Marty is headed to in house rehab today! They removed the trach yesterday and he is eating real food now. They have estimated he should be able to leave rehab and go home in about 14 days. What a wonderful Christmas present for our family!!
Marty still has a long way to go to get back to his life, but he is well on his way. He will still have to do out-patient rehab for an unknown period of time and job and school are not even on the horizon at this time, but his strong will and great attitude have helped him get far beyond what anyone expected of him.
Please keep this exceptional young man in your thoughts and prayers on his road to recovery. Neither Marty, nor his family, could have made it through this most difficult time without all of you.
We especially want to thank Marty's brother Matthew. Matt, what a wonderful young man you have grown up to be. Marty could not have a better brother.
Happy Holidays to everyone from the Smith and Remington families.
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Wednesday, December 2
Marty had surgery yesterday to replace the piece of skull they removed 7 weeks ago. This is a tremendous sign of recovery, as it means all the swelling has gone down and they don't have to worry about the pressure in his skull anymore.
He was awake shortly after the surgery, talking to the doctors and responding correctly to voice commands. If all goes well, they will remove the trach 3-4 days after the surgery. He will be skipping his physical therapy sessions for 3-4 days also, in order to recover from the surgery.
We are so close to the in-house rehab. Once he gets there, the next step is home. This will probably take 3-4 weeks so we are hopeful he will be able to come home by Christmas.
All of Marty's extended family wants to thank everyone for all their prayers and concern. You all were a huge part of Marty's recovery.
The Smiths
He was awake shortly after the surgery, talking to the doctors and responding correctly to voice commands. If all goes well, they will remove the trach 3-4 days after the surgery. He will be skipping his physical therapy sessions for 3-4 days also, in order to recover from the surgery.
We are so close to the in-house rehab. Once he gets there, the next step is home. This will probably take 3-4 weeks so we are hopeful he will be able to come home by Christmas.
All of Marty's extended family wants to thank everyone for all their prayers and concern. You all were a huge part of Marty's recovery.
The Smiths
Friday, November 27, 2009
Thanksgiving Day, 2009
What a wonderful Thanksgiving. Today, we want to express what we are thankful for. First and foremost, Marty's health and amazing recovery. Secondly, we are thankful for our families, for we would be nowhere without their love and support. We are also thankful for the community of Mannford and all our friends.
Marty is doing amazingly well. His physical therapists tell us every day how much improvement he is making. He talks all the time now and his memory is mostly intact. His reasoning skills are very sharp and he rarely gets confused or forgetful. For anyone not familiar with a brain injury, this is remarkable, especially in the 8 week time frame.
He is very quickly moving towards his in-house rehab program, and everyone is hopeful he will be home by Christmas.
Thanks to everyone for the continuing prayers, support and love.
The Smiths
Marty is doing amazingly well. His physical therapists tell us every day how much improvement he is making. He talks all the time now and his memory is mostly intact. His reasoning skills are very sharp and he rarely gets confused or forgetful. For anyone not familiar with a brain injury, this is remarkable, especially in the 8 week time frame.
He is very quickly moving towards his in-house rehab program, and everyone is hopeful he will be home by Christmas.
Thanks to everyone for the continuing prayers, support and love.
The Smiths
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Thursday, November 19th
Marty was out of bed today and in a wheelchair for over 1 1/2 hours. He is doing fantastic with his physical therapy. He is getting stronger every day and his right side is responding well to the exercise.
All of the Smith, Smith and Remington families want to express their thanks during this Thanksgiving season. Without family and friends like all of you, this would have been such a harder ordeal than it has been. We will have so much to be thankful this year and want to send out our good wishes to everyone.
Brian, Rhonda, Matt, Michael and Marty Smith
All of the Smith, Smith and Remington families want to express their thanks during this Thanksgiving season. Without family and friends like all of you, this would have been such a harder ordeal than it has been. We will have so much to be thankful this year and want to send out our good wishes to everyone.
