Carol's Comeback Tuesday 1/31/12

UPDATE
The best news yet, SHE"S HOME!!! As of about 3pm today Carol has finally returned home and can now begin her journey to a full  recovery. Called Mom in Florida right away to let her know and she was of course thrilled with the news.

I snapped a few pics of her earliest moments on the couch, where she will spend some time now getting settled in. 

The pics and Butch's Caring Bridge post follow below.

At this point I also want to express to everyone, as Butch has already done so well, the appreciation of our entire family to all of you who care so much about Carol and have been in touch.

More later --   brother Tom

Tuesday, January 31, 2012 5:20 AM, CST

Notifications

written by Nocek Family and Friends

WOW coming home

GREAT NEWS CAROL IS COMING HOME TODAY
The team meeting went very well on Monday. Carol has progressed enough to come home. They did tell her that the pain she has been feeling in her back was due to some broken ribs that they couldn't see earlier but in time they will heal and it won't keep her from coming home. I would write more but I still have things to prepare for her return. I will bring her home sometime this afternoon. WE ARE SOOOO EXCITED !!!!!!!!!!

I will write more later and try to get some new pics in for you.

Thank You everybody for your help, your shoulders to cry on and mostly your prayers.
YEAH !!!!!!

     Butch

 PICS FROM TODAY

                          Carol and the wild cat she befriended a couple of years ago on a  walk                           around the block. No one else, maybe Katie, can go near the cat 
                          without fear of attack. Butchie enjoys 'playing' with the cat in his own
                          special 'Butchie' kind of way.

                                          The happy couple is finally home! Yeah!!!!

 

Carol's Comeback Monday 1/30/12

UPDATE
Talked with Carol at 3:15pm today/Monday just prior to a 3:30 PT session. 

At 2:00pm today, as scheduled, the 9-member med team gathered in her room and the overall assessment was, "...yep, she's good to go...release her tomorrow/Tuesday...".

She's thinking she'll be heading out of the hospital and going for home sometime tomorrow afternoon -- will keep all of you posted on all of it -- there is much involved, all good and positive, but much, now and later.

In the meantime, there's no update post to pass along today from their Caring Bridge family site, but here's yesterday's CB post below from daughter Katie and other than that we will be in touch to keep everyone in the loop as things continue.

Thanks as always for your support and prayers,

     brother Tom

Sunday, January 29, 2012 12:23 PM, CST

Notifications

written by Nocek Family and Friends --

Mom had a restful night with about 7 hours of sleep!

Today is a much needed lazy day for mom. I was able to demonstrate that I can give mom her fragmin blood thinner shot to the nurses, which makes it just another step closer to returning home.

We took a stroll (me pushing mom in her wheeled chair) around the building today, which exhausted mom right before her OT time. Oops. While in OT she had another nose bleed cutting her session short. With OT being her only therapy session today, mom's day will be filled with family and friends coming to visit.

Dad came up bringing more cards for mom. Reading the cards and messages on the CB site is still one of her favorite parts of the day. Thank you again for all your support! Seeing mom happy when hearing all the positive messages brings all of our spirits up.

Carol's Comeback Saturday 1/28/12

Ran in to visit Carol this afternoon. She's doing really well and is progressing nicely and has no serious issues hanging overhead as the recuperation process begins. I snapped a few pics so all of you can see her at the moment. Not much more to report, which is just fine with us. Enjoy the pics -- will keep you all posted -- 
       
        Tom  :-)


                                   Her 5th floor room at Froedtert

                                             She's anxious to get home

                                           Three weeks later here she is -- amazing

                                          Omelette for dinner -- daughter Katie on phone 

                                          Carol and daughter Katie at about 6pm tonight

Carol's Comeback Friday nite 1/27/12

Alright -- good things continue -- talked to Carol tonight around 8pm -- daughter Amy and her nice guy/fiance' Nick had just left her room. At this point Carol said she really expects to come home next Tuesday after the Monday assessment by her med team members, about nine of them in all. Take a look at the Caring Bridge updates below from today and that will give you the low-down -- 

Friday, January 27, 2012 7:07 AM, CST

Notifications

written by Nocek Family and Friends

rehab up date

 Rehab is going well for Carol. She usually has it between 10 and 3:30. They have her doing all sorts of things but the big ones are WALKING  steps with the aid of a walker and using stairs with crutches. WOW !!!!  I can't tell you how impressive that is given where she has come from. 

 She's moving around better with less pain, also a great thing that will help the healing process. It's after 6 or 7pm that she is physically and mentally done. She is just exhausted from the day. 

