We have been truly shocked and saddened by the news of Justin's injuries here at Division 26. There is not a day riding with Justin that he doesn't blow you away with his natural ability and passion for riding. As a teammate and personal friend to Justin and his family this hurts, because Justin is one of the best young men we know and this extends far beyond the bike. Its our thoughts and prayers that Justin will tackle his road to recovery just like every other goal he has gone after and conquered! We will continue to help support Justin and his family anyway we can as they deal with the days ahead.
Pictures of Justin are uploaded at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/justinwyche/photos . I finally got them resized and onto there. Thanks for your support everybody.:wave:
10/21 Update Wednesday, October 21, 2009 12:56 PM, PDT Sorry I have not been able to update everyone, as I have not been able to have complete Internet access. My brother Eric is helping me get this quick update out for now, but I will follow up with more information when I have access again. Justin has been approved to go to Northridge Rehab Center and he will be going there sometime today. High School friends if you want to see him hurry up and go to Los Robles Hospital today. More updates to come later. We need strong athletes to stand by and help with physical fitness at Northridge Hospital, so as to keep him motivated through his rehab process. Love to everyone for your support, The Wyche Family
10/22 Update Thursday, October 22, 2009 7:52 AM, PDT Rough night of pain last night. I still don't have a wireless card. If anyone can help me with that, please call me on my cell. Justin has thearpy until 1045 this am. We welcome your visits with Justin to help support his recovery, all knowing he fatigues quickly. Please call Chris or myself. Sheri cell 805-857-4690 Chris cell 805-857-4567 Northridge Hospital, room 3306 in the IFL tower.
New pictures of Jusitn posted up, mostly of family. Also, the most recent journal entry: Thursday, October 22, 2009 3:49 PM, PDT Hello Family and Friends, I am at home for a bit while Christopher takes the day shift at the hospital. First of all, Justin is in a lot of pain today. All he is doing is taking pain medication and trying to sleep, so please do not call his room. If you are going to send a card, his room # is 3306A. the hospital address is to the right. I am still very sleep deprived, so am only taking select phone calls at this time. I really appriciate all the thoughts and prayers at this time. Please sign the guest book. His sister Melissa is reading them to him each day. Like I said earlier, visiting is encouraged and it looks like after a full day of Physical Thearpy, Occupational Thearpy, and meetings, the best time to visit is between 4pm-8pm Mon. thru Fri.. Sat. and Sun. there is not much work for him to do, visitors will be welcome more hours. We will has games like checkers etc... to help his fine motor movements while visting with friends. So, if you have a favortite game, bring it for the day and have some fun with Justin. Right now we are limiting visitors due his pain and my fatigue. In the future he will be able to be wheeled around anywhere on the hospital grounds. They told me there is a nice patio on the fourth floor. Right now, all they say is that he will be there 4 to 6 weeks. Less if he really has legs like Lance Armstrong! As each Dr. comes to visit, they all seem very optimistic that Justin will fully recover. He has an incomplete Spinal cord injury. That means control of bladder and BM's. There is definetley better recovery with the type of injury he has. Some people have been wondering things that Justin would like. Alls I know is that he has been wanting a new cell phone, so some cash to purchase that would make his day. I figure it will encourage him with fine motor functions of his fingers. Also, he loves small indoor remote control items like cars, helicopters, etc. Melissa, Christopher and I are holding up due to his strong spirits, internal strength, and all the love and prayers coming our way. I am still in shock and very busy helping him to feel sad right now. Yes it is tragic, But he is ALIVE and that's all that matters. I will hopefully get a wireless connection soon, and that will help me keep you all updated more often. Again, I can't thank everyone enough for all your support and understanding at this time in our life, Sheri
