Happy Holidays

Happy "Holy"days and Merry "Christ"mas to each and eveyone of you. We would like to send all of you our very best of wishes and thank you for all of your continual support and prayers. All our love...John, Sue, Chrissy, and Jen....now our gift to you....


To all of my friends...because of all of your prayers I am here and getting better everyday. Thank you for all that you have done for me. None of your generosities have gone unnoticed. My speech is improving slowly. I am still able to carry a tune. I'm still taking small steps with my walking but stay on your toes because you never know when you'll see me walking through the doors. By the way, can anyone out there tell me the truth about how my Dolphins are doing? No one seems to be giving me a straight answer...I missed the first part of the season.

Thank you to my friends & co-workers at Von Roll for everything and every wish you sent me. I really enjoyed the Chrsitmas video.

Many many thanks to all of my extended friends, family, and neighbors.

A very special thank you to Fr. Brucker, Fr. Curran, & Fr. Demartinis for visiting me and all of the special blessings, prayers, and masses you offered for me. I know God heard them!

May God bless you this Christmas season as I have truly been blessed.

Todd

14 Weeks

Hello to everyone

Here's hoping that all of you had a very blessed Thanksgiving with family and friends. Once again there isn't much new going on with Todd. Things are still progressing very slowly but Todd is very determined to get better as quickly as possible. The therapists tell us it's like looking into a crystal ball and there's no telling how long it will take for recovery or how Todd's muscles will progress. We don't go by anything but God's time so please continue to remember all of us in your prayers and we'll also remember all of you.
We would also like you to know that one of the highlights of Todd's day is when the mail comes. So thank you to all who have sent cards and letters. Trust me, they are always welcome and they keep Todd uplifted. Also, a special thank you for all of the scratch-offs. No big winners yet, but Todd gets a kick out of them. God bless to all.

87th Day

Dear friends:

Thank you again to all of you who continue to give us all your love and support. You'll never realize what a source of strength you have all been. We continue to share all of your well wishes and comments with Todd. He does know that you are all rooting him on and wishing him well. We never could have come this far without you.
Todd is progressing well with his therapy. He has lots of "homework" to do because therapy is only 3 times a week at Sunnyview. It's seven days a week at home. Todd is so motivated and determined to get better he'll do whatever it takes.
We'll start with his speech. Todd comprehends 100% what is said to him. He knows what he wants to say but he doesn't always pronounce words correctly and he isn't talking in complete sentences yet. He does seem to manage to say key words of what he wants to say.
Physical therapy is going well. Todd continues to walk with a brace on his right leg and uses a quad cane on his left side. The therapists tried to walk Todd without a brace on his right leg but his ankle was too weak to hold his weight.
Todd still has very limited movement on his right arm and hand but the occupational therapists are working hard at trying to build up Todd's muscles and they use electrodes for muscle stimulation. Todd also wears a brace on his right arm at night. All in all we are still taking baby steps but we are also grateful for any steps.
One of our bright spots this week was that mom ran into the Ferraro family at Sunnyview. This is the family who some of you might not know. They shared the waiting room with us at Albany Med. They are blessings sent from God. Mom met Joe Ferraro and was so happy to meet such a wonderful, courageous and awesome man. Like Todd, he too has a long road to recovery as does our other Albany Med waiting room roomies, the Carr's and Dana. Please continue to pray for these two other families especially Joe and Dana.
Last but not least for this blog. From our family to yours, we want to extend a very blessed Thanksgiving to each and everyone of you. We thank God everyday for all that he has done for us. This Thanksgiving especially, we have more to be thankful for than ever imaginable.
With love in Christ.

John, Susie, Chrissy, Todd, Jenn and family.

