest skull fracture (on the right side of his head, above the ear). He also said this was to be expected.

The started putting Kevin in a chair position last night. His bed moves into that position. They will start doing this three times per day to help with circulation and some studies show it helps neurologically. They will also try once per day sitting him in another recliner that starts out flat like a bed. There are studies that show that moving him can help neurologically stimulate the brain.

This doctor, Dr. Dailey, was great answering all of our questions. Very openly and honestly. He told us there is still much that they do not know and cannot predict. He told us about someone who had more damage than Kevin who had been written off by himself and the neurologist. Later on, this patient was dismissed to go home with his brothers. He isn’t exactly the same as before, but he isn’t laying motionless in a coma. He also told us of people with less injuries who never woke up.

About the vent settings, Dr. Dailey told us that he was pleasantly surprised that Kevin had done so well so far being weaned off the ventilator. This is good since it is controlled by the brainstem. It is also good because it opens up more possibilities for Acute Care Centers as a next step for Kevin. There are only three in Tulsa that accept patients on ventilators. If he’s off, there are centers that specialize in brain injuries, but again these don’t accept patients on ventilators.

I also wanted to clarify and explain some of the new areas to keep track of Kevin’s progress. Starting tomorrow, I will start weaning off the old communication, and use only the new. So that means if you are having problems, please write me with questions and I will help you out. We want your involvement and we definitely want your prayers.

http://www.prayforkevin.com/ – This is essentially a blog with whistles. You do not need to sign up for anything to read this. I will post every update I make on this.

http://groups.google.com/group/prayforkevin - This is an email update list. If you are wanting to receive updates as soon as I post them, you may want to sign up here. If you go to www.prayforkevin.com you can subscribe to the list on the right side of the page. If you have problems signing up and want to receive the emails, please reply to me and I can add some on to it manually. The system will not allow me to add a major bulk amount however.

http://www.facebook.com/mattcrosser?v=app_2347471856&ref=profile – on Facebook, you can go and read the updates in “My Notes” section. If that is where you have been reading them and want to continue then by all means go ahead.

http://www.facebook.com/mattcrosser?v=app_2347471856&ref=profile#/group.php?gid=140853109176 – This link may or may not get you to the Facebook group – Pray For Kevin, otherwise you can search groups for “Pray for Kevin” and you should find it.

http://twitter.com/pray4kevin - This last method is for Twitter. I know many of you are unfamiliar with Twitter. But it is best used for very short updates, like a text message on a phone. In fact, after signing up for twitter and “follow”ing Pray4Kevin on Twitter, you can choose to add your cell phone to your profile and turn device updates on for his particular twitter update. Below I’ll list a couple examples of our latest Twitter updates:

“They are prepping Kevin for a morning CATscan at 9. The doctor should also be in some time this morning.about 6 hours ago from web”
“The Respiratory Therapist just lowered his breath support/minute from 8 to 6 & his breathing rate is still staying around 21/minute.about 10 hours ago from web”
“Kevin was active w/his right shoulder & leg, sort of withdrawing them several times. In 4 hrs, they want to reduce vent from 8 to 6.about 13 hours ago from web”

You get the picture.

Sorry for the length of this one. I promise to not make this a habit. Every once in awhile maybe, but not normally.

We are so thankful for your prayers. We are so grateful for the answers that God has given so far to our prayers. Thank you for prayers.

Thanks,
Matt, Angie & family

Update #25 on Kevin

Today, we spoke with a physician’s assistant, Greg Daly (not spelled like that, but don’t remember). He told us that he has been gone for two weeks and is now catching up with Kevin’s info. After examining Kevin and talking with us, he put in a slew of new orders. The family is excited because it seems like this doctor is wanting to try do some things that we have been hearing about.


After a week and a half with no new CATscan, this doctor is ordering one. After a week or more of no new ventilator changes, this doctor has ordered new changes (they are in fact in effect already). They have lowered the amount of times the vent helps Kevin breathe from 10 per minute to 8 pm. They lowered the pressure that they were filling his lungs with from around 20 to 15. They also lowered his PEEP settings from 8 to 6. Not sure exactly what it is (Positive end-expiratory pressure), but it helps decrease the work in breathing.

After a week of not hearing from the Neurosurgeon, this doctor was going to look and see if the Neurosurgeon had left any notes. He was also ordering something like a sonogram for Kevin’s left arm. It is more swollen than the right. He said there could be fluid build-up, or it could be the fact that the arms are the last to heal or show signs in a trauma or it could be a blood clot where the IV pick goes in, and this is why he is ordering a sonogram. There isn’t too much concern about the clot moving, normally he said clots don’t move around from the arms.

