Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Wes August 12, 2012
Playing around before church. Lookin' good. I like Benson's little hop at around the 6 second mark.
Wes August 8, 2012 3rd time riding a horse
This is Wesley's third time riding a horse since his accident. He is getting better!
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
August 9, 2012 Update
I apologize for the delay in updating. My internet has not been great lately. Here is an update from my dad:
This last Month has been so busy that we have not taken the time to
update. Over the last month we have experienced many things. We were able
to go home for 10 days which was a very rare treat. We spent some time at
home and our cabin in Idaho. We have some dear friends that poured
concrete at the cabin to make it easily accessible for Wes. We really
appreciated that.
On our trip back home we stopped by and saw Wesley’s surgeon Dr. Speth. He
was very excited to see Wesley and could not believe his progress. He was
amazed that Wes was in a manual wheelchair and that it had no arms. He was
surprised at his arm and core movements. It was a very nice reunion and a
boost to Wesley’s enthusiasm. He has already overcome many things that the
Doctors said we would not have.
While at home Wes was able to visit with family and play some games during
the day. It was a little bit of an adjustment being at the cabin since in
the past Wes has spent so much time outside and riding ATV’s and horses.
He spent some time outside watching our grandchildren ride horses and play
in the grass. He is very adamant that one day he will do those things
again and we believe him.
Wes continues to work out 5 – 6 hours a day. That will soon change and he
will be working out 8 hours a day. He is getting stronger and is able to
do more and build up more endurance. He will have to fight for every
single thing that comes back. There are no freebees.
Over the last week the therapists have discovered a very slight movement
in his thumb, pointer finger and little finger. We are working hard to
develop those muscles and movements in both hands. We still do horseback
riding frequently which is very difficult but very rewarding with the core
muscles. Wes does lots of weight lifting and swimming and we will be
increasing this as well over the next couple of months. He also scoots
himself a lot on the floor. We take him out of his wheelchair and set him
on the floor. He then slides himself forward anywhere from 8 – 30 yards
and then pushes himself backwards to his starting point. He pushes down on
his hands, which lifts his rear end and then he pushes himself forward or
backwards, he is doing really well moving around on the floor. So much
so that during therapy the other day Matt (one of his therapists) put a
belt around his waist and attached a bungee cord to him and made him slide
with resistance. I do not think the resistance bothered Wes but the
thought that the cord might break and smack him in the face was a constant
worry.
While we were at home we were able to slide him in a regular vehicle and
let him ride in the back seat. I think he felt more comfortable in his
wheelchair but it was very nice to see him out of the chair and in the
back seat of a vehicle.
We continue to live in American Fork with my sister and her husband and
this continues to be a great blessing for us. Each day we drive over 100
miles driving into the heart of the beast which is the University of Utah
Medical Center. It is a wonderful place but the traffic every day is a
huge battle. We often spend over two hours each day driving to therapy but
it is well worth it. We have grown to love all the people who are working
with Wes and are very appreciate of their efforts and influences. Wes
continues to be very positive and determined. We see him fight every day
to get better.
Starting in September we will be following a little different game plan.
Since we are spending so much time driving, which could be used for
exercise we decided to try a new approach. We have bought a little bit of
equipment and have hired someone to come and live with us and work Wes out
for 8 hours a day 5 ½ days a week. Her name is Tawnie and she is from
Ogden, Utah and is 20 years old. She is a massage therapist and has a very
good understand of muscles and how they tie in to each other. She will be
training at Neuroworxs and University of Utah Medical center for the next
month. We will then come back to Utah once a month for a week where U of U
and Neuroworxs will work with Tawnie and Wes to come up with a new
exercise routine for the next 3 – 4 weeks. They will also instruct Tawnie
and Karen and I to better work with Wes. This means that we get to live in
our home and start in a small way to get a little balance and normalcy
back into our lives while improving Wes’s ability to get stronger and
better.