Updates Sorry for the delay with the updates, I have been on Jury Duty. Friday, October 23, 2009 7:19 PM, PDT Hi- following is the link to lotsahelping hands for those of you who are interested in signing up to help the Wyche's with meals. Thanks! Debbie http://www.lotsahelpinghands.com/619025/ Friday, October 23, 2009 10:48 PM, PDT Hi Everyone, Again thank you all for your support, it is greatly appreciated. I do not yet have a good Internet connection, so I will post this short note today, and add more when I am at a better computer. Justin is doing and feeling much better today, which is far better than yesterday, as he was in a lot of pain after the transfer. The hospital is very strict about whom and how many people can visit, so here are some rules about visiting; You must be at least 16 years of age, you can not visit if you have a cold, any sign of a cold, or have been near someone that might be sick. Unfortunately only two people per visit, but please do not be discouraged, as visits are great, and Justin really likes to see other people, but we just need to follow the guidelines. More to come later. Much love to all, The Wyche Family Saturday, October 24, 2009 11:02 AM, PDT Hello Everyone, like you see, it is Sat. after 11am. I arrived home in time this morning to see the end of Melissa's soccer game. It was a nice change of senerery watching Melissa play, except when she fell, which was a few times. So far this season her wrist got hit ball a ball which bruised her wrist badly and sprained her ankle. I was like, please, please don't get hurt Melisssa! It was a tied score 2 even. I am still working on getting a wireless connection at the hospital. I have the hardware that plugs into the usb port and have uploaded the software, but no luck. If anyone has any expertise and can meet me at the hospital- please call my cell 805-857-4690. Thanks! So, because of the Swine Flu, at noon Fri., Northridge Hospital went on strict visitor rules. Only two visitors in the room and unfortunately that means mom and dad too. We need to have one of us at his side at all times right now, so really in his room will be one visitor at a time, while others wait downstairs. When Justin is able to get in a wheelchairs and has the energy to go downstairs in the front of the Hospital- he can see a whole group at a time. Saturday, October 24, 2009 12:12 PM, PDT This is a con't of the 1st Sat. entry: The type of Spinal Cord Injury is called Brown- Sequard Syndrom. This is where one side of the body is weak and the other side has different sensory and vibration. Any info would be appreciated. Also, if anyone has any questions, please put them in the Guestbook entry and I will answer them. So, the last time I was able to write was Thurs. afternoon when I was at home gathering all my gear so I can be better prepared for my camping adventure with Justin at Northridge. So on Thurs. I arrived back at the hospital at 6pm. Justin was still in a lot of pain and very drugged up. He had a visit from his friend Twig, which he does remember even drugged, and his Auntie Jennifer. At 9pm he received a new drug for pain called Neurontin-300mg plus 3mg of Dilaudid. His pain level was a 7 out of 10! L At 10:30 he received 2 tablets of Norco and by 11pm his pin went down to a 5. So, now it is midnight Fri. and he received 3mg of Dilaudid and a sleeping pill. At 3:15, 3more mg of Dilaudid. He woke up at 4:30am he woke up with pain at 4 and received 2 more Norco. But by 5:30 the pain in his arms and neck were increasing with a burning hot sensation (perhaps due to spinal cord injury) cause he had no fever, but his pain level was a 6! So, got a few bites of yogurt down, followed by 3mg of Dilaudid. He finally slept well till we got woken up by the nurse at 8:20 saying he had to wake up because Physical Therapy ( P.T.) was scheduled at 8:30! A few more bits of yogurt and 3mg of Dilaudid and in came The P.T. did a muscle strength test that is rated 0-5 scale. His left leg was a 5, right leg a 3+ to 5 and he didn’t test his arms, Occupational Therapy ( O.T.) will do that. He next dia an “Up and Down” Sensory test with his eyes closed on his fingers, wrists, elbows,big toe, ankle, etclll. He did well on everything, but the right arm he kinda wasn’t sure, but he did answer correctly! At 10am, still Fri. he got a visit from the DR. assigned to him, Dr. Lin.He explained that they are not sure he has control of his bladder until they remove the catheter, so I was premature the other day. He decided that the Neurontin seems to be working, so he increased it to 3x’s a day and also increased Dilaudid to 4mg every three hours! At 10:30 the Speech Therapist stopped by. Due to Justin still not feeling well said she would do her Cognitive tests on Monday. The Occupational Therapist was next on