Staff Sgt Jason Ross - Marine

Jason was fitted for his new seat today, and that should be a major step towards being able to really get into his rehab. We went over to see him this morning and we brought George (III) with us this time. George came in last night, quite late (he must have been on the last flight in for Southwest), so needless to say he got to bed late too. Funny thing is, he is very much like me when it comes to sleeping. I get to bed late and still wake up early, and so does George. I had just gotten out of bed this morning when he called me and wanted to know when we were coming over to pick him up... He wanted to go see Jason! I told him that Mom and I had to still get up and get dressed, and then we'd be over. When we got to the hotel he was waiting outside, so we basically just stopped to let him get in and then we were off. As it turned out, Jason had already gone to PT and was just getting back when we got there. Fortunately I had told Jason that we would probably be a little late, si...

Well, things are starting to really fall into place now. Linda and I took Jason down to the Healthy Back to select a bed for his new bedroom. Actually, it was kind of funny, when you think about it. The folks responsible for putting everything together so he can move into a new home have been putting mild pressure on us to pick out a bed, because it takes a few weeks to get it ordered. Well, we got to the point of ordering the bed and was told we can't order a bed until we have an address - and we don't have that yet as we are still waiting on those same people mentioned earlier. As soon as we do get a final address we'll be able to quickly order the bed and it should arrive shortly after we have moved in. Another thing that has come up is the creation of a custom seat for his chair, and possibly for his prosthetic, when that is finally built. Tomorrow they will take an "impression" of Jason's bottom and create a seat that provides the best support for him. I ...

Today was a pretty good day for Jason, as he started the day out with his breakfast, and then took a shower. It was the second shower he has taken, and despite our best efforts, it went more smoothly than we could have expected. There was a great deal of confusion as to what the schedule was going to be, since there were a number of things that needed to be done. 1-Shower, 2-Work with OT, 3-Work with PT, 4-Coordinate other activity with the medical staff. Well, the PT person called in sick so that goofed up the plans a bit, and then OT had to go work with another patient, so then she was going to have to come back. Actually her coming back was going to be better, as it gave Jason a little time to get ready. The shower must have been wonderful for Jason because once he got in to the shower he sure didn't hurry to get back out. Once he did finish and then get dried off he had to have a new set of dressing put on his wounds. I took a good look at them and they are all starting to lo...

Not much to report on today. Jason went to PT, later in the morning. Still working on his balance and doing some strengthening moves. Then he headed back to his room, where he stayed the rest of the day. We originally talked about getting outside for a little today, but then it started raining, so we stayed in side. Funny thing is, a movie came on that seemed appropriate, at least a little bit, "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs." We also watched a little football, Jason played his video/computer game, and slept. Along with all that he did have a visitor, Patrick, from Okinawa. Well, he really wasn't from Okinawa, that's just where Jason and Patrick originally met, when they were both attached to the EOD team there. Patrick is now with the Fist EOD Company and out of Camp Pendleton. It was a nice visit, and though I think Jason enjoys Mom and Dad being there, I think he enjoys even more when he sees one of his fellow EOD brothers. They tend to speak a different lang...

Today was another Saturday, much like last Saturday. Got up and had breakfast; talked a little and then went on to PT, weekend PT that is. The philosophy (I think) is to be sure that Jason gets a chance to do something, other than just lay around in his bed. This is fine, except that the PT person brought in to work with Jason is unaware of what Jason's needs are, and so far they have not taken the time to really familiarize themselves with Jason's file, or what really should be worked on. Don't get me wrong, the weekend team is trying to do what's right for Jason, and at no time is Jason in any danger of being injured, its just that the same basic questions get asked, and it feels like we just go round and round, over the same material. Jason is cooperative, and goes through the exercises, mostly because its something to do, and the sessions don't last much longer than 30 - 45 minutes anyway. And that's how we started the day today. Instead of going back to h...

Another building day for Jason, as he went early to the gym with the OT therapist. She isn't very big (can't weigh more than 100 lbs.) yet she can get Jason working and sweating pretty good, with some simple routines; and, she is supposed to be the lighter workout person. Jason was on his way to the gym at about 08:30 this morning, and he went over on his prone cart. There are some benefits to being on the cart, as it allows him time to lay face-down, exposing the wounds to a little more air, and it gets the pressure off of them for a little while. The real good aspect of all his workouts and moving from bed to cart (or chair) and then to the gym, is that he is getting better and smoother with each attempt. The OT work lasted for well over an hour, and then PT came in to the picture. She made the comment that next time she wanted to get Jason before he was worn out. She could see he was already sweating pretty good when she got there. The efforts that she wanted to work on with...

Jason's day started out a little different than other days. Not because he had breakfast with Mom and Dad - which he did, in his room; and, not because of special visitors - which he had. It started differently because right after breakfast, his OT (occupational therapist) came in and said she wanted to work on some different skills today. Well, the different skills turned out to be learning how to take a shower. The plan, originally, was to get dressed and head over to the gym with OT and then later work with PT and come back to his room. What happened was that the wound care team came in and said they wanted to do a dressing change, and that is what we did. As it turned out, I did all the bandage removal, and that went well. Then one of them, I really don't know who, suggested that Jason should consider taking a shower today, to help with the healing. We all, including Jason, though it was a good idea so OT did an immediate change of plans, and started working on Jason taking...