Brad is still in the surgical ICU at KU Med. They attempted to take the ventilator out and it didn't go well, so they put it back in. They have determined that he has more serious head injuries than they had initially thought and may have had a few small strokes at some point, which explains the agitation when they try to decrease his sedation. For now, he is still in a drug-induced coma and they are doing a tracheostomy today or tomorrow to get the ventilator out of his mouth (to prevent damage to his vocal cords). They have extended the prognosis for rehab and don't expect him to be back to his "normal self" for at least 6 months to a year (if ever). He will probably be in Kansas City for another couple weeks before we can think about getting him moved back to Iowa, but he is still unresponsive and the doctor has told us that he should have as little stimulation as possible, so we can't touch him or talk to him, which is really hard.
I spent some time with Jason and Amber at the hospital, which was great. Thanks to the Lithium boys for getting me out of the hospital for a few hours!! Thanks to everyone for their prayers and well-wishes - it looks like Brad will need them for a few more months as he works his way through recovery.
Stephanie
