March 15, Home again!

Taylor is back home again!

March 12, Back in the hospital

I just heard from Taylor and he has been re-admitted for pneumonia and is being pumped full of antibiotics! He went in b/c of labored breathing, nausea, vomiting, and fever.

He is in room 7122 and can have visitors.

March 9, Going home!

Taylor was moved back to the Trauma Unit after what we were told was a Grand Mal Seizure, and then later to the 6th floor IMCU Unit. March 8th he was moved to room 6118 with no Trach and no set visiting hours and I was informed today that he's going HOME either today or tomorrow!!

March 3, Rough day..

I've gotten behind on these posts, sorry everyone! I'll post the text messages as I have them...

Feb 26th: Waiting on orders to move to the 6th floor step down unit IMCU. He will be there by tomorrow. New visiting hours were listed.

March 2nd: Taylor is being moved to room 19 of IMCU, same part of unit he was moved to Friday just a different room. He does have vocal damage that happened during heart surgery.

March 2nd: Later that day: TAYLOR IS FREE OF THE TRACH! He's now on nasal canula oxygen. Meaning it's given thru regular tubing in his nose now. Dr. said vocal damage can be fixed later. Not sure what happens next but this is a miracle in my book! Moving along at record speed.

Today 7:48AM Taylor is back on the 4th floor in Trauma ICU. Had to put the TRACH back in. He started losing oxygen and couldn't breathe. Dr's called a code on him. Memaw happened to be in the room when he began thrashing around in bed unable to breathe and ran to get the nurses. No alarm went off. Visiting hours are different only 30 minutes.

February 25, We're walking!

Got a text this morning from Lisa, Taylor walked 50ft this morning! The vent is down to 30 from 35 and will go to a step down unit when off of the vent.

They will have the trache for a while.

They are adding a feeding tube back in to help out where he isn't eating enough.

He's not going home for a while, that seems to be the FAQ I get right now.

= )

February 17, Walking a little & visitation

I talked with Lisa, Taylor's Mom, today. She was at the Blood Drive they had for him today in Whitwell. Taylor is stable. He's still frustrated and can not talk for the ventilator. He has been walking a little bit in the mornings! It's a few steps but a few steps in the right direction!

Lisa said we can start visitation but on a first come first serve basis. We will start with this Friday the 19th and Monday the 22nd from 9PM-10PM, use the phone to the Nurses' station to see if it's okay to come back. They will take two visitors at a time.

Lisa's phone number is 423-326-5298, text her ahead of time, if you can, to see if there is room.

We'll see how these two visitations go before scheduling any more, please stay tuned...

Taylor is still very emotional and gets frustrated and overwhelmed easily. (I can not even imagine what he is going thru!) We need to be sure to be POSITIVE, calm, and LOVING. If you are faint at heart I would suggest waiting for a little while longer to see him. If you come to visit please be sure you have not had any kind of cold, virus, bug, or sickness in a good week or so!

Lisa gave me permission to go see him tonight. I will be taking him the video from the Blood Drive for him to see for the first time. = ) I'll update when I'm done.

Much Love,
Lesha

February 11, Sitting up!

Lisa told me yesterday that Taylor is very emotional right now and does not remember the wreck. He's still on the vent so he can't talk and they've been reading his lips. He is FINALLY STABLE!

He is still too weak for visitors, she will let me know when he's up for them.

The family is holding a second Blood Drive for him at Whitwell Elementary on February 18th from 11:30AM-6:30M EASTERN TIME.

Text from today:
Taylor is sitting up in a chair for a while today. WBC still high, HnH too low so have have more blood. Lungs are still awful so he remains on vent.

February 10, TAYLOR'S AWAKE!!

Text: He's good and awake. Wanted me (Lisa, his Mom) to write my cell phone number down before I left, said he didn't know it. He wants to go home and a Pepsi.

PRAISE GOD!!

= )

February 9, He's getting feisty...