schedule, but didn’t do anything also with Justin. By then, 11am Fri. he had a headache and body pain of 6 and feeling like he was on fire. So firefighter Sheri had to do what she could to put the fire out, cold packs and dabbing him all over with a wet washcloth. EXAUSTING! Now at noon Fri, he received 4mg of Dilaudid and 300mg of Neurontin. Dr. Lin said Hydration was key to helping with nerve pain, on fire sensation and blood pressure. The Physical Therapist had another scheduled visit at 12. He put a “griddle” around Justin’s abdomen to help with his blood pressure. Earlier in the am he could only sit up on the edge of the bed for 10 seconds. With the griddle on he was able to sit up for 1 ½ minitues before feeling yucky. He slept from 12:20 till 1:45 when he was awoken by the Recreational Therapist. Knowing that he wasn’t feeling well, she just explained that she combined what the P.T and O.T. therapists due with fun activities. She will see him at least once a week. Justin fell asleep from 2- 3:15 and woke up with pain at 4. We were trying to not give Dilaudid so that we could see how Neurontin worked by itself with pain, so he received 2 Norco. It was a very busy day for Justin and me with all the visitors, cooling measures and lots of massaging on his legs which he thoroughly enjoysJ! Dad finally arrived at 4:30pm and boy did I need a break. Justin made it to 5pm to receive Neurontin with out any Dilaudid. He fell asleep and woke up at 6pm with his pain down to a 3. If I wasn’t so tired I would have done a dance! John Muhilly ( the firefighter/ paramedic I work with) and his girlfriend dropped off an awesome BBQ dinner. Happy to say, Justin was finally feeling well enough to enjoy some BBQ ribs! MMMMMMMMUUUUUMMM Good. Once again he fell asleep and Christopher and I relaxed and enjoyed our dinner. Christopher left at 9:30 pm and my night shift began. Justin had his hourly doses of pain meds. I was able to get 3 hours of sleep on my Queen sized air mattress I brought from home, and Justin was able to asleep a lot more due to the fact that I was willing to massage him back to sleep each time he woke! When I left this morning at 8am, he was feeling as good as could be expected. At least not like the last couple of days. It is time for me to head back to the hospital. I know this was a long entry, but I wanted you all to get a good perspective of what is happening with Justin and I and why I have no energy to talk to friends, just family members that are helping me for now. If you want to vistit, texting me is best and I will try to work it out. Really, thanks for everything. I will write more soon, Sheri Sunday, October 25, 2009 6:56 PM, PDT Hey Everybody, just a quick update with full details to follow tomorrow, but I just had to share some GREAT NEWS. Justin's pain is finally managable and that is giving him some energy to work with the Occupational Threapist and Physical Thearpist today. After a wonderful shower, while laying on a gurney type bed, the O.T. stopped by. She helped Justin figure out how he can start figuring out how to dress himself. Justin blew her and me away with how he is already figuring different body parts to us to get dressed. He didn't need hardly any of her help!!!! When she left, Justin and I both were crying. She said his nerves are sendingmessages all the way to his fingers cause he was able to move his thumb slightly!! I left for a few hours for a much needed break and got a massage. My lower back is killing me. But while I was gone, Christopher said the P.T. came by and took him upstairs and had him take a couple of steps. Justin is so strong and EXTREMELY motivated to get better. That's all for now, will write about the busy day tomorrow. Thanks for all the prayers, they are working. Sheri Monday, October 26, 2009 8:55 PM, PDT Hello this is Melissa typing for my mom, Justin slept for a solid 5 hours last night.That gave him just enough energy for the very busy day ahead. He walked down a hall holding on to a side rail!!Pictures coming soon.After a full day of therapy till 3pm he passed out in bed for a 2 hour nap. Pain is still manageable and my mom will write more tommorow.Keep the guest book entrys coming it is keeping him motivated and he loves hearing them. Thanks,melissa