They also sat Kevin’s bed up like a chair, so that he was sitting up. They sat him up for about an hour. Tomorrow, they want to put him in one of the pink recliners.

Kevin’s favorite sports team is the Oklahoma Sooners. They are playing their first game of the season tonight. Some of us are watching it in the waiting room, some of us are watching in his room. It’s turned up loud so maybe the sounds and noise of football wakes him up. But then they lost, so that wasn’t good thing.

And they finally shaved him, so it looks more like Kevin.

We put our trust in God. We wait and we pray. We hope and we prepare.

Thanks for your prayers,
Matt, Angie and family

Update #24 on Kevin

It was our night at the hotel last night. We heard this morning that Kevin moved his head slightly. Apparently, his head was leaning to one side and he moved it from leaning to straight ahead as if looking up. We’ll celebrate every new movement and every continued progress.


Matt, Angie and Family

Update #23 on Matt's Brother, Kevin

First things first. Kevin two procedures this morning and they both went really well. He had a tracheostomy put in his neck for respiratory functions and a feeding plug into his stomach. Afterwards, they bathed him and he is resting now from all the procedures.


Afterwards, Angie was in with him and saw him make something like a swallow action. The nurse told us that since the tubes are no longer in his throat, he will now just swallow the secretions that they have been siphoning out until now.

We are in the process of moving our communication lines to a more purposeful direction. If you would like to receive or continue receiving email updates you need to go to http://www.prayforkevin.com/ and choose to subscribe to Google Groups “Pray for Kevin” on the upper right side of the page. You can also go directly to http://groups.google.com/group/prayforkevin and sign up there too. We will be posting all updates on www.prayforkevin.com and we welcome all comments and notes to the family and Kevin.

If you use Twitter, you can sign up for bite-size updates at http://twitter.com/pray4kevin You can even choose to follow these updates and have them sent as text messages to your phone. These will be all throughout the day, around 140 characters or less each time.

I will continue posting updates on my Facebook account under “My Notes” section, but if you are in the Taking Christ to Italy: Go Verona group we will cease putting regular communication there too. Instead we have a group on Facebook called Pray for Kevin, it is found at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=140853109176 or listed under groups that I belong too.

Over the weekend I will be using the old format of communication, as well as the new format. Sorry if you get double or triple messages. After the weekend I will focus only on the new format of communication, after allowing time for people to join what the want to receive.

Please let me know if you have any questions about this transition, we don’t want to leave anyone out!! We are also considering silicone bracelets for people to wear who want to show their prayer support for Kevin. We just have to explore how to pay for these.

Today is Kevin’s son Kohl’s 19th birthday. Pray that we have a great celebration in the midst of tragedy and craziness.

Thanks for your prayers. Thanks for your encouragement. Thanks for your love. Thanks for your help.

Thanks,
Matt, Angie & Family

Update #22 on Matt's Brother, Kevin

They did the UV filter procedure and Kevin has been back in his room for a couple hours. The procedure went well.


They have the tracheostomy planned for around 10 AM tomorrow, but as one doctor told me, they aren’t really schedules in hospitals. We met the doctor who is doing the feeding plug (into Kevin’s stomach). He is really great and gave us his number if we have any questions, day or night. He said he will do the feeding plug procedure, which takes about 8 minutes, sometime before or after the tracheostomy.

Tomorrow is Kohl’s birthday. He is turning 19. Pray for Kohl and the family, since we would love to have Kevin there for his son’s birthday.

Growing up, there was different times where I wanted to be like my big brothers. I remember when I was real little watching Kevin and his confidence. As a teen and young adult, Kevin’s favorite song was by Mac Davis. It was called, “Oh Lord Its Hard To Be Humble”. Here’s the chorus…

“Oh Lord it's hard to be humble
when you're perfect in every way.
I can't wait to look in the mirror
'cos I get better looking each day
to know me is to love me
I must be a heck of a man.
O Lord it's hard to be humble
but I'm doing the best that I can.”

I remember Kevin standing looking into the mirror, smiling and singing that song….to himself and any of us that could hear him. It’s interesting, that for years I fought against the moniker of “little brother”. At a certain point I was as tall as my brothers, and then passed them. When my brothers would introduce me to people, the reply would be….”your little brother? I don’t think so. Maybe he’s your younger brother.” Oh what I would give to have Kevin introduce me as his little brother today.

Thanks for your prayers and heartfelt statements. Thanks for contributing to 742-DINE and our hotel costs. Thanks for doing laundry and bringing snacks and drinks out of love. Thanks for praying us through this.

