January 15th, 2011 by Conor

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January 15th, 2011 by Conor

It was a short sleep but I am packed up and have said bye to Conor and Michelle who are still sleeping at the hotel. I did not want them to see me off. They need every minute of sleep they can get. I grabbed my bag full of clean clothes, that I never wore, since I lived in a pair of sweatpants and a hoody the whole time and walked over to the hospital. It’s about a 2 or 3 block walk which isn’t bad but the single digit temperatures are numbing even with a down jacket on. When I walked up to the ICU, Ellen was on the phone and David had gone to the gas station. I walked in to see Danny and the two of us just chilled for a minute while I talked to him. He looked peaceful today, as if he was taking a nap. Shortly after, David returned and we both talked with Danny for a few minutes. It has been about 15 hours since the last time they paralyzed him and it seems that he is able to hear us even though comprehension might be a bit scrambled. His mouth moves, his eyes are slightly open and he is squeezing my hand. Only one last thing could make this better so I asked “Danny, will you give me a thumbs up?”……there it was! While drugged out on the same medicine that killed Michael Jackson, Danny fought through the fog and gave me a thumbs up that implied “Thanks for coming to see me bro. I’ll keep fighting. Soon enough we will all be back together laughing.”

Overall I think this trip was successful on many levels. First, was to show support to my best friend Conor and his parents whom have been a huge part of my entire life. Second, to give Danny another familiar voice to hopefully respond to, even if he wont ever remember I was there. However, the third is completely selfish intent. When I first heard of the accident I was miserable and could barely sleep. I wanted answers and I wanted to see if I thought he was going to be ok. The only way I could satisfy this inquisition was to go see for myself. With some help from a great friend, Kelley McRee, and her families travel agency they were able to get me on a flight with short notice from Knoxville, TN to Great Falls, MT….UNBELIEVABLY HUGE! Now it’s Friday and I’m on my flight back. I was able to ask all the questions I wanted. I was able to see his condition and in my non-credible medical opinion I am under the impression that Danny is doing great and through time he is going to be fine.

In the brief 48 hours I was really excited to see the progress he was making. Of course all this needs to be placed in perspective, which Conor is quick to remind me of. The doctors have estimated that it will be a month before Danny would even have the ability to leave this Hospital. It’s easy for me to come in for a couple days and be satisfied with the progress he has made. The tough part is that when Danny comes out of the coma, the struggles will begin for him. I hope we all realize that the most support will be needed when the impact of this accident no longer affects us. It’s easy to be supportive when the feelings of grief are affecting us individually, but when those feelings disappear it will be a true test of friendship to offer the support he will need during the recovery process.

~Josh Belcher

January 15th, 2011 by Conor

I recently joined Shreddy Times by invitation. Soon after, I began reading several posts regarding an injured friend. Turns out, I have mutual friends with Danny, however, I live and work a few thousand miles away in Virginia. I was immediately moved to write in, but wasn’t quite sure where to start because I don’t think anything I have to say is of great significance. Ultimately, please know that although I’ve never met Danny, I have been impacted & inspired by him, his family, & by the enormous number of people who have reached out.

I work at an inpatient clinic in a physical rehabilitation hospital. Everyday I see people with new physical challenges; from a simple fall, to strokes, replacements, and traumatic brain injuries. While I typically see more speedy recoveries due to more minor injuries than what y’all are experiencing, I have witnessed some pretty amazing moments in the journeys of a few patients recovering from major strokes & TBIs. People don’t realize their own potential in those moments, but they are capable of overcoming their situations.

While these days of waiting seem to go on forever & y’all feel as though your souls can’t take it anymore, remember to take one day at a time; as much as you want things to happen, you have to be patient. Know that you all are not alone; it is okay to get upset, it is okay to ask for help & it is okay to take time for yourself – that’s not selfish. It is not good to feel pity & it is not good to ask “why Danny?” While it is natural to run the “what ifs” through your mind, you will drive yourself crazy. You’ve gotta have faith. At this point, all you can do is look forward & focus on what you’re going to do. It’s obvious that things are going to be much different, but you are only given what you can handle; it may seem like way more, but you’re doing it! Everyone on y’alls end is already VERY strong. From my point of view, things can only get better from here… slowly, but surely. There will still be hard times, but things will be moving forward.

