Caringbridge – August 18, 2021

Our superhero is getting stronger every day.   His speech is becoming more fluid and he is showing signs of being ready to take on the work that will be needed for his restoration.   

Right before penning this entry, they called Earl down for his last test.  Today, they are doing one final procedure called an esophageal echocardiogram.  A regular echocardiogram (transthoracic) is one where they take a picture of the heart and its chambers to see how blood is pumping.  This is a standard over the chest sonogram with the gel and the transducer.  They did one of those when he first arrived at Brooklyn Hospital.  This time it will be a Transesophageal echo is where they take a flexible tube that has a transducer at the end of it, numb the throat and slide it down your esophagus so that the images they take of the heart are closer and more detailed.   

Again – the purpose of these tests is to determine the WHY… Why did this happen to him at this time in his life?  Once we have that – it will greatly inform what needs to be done to bring him back to his star status and also what to do to avoid it from happening ever again, if we can help it. 

The good news is that he has been recommended for Acute Therapy at Mt. Sinai.  We’re awaiting approval from his insurance on it, but once they discharge him, he’ll begin 10 – 14 days of intense Speech, Occupational and Physical therapy (every day for 3 hours).  This is where we’ll start seeing the real progress in the restoration.  Okay… he won’t be home till the start of September at that rate and my heart drops a bit because I really miss my friend being with me all day.  But if it means that he’ll be so much better upon his return – then we’re ALL for it. 

Okay, okay – thanks for all this detail Vic… but what can I do to help?  What do you need? 

To say that I’ve been overwhelmed with these questions is an understatement. Knowing how much you love Earl and how much you care for me and my daughter is truly tremendous.   But, you know how we all are… proud people. Superheros in our own rights.  It’s hard for us to ask for help or better yet, even know WHAT to ask for.  But this experience has taught me not to block my own blessings.  Whatever you want to do, we’ll accept.  If you’re sending something to the house and need to verify our address, please just message below and I’ll send that to you directly.  I’ll no longer answer that question with no real answer. I love and appreciate our community. Our village.

My next update will hopefully be informing you of his transfer down to the Therapy floor and gushing about how super his powers are becoming.