Update on Jenene - August 13, 2011

For Jenene:

“You're out of the woods, You're out of the dark, You're out of the night.Step into the sun, step into the lightKeep straight ahead, For the most glorious place
On the Face of the Earth, Or the sky”

“Hold onto your breath, Hold onto your heart, Hold onto your hopeMarch up to the gate, And bid it open”
- The Wizard of Oz

So she is recovering nicely from her bout with her seizures. We saw some drastic improvements over the last 24 to 36 hours and now her breathing and feeding tubes are out, she is awake (for the most part) and alert and speaking to us. She had a few questions about where she was and how she got to the ICU, but all in all she has been handling all the news very well.

She was a bit disorientated when she was first awoken from the sedatives and she still was not able to talk all that well. But as the hours wore on, she got stronger and more alert and started recognizing where she was and what was going on around her.

The REALLY great news is that she had a bone marrow biopsy a few days ago, and the test results came back and the bone marrow was cancer free, so that means she is 73 days cancer free.

She was hooked up to a breathing and feeding tube the last few days and that is now out. She was also hooked up to an EEG which measures her brain waves and brain activity and she is now detached from that as well. A speech therapist came in to check her airway and judge to see if she was able to swallow and she has been cleared by her.

The doctors are really positive about her recovery and they are thinking that she will be back up to 14K tonight or tomorrow; and that is making both ourselves and the folks on 14K happy.

We are still selling wristbands to help fundraise for her an orange - Choose Hope Leukemia Awareness wristbands for $3.00 each in various sizes and a black - Stupid Cancer wristbands for $5.00 in one size but 2 types - one with the middle finger and one with a birdie.

Again, Donations to Jenene - check or money made to Jenene Philips and send to 3543 SE Belmont St, Portland, OR 97214. Or by debit or credit card at http://jenenephilips.tumblr.com/.

Visit her blog for this or older updates at http://neeners-updates.blogspot.com/.

Thank you everyone who commented or called or came up, she will be back on 14K in a while and we will let you know when it is ok to come visit.

Thanks