The power of prayer & of positive thinking makes a tremendous impact. There is no doubt in my mind that with such amazing continual support from Danny’s family & friends, he will get through this; as well as the rest of your family. I am so excited for the coming weeks & months to read about Danny’s progression. The time will fly right on by! It is really hard to wrap your head around what it would be like to learn how to sit up again, or even how to grip something again (to name just a few), but those little things are HUGE…. they are are going to be so momentous. It is going to be amazing 🙂

With Love,

Emily

January 14th, 2011 by Conor

We send wishes for healing to you Danny, as well as strength to your family and friends surrounding you with daily encouragement and love. Nancy and Chris Martin

January 14th, 2011 by Conor

Danny Danny Danny. Through this unfortunate event it looks like you’ve taught a lot of people a lot of things. It really puts life in perspective. I was just told by a friend that you can’t truly appreciate the sunny days without a few cloudy ones. Your personality is strong, inspirational, and magnetic, there aren’t many individuals who would receive letters, love, and support from around the world on the scale that you have. I guess you just go big in everything you do.

This mountain lifestyle is a glorious one, but it isn’t always an easy one. I’ve never seen so many people in their 20’s with canes. But in the end time will heal all things, and I have a feeling winter will be back next year, and probably even the year after that. Be tough, stay positive, and steeze louise get back to Tahoe already, this place doesn’t know what to do without you.

My thoughts and prayers are with you all day, everyday.

Much Love
-Marrone

January 14th, 2011 by Conor

I knew this was going to be a short trip so I wanted to make the most of it. Little did I know I would be awake for 90% of the time I was here. This is a CRAZY lifestyle that they are living out here. The hotel room is a little packed so Conor and I had to share a bed. When we were 5 years old there would have never been any hesitation to share, but 20+ years later this spawned a topic of debate. Once rules were established (separate blankets, no facing in towards the middle, etc.) I secured my half of the bed and passed out. After a quick 5 hours of sleep we were back at the hospital. Danny had a cat scan while we were sleeping. They reported that the swelling in his brain had reduced slightly and they were going to go without inducing him with paralytics for the first time. This was great news to hear! After dinner Conor, Michelle, and I set up our spots for the graveyard shift. It wasn’t long before our favorite male nurse, Paul, came in to conduct another neuro test on Danny. Move your right hand…passed, thumbs up…passed, thumbs up with your left hand…no reaction, wiggle your toes…passed, Danny move your left hand…no response. At this point I could feel some general concern building inside me for the lack of movement in that left hand. Danny can we get a thumbs up with your left hand….no response. Paul then grabbed Danny’s left hand and began to tap his left thumb. Danny how about a thumbs up with this hand….no response. This time he held his hand and asked him to squeeze his hand….no response. All of a sudden Danny started moving his legs and it looked he was shifting out of discomfort for the position he was in. His eyes were half open and it looked like he was trying to blink his eyes. Then out of nowhere….BOOM….there it was, he raised his left arm and you could see that he was trying to move his fingers on his left hand. Immediately I felt some relief from the thought that he was suffering in that left arm from some sort of paralysis, either physical or medically induced. This was the first time I had seen Danny move around so much with his legs, that left arm, and even to see his eyes sort of blink. We were all content with the progress that he was making. The nurse shifted Danny in to a balanced position in order to keep a consistent flow of blood to travel through his body and up to his brain. He gave him a dose of Propofal and you could see it run through his body as Danny shut his eyes and fell back to sleep. A few minutes later we heard his ICP monitor beep. His ICP, which measures his brain pressure, had jumped from the normal teens up to the 40’s. This happened a lot during the first week he was there which they called “cycling”. The ICP was climbing 40’s, 50’s, 60’s. The monitor continued to beep in order to warn the nurses that he was reaching dangerous levels. In silence Conor, Michelle, and I were all fixed on this number. Why is it all of a sudden skyrocketing out of control? Why is it staying at such a high level? Why isn’t he cycling back to the teens after this intense spike? Paul entered the room and began to shift Danny’s head to see if he could relieve the pressure…no change, he started moving some tubes around and punching numbers in to the machines….no change. Then he walked out of the room. I don’t think any of us said anything and we continued to watch the ICP number fluctuate in the 30’s and 40’s. Paul returned to the room, walking quickly, and stated that the doctor has ordered a precautionary CT scan. To get the ICP number back in the teens Danny was given a small dose of paralytics. This was the first induced paralysis Danny had been given in almost a 24 hour period. Which was a big step in the recovery process. Due to standard operating procedures they had us leave the room and he was wheeled out to another part of the hospital.

