April 3, 2010

Remember I said in the beginning that a friend told us there would be peaks and valleys. Maybe some might only want to hear about the peaks, but others want to hear how it really is. I've decided since this blog helps me as much as it does you, then you will have to hear it all.

Last night was not a good night. Dave was sick through most of the night. He is in a great deal of pain and today the area they call the donor site really began to hurt. This is the area on his left thigh that the doctor took the skin for his arm. I really didn't think his leg could hurt worse than it did with 15 fractures but I was wrong. It has been very difficult for him emotionally and physically. We have decided we have to take it day by day, and minute by minute. I have to realize there will be days he will want to give up, but I know he will always bounce back. He did not get his hockey name "Slammer" for giving up, and just because he is a little older he won't give up now!

I'm not sure if I mentioned in an earlier blog about the bone stimulator that we received, or as Dave calls it the bone escalator. It works similar to an ultrasound and you strap it to area where fracture is and leave on for twenty minutes. The doctor said with as many fractures as Dave has we can pretty much put it any where. However, we really only have a small area on his femur that we can use it on right now because of the skin graft, but we did start today. It is a bit strange that this can actually make the bone heal faster, but we have a friend that was in a severe car accident and her arm is living proof it works. Her arm went for months and wasn't healing and after using this everything started to heal. I can't wait until we can use it on the rest of his leg and arm.