Thanks,
Matt, Angie & family

Update #21 on Matt's Brother, Kevin

The night we flew in from Italy (arriving four days after Kevin’s accident) Angie and I went straight to the hospital. Exhausted and tired from our travel, yet on a high from finally arriving to my brother’s side, we stayed with him our first night in the hospital. Such a strange sight. Tubes connected to him. Bags hanging around him. And a myriad of machines examining him. There were beeps of all kinds. Simple beeps, beeps with melodies. All alarms to some changing condition of Kevin, either from blood pressure, heart rate, lung pressure, respiratory rate, etc… It was all so foreign to us. It was like learning another language all over again.


The night before last, Angie and I stayed once more with Kevin. In fact, since that first night we have stayed there every other night. On the off nights staying at the hotel (like last night). There were still machines and tubes and beeps, but there were less. Less tubes going into my brother’s body. Less machine controlling him, where he has regained some functionality. Less beeps and alarms going off throughout the day and the night. The beeps that do go off are less foreign to us. For example, we understand for a certain beep it just means he coughed whether we saw it or not. We have done well learning this new language. As difficult as it has been.

Early yesterday evening, the elders from Cedar Ridge Christian Church came up and prayed over Kevin. They prayed for healing, restoration and for the family to lean on Christ.

Kevin’s flood restoration has been going well. There were some hiccups yesterday with insurance agents, but that seems to be handled and some semblance of peace restored there. Kevin’s lower kitchen cabinets have been taken out and other steps are being taken to remodel the damaged home. The family has to go through every single thing that was in the house and determine if damaged is it worth saving. I stopped by the warehouse that has all the stuff. It was the first time I confronted that world. I was at the hospital whenever the cleanup was going on, and I never saw the flood. When I first saw furniture that I have only known in Kevin’s house, I felt sick to my stomach. This was wrong. These things didn’t belong here. And it further hit me that Kevin was unable to go through them himself at this time. The next thing, that hit my mind was how it reminded me of our furniture and possessions that had been in storage in Italy for a year and a half. We finally moved to our new apartment in June and we didn’t expect to be back in the states for another two years. Then the accident. Thoughts of Italy, bring thoughts of our team that I am leading, as well as thoughts of our little dog, Brinkley, whom we miss dearly and is staying with our teammate April in Verona. Lots of questions swirl in our minds as we are faced with a future of uncertainty.

In the hours before we left last night, Kevin’s legs were particularly active. Not moving much, you understand, but slightly rocking. Kevin’s left shoulder was seen pulling back for the first time and his vitals were stable. The IV filter procedure that I mentioned in a previous update would be done in radiology, they wouldn’t need to go to an OR. During the procedure they have to see what they are doing and in radiology they can monitor with something like a sonogram, for instance.

Also, thanks for those of you who gave towards 742-DINE. The family used it last night. It worked out great. They brought the food in 40 minutes. If you do want to give towards that, the account number has changed. For the Crosser family the account number is 4374300. Thanks!

Thanks for praying,
Matt, Angie and family

Update #20 on Matt's Brother, Kevin

This morning the team of doctors came in. While Dr. Bergen and a couple others did Kevin’s examination, Dr. Wang updated Angie and I on what they were thinking for the next few days. They want to place an intravenous filter in a large vein going to Kevin’s lungs. This would catch any blood clots that might come loose and enter Kevin’s lungs, which would be bad. The filter is shaped like an umbrella and inserts into the vein. If scheduled this procedure would be tomorrow.


After that procedure goes well, they will plan the tracheostomy procedure. It could be done in his room, or down in an OR. Dr. Wang said if she does the procedure she will most likely do the feeding tube move to the stomach at the same time.

The nurses got him bathed again (a daily routine) and shaved. Two of the nurses saw different notes to Kevin on the wall and commented on them. They were reading them. One of the nurses told us that you can tell something about a person, when you see their room, and see the people coming and see family and friends staying with him all day every day.

Remember a great way to help the family is by contributing to 742-DINE (918-742-3463). You can find out more about it at http://www.742dine.com/. But you can just call that number and give them the Crosser account number which is - #5553900. Our family has been blessed beyond belief with offers of help and assistance, such as dinners brought up, errands run, household chores at Kevin’s house and other involved family members. We are so grateful.

Thanks so much for your kind words of encouragement and prayers.

