Update - 7/13/09
Yes, believe it or not, you are reading a current update to Matthew's blog! Thanks for your patience and your continued interest in Matthew's progress. We've decided to provide updates every three months, so please check back by mid-October for the next update.
We praise God for all that has happened for Matthew in the last four months. His perseverance and improvement continue to amaze us. Matthew attended camp again this year (in May) and REALLY enjoyed it again! Counselors and leaders at the camp who were there last year commented on the tremendous improvement they saw in Matthew from last year. Once again Matthew had the girls wrapped around his little finger and had everyone laughing. This year Matthew was assigned a helper who is also a victim of brain injury as well as a med tech, but this helper is a little farther down the road in his recovery than Matthew is. He knew what Matthew is going through and they had some terrific conversations that meant a lot to Matthew.
So, here's a detailing of Matthew's most recent improvements/accomplishments:
- When getting ready to use the parallel bars a few days ago, Andrew and Brenda left for a moment and when they came back they found Matthew standing up ALL BY HIMSELF at the bars and ready to go. He had never done that before! Matthew can walk back and forth between the parallel bars several times by himself, but still needs assistance in turning around.
- Matthew walked around the pool two times recently by himself just holding onto the side. The therapist used to have to stand in front of him and help him with the spacing of the step with his right leg, but recently Matthew hasn't needed much assistance. He is able to control his limbs to a great extent. In the pool Matthew can balance himself standing without holding onto anything or anyone for six minutes and outside of the pool he can do it for two minutes without assistance.
- Spelling! Matthew can spell short words out loud! It's great!!! He's also reading more - reads the signs along the side of the road.
- Labeling properly!! Instead of saying "him" and "her" for every male and female, Matthew is beginning to refer to the people by their names in regular conversation without prompting. He is identifying, initiating, and reasoning on his own without prompting. This shows continued healing in the frontal lobe of his brain.
- Matthew is more self-aware. He has recently asked "What happened to me?" In an update some time ago I believe we mentioned him talking with his mom about the accident, but this time it seems he is remembering more and is more aware of the reality around him.
- Naming! Andrew is Matthew's assistant/therapist-in-training this summer and he has been working with Matthew (besides the physical therapy) with speech therapy. Matthew is now able to name something blue (or other colors), or name a fruit or vegetable consistently. Previously it was a struggle and he would say anything just to answer. Now he's able to do it on his own and do it correctly. He can't come up with more than 4 or 5 things per question, but he can do it!!
- Now what?! Matthew's morning routine (AND his mom's morning routine) is to exercise with the NuStep, walk with the gait trainer, and do the parallel bars EVERY day (plus other activities). In the past, Matthew would be exhausted later in the day after all that activity and was content to sit and do nothing. Now Matthew asks, "So what else can I do?" and will ask this repeatedly when he finishes the activity put before him.
Many months ago we mentioned a walk-a-thon scheduled for this September to support brain injury victims. Well, the event is planned and everything is in place! "Journey for Hope" is the event and the Brain Injury Awareness Walk and 5K Run will be Saturday, September 19, 2009 at 9:30 a.m. in Sedalia, Missouri at the Mathewson Center in the Missouri State Fairgrounds. Registration begins at 8:00 a.m. The fee to attend and participate is only $20 and with that each registrant will receive a t-shirt, lunch and an expo ticket. All proceeds from "Journey for Hope" will stay in Missouri to fund support groups, education and advocacy outreach provided by the Brain Injury Association of Missouri, as well as wheelchair ramps and home modifications provided by the Centers for Independent Living. If you are unable to attend in person, your contribution is appreciated. All information for contributions and/or registration (for individuals or for teams!) can be found at www.journeyforhope.com. Please join us for an exciting and uplifting day to help Missourians affected by brain injuries achieve greater strides of their own. (Thanks to the "Journey for Hope" web site and brochure for the information and verbage above.)
On a personal note, my husband and I (and our two teens) have been able to see Matthew's progress first hand this spring and summer which has been a great blessing. In March Matthew came with his mother and brothers to see our daughter and son perform/direct the lights and sound in their school's Shakespeare play. This was a real treat! And then in May the family came back for our daughter's high school graduation party. It was a long trip for Matthew and he gets stiff sitting for so long in his chair, but he did get up and walk and stand some while at the party. He also exerted a little effort to arm wrestle with his brother, Andrew and his "Uncle" Randy. His left arm is VERY strong!! And this past weekend we saw Matthew again. Our son spent the week with Matthew's family and we met halfway to get him back. Matthew's ability to speak has grown exponentially in just those two months! He is engaged in the conversations and responds appropriately (most of the time) and makes all of us laugh with his jokes!!! One thing that hasn't changed is Matthew's interest in cars. He wanted us to turn around and spot all the sports cars that he really liked that were driving by.
