Grilled Meat and Cabin Fever

Gerry has been navigating a winding road to recovery, with many twists and turns and steep climbs along the way. Gerry and his family keep in mind the path to recovery is not a sprint - it's a marathon with many ups and downs along the way.

His spirits are high, and his voice is nearly back to normal. When he speaks, his voice sounds like he has a small piece of cotton in his mouth, due to the partial numbness in his face. Gerry has slowly regained some of his strength back since his surgery. During a typical day, he sleeps through the night, and he gets up in the morning to see the kids off to school and after eating breakfast, he goes back to bed for a 2-3 hour nap, and he is up for the remainder of the day.

Pain is intermittent, although he is now off the narcotic pain-killers, despite some early withdrawal from the drugs. Now, Gerry takes Tylenol to dull the pain. Sometimes he feels flashes in his face, as though the feeling is coming back but the feelings subside. Gerry occasionally suffers from headaches that are triggered by environmental stimuli like bright light.

Perhaps one of the biggest hurdles for Gerry has been his cabin fever. He is anxious to read, but it is painful to coordinate the movement of both of his eyes, since he cannot blink one of his eyes. Reading is a painful experience. Gerry is able to think clearly and articulate his thoughts, however he finds that more a couple of minutes of conversation is exhausting for him.

Saturday night Gerry bit into another much-desired milestone. He enjoyed his first grilled post-surgery meat. The night before the surgery, Gerry ate steak. In March, he was unsure if the brain surgery would cause damage to the nerve that allows him to swallow, so there was a possibility that he might not be able to eat meat again. Last night he retreated to his grill and then he enoyed a small fire in the backyard with his wife.

In the past 6 weeks, Gerry and his family have been awed by the generosity of many people who donated their time, talents and money to help them get through the recovery. Although the recovery is still far from over, they would not have been able to make it this far without the assistance of many people, who have helped pay their mortgage, some bills and made meals for them while while Gerry was still in the hospital.

Gerry will have a doctor's appointment on Tuesday to discuss his recovery. Although surgeons originally predicted he might be ready to work by June 1, that might be an overly-optimistic date. We ask that you pray for continued recovery and healing. God has been good, as he has provided the family with the financial means to pay their bills along the way. Pray that Gerry's cabin fever eases, and he is able to return to work soon.