third accident update

Written by: Bobbye Jean Manzari

We are 11 days post-op for Matt’s skin grafts and things are going well! The doctors say that his skin grafts are taking 100% at this point! It has been told to us that this kind of result is mind-blowing and not normal… We know that God is at work here and prayers are being answered. With the success of his skin grafts, there has also been much pain involved. His donor sites, where they harvest the skin for the grafts, have caused him pain beyond comprehension. They scraped all the skin from the circumference of his thighs, as well as the skin on one calf. This top layer that they scrape off is just deep enough to expose the nerve endings and cause severe nerve pain. The location of the donor sites has been difficult because no matter how he lays/sits, he is pushing on the raw wounds and aggravating the nerves. Where he was walking around before surgery, he can now barely move his legs without weeping in pain. It has been a very tough process, but the important thing is he is healing and he won’t have to endure another major graft of this kind. Praise God! The next step is the surgery next Friday to repair, or possibly replace, his sternum. The electricity has charred some of his bone and they are working on a plan of care to try and save parts of the bone, but if that is not possible, they will have to replace it with metal. After recovering from that surgery, they are hoping to move him to a rehab facility to help him regain the use of his hands, arms, and neck. There is still no timeframe for us to count on, but Matt has been healing quicker than they originally expected, and we are hoping to keep up the trend.

The baby has been moving around and I am beginning to show a slight bump! We have been blessed by so many with fun baby presents that help us to look towards the joy in the future. Matt has been using presents as “occupational therapy” and opening them as much as he can with his limited hand mobility. The baby clothes in his hands make it real to him and he loves it… We both do!

I have been amazed at Matt during this particularly painful part of the process. The nerve pain overtakes his body to the point of tears and violent shaking. Even in the midst of this, he has found a way to be caring to others and never losing his temper in frustration. I hear other patients trying to punch the nurses and yelling at them with much lesser injuries than Matt is experiencing, yet he remains kind in the worst moments. Nothing about this process has been easy and Matt’s true colors are golden. For me, the struggle of seeing my husband in this level of pain has given me times of brokenness. Nothing could have prepared me for witnessing him in such suffering, and there are moments I simply don’t want to believe it is real. Through it all, I couldn’t be more grateful for the blessings that God continues to pour out. These blessings are not only in Matt’s healing, but also in the people surrounding us through prayer, support, and love. Thank you doesn’t seem like enough, but I say it anyways… THANK YOU!