Thanks,
Matt, Angie & family

Update #19 on Matt's Brother, Kevin

Today has been somewhat slow as far as developments go. The new doctor, Dr. Wang started off today with a splash. She came in with a team of about seven doctors! It sounded like a medical TV drama. Angie and I were at the hotel with Jacob, Mom and Dad. Taylor and Kohl were staying with Kevin. They didn’t have much to say, but I assume more will come as Dr. Wang continues the week. She did say that it looked like they would be doing the tracheostomy and moving feeding tube this week.


Kevin’s house has been dried out. Carpet has been pulled completely out. The restorers are working on the next step. They are pulling the molding off the doorways. Doors have already been removed. Some spots they will be cutting sheetrock up to 36 inches high in some spots to be replaced.

In early evening the elders from Highland Park Christian Church in Tulsa came up to anoint Kevin with oil and pray over him for healing. Including three staff, there were ten men representing the church. It was a great experience and very encouraging. Tomorrow elders from Cedar Ridge Christian Church will be coming to pray over Kevin also.

A little while ago, several family and visitors were back with Kevin. They were testing his feet for reflexes. They ran a key across the bottom of Kevin’s feet and several times he had a reaction. His foot would pull away several of the times when his feet had been scraped.

Angie and I are staying with Kevin tonight. In the morning, we’ll hear from the doctor again. And I know that we’ll hear from many of you too. There are some verses from Daniel that keep coming to my mind. I know that Kevin would want me to share them with you too. In Daniel chapter 3, there is the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. The king had set up an idol and they wouldn’t bow down to it. The king threatened to throw them in a fiery furnace….

“16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. 18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up." ”

In regards to Kevin, we know that the God we serve is able to save us from this tragedy and rescue us from this pain and sadness, but EVEN IF HE DOES NOT…….God is still on his throne. God will still care for us. God still loves us. Eternity with Him is still possible for those who know Him.

Thanks for praying for Kevin. Thanks for praying for miracles. Thanks for praying for our family.

Thanks,
Matt & Angie

Update #18 on Matt's Brother, Kevin

This afternoon, we met Dr. Wang. She is one of two new doctors coming to Saint Francis Hospital tomorrow. They will be running all of the Trauma ICU. Dr. Wang came by as she was meeting the patients. She told us that she wanted families to be involved. In the mornings, she will come by and check on Kevin, afterwards talking with the family and making herself open to questions. She seemed to have a very optimistic spirit.

Family friend, Jack Foreman, saw something while he and his wife Shirley were visiting today. I saw him leaning over and looking at Kevin intently. I asked him what he saw and he said “his arm moving”. We watched and watched. We didn’t see it move again. But that was the first time that anyone had seen his arm move since being in there. The doctors would call it a reflex, but it’s a reflex that he had not done so far!!

Later on, Dr. Fayer came back in and we told him that we met Dr. Wang. He said she was great and the hospital staff was excited to have her on board. He will continue coming through, as well as Dr. Fell, the neurosurgeon. I asked if there was something we were waiting for in order for them to place the tracheostomy. He said there was. On the ventilator machine, there is a setting called PEEP. It has something to do with pressure on the lungs and making it so they don’t collapse. It has a setting of 8. The respiratory therapist later told us it should be at a “5” by we’ll want to confirm that with the doc tomorrow.

The family has been taking turns staying at the hotel that was set up for our family. My parents have been staying there every night for the past week. It has been great to have this resource for the family. For those staying there, breakfast is ready every morning and one less thing to worry about. Staff have been there to help my mom get the ramp/wheelchair out of the car when we could not be there. Maids take care of washing towels, cleaning the bathrooms, and clean the room. More that we can keep off our plate for now. We are so thankful for those of you that sent money to help cover the cost.

Thanks for praying for Kevin and the family,
Matt & Angie

Update #17 on Matt's Brother, Kevin

During the night Kevin did well. He had two B.M.’s which was really good. The doctor said he is digesting and that he heard bowel sounds. Both of which are also good. The doctor also said his labs are looking better. The X-rays still showed something, like pneumonia, but that X-rays can sometimes lag behind. He said that the antibiotics seem to be working.


Doctor Fell, the neurosurgeon, came in and went through his exam. There was response on Kevin’s right foot to stimulus, but not on the left. After the exam he said there is no neurological change in Kevin’s condition and that he would check back with us in a couple days. He has been coming daily.

Throughout the morning, Kevin has been slightly rocking his right knee. There has been a few times on his left knee too. At one point, I stayed in there while Angie went out for a minute. When she was leaving the room, she touched Kevin’s foot and told him she would be back. Kevin moved his left leg in response to the touch.