11 weeks since accident

Hello everyone

It looks like our blogs will be weekly now since there is not a whole lot of updating except for Todd's therapy sessions. Todd met with his surgeon this week for a post-op follow up visit. The surgeon was very pleased with Todd's progress and will see Todd again in 3 months. The surgeon feels that as far as the surgery went, Todd is healing nicely. Todd does not need to wear his safety helmet anymore while walking. Hip hip hooray. Therapy started on Friday 11/9. This is going to be great since we finally feel like we are beginning to make some progress. Todd's therapists mean business and Todd is ready for any challenges they throw at him.
As of now Todd is scheduled for speech, physical and occupational therapy 3 times a week. The therapies are all limited and we have to keep re-applying for insurance to pay. Thanks to God we do have a few weeks to work with right now. We'll take all we can get. Just to let you know, we have wonderful therapists working with Todd. Your thoughts, prayers and comments are very encouraging and all of them are relayed to Todd.....so he does get your comments. Thank you and keep them coming.

WEEK 1 HOME

Hello to all. Well it's been one week since Todd's homecoming and he is very happy to be home. It's definitely more comfortable than being in the hospital. Todd had two outings this week. One for speech evaluation on Monday and then one on Thursday for physical and occupational therapy. Both evaluations were done at Sunnyview. Now we sit and wait for a phone call to let us know if Todd's insurance company approves outpatient visits and then a schedule needs to be set up for the outpatient therapy. Believe that one? Todd went from 5 days a week in therapy to a week and a half of nothing, waiting on insurance approval. Please continue to pray, pray, pray that God will send us a wonderful therapist. We have no doubt he will. In the meantime we continue to do exercises at home which includes walking short distances outside when weather permits and Todd approves. It continues to be a very slow process but patience is part of our everyday now. Again, thank you to everyone for your continued support. God Bless.

Day 62--DISCHARGED!!!!!!!!!!!!

Greetings to all! We are sorry that it has been so long since our last blog. We actually wrote one this past week but it somehow got lost between writing it and getting it to the blog.
This is one blog however that we have been waiting to write. What an awesome day it has been. Todd was discharged from Sunnyview today. He will stay at Mom and Dad's until he is able to go back to his apartment.
As thrilled as we are at having Todd home, it was very sad to leave all our new friends and our safety net at Sunnyview. We truly met some extraordinary people who went above and beyond their call of duty with Todd's care. His therapists were top notch in bringing Todd to the level he is now. We are all very sad to leave them.
Todd will continue to have therapy three days a week on an outpatient basis. He will be re-evaluated next week so he will not actually start therapy for at least a full week. We have to say that this is discouraging but it is how the system works. He also will have a whole new set of therapists.
We were given exercises to do at home and will continue to do all we can to rehab Todd as much as possible at home. Todd also has many follow up appointments with the doctors.
Many many thanks to each and everyone of you who have kept us in your thoughts and prayers. Todd is overwhelmed with all the cards and well wishes he has received. We have kept a log for him and are always letting him know how many people are asking about him and praying for him.
We are so grateful for all the respect you have showed Todd during this time. Thank you for giving him his space to recover. Since many of you saw Todd at his worst in the I.C.U. at Albany Med, we look forward to the day you can see how much better he looks and what a miracle he is.
Unfortunately Todd still feels very self conscious since he can't communicate well and does not feel quite himself yet. This will only be temporary so please be patient a little longer.
We want to especially thank Todd's five "adopted" brothers who have been there for Todd and our family since the day of his accident. Without their total selfless love and support we never could have survived this ordeal. All of their love, strength and encouragement have held us up during this difficult time. You all are truly gifts from God and you are all what family is meant to be. To each and everyone of you; Bob Alescio, John and Joe Cimino, Steve Manikas and Terry McGann, we love you. God Bless.

John, Sue, Chris, Todd and Jenn

5 weeks at Sunnyview

Hello to All!

All is going well here at Sunnyview. It has been just over 7 weeks since Todd's accident and everything continues to be small baby steps. We were able to bring Todd home again this past Sunday. This past week was much more relaxed for everyone since we knew a little more what to expect. It was a very good day. Todd is doing well at therapy. He is walking with a quad cane with the assistance of therapists for his right side. He has limited mobility with his right arm but the therapists are working hard with Todd. With a brain injury patient, consistency is a must. The therapists also want to make Todd as independent as possible in order for him to go home. They are aiming for an earlier discharge rather than later.
Todd's speech continues to be minimal however he has a good level of comprehension. Todd has trouble translating what his brain is actually thinking. This is very frustrating for Todd.
Again please give thanks to the Lord for all that he has done. As wonderful as most of the health care workers have been, we know who is in charge-God.
May God continue to bless each and every one of you.

