Thursday, August 21, 2008
4 comments:
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Dominic's Daddy said...
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We want to thank everyone who organized and attended the Scramblz fund raiser last night. I took a moment to extend our gratitude to the owner, and he informed this was their most successful fund raiser to date. Again, thank you all so much for your love and support. And a special thanks to the folks Scramblz for their generosity in hosting and donating a portion of their profits to Dominic's fund.
The Loperena Family -
August 22, 2008 at 9:57 AM
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Dominic's Daddy said...
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Hello All,
We held Dominic's 7th birthday party at the hospital over the weekend. I think it was very comforting for him to be surrounded by family. Dominic has shown more signs of recovery in recent days. He has begun to visually track objects and people from time-to-time. This is a wonderful sign. He has also been working hard to lift his head keep it steady. While his left arm and left leg have been active and strong, his right side remains mostly unresponsive. We hope this will change in time with the aggressive therapy he is receiving. Dominic has also reacted excitedly to familiar scents. We purchased several different flavors of lip balm and he seems to genuinely enjoy the different smells and the taste it leaves on his lips. I'm happy to say he has even given us a faint smile on occasion. Dominic still has a long way to go, but we remain optimistic that he will continue to recover and fight to return to his family. And as always, thank you all for your love, prayers and support.
Love,
The Loperena Family -
August 25, 2008 at 1:42 PM
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Dominic's Mom said...
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Dominic had a really busy day today. He woke up with his tummy growling and ready to be fed at 7 am. The Occupational Therapist started with Dominic at 9 am and they worked today on his range of motion, reaching and grabbing, following directions, and sitting up. By 10:30 the Speech Therapist was in the room working with Dominic on swallowing, and sticking out his tongue (the only time that he can do this without getting into trouble ; ) ). He had a short 1/2 hour break and than back to work with the Physical Therapists. They worked on sitting up, range of motion, holding his head up, and tummy time. Everyone was impressed on the improvements with mobility that Dominic showed today. He is moving his head more, helping them sit him up, swallowing a little faster, and smoother control of his arm. He still is not using his right leg very much and his right arm at all. He had a little break at 12 for lunch and was back to work with the Speech Therapist again at 1:30 for another short session to practice his swallowing with lemon swabs and ice chips. Shortly after she left, I had Dominic laying down on his left side and he pushed himself into a sitting position by himself two times. The head honcho of the rehab came in to evaluated how Dominic was doing. He looked at his progress with his therapy, his movement, direction following, eye tracking, and other assorted things. When he was done he laid Dominic down on the bed and told him to scoot back in the bed and HE ACTUALLY attempted it. The doctor looked so surprised and pleased. I know that my mouth must have been on the ground. The doctor set his leg up and told him to scoot himself back and he did it again. Although he was going more sideways than back. He did this a total of 4 separate times. We also had to get weighed today. Mom had to hold him on the scale. NO, I DIDN'T LOOK!!! He has gained a little weight. They have moved his feedings down from 5 a day down to 4 a day. Good because that midnight feeding was killing us. It looks like the doctors will be starting to wean him off one of his medicines starting tomorrow. He was so much more awake today than he has been in the past. He did not take one nap today. Which is the first since the accident happened and his eyes where so wide and aware looking.
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August 25, 2008 at 10:58 PM
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Lindy said...
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Hi, I read the article in the Morgan Hill Times about your son Dominic. He is such a beautiful boy.
The rehab at Valley is the best and I am speaking from experience.
My daughter had a traumatic brain injury 6 years ago. She was a patient at Valley Med and recieved the most wonderful treatment program. Dominic sounds as thiugh he is moving right along with his recovery process. Keep up all the great work you are doing as parents. With you all by his side he will progress very quickly.
Take care and I will keep you all in my prayers for Dominics continuing recovery. Sincerely, Linda -
August 26, 2008 at 3:14 PM
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Update 8/20/08: I just wanted to share Dominic's progress with you all. Within the past week, we've seen definite signs of improvement. Last Friday Dominic reached out several times to take a toy from his Grandma. Kim and I cried with joy. This was the first real sign that he is beginning to become aware of his environment and the activities going on around him. He continues to reach for toys held in front of him (if it’s a toy he likes). He also shows signs of excitement whenever we play his favorite cartoons. His eyes grow wider and he actually seems more alert. He’s still unable to communicate with us verbally or otherwise, but we feel confident he will eventually reach that goal as his recovery progresses. His physical therapy is well underway. They continue to work on range of motion with his arms, legs and head. This is to ensure his muscles and tendons remain limber until he can regain control of his motor functions. Once again, we want to thank all of you for the prayers and support you continue to pass along to our family. I’ll try to provide weekly updates and share any new signs of recovery as they occur.
Love,
The Loperena Family
FROM DOMINIC'S MOM:
Well, I spent a long and productive day with Dominic today. He was officially accepted into the rehab program today. This means that he will be staying in the hospital to receive 3 hours a day, 5 to 6 days a week of rehab (Speech, Occupational therapy, and Physical therapy). He got a new jerry-rigged wheelchair today that allows him to sit up and helps him control his head so that we can get him outside in the fresh air and sun. He during PT (physical therapy) was put up on the tilt table; which allowed him to stand with help for the first time since the accident. We are still working on following commands and he is doing better. I was able to tease a little smile out of him today while playing with him and a little kiss (I think it was a kiss). He also was moving his head by himself a little bit today. Right before I left for the night (David's night tonight) he moved his body on 4 separate occasions to lay his head into my lap. Thanks for all your prayers and support. We are truly blessed in our community and family.