"We Love Andrea" was created to update Andrea's friends as she went through a difficult journey. After her second heart transplant when her pulse began to speed up she was given a pacemaker, then a Heart Mate II or LVAD. She was in the Stollery Children's Hospital, then the Mazankowski heart unit in Edmonton, Alberta for 7 months. However, she peacefully died on May 11, 2011 when the rest of her heart and other organs could handle the strain no longer. If you come to this blog, pray for her family and friends, remember to tell your friends you love them, then sign your organ donor card.

Saturday, January 8, 2011

Speaker Valve for 11 hours!


Just returned from Andrea's room, she just fell asleep.  Today was another full day for her, a girl cousin from Manitoba whom she is very close with, spent parts of the last two days with Andrea.  It seemed like a real incentive and diversion for Andrea.  She managed to situp for 13 minutes today in the morning and even stood briefly with lots of help, she also was on the speaker valve for almost 11 hours too.  she spoke her first words to us in more than 5 weeks too, although they were not many.  We also have a paper with the alphabet on it in big letters, and she has become very adept at spelling out whole sentences, we have to really concentrate to keep up with her to understand her thoughts and questions.  She is still on fulltime dialysis but hopefully soon it can be done only at night.  To her it feels like she has been in her situation forever and she has become quite impatient to get out.  Today her pump doctor promised that as soon as dialysis can be stopped and she is able to sit up,they will get her up in a wheelchair, and get some fresh air outside.  I think it would have a very good psychological effect on her.  Hopefully she can continue to make real progress that she can recognize and feel good about also.  Thanks to all for your encouragements and your patience in putting up with these emails, even if they become rambling and lengthy epistles.
 
Thanks, Maynard

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