 The trauma doctors took out the staples in her chest a few days ago, the incision is long but looks good. Hopefully the orthopedic Doctors will have the staples in her pelvis out soon too. 

 The TEAM has another meeting on Monday and we hope she will be given a green light to come home next week but we won't know until then. Feel free to give Carol a call or stop by if you wish but please just understand if she is too tired. She is really putting up a terrific fight and it just takes the stuff out of her. If you would like to wait until next week or later that's alright too, she knows you are right there with her and this is a long road. 

 I am getting the house ready for Carol, she really wants to get home. The doctors gave me the list of items needed and fixes to the house to accommodate her. Thanks to Phil and Cheryl our neighbors the list was reduced significantly ( Thank You ) and I've taken care of most of the adjustments. I'll certainly be ready by next week so there will be no delay getting her home.

 

 Another reason Carol wants to get home is she really misses that evil cat of hers and thinks I may not be taking care of it. I just can't imagine . NO not really she misses you guys the most and is excited to see you. I know you would like to see her also and the house will be open to all of you. We are looking forward to it. What a great thing this is to be talking about. 

 We have been given a great gift and we know it. Thinking about what has happened and how everything could have changed in just that terrible instant makes me look at everything differently. I just can't imagine what my life would have been like if this went the other way. 

 Cherish every moment because in the blink of an eye it could all be gone. 

 We look forward to seeing all of you.

      Butch


___________________________________________________________________________


And here's Carol's daughter Amy's post from later today -- 

Friday, January 27, 2012 6:47 PM, CST

Notifications

written by Nocek Family and Friends

Nick and I came up to visit mom today.  When I walked in, to my surprise, she was up and on her way to the bathroom all by herself!  Wahoo!!!  Showers continue to be the highlight of her day.


Mom has graduated to the adult stairs today in preparation for all she will have to climb when she returns home.  The staples in her pelvis are looking closer and closer to being ready to be removed.  All good news :)


Boredom is even beginning to set in (not necessarily a bad thing), she is definitely ready to return home.  Rumor has it Tuesday might be the day





_______________________________________________________________________________

Okie-dokie, there's the happy update ---- stay tuned -- 3 weeks later -- wow --

      brother Tom 

Carol's Comeback Thursday nite 1/26/2012

Started calling Carol around 3pm today/Thursday at her room at Froedtert to check in -- no answer, figured she was in various therapies etc. and she was -- all good, but hard. 

Around 6pm someone finally answered and I said, "Jeremy?"( Carol's son)  and some guy said in a deep voice, "No....Jean-O...", and I said, "Hey Jean-O, my sister Carol was in that room, but not now?".  And Jean-O  said in kind of a deep dark Russian voice, "..no...". And I wished him well and he did too back at me and I punched out to the Switchboard and got to Carol's room across the hall -- not sure why the move happened but it did and all's OK. She's rockin'  the house. 

So when I said, "Hey Sis, when they springin' ya?", Carol said she really thinks next Tuesday will be her release date to home. And things will go from there -- wow --  stay tuned -- 


More later,


    Carol's Brother Tom

Carol's Comeback Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Good things continue -- I've copy/pasted their Caring Bridge post from today, which brings us up to speed -- keep on doing everything that you are all doing and thank you again for caring so much about Carol and her recovery. Things continue to be very positive -- 

Wednesday, January 25, 2012 4:19 PM, CST

written by Nocek Family and Friends

Mom had a good day of therapy on Tuesday. She practiced stepping up and down a full stair height with the assistance of a crutch, a rail and a therapist. Going back down was tricky, but she still managed! Wednesday brought glorious news... Shower day! She was able to wash her hair on her own for the first time since the accident. The focus of therapy remains stairs, and gaining independence.

Shes looking forward to getting home next week!

More news as it occurs --- and I think I may have sent all of you an errant business email yesterday -- having built out the Group on all of you, now when I want to send an email to just one of you in the Group, the entire Group seems to want to join in -- sorry -- I'll figger it out --

         Tom

Carol's Comeback Tuesday January 24, 2012

Called Carol about 1pm today and was lucky to catch her at a good time in between the various therapies that span her days right now. All continues to look good and she might actually be home a week from now or so --- wow -- keep fingers crossed on all of it -- 

Carol's Comeback Monday 1/23/12

UPDATE
The positive news continues. As anticipated today was a day of assessment and looking forward to next steps. Below is the posting from niece Katie today at the Caring Bridge site she is maintaining to provide news to everyone about her Mom -- many of you have seen it already but here it is again for anyone who hasn't-- it provides the main details on Carol's current status -- thanks again, Kate, for doing this -- it's very helpful for everyone.