10/9 Update from Sunnyview

Greetings from Sunnyview. We've had some very positive experiences this past week. First and foremost, Todd came home on Sunday 10/7 for a day pass. He was so happy to be able to enjoy food, football and family. He made great progress in therapy yesterday. He was able to do a leg lift with his right leg for the first time---hooray!!! They continue to work him hard and furious. Today Todd's feeding tube was removed, he was thrilled.
The therapy team will be making a home visit tomorrow to make the house "Todd friendly" when he eventually comes home.
We would like to thank the Lawrence family for taking us under their wings since we have been here at Sunnyview. God certainly sends angels when you need them the most. Laureen's messages to my Mom, through Jennifer have been especially comforting and appreciated. It's that Mom to Mom bond.
To our friends the Carr's and Ferraro's, not a day goes by that you're not in our thoughts and prayers. To Joe and Dana: keep up the good work!!! We all need to heal so we can have a reunion.
Again, a great big hug and thank you to all that everyone has done for us. Please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers. We will be on the road to recovery for quite some time. However we know we are not alone. Praises to our Lord. God Bless.

Todd and Family

October 4, 2007 (Day 40)

Hello to all our faithful friends and well wishers. Things here at Sunnyview are beginning to flow a little faster and Todd is progressing wonderfully.
The team of therapists met yesterday to discuss Todd's progress. They are very pleased with how well he is doing. In fact, they are so impressed that they are shooting for a goal of being able to discharge Todd as an inpatient status in a minimum of two weeks. Believe it or not, as much as we can't wait to get Todd home we were panicked to get that news. At this point we feel that this is a little premature and almost felt like we were being rushed out but we were assured that this is not written in stone and a decision has not been made. It's simply something to strive for.
Todd is still dependent on a wheelchair and continues physical therapy in an attempt to walk. He walks with the assistance of therapists. Yesterday they fit Todd for a brace to help support his leg while walking. The brace has to be ordered and will take at least a week to arrive. Todd also wears an arm sling to keep his right arm stable. Feeling and movement on his right side is still limited. Todd is beginning to say a few words. He still gets extremely frustrated as it is very hard for him to communicate. All that is from the brain injury and this is not surprising or unexpected. The therapists say the brain has to be retrained once again to do all that it does and it will take time and patience.
Some time in the near future the therapists will go to Todd's parents house to evaluate it and make it as user friendly as possible for Todd as well as for us to be able to help care for and rehabilitate him. This arrangement will be temporary until Todd is independent enough to be on his own.
We were so happy to get a response on Todd's blog from Joshua, his sister Amber and their Mom. Thank you to all of them for being such an inspiration to our family. You will never know how much it means to us. Again, we want to thank all of you for all that you have done for us.
As you can imagine, this experience has been very draining on Todd and our entire family and we want to thank all of you for your love and support. We are very sorry that visitation for Todd is still limited but we need time for our family to spend time together as a unit. Thank you for your understanding and patience. With love in Christ, God Bless.

Todd wasn't able to go see his favorite group Heart last week like he had originally planned; however, Todd's close friends instead got Ann and Nancy Wilson of the group Heart to send an autographed get well picture to him as well as a meet and greet bracelet which will allow Todd to personally meet them the next time Todd goes to one of their concerts. Todd was thrilled and amazed and his happiness with this was a great sight. We have scanned a small copy of the signed photo at the top of the blog and a larger version can be seen by scrolling to the bottom of the blog. Thanks Joe!

Greetings from Sunnyview

Well it's almost 3 weeks here at Sunnyview and things continue to improve slowly. The weekends are quiet because Saturdays are only a half a day of therapy and Sundays are a day of rest for Todd (Just like God intended). You can tell that Todd is frustrated by not being able to communicate with us, but that will come with time. We wish there was more to update right now, but it just isn't so. Please continue your prayers, we need them just as much now.