Text 12:57PM: Taking his last chest tube out today and turning down the setting on the vent.

Text 5:48PM: Taylor pulled out his feeding tube before the last visit. Made a BIG mess so he's being restrained again and he's mad at the world!!

Text 5:54PM: He worked to get his hand up there and pulled it. They had a hard time getting it back in.

February 8, Progress

I apologize for the lack of updates... the Blood Drive was a great success! We had 64 donors sign up and were able to obtain 62 units!! A good average for a Donation Bus is 27 units and we did that by lunch time! Thank you to all that came out to help, donate, and support Taylor. We also raised $165 cash for Taylor.

Taylor is at a hurry up and wait status. Temperature is down and staying down. He's coming of the dialysis for now and another chest tube is coming out as well as the heart cath. He may need another unit of blood. He's in a lot of pain.

Keep PRAYING for our Tay-Tay!

Februaru 2, Radio Interview & Blood Drive

Hello again friends!

We want to thank Zack, Rebecca, and the Brewer Media Group for having us on the show today, Tara and I had a great time. We will be calling in tomorrow at 4PM, during the drive, for a quick update on the Blood Drive so please tune in tomorrow!

The donor sign up sheet is half way full and we would like to fill in the remaining spots tonight!

http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=0AoVczoUEGUJgdFJEOEZHel9wTUZrRkdjREktcXJkU2c&hl=en

Our sponsor Big River will be giving out 10% off coupons for all of the donors as well as providing snacks for the donors, and lunch for the volunteers and Blood Drive employees. Thank you to Craig Barrett and the entire Big River Family!

For any additional information please call or email me at:
Cell: 423-667-7533
leshaphoto@gmail.com

Taylor remains about the same since the last update, still on the ventilator and trying to find the source of the infection. His bed has been changed to one that helps prevent bed sores. The family will be stopping by the Blood Drive tomorrow, they will be wearing ribbons with Taylor's photo on them.

Keep praying for our Taylor!

Februaru 2, Radio announcement

Tara Morris and I will be on 95.3 WPLZ today to talk about Taylor's Blood Drive at 4:00PM today!

February 1,

Text from Lisa: Taylor is now on 40% O2, which means he's doing 60% himself on the ventilator! Blood level low, may have to give him blood in a few hours. Watching his O2 saturation to determine that. Just have to wait it out.

Taylor's blood type is O Neg.

Blood Drive is in 2 days!

February 1, Off paralysis meds

Text from Lisa: He's off paralysis meds, now waiting for that to wear off. Still on pain meds. Off the oscillator, back on original ventilator on high setting. Still has an infection they can't get rid of. Trying to find the source.

January 31, Slow progress & Blood Drive in full swing!

I spoke with Lisa, Taylor's Mom, briefly tonight before visitation. We're still at a watch and wait position...

He has developed Pneumonia, which was to be expected with how weak his lungs are. He is on an anti-biotic for this.

Fever went up some but is back down to 99 degrees, it changes with every visitation.

He has been taken off of the Depravan, which is GOOD. He is still totally sedated but was given a "sedation vacation" today for a couple of hours where they take him off of full sedation. He is showing response in small but significant ways, the numbers of his status changed, he flinched slightly while the family was speaking to him, and two of his fingers moved while Lisa was holding his hand and talking to him. It's small but shows us that he's still in there and still fighting!!

The head of the Trauma Team is still confident of his eventual recovery. It could be 2 years before his lungs are totally healed. The team is also considering doing a tracheotomy in a couple of days. Not sure if they will wait until he off of the ventilator machine to perform that yet or not.

There is some blockage in the right lung but they think he will be able to excrete that himself. He is tolerating a reduction in ventilation reduction, which is a very small reduction rate at a time, making his lungs work a little more each time to see how they react.

We do have a MILESTONE! He is now 7 days out from the aorta surgery repair and are no longer worried about complications from that. Praise God!!