___________________________________________________________________________________

Meeting with the Team

 Today Carol had a meeting with the team assigned to her. They included Doctors , Nurses, PT., OT., Speech , Psychologist and the Main Doctor ( AWESOME GUY). As I said the team. It was a very good meeting, all talking about the progress she has made and where they want her to be. One by One they spoke and all had good news.

 Bottom line is Carol will be here for one more week providing all continues to go well. This is far short of the "months" they were speaking of just last week. Therapy will continue their routine to ensure she can handle steps and her everyday needs at home. Carol will also work with the speech therapist on her cognitive skills, they may be a little slow from all the trauma but still sharp enough to keep me in line.

 Even though Carol has made huge progress she is still quite weak and has other issues that need to be addressed but nothing that she can't conquer.

 This was another good day of progress and news. I understand I don't have to say this but I can't thank you enough for your support. I read all the comments to Carol and it really lifts her spirits up. She appreciates and loves all of you, We appreciate and love all of you .

Keep praying the road is still long but not as steep 

Thank You  My Family and Friends 

______________________________________________________________________________

Thanks, Kate --  you're doing a very good and sweet job of keeping everyone who loves your Mom informed on it all -- a lot of people appreciate it --

That covers it for now -- looks like Carol is shifting to home-care very soon -- excellent -- thanks again to all who care -- more news later -- 

          Tom

Carol's Comeback Saturday 1/21/12

NOTE: Anyone still needing Carol's hospital address, here it is -- thanks for the many cards so far --
Froedtert Hospital
9200 W. Wisconsin Ave.
5NE Room 9  Carol Nocek 
Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53226

And remember that you can get daughter Katie's whole first person take on the situation as she's maintaining a blog at the Caring Bridge website -- just type 'Carol Nocek' in the Search box -- Katie is really in the trenches through all of this and provides first hand accounts of the various day to day details of Carol's recovery process. Shes' really doing a great job at it, too.

UPDATE
The quick bottom line is all things are really good and progressing better day to day -- details follow the various pics below --
 
                  Here are some of the cards so far -- and this is from earlier in the week                               -- there are many more by now

And here are some pics from earlier this week as well as pics from today/Saturday.

 Mom by Carol's bedside before the recent move into a Physical Therapy room for Carol. This room was the earlier mailing address of 2NT22

        Daughter Amy with Carol last Sunday evening, I think -- could have been Monday

                      Carol and Butch, Troopers both and a beautiful couple and team
                                           
 

                Good friends Stacie and Corey looking at cards with Carol last weekend
 
     

Mom leaning over to say goodbye on Tuesday before she headed for airport mid-day. Her job here was done and it made the most sense to get her back home to Florida and the warmth. It was a long run for her and she was great. We'll see her up here again soon as the cold season passes.

                                            She had to flip sides to get closer

                                                  What a hard moment for any Mother

 And of course Mom flew out on one of the bad days this week -- but got home  just fine -- another Trooper

Of course Mom starts right in on trying to snag First Class again -- didn't work out -- nice baggage guy, though, and wheelchair-to-the-gate guy, too -- hey, at 88 take the perks -- sister Sue made all the arrangements and made sure Mom was well taken care of through the airports with wheelchair escort etc.  That taste of First Class flying on the way out will haunt her forever -- maybe we can do something about that.

                                                          Love my Ma

So from last Tuesday flash forward to today/Saturday afternoon -- here's a few pics from Carol's new Physical Therapy room today as friends and family came and went.


                                 
Carol with St. Mary's College friend Melissa and husband Bob -- they drove up from       Naperville, Illinois to visit Carol and their Milwaukee-based son this afternoon

 

Great neighborhood friends to Butch and Carol, Bud and Chris -- beautiful people and best friends -- they live down the road a few houses towards Mar's Resort -- Bud helped Butch change the flat tire on Katie's car today -- some road debris evidently caught her tire not far from the hospital and she was able to limp in to the parking structure with it -- it was a very cold experience for them by the end of it they said

    Son Jeremy with Carol this afternoon -- you're looking at 220 pounds of strapping Nocek

                                Everyone happy to be chillin' in the room this afternoon

                               Carol with daughters Katie and Amy this afternoon

Butchie is online looking for details on handrail installation for a home staircase that will need it

                   Good friends Ted and Terri Harig stop by again with daughter Emily

Sum Up 

All good -- Carol is coming along at a great pace. Any news and assessment of potential timeline on transitioning out of hospital and going home should come next Monday -- seems like in the next week or two she should be on her way home. Wow -- it's been two weeks to the day today that she was injured. Amazing -- thanks again to all of you for reaching out to her and our family. It means a lot on many levels. 