Love and Prayers

1 month since Todd's accident

We are so happy to hear how many people are reading the blog. We are so grateful to our friends the Carr's and Ferraro's from our days at Albany Med for giving us the idea and helping us with the blog. This tragedy has given us many blessings and many new friendships. We are so grateful and overwhelmed with every one's love and prayers that have been extended to our entire family and especially Todd. We know that many of you look to the blog everyday for updates on Todd and we would love to write on it every day however this is a long road to recovery for Todd, and is slow going. There has been some confusion as to how Todd is progressing, so we'll try to update everyone as best as possible. Every Tuesday morning a group of therapists meet to discuss Todd's case. Todd is not walking on his own. At therapy, with assistance, they walk Todd twice around the gym. He uses a quad cane on his left side while the therapists stand under his right arm and physically move his right leg. He cannot move his right side at all yet. Todd was grimacing whenever anyone touched his right arm so the therapists made him an arm splint to rest his arm on when he is in his wheelchair. As of today they have put Todd on a regular diet. However, he is supervised when he eats to make sure he doesn't choke. Todd does not communicate with speech but can give yes/no answers with a thumb up or down. We know many of you have expressed interest in visiting Todd and we know how much you all care for him. The reason visitation is limited is because for a person with a brain injury like Todd's, it can be extremely frustrating and overstimulating to Todd when people visit. It isn't meant to be selfish to not allow Todd visitors but he does need time to heal properly. Priests, however are always welcome. As hard as it is for everyone, we know you all understand, and we thank you for that. On our journey here at Sunnyview we were introduced to a book that was written by the sister of a brain injury survivor who was rehabilitated here at Sunnyview. We can't believe how true to form to Todd's accident this book is. (We could have written it) The title of the book is "Our Journey with Joshua" by Amber J. Johns. The book will give great insight on what Todd is going through. All in all everyone is amazed at Todd's strength and determination. We all knew he would do great, after all he is walking with God everyday. Please continue to pray and give thanks to the Lord.

Day 12 at Sunnyview

Hello Everyone

All is going well here at Sunnyview. It's been a long and busy week. Everyday at physical therapy they are working Todd's muscles. He does manage to walk once or twice around the therapy room with the help of two assistants. His appetite is good and he is able to feed himself with his left hand. Todd has limited motion in his right arm and leg but we are all hoping that will improve with time. We are all looking forward to the day that we can bring Todd home. Visitation for Todd is still limited but we will keep everyone posted when Todd can handle more visitors.

Day 25

It has been almost 4 weeks since Todd's accident and once again we want to thank everyone for all of your kind words, generosity, well wishes and most of all, the prayers that you have extended to Todd and our family. It has been a difficult time for all of us but knowing we have such support makes things seem that much better. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
We hit a milestone today. Todd ate his first meal in three weeks. Of course it was pureed but none the less it was real food and best of all, Todd fed himself with his left hand and ate the whole dinner.
Todd remains on a vigorous schedule. He has therapy all morning then a lunch break. Then they let him rest in bed to get his energy back for his afternoon routine. During his rest they usually have one of his CD's playing so he can sleep. Today we noticed Todd tapping his foot to the music while sleeping, that's so Todd. Best of all, not only was it his left foot, but a little with his right one. Everyday is a little bit closer to recovery. Slowly but surely.
Again we extend a big thank you with a hug attached to everyone.
All of our love and prayers, John, Sue, Chris, Jenny and family. Praise to God.

Todd has been moved to his own private and quiet room.

Sunnyview Rehabilitation Center, Rm. 377
1270 Belmont Ave
Schenectady, NY 12308
1270 Belmont Ave

1st week at Sunnyview

To all our friends and supporters:

Tomorrow will be one week since Todd was transferred to Sunnyview Hospital and just over three weeks since his accident. We can't say enough great things about the people we have encountered. There is no doubt that God does send angels to surround and protect you.
Todd has a great team of people who actually work as a team to get Todd rehabilitated. Like we said earlier, they work him hard and they work him long so he is very tired..
They are beginning to work his muscles to build his strength and he is beginning to respond to some simple commands.
Todd's tracheotomy tube was removed yesterday. Although he is unable to speak, a speech therapist will be working with him.
We continue to trust in God and pray for a complete recovery. The unfortunate news for today is that the Dolphins are not on any of the TV stations Todd gets in his room. Todd will have to work that much harder to get out of the hospital to root his team on. Thank you all again for respecting the no visitor policy for Todd.

