Can I get a Woo-Hoo!!

It's been one month since the accident and YongAe is doing SO much better! We must have turned a corner on Sunday because she started making progress like crazy. Today was huge...she WALKED!!!! Using a walker she went ~30 feet four different times! In addition to that, she was able to sit up, stand up, and lie down without me assisting her! I still need to stand by her due to weakness and occasional dizziness, but oh what progress! And she was able to sit up just over four hours today! YongAe is ecstatic. To top it all off - she got to shower today for the first time in a month! She feels like a new woman :) I am so thankful for the progress she is making and just so thrilled for her. Again, thank you so much for your prayers and support!!

p.s The picture is YongAe today after walking and showering :)

Busted Her Out!

Today we moved YongAe from the hospital to her home here in Hunchun. No longer does she have to deal with an IV she doesn't need every day or lie in a hospital that is dirty and has cockroaches. She gets to be home. Now the thing about getting her home - she can't walk, she continues to have significant pain and vertigo, oh yea...and she lives on the SIXTH floor! We were desperate enough to get her out of there (and her 10x more desperate to leave) so we devised a plan. We strapped her onto a stretcher and carried her 6 flights of stairs. It was brutal for YongAe as the stretcher was awful and the ambulance ride anything but smooth but she was determined to make it. It took a while for the pain to settle once we got her to the apartment, but she made it!! And now she is in the comfort of her own home :) I could barely sleep last night as I was going over all of the details of the move and had butterflies this morning. But, the crew that helped me did an amazing job and the teamwork was flawless. What a relief - it's over!!

Here's a recap of the move. We had to get her out of the room (the beds don't fit through the doors), onto a stretcher, strap her into the stretcher (they don't strap patients in), get her into the ambulance, carry her up the stairs...some corners were a little tight. Take note of the huge gap in the middle of the stretcher...not comfy at all. YongAe is a rockstar!!

Yong Ae - 3 weeks

First, I want to thank all of you for the outpouring of support. I've gathered all of your encouraging words and put them together on a piece of paper that I can frequently read. I feel as though those words put strength behind my knees and softness in my hands. Thank you so much for being there when I needed you.

Tomorrow marks 3 weeks since the horrible accident. I saw photos of the car and it sent shivers down my spine. How did they all survive??!! The front half of the car (where the driver and front seat passenger were) is completely smashed. The steering wheel was crushed down to the ground. I don't understand how the two men weren't trapped in with their legs crushed. How did they get out? Neither can remember. I remember looking up into the car as I was lying there with YongAe and seeing no room except where she was lying. It's unbelievable! The way everything happened...I just don't see any explanation other than God.

YongAe is making progress! She still requires assistance to obtain a sitting position on the edge of the bed but she is able to do more and more of the work to get there. Last Sunday, I helped her transfer to a chair for the first time. That day she tolerated 3 minutes in the chair before needing to return to bed due to dizziness and pain. Yesterday, she was able to tolerate 30 minutes in the chair and took little shuffle steps to transfer! It's very exciting! YongAe is, of course, wishing that the recovery was moving faster but she's done well with being patient and listening to her body.

Please continue to pray for her. As you can see, she still has a long road ahead of her. YongAe still struggles with pain in her low back and significant muscle tension in her upper back as well as vertigo when she sits up. I can complete a procedure to address the vertigo but YongAe's pain needs to be lower first. Her spirits have remained high for the most part but she struggles with discouragement from time to time. In addition to all of this, YongAe's daughter (her only child) will be delivering her first child in late November. The original plan was for David and YongAe to fly to the States on November 15th. It is so important to YongAe to be there for her daughter. Please cover her and this entire situation in prayer.

I'd also appreciate your continued prayers. I want my hands to be filled with love and comfort that pours over YongAe every time I come into contact with her. I want my words to be uplifting, encouraging and motivating and my medical judgment to remain clear.

Thanks everyone!!

One Week Post-Accident

It's been one week since the car accident. It's amazing to see how quickly the recovery is going for everyone involved regarding the circumstances. Tina remains at home with her mother and just said today she is able to do more and more on her own and that the pain is slowly getting better. I plan to visit her tomorrow.

David (Yong Ae's husband) and the 3 of us who were at the scene (Lori, myself, and Zaibin) were able get the taxi driver's phone number and visit him at his home. It was such a good visit. He couldn't stop apologizing and saying how badly he felt but we were able to look him in the eye and tell him that we don't hold him responsible. We wanted him to know that we consider him a friend and that we care about him and how he is doing - physically and emotionally. We all talked for awhile and just before we left, David handed him an envelope with some money to assist him since he currently cannot work. He tried so hard to refuse it but eventually David won. He sat there on his knees and cried (so, so, so unusual for a Chinese man). He couldn't believe that we were helping him and caring about him so much when he was "supposed to be the one providing the help." Friendships were definitely formed that night. Ah, it was such a good visit.

Yong Ae has been doing well thus far. The doctors had instructed her to lie flat for 1 month but that is absolutely crazy...for many reasons (bed sores, pneumonia, blood clots). Again, the medical care here is greatly lacking. Nurses rarely come around, 3different doctors have given 3 different diagnoses, no one even checks vital signs let alone anything else important (sensation, reflexes, respiration rate, etc). It's amazing. Anyway...initially, I and various members of our crew here were helping her roll into sidelying and by Thursday she was able to do it on her own. For those of you who are medical - don't worry. I have been full of instruction regarding proper precautions.

Tonight we began the next phase of therapy - sitting up on the edge of the bed. Yong Ae has been wanting to sit up since the day of the accident. :) I knew that pain and dizziness would be present and made sure to go over everything with Yong Ae before the transition. David and I assisted her into sitting but she struggled with significant dizziness and a severe pain in her low back (not part of any of the 3 dianoses) that caused her to need to lie back down almost immediately. Her words were "wow. I'm shocked. I had no idea it would be this hard." Yong Ae is a tough woman. Remember, she endured 8 hours of pain after the accident without pain meds. So please continue to pray for her recovery: quick healing; no further complications; an emotional toughness; no discouragement. She has a long road ahead of her.

Please also pray for me. In regards to the medical aspect, I'm basically flying solo here and I have moments when I doubt my ability. Without a medical team behind me it is easy to second-guess myself. There is not one medical person here whom I trust and can turn to. It's so strange. I've never been in this boat. It would be one thing if it were a minor injury but totally different with it being such a serious circumstance. I'm part confident in my ability and part scared. I think that fear comes from many places - the lack of medical support, not having reliable information to go off of, having emotions from being at the scene, having emotions because she is my friend, feeling like I have sole responsibility of what happens because it is me and me alone who is progressing her. It's a heavy weight. But I know it's NOTHING compared to being one of the ones who was actually in the accident. I'm just saying that I really need prayer right now and through this whole thing.

Once again, I need you guys! Your support has given me strength this past week and I can't thank you enough. Truly. I love you!