Day 40 - July 25 - A few prayer answers

A picture is worth a thousand words. I had avoided posting any pictures of the Iron Maiden previously, but Connor has given me his permission to post this photo to show the reality of the bed I talk about so much. The only thing missing is the "Iron Mask" faceplate, which ratchets down onto the boy's face before they turn him face down.

Connor spent the night on his back in the roto-prone. Although he spiked a fever last evening, that was brought under control by the time we left last night. The sense we got was that, if he did well on his back overnight, and showed enough improvement in his lungs this morning, that they would move him back to the red rocking bed. I haven't gotten to the hospital yet this morning, and it's still too early for them to have the results of this morning's X-rays, so please continue to pray that Connor's lungs will be, and continue to be, clear of any infection so he can get off this bed.

Yesterday, the RTs changed Connor's respirator settings to a different mode of breathing. Cherié and Joélle told me (when they got back to the RV last night) that the machine was set at 12 respirations per minute, but he was breathing at 20! I asked if they had seen any purple. On the ventilator screen, there are squiggly yellow and green lines that move along as the machine breathes, and they turn purple when the boy does any respiration on his own. The taller the jump in the line, the more air is moving into his lungs. The machine's "breaths" are about 1.5 inches tall on the screen. We occasionally have seen small, eighth- or quarter-inch bumps in the line that turn purple, so what I was asking was whether the boy was drawing the breath, and if so, how strong they were. They excitedly told me that the purple bumps were more than an inch tall! Joélle asked Connor if he was doing that, and he said "I'm doing it on purpose"!

He stopped it shortly thereafter, and the machine settled back into the 12 respirations per minute again, but we all took that as a very encouraging sign, that Connor was able to signal muscles to pump his lungs. I do not know if the diaphragm was involved, and it still seems to be a voluntary action rather than autonomic, but it's a step in the right direction. So I praise God for that step.

Other prayers answered -

- Alan has obtained a ride down today. Thank you, all who offered!
- Spirit West Coast has agreed to refund 90% of our cost for the tickets and campsite, so I have sent the tickets back to them via FedEx. As a word of clarification, the impression I originally received from them, and which I passed on to you, was that I could expect to have 50% of our cost returned, and was told that the manager of the box office would work with us to arrange anything more than that. I didn't intend to convey that this was a heartless decision on their part - they didn't owe me anything. I knew when I bought the tickets that SWC has a no refund policy, so I went into the discussion with the knowledge that anything at all was a better refund than I was owed. But I admit I had hoped for more than I perceived I had been offered, which is why I decided to try to bless someone else with the tickets. Thankfully, and to SWC's credit, they contacted me quickly when the misunderstanding came to their attention, and we got it all straightened out. I want to specifically thank Juliane and Ginger at SWC for their efforts on our behalf, as well as their willingness to work with me in this unusual situation.

They also have passed Connor's situation and website on to their prayer chain, which is very, very appreciated!

We'll be heading over to see the boy soon. I'll make sure to post up as soon as something comes along. For now, please remember how desperately we covet your continued prayers for Connor's recovery.