Benefit for Zac Chapman

Thursday 10/29/09 DAY 83

It seems there has been information circulated that Zac is "out of the coma". Dr. Le, Zac's physical medicine Dr. was kind enough to call me tonight and clarify. In the srtictest sense of the word "coma", Zac appears to be emerging from the comatose state into the next state which is vegetative. (I hate that word!) I just don't want people to misunderstand what is going on with Zac. Technically, the Dr. does not consider him comatose (eyes closed, unresponsive) but more in the next level which is vegetative (eyes open, responsive). From this state, the next step is minimally conscious.
So, Zac does open his eyes and attempts to focus on people when they are talking to him, and might even attempt to turn his head in their direction. He is not moving his arms or his legs yet.
So, Zac appears to be in the process of emerging from the coma and that is definitely a step in the right direction! Thank you all for your continued prayers for Zac and the family. God bless you all...

 

From Jenny on Saturday:

Please pray for Zac and especially the family right now. "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour." Lord, I ask you to take control of this entire situation. We must die daily to ourselves. Please help all of us to keep our eyes focused on you. We must put Zac first!

 

Monday 11/2/09
Today at 8:08pm

Sorry, can't seem to bring myself to say the word for the level of consciousness that the Dr. is considering Zac in now. I prefer to say that Zac is continuing to emerge out of the coma and into the next step. Just as everyone has said from the beginning, do not expect consistency from day to day. Zac continues to have times where his eyes are open and he is attempting to focus on people and voices.
He is continuing to sit up in his chair daily and stays up anywhere from 2-4 hours at a time.
Zac now weighs 125#; yes he is still losing weight. We'll just have to keep praying about that like we did about the pneumonia. May God continue to have total control of this situation and bless a young, and very derserving individual

 

Tuesday 11/3/09

I received a call from the case manager at Kindred that the nurse liason from Baylor will be coming tomorrow for a clinical update on Zac. She will take this information back to Dr. Carlile at Baylor. A family meeting will take place with Dr. Carlile and then Zac would be transferred to Baylor in Dallas if she accepts him in the program. This is a step in the right direction and Zac would be getting more intense therapy than he is currently receiving at Kindred. Zac will be transferred out of bed, changed into "real clothes", and taken out of his room for therapy.
Please continue in prayer for Zac and the family. May the Lord continue to heal his injuries so that His power and glory can be revealed in Zac!!

 

Wednesday 11/4/09

A meeting will take place tomorrow at Baylor at 2:00 to decide if Zac will be accepted to their brain injury program. Please pray with me that this meeting will go well and that Zac will be accepted to the program. This is the next step in the right direction!

 

Thursday 11/5/09

Dr. Carlile accepted Zac into the TBI program at Baylor in Dallas. Pending insurance approval, Zac will be transferred there early next week. Dr. Carlile would like it to happen on Tuesday. I was most impressed with Dr. Carlile, and she was everything I hoped she would be and more.

 

Friday 11/6/09

I told Zac tonight that his hard work starts on Monday. I told him how he will be getting an hour (each day) of physical, occupational, and speech therapy. In addition to the 3 hours of therapies, he will be out of bed in a wheelchair for most of the day. I told him that this will be hard work, but I know he will give it his best. I reminded him that there are so many people praying for him and now we will ask them to pray for God to give him the strength needed for his rehab. I have no doubt that he heard me and he was making eye contact with me the entire time.
Tomorrow is my birthday. I told Zac I would love nothing more than a smile from him, or an attempt at some vocalization tomorrow when I go to see him. If this happens, fantastic, if not, fantastic. Looking into my sons beautiful blue eyes will be enough

I got a call today that insurance approved Zac's transfer to Baylor. I was told that Zac will transfer on Monday.

 

Thank you for all that you've done, too. Here's hoping for the best..