We are encouraged by so many of you. Your prayers, your words, your giving to the housing, your giving towards meals, your time taken to see Kevin and encourage the family. We are sustained through God and God working in you. I hope as you join us in this process, whether that be through email, facebook, text messages, face-to-face, etc… that you would be compelled to see Christ.

I can’t tell you how many times Kevin introduced someone to me, then wanted me to share with them about Jesus. I told him that he didn’t need a minister or missionary, that he could do it and for many years now he has been trying to do this. I do wonder what Kevin would think about all of what is going on around him. Friends and family coming out of the woodwork, describing in the second breath how many times he helped them with something. I know he would want us to take this opportunity to examine our hearts and make sure they were right with Christ. If any of you would need to talk about this, know that I would count towards fulfilling a desire of Kevin’s to share with you. There are also several other area ministers that have been up and are available to chat about these things as well.

Thanks for praying,
Matt & Angie

Update #16 on Matt's Brother, Kevin - Slow Day

This has been somewhat of a slow day. Emotions are high in the family, which also brings its challenges. Kevin has had some extra movement today. A few times when he has coughed today, it’s not only his chest that moves when he coughs, but down his body into his legs. A couple times it was only his left leg, then later it was both legs shaking when he coughed at the same time. In the past only his chest and head would move when he coughed.


Then at another point, the nurse was changing his feeding tube out. Her fingers got too close and Kevin’s mouth clamped down. He bit her! She had teeth marks afterwards. They said the coughing and the biting were reflexes. Not sure what it means. His stomach has been having some trouble digesting, but he did have a good B.M. this morning.

Most of the family worshipped together this morning at Highland Park Christian Church in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Then brought lunch up afterwards to eat together. We are starting to feel like we are being stretched to our limits. Pray for our family to continue to rest, pray, trust God and love one another.

Thanks for praying for Kevin,
Matt & Angie

Update #15 on Matt's Brother, Kevin - Another Way to Help

I forgot to include in my last update another way to help the family. We received word through our food coordinator (Chef Jeff) that an account was set-up through a local service called 742-DINE. Someone had started the account with a donation and he told me that anyone can contribute towards it. He will continue setting up meals throughout the week. If anyone would like to donate to the 742-DINE account, they just have to call that number, 742-DINE and tell them you want to contribute to account #5553900.


Not too much has changed today for Kevin. His vitals have stayed stable. The only exceptions were his heartrate racing for bit until they gave him a betablocking drug. The nurse only gave him ½ of what they had been giving him and he still responded well, so that reduction is good.

Tonight the family was asked to come to a ceremony at the Tulsa Oilers hockey game tonight. We may not all stay for the game, but they are honoring Kevin tonight by making him an honorary Oiler. They are presenting his kids with an Oiler jersey tonight before the game. Kevin has worked with the Oilers on different things in the past.

Thanks again for your prayers,
Matt, Angie & Family

Update #14 on Matt's Brother, Kevin

Another night gone by and Kevin is progressing in some areas. Dr. Fayer, the general trauma doctor, was in this morning. He said his vitals were looking good. The antibiotics are looking good and working. He does think has some pneumonia somewhere in his lungs, despite the fact the cultures never picked up on it. Kevin had several bouts of coughing last night, which is getting the gunk out of his lungs. Kevin had a small B.M. last night which was great. During the night, when the night nurse was in here with Kevin, Kevin threw up some of his food from the feeding tube. There is always the possibility of some of it getting in his lungs, but she thinks they were able to get it all. It was very good that he did while she was in here. Dr. Fayer said that the plan was still to do a tracheostomy and move his feeding tube next week some time. The feeding tube will actually go directly into the stomach.


The respiratory therapist was just in giving Kevin his routine breathing treatment. She also said that she just switched to a completely different circuit on the ventilator from a dry mode to a heated wet mode with moisture. She said that they do this after seven days. It acts kind of like a humidifier that goes directly into the lungs. She said that this allows the secretions in Kevin’s lungs to stay moist and easier to expel.

The worst area of Kevin’s injuries is in his brainstem. It is in an area of the brainstem called the Pons area. This area controls the heart, the stomach, respiratory system, coughing and consciousness (the urge to get up). It is why the doctors are most concerned about his injuries, but having better respiratory control, coughing, etc…. are encouraging signs that at least part of the area is working. Pray for Kevin to be healed.

I wanted to share a little more about Kevin. This is directly from a personal profile that he wrote about himself.