Todd at Sunnyview

Todd has settled in nicely at Sunnyview. Everyone here at the hospital is very nice and optimistic for a great recovery. Todd is on a very vigorous, exhausting schedule. His days start early with therapy and he is usually exhausted once the day is done. Todd is definitely not afraid of hard work and we know he gives it his all when the therapists work with him. His progress is slow but steady. Once again, we thank all of you for your continuous thoughts and prayers. It overwhelms us how so many people who haven't even met Todd are praying and giving us such encouragement. All the people who know Todd and even those who may have never met him personally truly hold a special place in our hearts. As much as we appreciate the love and concern for Todd in knowing how many people have requested to see him, the rehab team believes that at this point it is in Todd's best interest for us to allow him time to get back on track himself. We all know how private a person Todd is. We know God will always continue to be with Todd and walks this walk with him.
During our two week stay at Albany Med, we were blessed to have met two wonderful families. The families of Joe Ferraro and Dana Carr. Their families as well as their friends were a constant source of strength and support to us. They will be life-long friends and will never be out of our hearts and prayers. While praying for Todd please keep Joe and Dana and their families in your prayers as they too need support in these trying times. This is a prime example of how God has people's paths cross. Thoughts and prayers can be sent to Dana and Joe through the following websites: http://www.danacarrupdate.blogspot.com/ http://www.joesprogress.blogspot.com/

All our Love

9/10 Todd leaves Albany Med

Todd was transferred this morning by ambulance to Sunnyview Rehabilitation Center in Schenectady. This is great news but a little frightening because it is out of our comfort zone. He is settled in nicely but it will definitely be a change in routine. Sunnyview is assessing Todd and is setting up a plan of care for him. We are still discouraging visitors at this time. The Sunnyview staff will be having a vigorous routine for Todd and they want him to rest as much as possible. Being that Todd's progress will be slow to start, we will be updating this website every 2-3 days. Thank you all again for everything and please continue to pray for Todd. We know God is with him every "baby" step of the way.

Todd's mailing address

Sunnyview Rehabilitation Center, Room 375
1270 Belmont Ave.
Schenectady, NY 12308

9/9 Update

God is with us in our daily walk......Everyday is a gift from God and everyday is another step closer to recovery for Todd. This morning the nurse told us that Todd responded to some simple commands. This was great news. Todd slept most of the day but is continuing to open his eyes a little more frequently. The OR nurse came to see how Todd was doing because two weeks ago Todd was in a life or death situation. She said "God must have great plans for Todd". Oh don't we know it.

9/8 Update

Another day at Albany Med. Todd was placed on triple antibiotics today for some lower lobe pneumonia. He however did break out in a rash from one of the antibiotics, so transfer to Sunnyview may be delayed for a day or so. They gave Todd some benadryl so he did not open his eyes as much today. We are not sure how much he is aware of when he does open his eyes.
Dr's say everything takes time. "baby steps." Todd did move his fingers on his right hand today. They decreased Todd's oxygen to see how he will tolerate it.
Again we thank you all for your continuous support and especially prayers. Nothing you do goes unnoticed. God Bless. GO DOLPHINS!!!

9/7 Update

To all of our support group,

Todd had an eventful day today. He started to open his eyes, we do not know how focused he is though. He cannot follow commands yet. He is beginning to have a little more movement on his left side, he even tried cracking his knuckles with one hand. He reacted to stimulus on his right arm and leg but it is not as strong as his left side.