More later as it happens -- 

         Carol's brother Tom

 

Carol's Comeback Wednesday January 18, 2012

NOTE:  No notes at the moment -- I'll let you know if anything comes up.

UPDATE
With Carol doing so well I didn't run in to Froedtert/Milwaukee today for the first time since things started -- 9 days of back and forth, airport runs, hotel runs etc. and about 900 miles of wheel time through a couple of really nasty Wisconsin snow storms -- God bless my trusty rusty 1997 Blazer -- I love driving it in the hard weather -- it rocks. Mom tried getting me to stay at the hotel last Wednesday night when the snow was flying but I said, "Aw, it's not so bad out....", when I knew just the opposite was true and it was a real Winter adventure driving the 49 miles home that night through some blinding stuff -- yahoo -- made it home safe again and enjoyed the challenge. And put new wipers on today for any future adventures.

As mentioned in yesterday's update, I really enjoyed the past couple of nights in the hotel keeping Mom company. Talked to her today in Florida and she's coming back from all of the extreme energy output called for by nature of the situation. After getting the phone call in Florida no Mother wants to get on the Sunday morning before last, she was in the hospital in Wisconsin by her daughter's Intensive Care bedside 9 hours later -- wow -- 88 and just still so happening -- I love my mom and cherish every day with her.  

I snapped a few pics in the room yesterday including Mom saying goodbye to Carol before leaving for the airport -- I'll post those sometime later. 

Luckily things have turned the good corner and I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that Carol has been blessed with Mom's overall good, strong energy and drive. Plus the fact that for a long time she's been doing all of the work-out stuff all of us plan to get to someday -- that's paying back huge for her right now -- we all know she will rock this -- and following it will be fun (for us).

And more good news, as anticipated, Carol has moved into a Physical Therapy room. Her new address is:

Froedtert Hospital
9200 W. Wisconsin Ave.

5NE Room 9  Carol Nocek 
Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53226

She also has a phone in the room but before I put that number out there I need to be sure it's OK to do that so stay tuned.

So Carol's road back has officially begun
Last I heard she will be in the current PT room for about two weeks, after that not sure. Butchie is able to take time away from work and arranged for a room at Kathy's House, which is within a mile of the hospital and provides lodging in times like these for out of town family members. Butch continues to be an absolutely stand-up husband in this crisis turned road to recovery situation and deserves every salute. Atta boy, Butchie -- great job.

The driver continues to be held in the Walworth County, Wis. jail and had a first Circuit Court appearance via video yesterday for a Bond Hearing. Going into the Hearing we knew the Bond had been set at $3000 which seems low to us, the family, but there are guiding parameters where things begin, and then the Bond can be adjusted in a proceeding such as yesterday's but I haven't heard yet what took place in that Hearing.



We find out it takes 4-6 months for blood work results to come back with regards to the chances of anything illegal being in his system at the time of the wreck -- (and let's be clear on this, this is not an accident, this is a wreck caused by bad human behavior) -- and in the meantime he sits in jail until those results come in unless an attorney can spring him.

But in the meantime, the INS/Immigration authorities are also involved and have placed a hold on him so stay tuned for more on that. The fact that they are involved further complicates his chances of getting out of jail.

So there you go -- the update at the moment -- I'll keep you all up to  date as best I can. Now that we're transitioning into Carol beginning her therapy comeback the daily news might not be as much but I will absolutely keep on doing this blog thingy and will keep all of you in the loop as things proceed -- thanks so much for caring about my sister, she obviously has a very integral connection to so many of you . Now is the time to get them cards on the way to her and do me a favor, when you send a note tell her that you got the contact info etc. from her brother's blog.

I also want to thank God, Jesus, Saint Anthony and Saint Jude -- (Saints Anthony and Jude are the ones my Mom prays to the most for me, her son -- :-)  During the first couple of traumatic days of all of this I am on my knees saying and praying and screaming to God with tears streaming down my face, "How is it that one of your best troops has this happen to her??? If this doesn't go well, pal, you and me are done....".   Well, OK, see you in Church, thank you.

