Johnny,

You are hurting your momma's heart! Mom called me today very upset ... You have been admitted to ICU again and they intubated you again. You've also been given sedation to help you tolerate the tubes. Your oxygen level is low and again you are not exhaling enough to release the carbon dioxide. Because of your lengthy stay in the hospital, you will more than likely not return to your rehab home. We are looking into having you moved to an acute care hospital, one that you'll have access to a pulmonary doctor. You are being given two different antibiotics to fight the pneumonia. Your family is very worried about you Johnny, you are one sick man! Praying for you to get better! Love you so much! Xo. Jen

P.s. I remembered something the doctor told mom ... I thought it was encouraging ... He told her this is just a bump in the road.

One more thing ... I saw a quote on anneliese's Facebook page that I thought was really funny. It made me think of you and your johnnyisms. It said: don't argue with an idiot, they will only bring you down to their level and beat you with experience. Ha!

Love you!

No X-Ray needed for the feeding tube, they were able to unblock the tube by sticking a wire in the tube. You are still in the ICU because a room isn't available still. Hopefully you can go from ICU back to rehab. Again, progress. Love you! Jen

Johnny,

You were scheduled to move from ICU into a regular room today but there isn't one available so you are still in ICU while we wait for one. Right now the problem seems to be in your peg tube ... Your feeding tube. It seems to be clogged and the nurses are having no luck flushing it out. You are going to have an X-Ray today to see what the problem is and they may decide to replace it with a new one. You had that done not too long ago and it's a simple procedure. The doctor switched your antibiotic to a different one that can be given to you in pill form. This means that the nurses dilute it in water and give it to you through your feeding tube. I'm guessing you still have the central line in your arm since they aren't able to give you your meds through your feeding tube right now. All in all, I'd consider this progress! Love you little brother and I'm praying for you!

XO Jen

Another update

Johnny finally got the tube out of his throat on Saturday. Dad said he was coughing a lot ... That's good, clear those lungs!! Johnny still has the central line in his arm ... This is for medication. He will probably be discharged on Tuesday. The newest problem is that he has to be approved by insurance to go back. Cross fingers that he's approved!

Thanks for the prayers, Johnny and his family appreciate them! Jen

Update on Johnny's hospital visit...

Well, I'd like to say that everything is improved with johnny but the truth is, there's been no change. He's still in ICU and he is still intubated. The nurses did turn down the oxygen where he would be breathing his own but after 6 hours of that, they turned the oxygen back up. Johnny's sedation wore off and he was aware of the tubes in his mouth and nose and tolerated it for a while but the nurses started giving him that a little bit more too because he became agitated. He's had a few more CT scans ... One as recent as this morning but we've not been given the results yet. Please continue to pray for Johnny! Thanks! Jen

Prayer request for Johnny

Johnny was taken to the emergency room last night around midnight. He had an elevated blood pressure and a low oxygen level. Johnny was given a CT of his chest and it showed he has pneumonia in both lungs. Johnny has been intubated with a tube that goes into his lungs and inserts oxygen. Because he has pneumonia in both lungs, he's not breathing in deep enough and exhaling enough to remove the carbon dioxide from his lungs. The doctor said that Johnny is breathing on his own but the extra oxygen is helping. Johnny has also been sedated so he can rest more comfortably and to help with the gag reflex. There is also a tube in Johnny's nose to drain the blood off his stomach ... produced by the intubation. The doctor plans to ween Johnny off the oxygen sometime tomorrow. Please pray that this happens. It took so long to have his trach removed and our fear is that if he has another one, the build up of scar tissue will make it's removal difficult and possibly not possible. As I type this, I'm sitting in his ICU room waiting while they take him for another CT scan. It is really hard to see him hooked up to all the blue tubes again. It takes me back to parkland when he was in a coma fighting for his life. The other patients in this ICU unit are gray haired and have similar tubes and things ... Beeping machines and worried family members. I can't help but think how unfair it is that Johnny's got so much color left in his hair ... meaning he's too young for this! I also hate how familiar I've become with hospitals. I want to scream enough! Johnny's back from his CT scan ... I asked if he smiled for his picture ... they said he did ... you have to keep a sense of humor! The nurse got Johnny all situated and turned in his bed. They rotate to prevent skin breakdown and bedsores. Any movement like that can cause his tube to irritate and makes him cough. Watching you cough Johnny was just like before ... No sound but violent shaking. All I could do was stand and cry for you. My heart aches for this to be over for you! It's all just too much and unfair and hard to watch! I love you Johnny and would love to take this pain away for you! Best I can do Is pray and I'm doing that!

Love you!! XO Jen