Prayers Needed for an Aussie Boater

[Wayne Johnstone]

Wishing you all the best in your recovery Greg and I hope it's a speedy one

 

[TimothyJones]

Gregg,

Please stay strong, go through your rehab without giving the nurses to hard of a time, they are there to help you.

We will pray for the speedy recovery in which you will have.

God Bless you and your family through this time.

Tim & Saundra

 

[Ken Retallick]

Thinking of you Greg mate,

Stay strong, and wishing you a speedy recovery!

Ken and Linda.

 

[kesso2118]

Some better news regarding Greg's progress from his Wife,

"Dear all. A quick update about Greg. At lunchtime today he was transferred to the Rehabilitation ward at Canberra Hospital in Woden. It was a pleasant surprise that a bed came up so quickly. He will now be having intensive therapy morning and afternoon, which we are hoping will move his recovery along more quickly. Today he was assessed by the physiotherapy and OT staff and by the speech therapist, got a wheelchair for us to get him around in and moved into a single room with ensuite. It will make things a bit easier.

Greg's speech is quite improved but the biggest issue is finding the right words! So frustrating for him to not be able to say 'chair' for example, when he knows perfectly well what the bloody thing is. The speech therapist has lots of long words to describe his speech issues - 'dysphasia' is one of them. Just lots of therapy and practice required to get the brain to find new pathways around the damaged areas. So those of you who are Canberra based please visit and have a chat. He is now in Ward 12B, which is on the ground floor. Turn left when you go in the main entrance, walk past the shops and cafe and keep walking down towards the end of the corridor until you see 12B on the left. He is in room 8, which is near the end of the ward. Because he will be having so much therapy the best visiting time is now between 4pm, when they finish therapy, and 5.30 pm when they have dinner. Or anytime on the weekend - no therapy then. You can go at other times but would need to chat to him in the 'gym' (no Lycra I don't think!). That's allowed, so if that's the best time for you, go anyhow."

 

[moparbarn]

great news, kesso! hope his recovery continues to progress. gonna be a lot of hard work on greg's part, but from the few conversations we've had - he will be back.

 

[Tim leyde]

Thoughts and prayer sent.

 

[shoboat]

Greg,

We pray for a speedy and complete recovery.

It must be frustrating to learn a lot of it all over again.

We will just keep praying for you and your family Greg.

Mark Sholund

 

[kesso2118]

Better news from Greg's wife,

"Hi all. Another quick update. Greg is working very hard in therapy and making some advances in his speech - I think visitors may have started seeing a bit of an improvement in his ability to hold down a basic conversation. The physical therapy is pretty tough - many hours per day of stretches, improving the range of movement in his hip and leg and practice getting in and out of the wheelchair etc. Lucky his undamaged side is strong, although he is still pretty knackered at the end of the day. Lets hope all that hospital food doesn't sap his will to live before he recovers

Some of his interstate mates have asked if he would like to talk on the mobile. I asked him about that today and I think he will be happy to do that when he feels a bit more confident about his conversation - maybe next week or the week after. I'll be in touch about it.

I've been buying him new t shirts, which he has no choice but to wear without complaining (much). But his famous slogan T shirts are still in evidence - just depends which day you visit as to which smart arse slogan you might get.

 

[moparbarn]

good news, james! thanx for keeping us up to date on greg's condition. please tell greg i'm pulling for him.

 

[kesso2118]

Greg is making steady progress, here is the latest update,

"Hi all. An overdue update on Greg's progress. His walking continues to improve - he's doing 15 minutes x 3 on the treadmill and for the first time last Friday he walked from the gym to the dining room, with a physio on each arm for support! It was a great leap forward for him and there was barely a dry eye in the house! His speech is more fluent but he still searches for words a lot, especially when he is tired. But the best news is that after some training on getting him out of the wheelchair and into the car I am now able to take him out of the hospital for a few hours on Saturdays and Sundays! We have been having lunch at restaurants and sneaked home once, with the aid of some wheelchair ramps my dad and brother sourced. It is great for Greg to see people who aren't patients or from the medical profession and to be outside the hospital for the first time in over two months. Talk about sensory deprivation! So, if you are thinking of visiting, avoid 11-4 on Saturdays and Sundays, and 2-4 Tuesdays as he has no therapy then, so we try to sneak out then too. Having said that, please visit on the Canberra Day long weekend as Connor and I will be stealing some time at the coast before I go back to work on 17 March - that's the plan anyhow. Thanks for all your support. Pam"

 

[Andy Brown]

Great news! Praying for a full recovery soon!

 

[Elias Vazquez]

Praying for a full recovery.

 

[LarryConrad]

Greg,

My thoughts and prayers go out to you. Get well soon.

Larry Conrad