Now that I’ve recorded yesterday’s tale about the painting of the little girl, I want to share another serendipitous story. I suppose the first story prepared me for the second one…as if unexpected connections were what I was waiting for.  For people behind the scenes to start coming into view, connecting the dots and missing links. It gave me a new hope for that anyway.

About six weeks ago, Yuki, a friend from Art School, emailed me this article. In a nutshell, the article tells how a family worked with the reputable Dr. Barry Sears (who created the famous ZONE diet years ago) in treating their severely brain-injured son with high doses of Omega-3 oils, which are supposed to counteract inflammation of the brain. I had read about this treatment before in another article about the miraculous recovery of the sole surviver from a mine explosion. The truth is, many people have sent me optimistic articles about supplemental and homeopathic treatments that might help with TBI.  But all these new ideas, though I’m thankful for them, can get overwhelming, especially as I have to work within the medical boundaries of care homes and hospitals. This Omega Oil treatment did seem do-able though, so I tucked it in my back pocket, even going so far as to bring up the idea to Shawn, the Admissions Director, when we first moved Vernon into his new home at Mesa Verde.

And then Vernon got sick and another few weeks passed…

You may remember another blog post, in which I shared how Talar and I asked the congregation for help with visiting Vernon and administering some light physical therapy? Well, after the service, a man I’d never met before (by the name of Paul)  approached me, asking if I’d ever heard of Dr. Barry Sears and his work with TBI patients.  Of course my antennae went straight up.  He told me he’d email me some information if I was interested.  Among other things, he sent me the same link that Yuki had sent me a month before. By the time I wrote back to him, Dr. Sears (who lives a mere 2600 miles away in Massachusetts) already knew about Vernon and was willing to help him. It would just be a matter of organizing things with the doctors and nurses on hand.

Paul has been great, he is truly passionate about this approach. He has communicated regularly with me and tried to reach the right doctors in this new care home, but its been frustrating as no one has gotten back to him. I kept trying from my end, but hit the same walls. In the meantime, I checked out this book at the library across from Mesa Verde.  How convenient that they carried it. I admit that I haven’t had time to read it, but I carry it around with me, hoping osmosis will take effect.

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No, I don’t know if its actually going to help. But it doesn’t seem like it can hurt.  What I LOVE is the idea that this well-known and reputable doctor, one of the few names in the field that I actually recognize right away, knows about Vernon. And that I don’t have to pursue this vague idea of supplemental therapy on my own. Someone showed up out of the blue and helped make it happen. As I keep saying about so many things lately: what are the chances?

It gets better.  Eventually out of frustration, I texted Shawn and told him that the doctor and head nurse weren’t returning my calls.  Within minutes he texted back to say the doctor on Vernon’s case was actually out of town at the moment, so he moved him over to another doctor, Dr. Cruz, who came with a PA, Dan. “Two for the price of one,” he told me.

Within a half hour, Dan called me personally. I shared my concerns with him and was able to connect him with Paul, who would be supplying Dr. Sear’s studies and successes with him. But it was not a matter of convincing him. He had already heard of this treatment and had several other patients who took high doses of fish oils.

On Friday, both Dr. Cruz and Dan met up with me in Vernon’s room.. This is the first time in our care home experience (this is the third one) that a doctor has met with me when I have asked. Usually they make their rounds at the end of the day because their own office practices are so busy.  And both of them came! They were very attentive and careful to listen to my requests. I wondered if the past couple of weeks of pushing for change actually was for a different end: to get the best doctor for Vernon. It turns out Dr Cruz has his office in San Clemente, my home town….even though Vernon’s home is 45 minutes away!

Wrapping things up, Paul and Dan met again on Saturday to organize the treatment. As of then, he is getting low doses twice a day, due to increase as he tolerates things.  For a brain injury case, this is late in the game to start, so we may not be able see great improvement. But we MIGHT!  And that’s what I’m hoping for right now.

Again, this has been a case of things happening behind the scenes, waiting for the right time…and then HAPPENING.  I never would have seen this coming, but my heart expected it.

It feels right. It feels obedient. That’s the best word I can use to explain. Even if its just for now.

 

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