Wednesday, October 28, 2009 9:08 AM, PDT Tuesday Oct. 27,2009 It is now 10:30pm and I just got Justin to sleep. I don’t know if this will be posted tonight or not, but thanks to my very special friend Dan Anthony, he spend all day figuring the mystery with Verizon Wireless. Thank you Lisa, Delany and Tommy Tucker for sharing your daddy so he could help me keep in touch with all of you! I left at 11am today and Christopher arrived to accompany Justin to his full day of therapies. He had an ok sleep the night before, but we had a lot to do to get ready for his 9am Speech therapist. While I was at home gathering more supplies and going shopping for Melissa’s Halloween costume, Justin was working very hard. Christopher said they ever had him sweating on a recumbent bike. He was once again extremely tired when he was done and needed a nap. His friend’s Ty and Matt “Twig” came by with a hamburger from the Habit luckily cause dinner was poor. By the time I arrived at 8pm, Justin’s eyes were puffy tired. Justin’s Aunt Marian from Colorado arrived today and will be stopping by to see Justin on her way to our home in Newbury Park. She will be here till Sunday. Justin’s Grammy Jones and Uncle Don came by with BBQ from Rosie’s last night at the hospital and we all enjoy another yummy fall off the bone ribs!! Speaking of food, we need to try something different. Instead of prepared meals, maybe a gift card to some of our favorite places to eat. Christopher likes to cook, but doesn’t always have time, so it would be nice to have the freedom to go get something to go if we are too busy. So here are some places I can think of: Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, 3 Amigos, Sharky’s, Lampost Pizza, Great Harvest Bread Co.,Panda Express, Habit. I am very tired and need my sleep, but I will let you all know more tomorrow. PS. It was great having dinner with my longtime friend Shari and her daughter Sara the other night. Talk to you all soon, Sheri Thursday, October 29, 2009 8:44 PM, PDT Hello Everyone, I am at home for the afternoon. I just woke up a much needed nap. Christopher and his sister Marian from Co. have been with Justin all day. Last night, Justin slept from 11-2, then needed pain meds and bladder drained which wakes him up a lot. So, that is when I massage his back and legs for about an hour to calm him down. Then he slept from 3 till 6am and needed more pain meds. He fell back asleep till I awoke him at 7:50am, a little late to get him ready for the OT at 8;30. Because of the pain meds, Justin is very slow to wake up! He just wants to sleep. I remind him that today is a new day to take full advantage of the therapies to get better. That seemed to help him wake up, eat, get his bladder drained, still needs catherder, and get ready for Rob his OT. I left when the Speech therapists arrived and Christopher and his sister Marian were on their way. The report from Christopher for the day was that Justin did well with his 1st round of PT, but was too tired for the 2nd visit from PT. A psychologist stopped by this morning to talk to Justin. She explained a few things about Sensory Nerves vs. Motor Nerves and that nerve damage from C4 down that the hands and fingers take the longest to return. She asked Justin how he was doing and he said,” Good.” She asked why he was doing well and he said,” Because I know I am going to be fine.” Well she said,” With your good attitude and work ethic, I am sure you will be fine.” She also told him that depression and fear are normal and that one of her SCI ( spinal cord injury) clients has said,” I earn a pity party, but I don’t stay at the pity party too long.” She ended by informing us of a weekly Thursday Spinal Support Group in the dining hall. Former patients and present patients attend. Christopher went because Justin was too tired to go. He said it was very good and met a female mountain biker from our area who also broke her C4 around a year ago. She did meet Justin, so I will find out later how all this went. I feel so lucky about all the doctors Justin has had and now all that Northridge has to offer. With such a tragic event, a lot of good is coming our way. Besides all the great medical support we are receiving, the support from our family and friends is invaluable. We appreciate all the love and support we have received from everyone. It is helping us and Justin get through this tough time. In addition to dealing with his recovery, we have found ourselves in the unfortunate position of not being able to pay all of his medical expenses. So many of you have asked what you can do to help, so we wanted to share information about a bank account that has been established to help us pay for the mounting bills related to Justin’s care and recovery. If you choose to help in this way, please make your check payable to Justin’s Medical fund and mail to our home address: 244 Maynard Ave. Newbury Park, CA. 91320. Or, if you do online banking, you can do a bill pay to Ventura Co. Credit