The Pulmonary doctor was in today also. They will restart antibiotic treatment because they are worried about pneumonia. They will also do a chest cat scan to monitor for blood clots in his lungs. The chest x-ray thus far looked good.
A Sunnyview representative was in today to discuss tentatively moving Todd to Sunnyview on Monday so they can get rehab started as soon as possible. This will happen as long as he remains stable and doesn't hit any bumps in the road.
As of now we are discouraging visitors at Sunnyview. We all want what is best for Todd and the Dr's do not want over stimulation, for we don't know when Todd fully awakens what he'll recognize or remember. You can imagine how frightening that would be to anyone in this situation. We all want to respect Todd's dignity and privacy. We will however keep you posted and updated on Todd's progress. We thank you all for your understanding. Please continue to pray for Todd and our family during this road to recovery. We accept this challenge as we know God will be with us every step of the way. God's Blessings to all.

9/6 Update

Dear Friends,
Although Todd remains in a coma he is beginning to move his extremities slowly and open his eyes slightly. He is still breathing with assist of oxygen. The doctors are very pleased with his progress thus far.
The best news of the day is Todd was moved out of ICU and onto a step down unit where he is still being monitored closely. We thank you for your support and understanding in that visitation for Todd is minimal. We know that you'll understand and give Todd a chance to heal.
As always, we praise God for all of his blessings. God Bless.

9/5 Update from I.C.U.

Hello everyone.

God sure does love us. Great day today for all of us. Todd continued to sleep through it but to update all of our old and new friends here it goes:

Todd was taken off the ventilator and given a tracheotomy to receive oxygen through it and to keep an open airway. He was also given a feeding tube through his stomach to keep him well nourished. Doctors are pleased thus far with Todd's progress. He continues to improve everyday. We thank you for your continuous support and prayers. Please continue to Pray! Pray! Pray! God is Good. He hears each and everyone of you.

9/4 I.C.U. update

Todd is beginning to show some subtle signs of improvement. We are very happy to see that Todd began to move his lower extremities today. Although Todd's sedation has been turned off, Todd has decided not to wake up yet. As much as we are very appreciative of all the the company that Todd has received, the Dr's. have requested that we keep visitation to a minimum. We know that all of you will understand and we encourage you to keep posted of Todd's progress through this blogsite. Please continue to pray. Every day is one step closer to recovery. God Bless.

P.S. Thoughts and responses to each blog can be expressed by clicking on the comments tab at the end of each blog.

9/3 Update from the I.C.U.

Todd

* breathing on his own with ventilator backup

* vital signs are stable

* beginning to show signs of upper extremity movement

* his sedation level has been decreased

Thanks to All

To all our friends, family, and well wishers -
We can't thank everyone enough for all of the thoughts and best wishes that everyone has extended to us during this very difficult time for Todd and our family.
All of your thoughts, cards, food and the best of all, your prayers have been such a source of comfort and strength. Your continuous generosities have not gone unnoticed.
We are looking forward to the day when we can tell Todd how many lives he has touched and how loved he is.
Please continue to keep Todd in your prayers. We know that everything happens for a reason and that God is with Todd.
Until Todd can thank you himself, we would like to once again say thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Our God is an Awesome God. May God watch over each and every one of you and bless you as abundantly as he has truly blessed us and continues to watch over us.
All of our love and prayers,

John, Susie, Chrissy, Jenny, and Family.

Mailing Address for Todd

Albany Medical Center Hospital
43 New Scotland Ave
Albany, NY 12208
Bldg. D, Rm 558H

9/2 update from I.C.U.

Nurse Rebecca told Susie K. that Todd had a positive pain reaction in both hands but not yet in his lower extremities. Please continue to keep Todd in your thoughts and prayers because we know that the Lord is our Divine physician.

Chris and Susie

1st Week - 8/26/07 through 9/2/07

We've started this blog to update everyone on Todd's progress as he makes his way through his rehab.

On Sunday August 26th Todd was out biking on W. Old State Rd in Guilderland and had an accident. Although he was wearing a helmet, (which the Dr. said saved his life) he still ended up in the ER at Albany Med with head trauma. He went to surgery that evening because of bleeding and contusions on his brain. He is in a medically induced coma.

He had a second surgery on Thursday August 30th to relieve pressure on his brain. Since his second surgery, his condition has improved to the point where all pressure monitors and dresssings have been removed. He is currently still in a medically induced coma so his brain can continue to heal.

Check back periodically for updates.


Steve and Joe