We ran into Neal Pascal and his wife at the Ronald McDonald House, they were there volunteering at the front desk, and Tara B-lined for him in true Tara form! He gave us his e-mail address to send him a press release for the Blood Drive. Tara and I are at her house now working on details for the drive.

To sign up to donate please visit this link and fill out your name and number:
http:
//spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=0AoVczoUEGUJgdFJEOEZHel9wTUZrRkdjREktcXJkU2c&hl=en

Please stay tuned, hopeful, and prayerful for our Tay-Tay!

Blood Drive Sign-up Sheet

Here is the link to sign up for a time slot for the Blood Drive:

http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=0AoVczoUEGUJgdFJEOEZHel9wTUZrRkdjREktcXJkU2c&hl=en

We welcome EVERYONE! There will be maps available to the Blood Bank about 1 mile away for any overflow.

Come on out and support Taylor!!

January 30, Fever is down

Text from Lisa: Just got back from visiting Taylor. The oscillator seems to be improving his lung function a tad. Dialysis is doing its job in tiny bits. FEVER IS DOWN! Hanging in there. No change from last visit. BP up so they pulled some excess fluids that brought it down. Did find out the infection in is the lungs only, not the blood.

January 29, Holding

Lisa texted to let me know he remains the same. No news is good news!

January 29, Stable but fragile

Today is our friend Katie Kerr's birthday... we lost her in May of last year to a drunk driver. It was a complete devastation to the Big River Family, which is such a key part of why we are all so close, and I know that Taylor would want us to celebrate it!

She's in our hearts every time we think of him.

As well as Chuck.

As well as Susie.

Our Family lost a few precious ones over the last year and we're not ready to lose this one! Taylor... hold on baby, we'll get through this.

So, the family has been placed in the Ronald McDonald House which has to be such a relief after a week of that waiting room! Visitation hours there are a strict 9AM-9PM; I had to stand outside with Lisa for the latest update because it was past 9PM. She's such a sweetie!

The previous blog was short because it was from a text, so here's more details from that:

The anti-biotic they had him on was putting too much strain on his kidneys, making his BP drop, causing complications. A low grade dialysis machine has been brought in to help circulation and drain fluid. They are keeping close watch on his vitals, hour by hour, watching each symptom as it comes and adjusting with each one.

Lisa said we are not at dyer straights, it's a see-saw/roller coaster. He's stable but fragile. He's OK but not critical.

Pray. Pray. Pray.

January 28, Bad night

I received a text from Lisa: Had a bad night but stable now. Taking things one hour at a time.

The family has moved to the Ronald McDonald House.

That's all I know at the moment.

I will be going by there after visitation where I can get more details.

Pray for him.

January 27, Progress, change of ventilator

Lisa, Taylor's Mom, told me today that Taylor is doing a little better than yesterday. The Doctor said not to even ask for a possible date of when it would all be over, we're just in a waiting game.

They changed him from a ventilator to an oscillator to be able to get more oxygen, at 100% oxygen, into the smaller regions of his lungs. Since they changed him over his HR and BP have improved 110%!

She also said his color has improved. He is still in SICU and they are getting stricter on visitors, allowing family only. I try to go by during times they are not visiting with him.

Family visitation hours:
4AM-5AM
10AM-11AM
4PM-5PM
8:30PM-10PM

So, if you are going by to visit with the family be aware that they will probably with Taylor during these times.

Keep praying! = )

Blood Drive February 3rd!

Did you know that 10 donations can save up to 30 lives?!

The Chattanooga Blood Bank is in dyer need of all blood types. I've been told that they have been having to buy units from other resources to fill Chattanooga's needs. They are so grateful and excited about Taylor's Blood Drive next week!