“My name is Kevin and I shoot straight. I like to joke around though and enjoy meeting people .My children are the highlights of my life next GOD. My Mom ,Dad, brothers, sister-in -law ,and their children are very close to me also .I have many special friends and extended family and they know who they are. I love my job at AMERICAN AIRLINES I’m a EXECUTIVE BOARD OFFICER for the TRANSPORT WORKERS UNION LOCAL 514.I love softball , hunting, and being involved in the community. I like to help people. I think this is what God intended us to do .I have the honor of setting on several boards. Vision 2025 , Red Cross Chapter, Red Cross Blood Services and recently I've been asked on the INCOG federal reserve Board. I know every day matters so live it like you should.”

Pray for our family as we go through this extremely difficult process. It strains and stretches, pulls and tempts to break us. My family has always been close, yet during these times our bonds are tested.

I so appreciate the last line of Kevin’s profile. ”I know every day matters so live it like you should.” This is how we should all be living.

Thank you for your prayers,
Matt, Angie and the Family

Update #13 on Matt's Brother, Kevin

So the night was uneventful for Kevin. This morning they took his neck brace off. Apparently, the neck fractures that we didn’t know about until yesterday had aligned correctly which allowed them to remove the neck brace. A nurse told us today that she thinks he might have a fracture on his finger on his right hand, therefore they are going to do an X-Ray. His legs had the same response to stimuli as the last two days. Again no response in the eyes. His fever broke yesterday, but it has fluctuated today. I asked last night and they told me that there was still swelling on the brain and that the swelling has not changed in the past two CATscans. We don’t know what, if anything, will change once the swelling goes down. They switched the ventilator back to the mode where Kevin is doing the breathing and the machine is helping. That is a good thing. It is also only at 40% oxygen and he is taking deep breaths.

I realized that so many of you are graciously praying for my brother with no idea who he is. I thought I would take a quick opportunity to tell you about my big brother. He’s forty-seven, dark hair, tanned olive complexion, six foot tall. He has three kids, Taylor, Kohl and Jacob. Kevin is a guy who would give you the shirt literally off his back. I can’t tell you how many guys that were in a down time in their life stayed for weeks/months on Kevin’s couch. Most of those guys have gone on to live a better life now. Kevin has been there for them. Kevin is the king of networkers, bringing people together that may not have ever known one other. Yet, each of those people were not just contacts, they were truly friends and often brothers.

Thanks so much for your prayers,
Matt & Angie

Update #12 on Matt's Brother, Kevin

This afternoon we met with the general trauma doctor. He said Kevin’s stitches could come out of the right side of his head and from his ear. He also gave us the results of the CATscan of Kevin’s face. There are a few fractures in Kevin’s facial area, including above the nose and within the jaw. He is calling in a plastic surgeon to verify what needs there would be. He verified from the X-Ray of Kevin’s neck that he does in fact have two fractures in two different vertebrae.


They removed the chesttube from Kevin’s punctured lung, so that seems to be a good sign. Apparently, his lungs are doing better. They have lowered the oxygen from 45 to 40% (it had been at 100%) so that is another good thing. Kevin’s fever broke this evening and he was doing well tonight.

After, going through another rollercoaster day, Angie and I retired to the hotel that is setup for our family. Last night we stayed in Kevin’s room, tonight Taylor is staying in there.

Thanks again for all the love and prayers,
Matt & Angie

Update #11 on Matt's Brother, Kevin

Last night, Kevin struggled with fever and fast heartrate. They gave him several breathing treatments and the respiratory therapist explained very well the tracheotomy that they intend to place in Kevin’s throat sometime next week. They did several tests over the last day, EKG – came back normal, routine sonogram on Kevin’s legs (looking for blood blots) – came back clear, X-ray of Kevin’s neck (apparently, Kevin also has two fractures in his neck, but for some reason they hadn’t told us yet) and finally, a CTscan of Kevin’s face to determine if there are fractures (we understand this to be a routine exam too). They were going to put Kevin on antibiotics because they think he does have either pneumonia or bronchitis. This is a setback. The neurosurgeon did reflex tests again on Kevin. No pupil response yet. Today his eyelids did not try to close with the Kleenex/eye test. However, both of Kevin’s legs jerked when the doctor pinched a toe on each one.


The family has been able to take some time off since we arrived, which has been good. Greg has been over at Kevin’s house today while the water removal is going on. A few of us have been holding the line at the hospital today. Sometimes there are struggles with discouragement, sometimes we don’t give into the temptation. We continue to cry out to God to heal Kevin completely even as the doctors give us very little hope.

This morning, while the physical therapist was with Kevin, she taught Angie how to move Kevin’s limbs to help avoid joint stiffness. She works on that as well as massages his feet and hands to keep circulation going. She can now teach some of the other family members how to do this as they return to the hospital.

