Tuesday

Elizabeth is just not quite ready to wake up. As I said in the last post, sedation meds were lowered early this morning. Throughout the day Elizabeth showed signs of waking.... but has still not opened her eyes. She was turning her head from side to side, had a strong grip in her hands, bends her arms and legs and appears to have good motor function.  Only God knows why she hasnt woken up just yet. Later this afternoon, Elizabeth was sedated again so that her body can rest and continue to heal.  Tomorrow they will try this system again and we must again pray that she wakes up.

The sedatives that she is given during the day are much weaker than the "sleeping meds" she has to have a night. The light sedative, Versed, is given to allow her to wake up slowly and gradually while relaxing her enough to not fight the breathing tube. Elizabeth is getting a little too excited even with this low sedative but is still not opening her eyes. The doctors thought it best to give her the "sleeping meds" again around 3:00 so that her body will be in its most restful state and begin to heal.

Many have asked about the ventilator. Elizabeth is breathing on her own. (Still a HUGE praise!) Since she is not awake, the breathing tube is being left in purely as a backup. Should she stop breathing, which is NOT anticipated, it is easier to already have her intubated. Once her eyes are open and basic commands with her eyes can be followed, the tube can be removed.

Are you ready to pray??? Good. God is hearing our prayers and many prayers have been answered. Lets start first with Praising God for what He has done:

PRAISE. Elizabeth has good motor function.  She is very much active and moving her body.

PRAISE: Elizabeth has not taken any steps "backward" which is common with head injuries. She has continued to breathe on her own, and there have have been no new injuries develop.

PRAISE: The scans and bloodwork that they continue to do on Elizabeth daily are all coming back good. She has not needing any more blood since the initial transfusion yesterday.

Now for the prayers....

PRAY. Pray that Elizabeth would wake up. Pray that her brain would connect with the right nerves that would allow her to wake up. Pray that her beautiful eyes would open and that they would be responsive to the Dr's tests. When she can do this they can remove the ventilator. Being able to remove the ventilator would be a big step in the right direction.

PRAY. Pray that the mechanisms that make up Elizabeth's mind... her personality, her desires,memory, her mannerisms etc. would be protected by God's mercy. We need to petition prayerfully to God that Elizabeth is the same sweet person when she wakes up.

The family and friends of Elizabeth are thankful for the prayers surrounding them. They are a family of prayer and there are amazing stories of prayers being lifted all over the world. We must continue to pray and more than anything... to trust our Heavenly Father.

John 14:1 "Do not let your hearts be troubled, TRUST in the Lord."