Union. The account # is 0001186260 – routing # 322283505 or you can go directly into a Ventura Co. Credit Union and deposit with the above account #. This is not a tax deductible but will be of great help. I am now headed back to the hospital for the night shift. The weekend is coming and if you are thinking of coming for a visit, please call me and let me know if Sat. or Sun. and what time works for you. I really want to accommodate all visitors because it helps Justin SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO MUCH. It looks like Christopher will be there on SAT. And I will be there on SUN. On Sat. morning I will post his scheduled therapies and potential nap times so you can all take a look. Flexibility is important so I appreciate your patience. Thank you all again with the food. It has been much appreciated. If you wanted to make a meal, what would work better for us is to get us a gift card with the amount you were going spend, this will help a lot, even give me the option to go get Justin something other than hospital food to eat. I listed a few restaurants in the previous Journal, but here is our favorite local Chinese – Sesame Inn 3327 E. Kimber DR. Newbury Park. Oh, and thank you Comm. Ed friends, I feel your love. J Check out the recent photos of Justin working hard and visitors. Talk to you tomorrow, Sheri
Great News!!!! Saturday, October 31, 2009 10:21 AM, PDT Saturday 10-31 Happy Halloween Everyone. Today is 2 weeks since Justin’s accident and he is improving so much. Yesterday afternoon, while his Grammy Wyche and Auntie Jennifer were here, Justin walked about 100 feet without a cane or holding onto a wall!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This kid is amazing. Last night after dinner he showed me he could move his right thumb more. In addition, he is moving his whole right hand about 1 cm toward a grip. He is so determined to get back to the way he was and is feeling so good about the results. He can also go to the bathroom all by himself. The nurse’s don’t have to help him with much these days, except give him his pain meds. He is not taking too many pain meds. He has Neurontin 3x’s a day and at night he takes the Dilaudid and a new one called Ultram. Last night was his best night sleep. It was interrupted a couple of times, but it is 8:45am and he is still sleeping. How long will Justin be a Northridge Hospital? Well at the rate he is going, he might borrow someone‘s bike and ride out of here next week! Each week, all the doctors and therapists get together and evaluate their patients and I’m sure the insurance company has something to do with it. Then they come up with a tentative date. The date right now is Nov. 23rd, but at the rate he is progressing, I’m guessing a whole lot shorter. Then it is a matter of finding an outpatient therapy place that deals with serious athletes. Is there one in TO. He feels by March he will be participating in Downhill Mountain bike races. He can’t wait to get back on a bike and see how he feels. I know we plan on cheering on all his mountain bike friends Nov.21st in Grand Old Fontucky! It will be a very emotional day, so bring plenty of tissues cause I already have tears just thinking about it. As always, it is so great hearing from you all. I wanted to say a special THANK YOU to my Ventura County Firefighter Family. When anyone of us goes through a sudden tragic event, the support that you all provide my family and all families is a very important healing component. It is great hearing from all of you. I am planning on taking next cycle off, then heading back to work the following cycle. Justin has a very easy schedule today: PT 10-1030 OT 1:15- 1:30 Justin’s dad, Christopher, will be at the hospital today, so call him to arrange visits.805-857-4567. I am heading to Newbury to watch Melissa’s soccer game and hang out till around 7pm before heading back to the hospital. Justin now has his cell phone, so you may call or text him. Talk to you all later, Sheri
Sunday, November 1, 2009 11:55 AM, PST It is a lovely sunny southern CA. day and Justin is enjoying a nice day out in the sunshine with his friends. He slept a total of 7 hours straight last night. we both feel great, but Justin still needed a mid-morning nap. Check out the new photos. I am making him walk today since he has no therapy.
thnx for the updates, photos and positive notes/thoughts.....bikers around rally for a speedy recovery!
Oh wow. I know the kid. I have never talked to him but recognize him. I have not been online much. Very sad to hear this and wishing the best to him and his family. Thanks for the info Nancy.