Saturday 11/7/09

Zac wasn't quite able to pull off that smile for me today, but he did do some "vocalizing" for me. It doesn't sound the same since his trach is not capped off, but even Julia asked, "is that Zac making that noise?" It did a mom's heart good to look into her son's eyes and for him to really look back into hers

 

Monday 11/9/09

Well guys, Zac had a little bit of a temp yesterday and today his white blood cell count is up, so no move to Baylor today until they make sure nothing is developing. They do not want to "waste" days in rehab if Zac would not be able to participate because he is not feeling well medically. It does seem that when Zac is not well, his neurological status also declines. (less responsive, etc)

 

Monday 11/9/09

Zac will have more blood work done in the morning to see if there are changes in his white blood cell count. A chest xray was clear, so they are not sure why his WBC count is elevated. Baylor does not want to take him and "waste" rehab days if Zac is not well enough to participate in therapy. It does seem that when Zac has health issues, it affects his level of alertness/responsiveness.
Tonight, Zac opened his eyes completely for me and there were no erractic eye movements. His eyes were still and he was staring right at me. I told him hello and that I loved him and he made a short noise back at me. When he did this I said, "I know you love me". Then I promptly started fussing over him, moving his arms and legs, massaging his hands, wiping the ointment off his eyes to reveal long lashes that were not stuck together, etc. I told him that he could tell me he wanted me to stop at any time
There was a young woman at church yesterday talking about how God is in control of everything. She was referring to "even the little things" in life. I had to sit there and smile and think "wouldn't it be great if i were sitting here concerned about only a little thing in my life right now?" Zac's accident is no "little thing" in my life, but i do know that God is in total control of this situation. Please continue in prayer with me that God will continue the good work He has planned for Zac!

 

Tuesday 11/10/09

Bloodwork was done today and Zac's white blood cell count is normal. Baylor requested that a test be done to check for blood clots in Zac's arms and legs. The test revealed no blood clots. So, I was told the plan is to move him tomorrow to Baylor. Part of me was reluctant to even write this because of the roller coaster ride we have taken at times during this, but I know that when the time is right God will allow the move to occur. Thank you all for your prayers. My desire is to see Zac make leaps and bounds of progress while in this special program for traumatic brain injuries. I hope that he and Jon Broom will be there at the same time fighting, and working hard in their rehab. Baylor better get ready!!!

If all goes well, Zac should transfer to Baylor on Wednesday.

 

Wednesday 11/11/09

Zac was transferred from Kindred hospital to BIR in Dallas today. Once he got there, the action began. Respiratory put in a smaller trach, the smallest size they go down to. Zac's oxygen level was good without oxygen, so he was breathing only room air. The respiratory therapist put his finger over Zac's trach (with a glove on) and asked him to vocalize. When Zac's dad and I asked him to try and vocalize, he did. The therapist said that sometimes when a person hears their noise (sounds), they start trying to talk faster. I hope and pray for this for Zac. They started up his feedings as before, but the dietician will come tomorrow and assess Zac's needs. They weighed Zac also and he is now 118.9# A clinitron bed was ordered and should arrive tomorrow. The wound on his tailbone area has just about completely healed. Zac will get a shower tonight and a sleeping medication to help him rest well on his first night in a new place. Then, the therapy begins... Dr. Carlile said they will even have a Dr. assess his vision. It did appear that Zac had some problems following her finger when she moved it out to the sides.
I'm so excited about the potential for progress for Zac at BIR. It is going to be so hard for me having to work and not be there to witness this progress. Let's all pray for God to start His miracle in Zac now. May everyone who comes in contact with Zac be able to see the Lord's hand in all of this

 

Thursday 11/12/09

Well, the nurse in Zac's area said he had a good first day at BIR. A wheelchair was located for him and he was seen for physical, occupational, and speech therapy today. A therapist helped him get a t-shirt and scrub pants on for his therapy sessions. It is hard for me not being able to witness all these things because of full time work. The staff all seem so upbeat and positive that Zac should flourish in this environment. Keep praying for Zac (and Jon) to make leaps and bounds of progress!! Thank you Lord for allowing a facility like BIR to exist in our area

 