Brian, Rhonda, Matt, Michael and Marty Smith
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Wednesday, November 18th
Marty is making huge steps towards real physical rehab. They have been coming by twice a day now. They have gotten him to stand by himself, with no one holding his arms for balance, for 4 minutes before he gets tired out. He also took a step by himself.
They took off the vent and took out the trach. They have replaced it with a much smaller trach that can be capped off so he can speak. The speech therapist got him to say “Hi” yesterday. It is just a whisper at this point, but that is a huge step.
His motor coordination is improving rapidly. He was able to write his name on a sheet of paper. It is squiggly, but it says “Marty”. He is now able to raise his right arm to his shoulder height. He still can’t grasp anything in his right hand, but this is great progress.
The therapist has asked that they bring Marty’s shoes up so they can get them on his feet for therapy. They want to get him used to wearing shoes again in preparation for getting him walking.
The neurologist and therapists are going to begin meeting every Weds. afternoon to assess his condition so they can determine when he will be able to go to the in house rehab.
They are going to put the bone flap back in place the week after Thanksgiving.
Please keep saying prayers for Marty. He is healing rapidly, but still has a long way to go.
Also, PLEASE do not come visit Marty if you are ill. It would be devastating to his recovery for him to catch anything at this point. If you are ill, please either call the family or leave a post on this site. Rhonda and Brian are passing along any messages or well wishes to Marty.
Thanks to everyone for everything!
The Smiths
They took off the vent and took out the trach. They have replaced it with a much smaller trach that can be capped off so he can speak. The speech therapist got him to say “Hi” yesterday. It is just a whisper at this point, but that is a huge step.
His motor coordination is improving rapidly. He was able to write his name on a sheet of paper. It is squiggly, but it says “Marty”. He is now able to raise his right arm to his shoulder height. He still can’t grasp anything in his right hand, but this is great progress.
The therapist has asked that they bring Marty’s shoes up so they can get them on his feet for therapy. They want to get him used to wearing shoes again in preparation for getting him walking.
The neurologist and therapists are going to begin meeting every Weds. afternoon to assess his condition so they can determine when he will be able to go to the in house rehab.
They are going to put the bone flap back in place the week after Thanksgiving.
Please keep saying prayers for Marty. He is healing rapidly, but still has a long way to go.
Also, PLEASE do not come visit Marty if you are ill. It would be devastating to his recovery for him to catch anything at this point. If you are ill, please either call the family or leave a post on this site. Rhonda and Brian are passing along any messages or well wishes to Marty.
Thanks to everyone for everything!
The Smiths
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Thursday, November 12th
Marty is doing so much better today. They are really getting in to the physical therapy now and getting him upright and excercising every day more and more. He is starting to get his strength back into his arms and legs again. His motion on his right side is improving daily.
They have moved him to a private room now which is very small, so please be aware of this when you visit. Now that Marty is more aware of his surroundings, he will enjoy the visits more, but still gets tired out very easily.
Please keep Marty and his family in your thoughts and prayers.
Thank you!
They have moved him to a private room now which is very small, so please be aware of this when you visit. Now that Marty is more aware of his surroundings, he will enjoy the visits more, but still gets tired out very easily.
Please keep Marty and his family in your thoughts and prayers.
Thank you!
Thursday, November 12
Marty is now settled into his new room and ready to get really started on his healing process. He will be in this room until he goes into the rehab center.
They are hopeful that he will have vision in his right eye, but won't be able to be sure until he gets the trach out and can talk to them. Keep saying prayers for this last miracle.
So far, Marty has responded correctly to every command given by the doctors and nurses. His spirit is good and he is more aware of his surroundings every day.
There is no doubt that the prayers and love that have been given by all of you have helped heal Marty and his family will be eternally grateful to have such wonderful family and friends.
The Smiths
They are hopeful that he will have vision in his right eye, but won't be able to be sure until he gets the trach out and can talk to them. Keep saying prayers for this last miracle.
So far, Marty has responded correctly to every command given by the doctors and nurses. His spirit is good and he is more aware of his surroundings every day.
There is no doubt that the prayers and love that have been given by all of you have helped heal Marty and his family will be eternally grateful to have such wonderful family and friends.
The Smiths
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