And also let's just see what my beautiful sister makes out of all of this. We know it's going to be something truly special and spectacular and lucky us, we get to be involved


Everyone take care, more later ---- 


         Tom



 

Carol's Comeback Tuesday January 17, 2012

NOTE: Sorry for no updates the past couple of nights -- been staying at the hotel/Holiday Inn Express/North Avenue/Milwaukee with Mom last night and night before prior to her going back to Florida today. She's back home safe and warm down south as of tonight.


News on Carol follows and it's all positive ---

Todays' Update

 Within the past 72 hours Carol has come back to the surface. She is back with us on all levels of communication, albeit with levels of pain that crush and will keep coming for some time -- the pain is managed of course but it is still a huge factor. She has survived a knocking but is rocking for sure. Sounds like she's about to be moved into a re-hab type room at  Froedtert and I expect her to set records on making recovery happen. Something so good is going to come out of this -- she's already thinking about it.


In the meantime Butch has been, and is, an amazing man and father; and kids Amy, Katie and Jeremy are absolutely the best and I am so proud as an Uncle to witness all of what they do for their Mom -- very special -- wow.


And I've also so enjoyed the past couple of nights chillin' with my Mom at the hotel as we get back there around 8pm and she settles in for sleep as I watch some Discovery/History channel things on finding gold in Alaska, pulling big timbers up a slope or from underwater  or catchin' gators or running moonshine or whatever and boy they sure do swear at each other a lot in the meantime --

So around 11 I turn the TV off, Mom's already asleep, and then around 1am she snores a little bit, two nights in a row at precisely 1am,  and kinda wakes me up and I think, half awake in a Holiday Inn Express in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, "Wow -- I love my life...and my Ma...and all the family and all the Laughlins...we'll get through this with everyone's help. And whenever the next thing comes up, we'll get through that one, too.".

Love you all and thanks for loving and praying for and helping my sister Carol -- she's getting better and is going to make it -- thank you, More on it all later --

Tom

bit more

And niece Katie and Carol's close friend Sophie have started another update blog  that provides a lot of the details as Katie is by her Mom's side pretty near 24/7. It's the all-day stuff I don't see as I stop in and spend a few hours -- and it really helps you understand some of the nitty gritty -- great job Katie on all levels -- 

Here's the link from one of the pages that should get you into the site -- not sure -- but explore when you have the time and hopefully it will work out --

 http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/carolnocek/journal/1

Carol's Comeback Saturday January 14, 2012

NOTE: Again with the address line from last night's post providing her mailing address at the hospital-- when the switchboard told me to have it sent to, "..to NT22...." she actually meant, "2NT22", not, "to NT22". Something in today's visit helped me understand that I'd misunderstood her. Otherwise, that's it for NOTES.

TODAY'S UPDATE
Well, at this point last Saturday we were all desperately praying and wondering if Carol was going to make it through all of the emergency everything following the wreck. Sue and I agreed not to call Mom in Florida quite yet because we had no idea on her condition or if she would make it through the night. But she did, and Sue did call Mom next/Sunday morning to break the news after arranging for Mom's friend Bill and our cousin Tracy who lives not far away to be with her at the time.

The news hit Mom hard, of course, but she was on a flight same day that Sue arranged for and I picked her up at the Milwaukee airport around 4 that afternoon. Sue had even managed a First Class seat somehow at a really low price, so now that Mom has traveled that way it's going to be hard for her to sit in back with us commoners. And if she does, you know she'll be telling whoever is sitting next to her the story.

So I can probably sum up today's news with the pic below. Carol is resting, her voice grows stronger, I was hardly in the door when she called to me to come in and held her hand up for me to take. Butch's brother Russell brought the big stuffed toy and she loved it. This picture is toward the end of the afternoon as visitors were filtering out. And as always, sweet daughter Katie is by her side.

Sue flies out tomorrow and both Carol and Sue are telling Mom she should probably head back home, too. This run has obviously been really hard on Mom and with Carol now on the mend it's OK if Mom heads back south. She has plenty of support up here and we'll all help get her through. So we're expecting that to happen probably later this week. Mom would return sometime later once Carol, and the Winter weather, is further down the road.

And I did get a response to my question of where the term, "...out of the woods..." comes from. Here's what I got from cousin Maudie:  "The Word Detective explains that the expression comes from the 18th century, when in both Europe and America, traveling through the woods was dark and very dangerous."  Thanks Maudie -- look forward to seeing you and Marty at the hospital tomorrow morning. 

I think that covers it for now, folks -- thanks again to all of you for support -- more later on it all --  it feels so good to be at this point and moving forward.