While we were Montana a few weeks ago we bought 3 baby dwarf goats that
were 6 weeks old. We had so much fun watching our grandkids play with
those goats and in the beginning the goats did not know much about people.
Now the goats follow the kids everywhere they go. They are like three
little puppies following their mother around. Much fun is being had by all
who watch the kids and the goats.
We are headed back to Montana for this weekend to visit all of our
grandkids who are at our house while we are in Utah doing therapy. We will
be back for therapy early Monday morning and ready to hit it hard.
We will post more pictures and video soon. Please remember to pray for Wes
and put his name in the temple. Great things happen every week. We
appreciate all that everyone does.
Here are a few pictures:
A note from me, Ry:
I was able to visit with Wes for about day when I headed to Wyoming in July for my little bro-in-law’s mission farewell. Wes looked great and we had a good time. It’s fun for me to see him every couple of months because I see big changes in him . He is a rock star.
Here are some of my pics:
Wes and Emy
I was planning on driving Wesley down the hill at the cabin but Britt started pushing him down and it was rather hilarious and very scary!
Dad and Wes
Just chillin’
Monday, August 6, 2012
Friday, July 13, 2012
Yeehaw!
Well, well, well, it is time for an update. My dad sent this to me a few days ago but our internet here, in Guatemala, can be a little touchy.
July 9, 2012
Wes’s progress continues to go well. We had a nice quiet weekend and, even though Wes did not have therapy Saturday and Sunday, we still worked him hard. We have him sit on the tile floor and push himself so he slides on the floor. We also went to see The Avengers (Ry is jealous!) which he really enjoyed and Karen and I enjoyed it as well. There sure was a lot of shoot-em-up stuff going on. I did not find myself trying to fall asleep.
Today was another very busy therapy day and we added a new twist to the day. Wes has started a program where he is riding horses now. Today was his first day horseback riding. First, he was evaluated by an occupational therapist who was very pleasantly surprised at Wes’s abilities. She sat him on a barrel and he was able to balance very well. Then she said, “Ok, we are ready, let’s get him on a horse.” It was only a moment or two and he was sitting on the back of a horse. He said this was a little scary but he did well and was on the horse for about 30 minutes. Side note from Ry: I bet it was scary… imagine riding a horse and not being able to hold yourself up with your legs! I’m gonna try it… I’ll let you know how it goes. We occasionally took breaks so he could lean back a little. It is surprising how many muscles we use to balance ourselves, especially on the back of a horse that is moving and stopping. This form of therapy will also help strengthen his core muscles so that this is something he can continue to do. We hope to have him riding 3 to 4 times a week. The more he rides, the stronger he will get.
Balancing on the barrel like a pro!
Eeeeaaaasy there horse.
Wesley, The Cowboy
We continue to feel so blessed at the opportunity Wes has to be here at Neuroworxs and the University of Utah Medical Center. We feel he is getting the very best care possible and his therapy lasts several hours a day. Wes realy enjoys board games and has been playing chess with Uncle Cliff at least once or twice a day. Wes is usually the winner, and yesterday I decided I should play Wes a game of chess ad humble the boy. I have not played for a while and thought I should easily be able to beat my son. We had not played long before he took my queen and I was in trouble. I know I need to play him again soon but I am wondering if it is I that will end up being humbled.
We are grateful for all the friends that pass through Utah and take the time to come and see us. They all remark about how well Wes is doing and they cannot believe the changes that are occurring. His manual wheelchair is a tremendous blessing and he seems to get stronger every day because of the work he has to do to get himself around. We continue to see miracles happening every day and we are so grateful for the prayers offered for his recovery. Thank You All! We have an exciting couple of weeks coming and look forward to telling you of our adventures.
Ok, I need some help. I’ve been trying to get Wes and my dad to make a video of Wesley’s skills on the manual wheelchair. He can do a wheelie…. from what I’ve heard. Comment on the blog that you’d like to see it and maybe they will be more motivated than just me asking for it. It’s going to be AWESOME.
