Jesus Walks With Jayson

It was a long day for Jayson, yesterday (Sept 24). In the morning, the nurses prepared him for the extubation making sure they completed the platelet infusion and pre-medications were given.  At about 8:20 a.m. the Propofol medication was turned off and we waited for Jayson to wake up.  After about 30 minutes, he began to come out of sedation.  He was moving his extremities more and opening his eyes.  He slowly became more responsive by answering questions and acknowledging what we were telling him.

As the doctors and nurses gathered together and prepared all the machines, tools and supplies needed for the extubation, a few family members spoke to Jayson. He heard from his Grandma Del (Henry's mom), Grandpa (my dad), Auntie Lisa (Henry's sister) and Uncle Jerry (my brother).  Each one of them encouraged him, prayed for him and expressed their love. My brother told him to conserve his energy because was going to need it when they begin. When the procedure began, Jayson was surrounded by a team of doctors and nurses along with me, Henry and Jerry. The other family members were in the room next to us watching through the window. We were saying our prayers and encouraging Jayson throughout the procedure. The actual removal of the breathing tube only took a minute or two and Jayson was able to breathe on his own right away.  We let out cheers and praises when Jayson was breathing without the help of the machine. It is one of the most joyful and emotional moment for us. We quickly shared the great news to many of our family and friends.  We celebrated that victory and praised God for once again helping Jayson.

A BiPap mask was quickly put over his nose to help him breathe if he needed it.  It will be on for about 24 hours and after his doctor's examination, he will decide if Jayson still needs to use the mask.

Jayson was alert the entire day and there were still issues that he had to deal with.  He still had the mucositis in his mouth that was uncomfortable and painful.  He was accumulating fluid in his mouth because he couldn't swallow.  His throat was very sore from having the breathing tube in it for 2 weeks.  The nurses had to suction out the fluids from his mouth frequently and this irritated Jayson a bit.  The nurses continued oral hygiene most of the day.  As the day progress, he began to swallow little by little.  The fluids didn't accumulate in his mouth much and he required less suctioning. As of right now, his mouth is slowly getting better.  Although, it make take a week or two for the mucositis to be completely gone.

Jayson is still running a fever and is given Tylenol about every 4 hours. His temperature is ranging from 99.9 to 102.2 for most of the time. 

Jayson was very restless, frustrated and agitated most of the day and night. He would try to speak to us, but the accumulation of fluid in his mouth made it very difficult to understand him, especially soon after the extubation.  As the day went on, he continued to try to communicate with us with words. But no matter how much we tried to listen, we just couldn't understand what he wanted. So, we guessed and went through a list of possibilities asking if he was in pain, uncomfortable, itchy, etc. Most of the time he would shake or nod his head or raise his eyebrows to answer.  But there also times when he gave us no response. This was very frustrating for us, but even more for Jayson.

Jayson was very restless at times.  Each time he was re-positioned in bed, he would squirm around until he found a comfortable position.  He was also raising his right hand up as if to reach for something above him. He would also move and lift his legs and feet. We thought he was annoyed by the boots on his feet that is used to prevent foot drop condition. His doctor says that this restlessness can be due to the effects of being under sedation for so long or he could be going through a level of withdrawals from the medications he was given.

During the late evening while I sat at his bedside, he was still trying to speak.  He was raising his right hand upward and looking up as he tried to talk to me. I leaned my ear above his mouth to try to listen to what he was trying to say.  Finally, I was able to hear a few words.  I thought I heard him say "I see Jesus".  I was astonished and wasn't completely sure I heard correctly.  So, I asked him "Did you say you see Jesus?" and he nodded.  I then told him, "Don't be afraid.  Jesus has been with you all along. Just tell him 'thank you' for helping you." I have goose bumps right now as I share this with you. I told this to my dad who was standing at the doorway of Jayson's room.  He quickly shared this with our family members sitting in the room next door.

Later that evening when one of his doctors came by, I asked him if any of the many medications he was given can cause him to hallucinate.  He didn't think so.  I don't know how to explain this, but I believe that Jesus did physically show himself to Jayson.

It's about 7:30 a.m. right now and Jayson is finally getting some sleep.  He's been sleeping peacefully for about an hour and half.  He was given an increasing amount of medications to help relax him and this has allowed him to sleep and rest.  Henry is also asleep in the other room.  He was watching over Jayson during the night while I went to sleep.  H

Henry was accompanied by our dear friend Luz who is from Murrieta.  She drives here with her 3 kids and sister to help us with Jayson almost every day.  Her family has been making great sacrifices to be here with us.  At one point during the first week Jayson was here, I expressed my concern that she and her children are getting tired of the drive, often coming late at night and leaving by 6 in the morning.  I told her that she didn't have to come down during the week because the kids are in school.  She said they wanted to be here for Jayson.  She also said that if Jayson can handle all that he's going through, they can handle these small sacrifices.  Luz and her family is just one example of the love and support our family has been blessed with.  We have seen the extent our family and friends are willing to through to provide us with food, comfort, relief and support.  There are no words perfect enough to express our deep gratitude. But what I do know is that we are experiencing first had God's love for us.  

We praise you Lord Jesus!  All glory and honor goes to you God for all the miracles we are seeing with Jayson. We hope that Jayson's story is transforming unbelievers to believers and deepening the faith of those who already believe.  Thank you God for all you have done and for all that you still will do for us.  Amen!