    Tom

bit more

The address for cards at the end of the new post puts the street address/9200 W. Wisconsin at the end of the 'to Carol' line above -- just drop it down a line --

Carol's Comeback Friday January 13, 2012

NOTE:  There are no notes tonight other than to say, "You gotta be pretty dang tough to make it up here in the North Woods, and bein' pretty at it in the meantime ain't so bad either."

                     

TODAY'S UPDATE
As expected Carol was moved out of SICU and onto the floor early today. When I arrived early afternoon I was happy to walk in to the scene you see below. Mom said it was hard for Carol earlier in the day but at this point she seemed pretty settled and as comfortable as possible. She's definitely aware and responds to inputs and can voice words for sure, but she's in the transition zone and lies resting and recuperating mainly, but not completely, with eyes closed at the moment.

When I greeted her today right after I snapped this pic I leaned down real close to her and said quietly, " Hey Carol, everything's OK...your brother's her!", she smiled and opened her eyes a bit and in a small voice said, "...good..." and I can't tell you how great it was to have that happen. 


Had a bite with Mom and sister Sue down in the cafeteria then we went back upstairs for some evening time with Carol. Mom seems to be calming a bit as things move along in a positive way but I still have to remind her about it on the walk out as I hold her arm, that things are good -- she's a concerned Mother, God bless 'er. But still, fingers crossed just in case.

No real updates other than the move. A bit of time will tell more, of course, and I'm just really thankful that we're past the point of immediate crisis (Is that redundant? With all you teachers out there somebody help me out...) and are sliding into the next phases of getting better.

Also heard today that cousin Maudie and husband Marty are running up from southwest side of Chicago, our old neighborhood, on Sunday to spend some time -- they might drop off Sue for her return to DC at the Milwaukee airport on their way back south if I heard right -- synergy, love it.

Can't put enough thanks out there to everyone around the country getting in touch and passing along your thoughts and prayers -- it seems to be working and so happy to have that good news to pass along. 

Had a new prayer group join today from Tampa Bay through my Mom's friend Bill McCluskey in Florida. Thank you all so much from the Gulfport United Methodist Church in Tampa Bay, Florida and thanks, Bill. Bill's son Jerry is the Minister at that Church. Send a pic, Jerry --

In the meantime here's a pic of Todd, her Nurse in SICU. As said earlier, what a job these people do. I took a moment today to run up to SICU on 3rd floor and thank him, and also to the nice people at the Family Center on second floor where people and families can hang while they're waiting and waiting for things to happen. They make private spaces of various sizes available for families and groups and they are very sweet and nice people.

And when I said goodbye to Carol tonight I leaned down close again and kissed her on the cheek and said, "Hey Carol, I gotta go, I'll see you tomorrow --- I love you...". And with eyes closed she managed to say in another tiny voice, "...love you too..." -- excellent. 

As others have said, way down the road some good will come of this, something we don't even know about right now.

If anyone wants to send a note to Carol, here's her hospital address at the moment. If she changes rooms for any reason it will still find her:

Froedtert Hospital

to NT22/Carol Nocek9200 W. Wisconsin Ave.
Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53226

Everyone take care, back in touch later on it all--- and thanks again --   :-)

    Tom

Carol's Comeback Thursday January 12, 2012

NOTE:   Noticed I mis-dated yesterday's post -- otherwise heard today that there is also some Carol info posted on the Caring Bridge website -- some pics there too --

Today's Update

Another day in ICU but really expected to be her last one -- if they really need her bed tonight she is considered to be 'bumpable', which is good, but hopefully nothing happens as she gets another night of rest as is with no disturbance. 

I arrived late afternoon and it was the first time I saw her with eyes open and actually communicating in staggered bits and pieces as she struggled to get out some words or short thoughts from her dazed state as she lie in the hospital bed still hooked up to everything. Her brain was obviously driving it all and it was so good to see signs of our Carol re-appearing and coming back -- very cool. Fingers remain crossed.

Within my visit some steps on getting her 'off the grid' happened as they're getting her ready to shift to a room 'on the floor' as mentioned earlier, which ends up being North Tower at Froedtert, 3rd floor, I think.  

Sister Sue arrived from the airport about the same time as me with 'cuz Janet picking her up -- thanks again, Jan. And a shout out to all of our other Laughlin cousins, Maudie, Paul Vince and Danny and their respective mates -- they have all made themselves so totally available for any help and input along the way, thank you guys so much.