For those that have offered to help, we have been trying to get a couple things organized. First, we have a food coordinator, Jeff Congdon. Jeff is the Senior Minister of Sandusky Avenue Christian Church in Tulsa. If you are wanting to bring meals up, cook food, pick up food etc… for the family at the hospital, you can give Jeff a call or shoot him an email. His cell phone number is 918-408-7680 and his email address is jeffcongdon@sbcglobal.net. This will help release the family from dealing with the coordination of meals as well as take care of “double-bookings” and confusion.

The other way you can help is that Highland Park Christian Church in Tulsa has set up a couple hotel rooms for our family to stay at together while we go through this crisis. Some of us are from out of town, others from town but wanting to be with family. The hotel rooms allow us to have an extension of the waiting room for our family to be together. If you want to help offset the cost of this you can contact Brian Jennings at Highland Park Christian Church. The number is 918-627-0783 and the email is brianj@hp4Christ.org.

Every once in awhile we come up with things we need or errands run. These are mainly done in a random manner. Thanks so much for your prayers, words of encouragement and visits. It means a lot. If you want to pray for my family by name:

Kevin Crosser (brother in hospital)
Bill & Jeanne Crosser (Dad & Mom)
Taylor, Kohl and Jacob Crosser (Kevin’s kids aged 21, 18 & 14)
Greg Crosser (brother)
Brandon & Brittany Crosser (Greg’s kids)

Thanks for your love,
Matt & Angie

Update #10 on Matt's Brother, Kevin - The Good and The Bad

Okay, so good news and bad news.


The bad news actually has nothing to do with Kevin’s body. It has to do with his house. Some family friends were checking on Kevin’s dogs and they found that Kevin’s bathroom had flooded the entire house. The hallway had ankle deep water in it. We have already gotten the information on Kevin’s home insurance. Also, one of Kevin’s friends has a restoration company. His company is already taking care of the situation.

Better news has to do with Kevin himself. He had a racing heartbeat earlier in the day that took some time to care for. They finally got it under control and ordered an EKG to check Kevin’s heart. The report came back that Kevin’s heart was fine. When his heart rate increased, we were playing one of Kevin’s favorite groups, Coldplay, while Angie and Taylor were talking to him. So maybe he was making a connection.

A little while ago, the kids had brought up a board game into Kevin’s ICU room. They put the game on a bed table and were playing the game around Kevin’s bed. They were even taking Kevin’s hand while making it hold the dice and had him “playing” with them.

Today Kevin had another CATscan. When the main doctor visited this afternoon, he told us a couple of things. He had said that today’s CATscan would provide good information on where Kevin’s brain is exactly damaged. It is easier to see now that the bleeding has mainly stopped and the swelling should all be down. He also said we would need to be looking at the possibility of inserting a tracheotomy. This is a procedure to open a direct airway for ventilation. It is more comfortable for the patient and better for longterm patients. This will probably be sometime next week.

Thanks for all your prayers,
Matt & Angie

Update #9 on Matt's Brother, Kevin - Steps Forward

There hadn’t been much change in Kevin’s condition overnight. Vitals were good. They have reduced pain meds to morphine (as of late Monday night). Angie and I had a good night’s rest. We got my parents to go and rest away from the hospital as well. We came back up around 6:30 AM and had just missed the doctor. The neurosurgeon did not come in until around 11:30 AM.


When he was in, he was checking his stimulus reactions on his feet and hands. There was no reaction on his hands, but when he pinched a toe on Kevin’s left foot, the foot jerked away. The doctor said that was a good reaction. However, he followed it up with the notion that even someone who has a severed spinal cord injury can do that reaction. We find the good news in the fact that Kevin’s foot has not reacted this way so far.

Then he proceeded to check Kevin’s eyes. With light there was still no pupil dilation/reaction. So then he pulled open Kevin’s eyes, and poked his eyeball with a wad of Kleenex. Out of six pokes, Kevin’s eyelids on his left eye tried to close (blinked as a reaction to pain)! I know it is only one out of six, and I know that he may be somewhat involuntary to pain, but it hasn’t happened so far. And once out of six times, is better than none out of six!!!!

Then there was the statement where the neurosurgeon said, that I actually found encouraging. He said, Kevin does not have a dead brain, he has a badly injured brain.

We go through different stages of grief, excitement, laughter, joy, sadness, etc…. Thanks for your prayers, words of encouragement, food, offers of assistance, etc…

God is sustaining our family.