When: Wednesday February 3rd
11AM-2PM and 3:20PM-7:20PM

Where: In front of Rhythm & Brews, behind Big River
http://www.rhythm-brews.com/directions.asp


What to expect:

• Banner to sign for Taylor to later hang in his room
• Video message station to send Love to Taylor
• Sweets & snacks for after the donation
• Donation bucket
  

Be Sure to:

• Allow yourself an hour for the entire process
• Wear short sleeves
• Drink plenty of water
• Bring your driver's license or two forms of ID
• Eat a healthy meal before, avoid fatty foods

How: There is currently a sign-up sheet posted in the back hallway of Big River.

We can take 3 donors every 20 minutes. I will watch the sign-up sheet the next couple days and then post what times are still available. Maps to the Downtown Blood Bank will be on hand if there is an overflow of donors.

Big River people: Please sign up ASAP so we know what slots are open.

If you are not able to make it out, but still want to donate, feel free to drop into one of the area Blood Banks and donate in Taylor's name.


The registration area will be located in the Blue Room, the banquet room in the back of Blue Water accessible from Market Street. Parking will be available, though limited and for the donation time only, for donors in the Republic lot next to Blue Water!

Not big on needles? Not able to donate? Come on down and show support anyway! We will also have a donation bucket available that will go directly to Taylor. His family will be coming out to show support as much as they can.

Never donated before? Here a few links to know what to expect:

http://www.givelife2.org/donor/process.asp
http://www.redcrossblood.org/donating-blood/first-time-donors
http://www.redcrossblood.org/donating-blood/tips-successful-donation
http://www.redcrossblood.org/donating-blood/eligibility-requirements

Have you had a tattoo or piercing in the last year? I have gone to the Tattoo Studio before and gotten a form stating that they are certified with the state of Tennessee. The tattoo or piercing does have to be completely healed before the donation.

http://tattoo.about.com/cs/articles/a/blood_donation.htm

Please come out and support Taylor any way that you can!

January 26, A message from the family

Tara Morris and I are here with Taylor's uncle John and his Great Aunt Glenda in the SICU waiting room. We dropped in to give them a Blood Drive poster and show them the blog.

John has finally convinced Lisa, Taylor's Mom, to go home for a night for the first time since Thursday and get a good night's rest. I don't know if you have ever spent time in one of these waiting rooms but a good night's sleep is nearly impossible.

The asked us to give you all a message:

"We wanted us to tell you all THANK YOU SO MUCH for the thoughts, prayers, and support! We are overwhelmed by the incredible outpouring and demonstrations of LOVE for Taylor! A special thank you to the Big River Family. Keep the collective good will and positive energy coming. We all, especially Taylor, are remarkably grateful, aware, and receiving every conscious healing thought. With Love and unyielding HOPE."

-Taylor's Family

They said they will stop by the Blood Drive on Wednesday for as long as they can.

-Lesha

January 26, take a deep breath for Taylor!

I tried to stop in today in time to catch them before visitation but had just missed them so I went up to SICU. Visitation is limited to family at this point but they had taken me up once before, so I tried to not intrude.

I had printed out his Facebook page so the family could see all the wonderful and beautiful messages his friends have been posting. I thought they could read them to him as well.

Their faces were more grave than usual... his Uncle stepped out to tell me his condition and then I took off so they could have their time with him.

He told me that he had taken a turn for the worse today. It's going to be a rollercoaster... he has ARDS which is fluid in his Alveoli, a gland in the lungs.

See link:
https://health.google.com/health/ref/Acute+respiratory+distress+syndrome

They had been suspect of Pneumonia, and testing for it, but are confident that the ARDS is the cause. They went in with a scope to clean out the Bronchial Tubes but the scope can not reach the Alveoli.

He has been put under a deeper sedation, they had been slowly bringing him out, to help him relax and have changed the ventilator to a more aggressive setting to get more oxygen into the lungs. There isn't much they can do for the fluid other than get oxygen in there.

***Disclaimer: I am not a Doctor or any kind of medical professional. I am relaying information from the family.

The Doctor is still confident, this just extends his time in the hospital which will be longer than originally expected. His vitals are still good as well as his blood pressure! The surgeon is happy with his progress as well.