Time passed as we anxiously awaited the results of the scan. Every time the door would open to the ICU I would hope it was Paul announcing his return. During this time there was another family that had arrived to see a different patient in the ICU. They all seemed to be in and out of the ICU every minute, which was building that anxiety of his return each time the door opened. However, this wasn’t nearly as annoying as one guy in that group that was sitting in the waiting area with us updating everyone in his family while on speaker phone. Note to everyone: don’t use your speaker phone in public. By the third family member called, Conor had reached his limit and asked the guy to be considerate to other people in the room. Problem solved.

Paul returned with some great news. The CT scan came back with positive results.
He told us that swelling had subsided and things had improved even from the other CT scan earlier in the day. As far as our concern with the ICP number he said that at this point we can sort of just ignore it. The bolt that is inserted into the brain tissue has a limited 7-14 day life span and at this point a positive CT scan and Danny’s ability to pass the neurological tests are all that really matter for judging his progress. This was a huge relief and we could not wait to get back in there to see Dan-O! This led us to the most exciting moment of the trip. Paul wanted to give Danny another neuro test before he hit him with a fresh dose of Propofal. When we all gathered around the bed we could see that Danny’s eyes were half open on his own. He was in a pretty heavy fog from the medicine so it was a blank stare but very cool nonetheless. We all took turns talking to Danny and he started moving his legs and trying to shift himself in the bed. Michelle was holding his hand and would tell him she loves him. In response he would squeeze her hand as if to say don’t ever let go. This was getting really cool! Then Paul began the test: Danny can you move your right hand…passed, thumbs up…passed, squeeze my hand…passed, thumbs up on your left hand…no response, can you move your left hand…no response, Paul grabbed Danny’s hand, can you squeeze my fingers….slight movement, squeeze my hand again….soft squeeze (passed), wiggle your toes…passed. Then things got really cool. He was sorting of kicking his legs, moving his arms around (both of them), and really shifting around in the bed. His eyes were more than half open at this point and he voluntarily blinked. With each blink it was like his eyes opened a little bit more. Paul quickly moved up towards his head and started asking Danny to look to the right and to the left. His head didn’t move but his eye balls flickered a bit. This was a bit of a surreal moment as he was moving all of his extremities, blinking his eyes, and for the second time we saw him move his eyes. Being a bit of optimist I started thinking that Danny was waking up and maybe he was going to speak to us. His mouth was moving and he looked like he might be trying to say something but nothing was coming out. Paul explained to us that it would be impossible for Danny to speak right now due to the tracheotomy. So much to my disappointment this meant I won’t be hearing his infectious laugh while I’m there. Damn, we all miss that! Those 2 minutes have stood out as my favorite of the trip. You could actually see Danny fighting to get back to being Danny. Thank you God, we need more moments like that!

