Thank you for your faithful interest in Joy’s healing and recovery, we so appreciate your compassionate concern. Yesterday brought new signs of hope in Joy’s recovery with both physical and cognitive gains. While Joy still has limited responses to verbal commands for movement, she continued to grip and pull on her bed rail with her left hand, lift her head off the pillow, and today even pushed down with her right shoulder in what appeared to be trying to adjust her position in bed.
While it was exciting to see new movement in her right shoulder, the most encouraging developments were in her increasing awareness of her surroundings. She appeared to recognize not only me (Gary) and Alyx, but also our friends Joe and Woody. She was able to hold the gaze of the person speaking to her and responded with a half smile or slight head nod. At times she seemed to be mouthing words, but with her tracheostomy she is unable to speak.
After a period of time she appeared to tire and became less interactive. The doctors keep stressing that recovery from severe brain injury is not linear but has ups and downs, gains and setbacks. However, we pray that today she will hold on to those gains and maintain them, if not add to them.
Please continue to hold Joy up in prayer for the healing of her many physical and cognitive wounds, we know those prayers are making the difference. Thank you again for your faithfulness.