He's young... the Doctor said a man in his 50's would not have survived this.

Again, keep praying! Pray however it is that you pray. There is power in that!

Close your eyes, picture his smile, and take a long, deep breath.

Feel your breath and meditate on this miracle that we take for granted every day.

Then, SEE Taylor taking a deep breath. SEE his lungs free, clear, and healthy. SEE him better than ever!

The Blood Drive is scheduled for Wednesday the 3rd. Details in the next posting.

In Him,
Lesha

January 25, continuing good progress

Hey guys,

I just talked to Taylor's mom on the phone. She said they have plenty of food, snacks, and drinks for now. They're pretty tired but making it thru.

They are bringing him out slowly, a little more everyday... she said he is resting well and the fever is down. ( he had a slight fever the other day, I may have forgotten to post that) He is responding more, a little more each time they see him, making faces and being a little stubborn.. imagine that, Taylor making faces and being stubborn! Who knew..? ; )

I am waiting on the call back from the Blood Assurance people, trying to make that happen this week.

= )
Lesha

January 24, healing gradually and stable

Hey guys,

I just went by the hospital armed with food and deserts from the restaurant. His mom likes the smokey chicken pasta... = )

We found out a few more details. The wreck happened Thursday around 8PM during that nasty hail/rain storm that came down that night. The lady that hit him refused medical attention and left the scene after the police gathered information from her, and they've not heard from her since. No one was ticketed or charged from the wreck.

He is improving slowly but steadily. They have taken him off 2 of the medications he was on and keeping his blood pressure and heart rate stable.

Last time they went in to see him he did open his eyes, on his own, but they couldn't tell if he was focusing on anything or not.. more like he's in and out, but not quite in all the way. He is responding to them though! He slightly squeezed his Mom's hand while she was talking to him.

Also, he has been moving his legs slightly on his own. He had propped one of his legs up, cutting off one of the hundreds tubes running out of him and they were able to talk him into cooperating to relax the leg so they could straighten it back out.

So, he is responding and improving gradually. They're still not bringing him out of sedation yet, which is good b/c he's in an insane amount of pain right now.

Keep up the prayers for fast healing and a better than ever Taylor!

♥
Love,

January 23 First details of condition and wreck

Hey guys,

Sorry if this is a repeat, I figured out an easier way keep you all updated so a few may get this message twice. The first part may be redundant but I want to cover all the bases for those that haven't been at work or have moved on to work other places.

If you haven't already heard, Taylor was T-boned by a truck 2 nights ago and is in critical condition at Erlanger in the SICU. He suffered severe internal injuries and has had two major operations, one removing his spleen and the second to reattach his aorta. His heart did stop during the second surgery but was resuscitated, THANK GOD!

I went by the hospital again today. He is responding to pain stimulus, other than that he is the same. Lisa, his Mom, said that we are more than welcome to come by and visit the family but Taylor isn't ready for visitors just yet as he is still in the induced coma.

He will be in ICU for at least 2 or 3 more days and then into a room. Cards are welcomed but we need to hold off on balloons and flowers until he has a room.

Big River sent me over with pizzas last night, Paula & Angela went with Panera this morning, and Karen took a care basket today. I will probably go by after work tonight with some food.

He's not out of the woods yet so we must keep praying!! We are looking to put together a blood drive in his name so stay tuned on that. It thought it would be cool if we could make a video of everyone giving him love and encouragement at the drive, so if any of you have a video camera, editing software, or any of that please let me know!

Love you all!!

Lesha

Taylor's blog, an explanation of the blog

Hello friends,

My name is Lesha Patterson and I am a friend of Taylor's from Big River. This blog started as a Facebook message to keep the Big River Family updated on his current status but has grown past that contact group and I thought this to be the most effective way to get the information out.

Taylor's wreck was on Thursday January 21st at 8PM during the awful rain/hail storm.

The first few messages will be direct copies from those messages up until the current time. Please keep him in your daily prayers!!

Much Love,
Lesha