God be with you this day and hope you are having a safe summer!
Rachel Asburry
Matthew's Godmother
We praise God for all that has happened for Matthew in the last four months. His perseverance and improvement continue to amaze us. Matthew attended camp again this year (in May) and REALLY enjoyed it again! Counselors and leaders at the camp who were there last year commented on the tremendous improvement they saw in Matthew from last year. Once again Matthew had the girls wrapped around his little finger and had everyone laughing. This year Matthew was assigned a helper who is also a victim of brain injury as well as a med tech, but this helper is a little farther down the road in his recovery than Matthew is. He knew what Matthew is going through and they had some terrific conversations that meant a lot to Matthew.
So, here's a detailing of Matthew's most recent improvements/accomplishments:
- When getting ready to use the parallel bars a few days ago, Andrew and Brenda left for a moment and when they came back they found Matthew standing up ALL BY HIMSELF at the bars and ready to go. He had never done that before! Matthew can walk back and forth between the parallel bars several times by himself, but still needs assistance in turning around.
- Matthew walked around the pool two times recently by himself just holding onto the side. The therapist used to have to stand in front of him and help him with the spacing of the step with his right leg, but recently Matthew hasn't needed much assistance. He is able to control his limbs to a great extent. In the pool Matthew can balance himself standing without holding onto anything or anyone for six minutes and outside of the pool he can do it for two minutes without assistance.
- Spelling! Matthew can spell short words out loud! It's great!!! He's also reading more - reads the signs along the side of the road.
- Labeling properly!! Instead of saying "him" and "her" for every male and female, Matthew is beginning to refer to the people by their names in regular conversation without prompting. He is identifying, initiating, and reasoning on his own without prompting. This shows continued healing in the frontal lobe of his brain.
- Matthew is more self-aware. He has recently asked "What happened to me?" In an update some time ago I believe we mentioned him talking with his mom about the accident, but this time it seems he is remembering more and is more aware of the reality around him.
- Naming! Andrew is Matthew's assistant/therapist-in-training this summer and he has been working with Matthew (besides the physical therapy) with speech therapy. Matthew is now able to name something blue (or other colors), or name a fruit or vegetable consistently. Previously it was a struggle and he would say anything just to answer. Now he's able to do it on his own and do it correctly. He can't come up with more than 4 or 5 things per question, but he can do it!!
- Now what?! Matthew's morning routine (AND his mom's morning routine) is to exercise with the NuStep, walk with the gait trainer, and do the parallel bars EVERY day (plus other activities). In the past, Matthew would be exhausted later in the day after all that activity and was content to sit and do nothing. Now Matthew asks, "So what else can I do?" and will ask this repeatedly when he finishes the activity put before him.
Many months ago we mentioned a walk-a-thon scheduled for this September to support brain injury victims. Well, the event is planned and everything is in place! "Journey for Hope" is the event and the Brain Injury Awareness Walk and 5K Run will be Saturday, September 19, 2009 at 9:30 a.m. in Sedalia, Missouri at the Mathewson Center in the Missouri State Fairgrounds. Registration begins at 8:00 a.m. The fee to attend and participate is only $20 and with that each registrant will receive a t-shirt, lunch and an expo ticket. All proceeds from "Journey for Hope" will stay in Missouri to fund support groups, education and advocacy outreach provided by the Brain Injury Association of Missouri, as well as wheelchair ramps and home modifications provided by the Centers for Independent Living. If you are unable to attend in person, your contribution is appreciated. All information for contributions and/or registration (for individuals or for teams!) can be found at www.journeyforhope.com. Please join us for an exciting and uplifting day to help Missourians affected by brain injuries achieve greater strides of their own. (Thanks to the "Journey for Hope" web site and brochure for the information and verbage above.)
On a personal note, my husband and I (and our two teens) have been able to see Matthew's progress first hand this spring and summer which has been a great blessing. In March Matthew came with his mother and brothers to see our daughter and son perform/direct the lights and sound in their school's Shakespeare play. This was a real treat! And then in May the family came back for our daughter's high school graduation party. It was a long trip for Matthew and he gets stiff sitting for so long in his chair, but he did get up and walk and stand some while at the party. He also exerted a little effort to arm wrestle with his brother, Andrew and his "Uncle" Randy. His left arm is VERY strong!! And this past weekend we saw Matthew again. Our son spent the week with Matthew's family and we met halfway to get him back. Matthew's ability to speak has grown exponentially in just those two months! He is engaged in the conversations and responds appropriately (most of the time) and makes all of us laugh with his jokes!!! One thing that hasn't changed is Matthew's interest in cars. He wanted us to turn around and spot all the sports cars that he really liked that were driving by.
God be with you this day and hope you are having a safe summer!
Rachel Asburry
Matthew's Godmother
posted by Randy Asburry @ 4:55 PM
0 comments
