Saturday's Update on Samuel

Samuel is heading to surgery. They are not sure what is wrong. They had a long night in the ER, but were put in a room at 3:45 this morning. They have Samuel on morphine for the pain. We are very frustrated with Memorial Hermann and with Samuel. Apparently Dr. Kozar is not there anymore because no one even knows who we are talking about. One of tubes from Samuel's kidneys hasn't had much of an output on three days and he's never mentioned that at all. He has not been in the best frame of mind the last few weeks, which is why I haven't posted an update. He has definitely been exercising his rights as an adult and doesn't think he needs to listen to us when we feel that he is overdoing it. He hides his pain, but we see him wrenching when he thinks no one is looking. We are now in control of all his meds because he was not taking them right.  He is obviously in deep depression and we are all just trying to hold it together until his big surgery in Baltimore on May 2nd. I think we've been in survival mode for so long that we can't even remember what life was like before the accident and all that followed.  He has been sleeping in a chair in his room for a month now, and says he can't sleep in his bed because of the pain.  I guess in some ways being at the hospital is a blessing because it will force the doctors into re-evaluating his situation and hopefully give us some direction in trying to get him back on the right track. I understand that he just wants his life back, but he is so medically fragile right now that he just can't really be taking any risks. He wants to go to the shows and see his friends, to go the movies with his brothers and sisters, and to teach youth group without being in pain. Unfortunately that isn't happening and his body is telling him to slow down, which in his case might mean stopping for now being that his life is already very slow paced at this time.  The May surgery seems like an eternity to him now, but he has to take care of himself for them to even be able to do surgery then. When Samuel was in STICU, the doctors explained that we may face times like this, especially since he wouldn't have the major surgery until the fall.  Well now he isn't having that surgery until one full year after the accident and I think it is really taking a toll on him.  Please keep all this in your prayers.  I will post another update when we know more.