Saturday 11/14/09

Well, when I got to BIR to see Zac, I finally got to meet Jon Broom's parents, his son, and Jon himself! For those of you that may not remember, Jon is the other racer that suffered a TBI on 9-5-09. Zac and Jon are in the "pod" room; it's the room that has 4 beds in it. This will be good as we will all be able to give support and encouragement to one another.
I found out from nursing that Zac threw up on Thurs. when they were getting him into his wheelchair. On Friday he spiked a temp of 101.4. There is a possibility that he aspirated when he threw up (some of the vomitus went into his lungs) and this might have caused the fever. They said Zac is "growing something in his sputum" He is also on an antibiotic for a urinary tract infection. As I have said in the past, "here we go again; one step forward and three steps back." He is on 3 antibiotics for the stuff that is growing in his sputum and then another one for the UTI. The respiratory therapist today said that Zac's lungs sounded clear and he did not feel that Zac aspirated on Thursday. He also said that starting next week, they hope to start capping off his trach in hopes of removing it eventually.
If Zac could just get infection free and stay infection free, it would be so wonderful. So, immediate prayer needs are for Zac's infections to clear completely and for Zac to keep making progress so that he may stay at BIR at least 4 weeks...or more!!

A couple of pictures of Zac:

This is Dr. Carlile with Zac. I'm sure he enjoyed getting outside for reasons other than just being transported from one facility to another!

Zac and Eli, the pet therapy dog at BRI
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Monday 11/16/09

Today was the first care conference for Zac. I was telephoned in since I could not be there in person. Dr. Ladd who works closely with Dr. Carlile said that Zac's vision problems/needs should be addressed this week. Speech therapy is working with Zac on swallowing and "oral motor" skills. They are using cold stimulus to see if this will help Zac in swallowing. Physical therapy said that they had Zac on a modified recumbent cycle and that the machine showed that Zac assisted in propelling for 4 min with his legs. PT and OT will work together to help Zac work on head control, and PT is also planning on getting Zac on a tilt table which will help him to stand upright. I am very excited about this as this will be the first time that Zac will have stood up and put weight through his legs and feet. They will monitor his blood pressure and heart rate while they do this, so he will not be brought up straight all at once, but gradually over time. BIR submits all of this information to Zac's ins. company to see if they will approve him to stay longer. With the information provided, ins. should approve another week for Zac. Please continue to pray that Zac's infections would clear, and that God will continue to heal Zac so that he may show more progress Thank you Lord for the progress that has been made so far in less than a week!

 

Tuesday 11/17/09

Heard through friends that Zac was able to establish communication with the speech therapist today through eye signals! He could answer "yes" or "no" with eye movements. This is so great!! Keep the prayers coming all you prayer warriors...

More from Jenny, Wednesday 11/18/09

I want friends and family to know that they are more than welcome to visit Zac at BIR. His therapy usually does not occur over the weekend, but if he does get a treatment it is usually bedside. He is usually done with therapy by 4:00 on week days. Anyone that wants to visit when i am there, contact me here on FB or call my cell # if you have it. Thank you all for words of encouragement and prayers!!

 

Thursday 11/19/09

Zac is out of his coma. He began emerging from his coma at Kindred. While at BIR, his level of consciousness has continued to improve. On Tuesday, the neuropsychologist stated that Zac is at Rancho Los Amigos Level IV-V. www.rancho.org/patient_education/bi_cognition.pdf
If you look at this scale, it does NOT mean that Zac is doing everything at both levels; it means that Zac may be doing at least one thing at both levels. He is not sitting up without support of a wheelchair that has a head support, he is not able to talk yet, he is not acting agitated (answer to prayer) and he is not attempting to pull at any of his tubes because he is not actively moving his arms or legs...yet.
Zac has made progress in one way or another almost every day since he has been at BIR in spite of his infections. Zac is a true fighter!! Please continue to pray for him as he faces the toughest race he has ever competed in before; we are ALL rooting for you son XOXO

I also need to clarify that it is NOT like in the movies. He did not suddenly open up his eyes and start talking and asking "what happened" and "where am I"? It is a slow process that continues to evolve...