The remainder of the evening was filled with some exhausted laughs, Facebook stalking, and Paul’s request for Conor to help raise awareness that not all male nurses fit the homosexual stereotype. Since Conor is overwhelmed with the work to keep the website updated, I thought I would include that as a plug for Paul. So everyone is aware Danny has some really great doctors and nurses taking care of him. Paul was the nurse on duty for both nights that I was there so I was able to get to know him the best. This is a guy that you know is passionate about the care of his patients and the well being of family members present. He is thorough with answers to any questions, patient with explanations, and speaks in ways that people without a medical degree would understand. We always had a good time when he was in the room telling jokes, picking on each other, and he was very interested with the accomplishments of Shreddy Times and dannyisthebomb.com. Danny is very lucky to have this type of person to oversee him until he is back on his feet. Keep up the good work Paul!

For some reason 6a came quicker than it had the night before. So we headed back to the hotel so i could try to sneak in 4 hours of sleep before I left for my flight.
Overall the day was a bit of a roller coaster. It had some low points of uncertainty but it also shared some highlights of progress and recovery. I will have to make it a point to stop back at the hospital in the morning to say bye to Danny before I leave for the airport.

~Josh Belcher

January 14th, 2011 by Conor

After assessing that the ICP wiring system was in fact not giving us the correct reading, the doctor removed the catheter from Danny’s head today. He also removed the catheter which was collecting fluid, mostly blood, from his head. When you look at Danny now, he has no more tubes from his chin up. Aside from his shaved head and the two large question mark shaped scars on either side of his skull he looks more like the Danny you and I know. Ellen had some exciting news to report to us this morning. She told us that Danny had scrub down today. While Beverly was washing him up, she talked to him the whole time and gave him the soap with a manly scent. When Beverly was leaving she said, “Danny, I’m leaving now. How about a wave goodbye.” Danny’s hand raised up softly and purposefully to wave goodbye to Beverly. A minute later Beverly said goodbye once again and Danny’s hand did the same thing.

-Michelle

January 14th, 2011 by Conor

~Dave Soroka

January 14th, 2011 by Conor

This is not a 90 minute movie. I have been at the hospital for 9 days now and I can’t wait for the happy ending,. Unfortunately that’s all I can do. Wait with Danny. Wait for Danny. He can do this.

We are only just beginning a long long road to recovery.

I can’t stop thinking about one part of this whole mess. When he wakes up from this hell there will literally hundreds of people that will be filled with joy. But that will be the moment that the whole journey starts for him. To him this will have felt like a long bad dream. His hell starts when when he wakes up. I hope that everyone that has been there so far can be there for him when he gets to that point. That is when he will need us the most.

I have slept 8 hours in the last two and a half days. This is no time for insight. I am exhausted.

January 14th, 2011 by Conor

It’s 4:45 AM. Danny hasn’t gotten any paralytics since 8 in the morning. That’s the longest he’s gone without being paralyzed. The paralytic is basically a last resort. If they can’t regulate Danny’s vitals through medication and his ICP is maintaining a number higher than 20 then they would paralyze him. The paralytic also causes issues with digestion and with the lungs. Today they were able to stabilize Danny’s ICP with the use of a medication called demerol on top of the use of mannitol. They have been using mannitol to flush the fluids and swelling. Mannitol is more or less a temporary fix for the swelling. This is one more step towards recovery. When the night shift crew, Conor, Josh, and I, clocked in things got a little different. Danny’s ICP was jumping all over the place. After a call to the Doc, Nurse Paul took Danny in for a CAT scan. The bolt and wiring system required can go bad between a week to two weeks of use and cause the ICP to read inconsistently. Danny came back from the CAT scan and they had determined that was the case. Needless to say, the alarm doesn’t go off anymore when that number goes above 20 and it’s much less stressful watching that number. They will now monitor his progress through the neuro exams. The last neuro exam went well. Danny opened his eyes and blinked a few times and gave a solid thumbs up with his right hand. Between every neuro exam we wait. We wait for another chance to see Danny come to life a bit more. Time moves slowly in room 5109, but way too fast when the meds wear off. “Time is what prevents everything from happening at once.” -John Archibald Wheeler

-Michelle