So sister Sue joined the mix today and the ongoing dance of helping Carol be comfortable -- helping her move a bit, maybe reaching underneath her arm to get a tube freed up a little bit, shifting her head and body this way or that as she makes noises in a small voice that makes it clear she is in pain, "...owww....." -- hard, and the family people around her are just jumping in and taking care of it and are helping her here in her extreme initial moments of need.  And Nurse Todd is a constant, in and out, maintaining total touch and contact as he tends to others as well. 

What an experience, and so much better to witness now that we know Carol is coming out of ICU and, seemingly/hopefully/apparently, passing from trauma status to repair.

So around 6:45pm, a little bit earlier than the last two nights of taking Mom back to the hotel around 8pm, we/she decided that it was a good idea to get her back to hotel since she'd been at it solid since 9am and she was done and ready to be down for the night.

I love my Ma -- what an amazing person. The past couple of nights I keep telling her as we walk the hallways on the way out, and I have my hand under her arm holding onto her as we walk, "Mom, you've still got your daughter and Sue and I have our sister -- things are getting better, you gotta believe, baby...", and she tries but as a Mom she is just so concerned and we all understand that. 

Sue, nephew Jeremy and I slid down to the first floor cafeteria for some vittles in the midst of it all and it was good. Daughters Katie and Amy are on a brief so-deserved break and what a heartbreaking joy to watch Butch direct this whole dance as he takes care of his wife and literally helps save her life and keeps all the plates spinning in the meantime (remember Ed Sullivan, the Spinning Plate guy?)   Butch is an amazing man and I love him dearly as a brother-in-law. Good job, Butchie. Thanks for taking care of my sister. 


There you go for now -- more later as it happens -- thanks for all of your combined good energy, thoughts and prayers -- it's helping -- thank you -- more later on it all --  


      Tom




 

Carol's Comeback Wednesday Day 5 January 12, 2012

NOTE  As mentioned in tonight's earlier post, here is today's/Wednesday's news after getting the latent Tuesday update to you all a bit earlier. And your comments are getting through just fine just to let you know -- thank you -- glad to know so many appreciate this blog -- seems like a great way to keep people informed and I'm glad it's working. And from yesterday's 10 Followers, now 30-some -- rockin' -- let's pump it up -- anyone have a St. Mary's connection to let any potential old college friends of Carol's  in on the news? Might be a good thing --survival stories from trauma are always appreciated -- I'll try to get to it, any help appreciated.

Today's Update
Let me say at the top that the overall news today is really good. Carol's pelvis and left hip socket repair surgery went really well today and she is now officially on the mend and 'out of the woods' -- anyone know where that expression comes from? To be able to say that is huge news since we have so far been concerned with her straight survival in the first place, and now we are shifting gears into the 'follow-up from surgery' mode and it feels so good. Thank all of you for helping us to get this far with all of your love, prayers and support.

If things go as planned through the night tonight on getting her settled and transitioned after today's 5-hour surgery she may actually be moved out of SICU and 'onto the floor', as they say, tomorrow -- will let you know -- 


And tomorrow cousin Janet picks up sister Sue from DC at Milwaukee airport mid-day. Thanks again, Janet. Sue will bring much needed support from another family member as we adjust and react to all that this is. 

In the meantime the quick sum-up is Carol has gone through 4 surgeries in the past 5 days as a result of getting smashed into in her car on the way home from a normal run into town last Saturday morning. Still hard to believe and process, but we're in the seat as a family and driving out of it as best we can.

And again, the medical professionals, and especially her Nurse Todd, at Froedtert in Milwaukee are simply amazing to witness as they do what they do -- wow -- heart and soul stuff from them.


At this point while we're in the many waiting rooms passing the time waiting for clearance to go be with Carol after various things take place the energy is now thankfully cheerful. Main family members Butchie and kids are really putting out extreme effort and that's so hard and taxing on them. But watching Butchie, Jeremy, Katie and Amy with her guy Nick interact and heckle each other now that the heaviest weight of wondering if Carol will stay with us seems to be gone from the equation is just warming and good -- they're a bunch of kooks in the greatest way. 

In  the meantime myself, Mom, Carol's lifelong friend Diane and another good friend Sophie back them up here in the early hours of hospital. There is actually a lot of joy going on in the midst of all of this as everyone hangs together waiting and waiting and interacts with each other as we sit there and sit there and sit there. I know many of you can tell your own stories and know, and can picture, what I'm talking about.


I think that sums everything up for the night. We are joyous that Carol is with us and we hurt so bad for her pain, but she will get through this and that is the best news of all. 

