January 14th, 2011
It’s 4:45 AM. Danny hasn’t gotten any paralytics since 8 in the morning. That’s the longest he’s gone without being paralyzed. The paralytic is basically a last resort. If they can’t regulate Danny’s vitals through medication and his ICP is maintaining a number higher than 20 then they would paralyze him. The paralytic also causes issues with digestion and with the lungs. Today they were able to stabilize Danny’s ICP with the use of a medication called demerol on top of the use of mannitol. They have been using mannitol to flush the fluids and swelling. Mannitol is more or less a temporary fix for the swelling. This is one more step towards recovery. When the night shift crew, Conor, Josh, and I, clocked in things got a little different. Danny’s ICP was jumping all over the place. After a call to the Doc, Nurse Paul took Danny in for a CAT scan. The bolt and wiring system required can go bad between a week to two weeks of use and cause the ICP to read inconsistently. Danny came back from the CAT scan and they had determined that was the case. Needless to say, the alarm doesn’t go off anymore when that number goes above 20 and it’s much less stressful watching that number. They will now monitor his progress through the neuro exams. The last neuro exam went well. Danny opened his eyes and blinked a few times and gave a solid thumbs up with his right hand. Between every neuro exam we wait. We wait for another chance to see Danny come to life a bit more. Time moves slowly in room 5109, but way too fast when the meds wear off. “Time is what prevents everything from happening at once.” -John Archibald Wheeler
-Michelle Parker
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