Praying,
Matt & Angie

Update #8 on Matt's Brother, Kevin

Today was a long day of ups and downs. Kevin had some respiratory issues, so they had to tweak the ventilator settings. The neurosurgeon and doctor have not given us much reason of hope citing different issues. However, we know from them that there is a chance he could wake up, we just aren’t sure what limitations he might have. He did have a B.M. which was the first time in the hospital and an important step of progress.


Many people came to the hospital. Some brought food and snacks. Our intermediate family was surrounded by love from God’s people and other family members.

HPCC got my family a place to stay throughout Sunday. Angie and I staying there tonight and tomorrow we stay back up at the hospital. We will try to work on some kind of family rotation. We also are working on a medical journal for Kevin, citing all the things that the doctors are telling us.

Pray that our family could stay strong during this time of trial. Pray that we stay unified even as the enemy would have us shattered. Thank you for your help and kind words, but especially thank you for your prayers.

We will head back up to the hospital around 6 AM to meet with Kevin’s doctors. Please keep praying.

Thanks,
Matt & Angie

Update #7 on Matt's Brother, Kevin

So, we got in last night and came to the hospital. Kevin had earlier stopped moving his leg. The thought was maybe he gotten worn out. We were told that he had moved it over thirty times. Angie and I have been very happy to be home with family and friends through this incredibly difficult time. In Italy, we were in a waiting game. We couldn’t walk down the hall and see him, or talk to him. But now we can. Angie and I have not hardly left his side since we arrived. We stayed in his room last night, giving other family a bit of rest.


An hour or so after arriving, Kevin was having trouble breathing, so they gave him a sedative/pain killer. Kevin had x-rays taken during the night, which has become somewhat regular. Two doctors came in this morning at different points to explain their areas of care. One doctor said they think he might be getting a touch of pneumonia, his lungs had blood in his lungs, which raised the possibility of pneumonia. The neurologist talked about several things. First, he said one area of major concern is that his eyes are unresponsive, no dilation of the eyes when confronted with light. The brain stem, where there are three blood clots (signifying damage to his brain stem) is the seat of consciousness. This adds to the fear that he could never wake up, since his eyes aren’t responsive.

The neurosurgeon said while the leg moving, itself is a good thing, it doesn’t tell us anything other than that the leg can move. For instance, it does not tell us if he can move his arm on the same side of his body and his leg. It does not tell us if and when he will wake up. But we will cling to the good of the leg moving and look for more good things like eyes opening. The neurosurgeon said we can talk to him as much as we want. He also said that it may still take a couple of days for all the sedative and major pain killers to wear off.

My prayer is for my big brother to wake up and take up the helm that he has held for his many years of protector and guardian of the family…whether we always liked it or not.

Thank you so much for your prayers, encouragement and offers of assistance,
Matt & Angie

Update #6 on Matt's Brother, Kevin...GREAT NEWS

We are in NY at JFK airport waiting for our flight to Chicago and found out that Kevin is moving his right leg and had a tear in his eye when Greg (our other brother) kissed him. It rolled down his face. We can’t wait to get there! Please keep praying!!!


Matt & Angie

Update #5 on Matt's Brother, Kevin 20090823

So, we have spent the last day preparing to head back to the states. We fly out tomorrow morning from Milan. We told the groundskeeper of our building what was going on and he insisted on driving us two hours to the airport! April has Brinkley and is looking out for some of our stuff. The Caseys are staying until tomorrow to help us with final details. We will arrive in Tulsa at 10:23 PM Monday night and I want to go see Kevin.


Today, we found out that even though Kevin was taken off the sedative, the neurosurgeon said Kevin is still on a major painkiller which sort of acts as a sedative. This drug would make it so Kevin would sedated, even without a sedative. He said it will keep him from remembering any pain, as well as keep him from hearing anything we might be telling him. This is strange for two reasons, first they told the family to talk to him since he was off his sedative. The other reason it is strange is because the first thing the neurosurgeon did when he came in the room was call out loud Kevin’s name. Why do that and then tell the family we can say whatever we want, but he won’t hear us. We do know that God will. The neurosurgeon said he would be on this pain killing drug till around Tuesday or Wednesday. Please keep praying for Kevin’s full recovery. He is blessed to have so many of you praying for him and his family.

On a good note, they gave Kevin another CAT scan and they said the swelling had went down on the brain and his blood clots surrounding the brain stem are not any worse!! Please keep praying for the removal of these clots and full healing of his brain.

We look forward to seeing family, friends and especially, Kevin, tomorrow night.

In Christ,
Matt & Angie