Thanks again to all of you for loving my sister so much -- she is one special person. More later on it all ---- and I'm already thinking we need to think ahead to some kind of next Summer Carol party -- keep it in mind -- 


More peace and love,


  Tom

Carol's Comeback Tuesday Day 4 1/10/12

NOTE: Thanks to everyone who confirmed that the blog seems to be working. There are now 10 following and more requests today to be added to the list, making about 50 overall. I assume as a Follower that you are automatically delivered the next posting but I'm not sure. In the meantime my workaround of just emailing a link to you all as a Group is quick and simple and is evidently working pretty well.

So now, the UPDATE


I'm so happy to report that the positive path continues on many levels. But along with that is also the realization and acknowledgement of the enormous amount of pain Carol is in here at the beginning of her road to recovery. But I suppose we aren't really even at that point yet; realistically we're seemingly/hopefully at the end of the save/survival mode -- glad to say positive steps forward continue. And in the meantime yep, she's in some great pain and it's hard to witness, especially for my Mom.

Today was another day for the family and a couple of her closest friends of being at her bedside while the SICU(Surgical Intensive Care Unit) team, and mainly her Nurse, a great guy named Todd who is fantastic at what he does, handled her pain management. Cousin Janet also stopped in -- she and husband Mark Hogan and family live nearby. Janet offered to pick up sister Sue at Milwaukee airport Thursday and will do so -- that will help -- thanks, Janet -- and also thanks for the care package of goodies. The other Laughlin cousins have also been absolutely spot-on and of course that is just so appreciated -- you guys are great family -- thanks. And to all of the rest of you who have offered sincere help, thank you -- there will be times where that may be needed -- thanks in advance.

Through all of this today Carol was pretty much out of touch lying in the bed, eyes closed,  with all of the various medical equipment around her that she's hooked up to quietly beeping and pumping. Glad to say she would respond with small nods to inputs like daughters Katie and Amy talking gently to her asking what she needed and holding her hands, stroking her hair and head and trying to keep her calm in the midst of pain -- son Jeremy is doing a stand-up job as well -- they're great kids and she will be proud of them -- and isn't it nice to be talking about the future with Carol. But in the meantime it is just so hard to stand there and watch her lie there suffering -- and again, for my Mom to have to go through this as she watches her daughter suffering in pain -- way hard -- Mom's a trooper. 

So today was a day of Carol getting through another day as related things are going on around her and she's lying there dazed and out of touch. At one point I saw her mouthe the words, with eyes closed,  ".. where am I?" Katie told her she'd been in an accident and was in the hospital. No real response from Carol but glad to see her brain processing -- the good news again, no major head trauma -- lungs too. She's trying to come back to the surface from underneath the meds and it's really interesting to watch Todd and the SICU people decide what to do next in terms of which meds to administer and in what doses in response to Carol's current need -- and being a very fluid situation it is ongoing and they are taking care of business and doing a good job for her. She's strong and it's so good to see her strength carrying her right now --the fact that she is so exercise-oriented is paying back large here in these critical moments.

Today Todd said that as a Nurse he works seven 10-hour shifts in a row and then gets seven days off so he'll be our guy until Carol moves out of SICU assuming she's out by end of week. And he also said, and this is good, that he really appreciates having a couple of 'normal' families in his queue since so often they're dealing with gun shot victims and resulting rival gang members etc.  They never know what/who is going to be wheeled in the door for them to deal with and help -- wow -- and he loves and is passionate about his work and it is really cool to witness him and the other medical professional people in the mix in SICU.

Mom made it through the day really well but by about 8pm she was done and I dropped her off at the hotel nearby and headed home myself. We all know tomorrow will be a long day with surgery on the pelvis starting sometime mid-morning and lasting anywhere from 2 hours to 6 depending on what they find once they get in there -- they will also do a bit of work in the neighboring area as long as they are there. Barring anything unexpected it sounds like this could be the last surgery in this initial mode of identifying and fixing immediate emergency problems -- fingers crossed.



The driver/bond
The Bond Hearing evidently happened sometime today -- we should have some details tomorrow.


Close

Towards the end of the day today there was the chance for me to catch Todd in the hallway and say, "Hey, at this point, in terms of survival, we're past that aren't we? Aren't we now just fixing the things that are damaged?". He said 'yes' and that was so good to hear. So let's hope for all good with the pelvis stuff tomorrow and we'll go from there. 


And, assuming all goes well tomorrow, Carol should be moved out of SICU and into a follow-up support room a day or two later -- excellent news.


Thank you to all of you who are so concerned for Carol right now. All of your thoughts and prayers are obviously helping -- keep them coming -- know you will -- peace and love to all.

   Tom