By the way, enjoy the horse videos below!
Adios!
Thursday, July 5, 2012
A few pictures and an update
I have been anxiously waiting to see a picture of Wes in his manual wheelchair… and for another update. My dad recently e-mailed me both. I am sure you are anxious to see the pictures and read about Wesley’s progress so I won’t waste anytime writing about myself…
July 1, 2012
It is hard to believe that it is July already. It is almost 5 months since Wesley’s accident and it is interesting to reflect on all that has happened in five months and how much we have learned. It is amazing to me that after a spinal cord injury how quickly your body loses most of its conditioning and strength in just a matter of a few weeks because you lose control over your muscles. During therapy, they very slowly start to come back. It would be nice if it came back as quickly as you lost it. Wesley has an amazing spirit and despite all that happens he continues to remain happy and cheerful. He is so patient and easy going.
Last Sunday Wes was asked to help bless the sacrament by the priests’ quorum in my sister’s ward. We were a bit apprehensive because that meant Wes would have to hand the bread trays and water trays to the Aaronic Priesthood holders. He had a little trouble breaking the bread but had no trouble handling the trays. He also did an excellent job as voice for the bread. Karen and I were both very grateful and emotional as we watched him help with the sacrament, something that he has always loved to do. At the time we were not aware of how many people in the congregation were watching Wes, and that this process added another dimension of spirituality during the sacrament. We had several people come up and tell us what a special sacrament it was. Karen and I thought we were the only ones to notice what was going on.
It continues to be a great blessing to stay with my sister and her husband in American Fork, UT. They have made us feel so welcome and they are so willing to help. Wes really enjoys playing the board games and especially chess with his uncle, Cliff. It is fun to see them challenge each other.
Our days continue to be filled with therapy and hard work. Wes never complains about the hard work and all the driving we do, which often gets us out of the house early. Usually our evenings are filled with extra physical activities and when it comes time to go to bed we are all usually exhausted. It is sometimes easy to overlook the great process that Wes is making because we are so close to it. This afternoon I pulled out some hand/finger exercises that Wes worked on heavily a couple of months ago and he struggled with them back then. This afternoon he did the exercises with each hand and it was not even a challenge. It was a nice reminder about how much progress he is really making.
A young man from the ward came over and played XBOX360 with Wes last week and they had a lot of fun. Wes has figured out ways to play the game and make it work. This last week our friend, Lance Sieler, from home had a some work to do in Salt Lake and he came over and we had a couple of really nice visits.
We gave Wes a blessing this afternoon and we really appreciate everyone who fasted and prayed for Wes. Sometimes these seem like little things but they are actually helping miracles continue to occur to help Wes. We love you all and appreciate those prayers.
What a stud!
While Wes is waiting for his new wheelchair to come he is in a manual chair which means it is powered by him. Every day he gets a little stronger because of it. For those of you who do not know, Wes was first given a power chair, which almost from day one we had problems with. We allowed the company to work on the chair twice and then demanded that they send a new chair. Finally, the new chair arrived and the next day we started having problems with it. When they told us we would have to wait four days for them to come and fix it, I told them to take their chair back because we did not want to do business with a company that had such a poor service record. For a while, Wes was without a chair. We have ordered a manual chair with wheel assist which will make things much better. For now, it is powered only by him. His new chair will come in about five weeks. With a manual chair Wes will not be held hostage by a power chair that may have problems from time to time.
Wes swims for about an hour at least 2 times a week. There is a video I posted yesterday that shows him in action.
He has to use this lift to get into the pool.
I am so proud of my little brother.
This video was taken on February 13th, about a week after the accident. It’s amazing to see how far he has come.
This is 9 days after the previous video. I think it’s pretty amazing. Check out the videos below, I posted them yesterday, to see how is he doing now.
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
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