 

Friday 11/20/09

Got a call this morning from Baylor that Zac had an episode of apnea ( not breathing) again while he was awake and they had an MRI/CT scan done yesterday. The scan showed that there is a specific area of Zac's brain that has swelling. This swelling is causing pressure on his brain stem. The neurosurgeon believes this may be causing Zac's apnea. He wants to go into the area of the brain and insert a tube that will be connected to the tubing of Zac's shunt that is already in place. This should allow the fluid to drain into the shunt that is already working.
As you can imagine, there are risks with this surgery. I asked him if he felt this surgery was necessary and he said yes. There is a slight chance that this surgery could improve Zac's condition and there is a chance that it could make it worse. Dr. Carlile recommended this Dr. and I have faith in her. Like everything else that we have faced in this journey, I am giving this to the Lord. I have a good feeling about this Dr. after meeting him and listening to him, and Dr. Carlile recommends him. So far, the Lord has lead and directed us toward facilities and Dr's that seem to have been just what Zac needed at the given time. I am putting my faith in God that He is continuing to answer our prayers for guidance and direction in this time. The plan is to move Zac to "big Baylor" on Monday and then surgery will be on Tuesday.
I know sometimes I may put too much of my heart into the notes, but it is almost therapy for me at times. Today, getting to spend time with Zac and observe some of his therapy sessions, it was almost surreal to watch him answer "yes" "no" questions with eye movements. It was not consistent, he became tired at times and his eyes would start to close. BUT, there were those responses that were correct and appropriate and it was like , "Yes! Zac is definitely there!" He knew that he was in Baylor, in Dallas, that it was November, and that it was Friday. He could recognize himself in a picture, Julia and I in a picture, and his friend Derek in a picture. (Derek, it was the Seaworld trip we took and a picture of you and him resting in between races at TWS) I am concerned, as any parent would be, of their child having surgery. Some of the risks are scarey, and their outcomes are not good. My heart is burdened for my son, and so I am asking for special prayer for the upcoming surgery. All of you have been so faithful to pray for Zac and I know that you will be faithful once again. God Bless all of you!!

 

Saturday 11/21/09

Zac established communication using eye movements for "yes" and "no". This is the one step forward. Zac had a period of apnea on Thursday with a CT scan to follow. There is swelling in an area of Zac's brain that is putting pressure on his brain stem; Zac needs surgery to correct this condition. Today Zac threw up and is having loose stools. The respiratory therapist stated that when Zac threw up, he was concerned with the appearance/color of it. He said it appeared the same color of his stool. I asked what color it was and he replied "dark". They tested Zacs emesis (vomit) and his stool (poop) and they both tested positive for blood. So, Zac is bleeding somewhere. Zac's oxygen saturation level dropped on room air, so they put the neck collar/humidifier over his trach with some oxygen as well. Zac's bloodwork also showed that his hemoglobin is low which shows that Zac is losing blood somewhere. There are the three steps backward.
I don't know what the plan is about this. A Dr. is being called on Zac's case and will come by in the morning. When i get to the hospital, I will find out what she said. I do not know if this new development will affect the plans for surgery. I know his blood loss was not significant enough by the time I left today that he required getting blood.
I do know that today was a hard day. Zac did not have the best day today, and neither did Jon Broom. Lori and I talked about what a rollercoaster ride this is and how you get on a "high" from something good happening, and then some set back occurs. This was a hard day for us mothers. Please continue in prayer for Zac and be sure and add Jon and his parents to your prayers tonight. Thanks in advance

 

Sunday 11/22/09

Went to visit Zac today with my sister and a mutual friend. It was easy to see that Zac wasn't his usual self; he did not keep his eyes open fully for the length of time that he usually does. Zac had thrown up again today, so his feedings remain on hold. He developed bleeding around his PICC site (type of I.V. that can stay in longer) so they tested his blood and found it was too thin, so his blood thinner was held today. The nurse had said that they had not had any diarrhea today, but as we were leaving they were no longer able to say that. Zac's weight when he arrived at BIR was 118.9, today he weighed 121.5. That is the first time he has been weighed and gained weight! I want to end with a positive, and thank God for Zac's weight gain. Tomorrow should bring action, maybe tests, and hopefully answers. Zac's source of bleeding has still not been determined, and neither has his inability to keep feedings( or water and banana flakes) through his G tube down. I will post as soon as I know more. Thank you all for your prayers for Zac!!