Day 34 | OCTOBER 14, 2021

Good Evening Friends,

Today is day 34 of our new and amazing life!

Today was a different day from all others, just because I went to the hospital in the morning , instead of the usual afternoon .

Charlie had asked me yesterday to come in early today, so I could be there during her OT and boy, it was so worth it to wake up at 6am to be there early!

When I got there, Charlie was awake and very happy to see me, she was in a very positive mood.

She asked me how are our boys, and she asked to see pictures of them, she also asked me to brush her teeth, I gave her some mouthwash, no need to worry , she is not swallowing any of it and I am using a suction device , she also asked for her face to be washed using her pineapple enzymes face wipes, she loves her morning routine, and that includes her facial creams.

After that she was ready to be moved into to her recliner, as they were moving her , I set up her new clock, one that displays the day of the week, am or pm and the month and date, I have no idea why such clocks are not standard at the ICUs, I am seriously considering a hospital kit for family members to bring to their loved ones room .

So, around 10am, the OT crew arrived with a special machine, designed to help the patients to stand up and eventually walk. Charlie was very excited. As they removed all her monitor lines, and set the machine up, Charlie was preparing herself mentally, I could see in her eyes and the way she was biting into her lips , and the moment came, they ask her , Charlie , are you ready ?

As I stood there and watched her slowly standing up with the help of the machine and her OTs, I could not believe my eyes, Charlie was standing up !

She was absolutely standing on her feet, with nothing to support her back. And she made it look so effortless, off course after maybe 40 seconds she asked to get down, and she was back in her chair very quickly.

Here is why standing up is such a huge deal, let’s start by understanding that Charlie’s entire body is a big deep wound, and now that wound is starting to form a scab, so as she stands her entire body is ripping the scabs apart, just for a quick second imagine how painful this must be.

Also, her doctors did not think she would stand up on her feet again, due to the pain she would experience, and yes she did say it is very painful, but her ability to push through pain is just remarkable!

Her OTs just can’t believe how is she able to stand the pain and do her exercises without crying or complaining, on of her OTs has been working with burn patients for 15 years, and she told me today, what Charlie is being able to do, it is just unbelievable and she never seeing a patient being able do it this soon, even patients with 40% burns, the pain is just too much.

I am beyond grateful for her incredible recovery, but it is also hard to watch my beautiful, 35 years old , active and strong wife suffer so much to regain a little bit of her mobility, it makes me sad. But I am focusing on the positive and on the miracle , because Charlie’s recovery is also a miracle, it is just amazing to see it in real life.

Now I can see why Charlie is so tired in the afternoons. They do work her very hard, they also did a range of motion exercises in her feet and hands, she is also doing very well with her hands!

Once they finished, the whole session lasted around 1:15h, Charlie asked to go back to her bed.

Once back , she asked me to turn on one of her favorite shows, Outlander.

Today, I got her a fire stick , so she can now watch Netflix, Amazon video, Sling, Starz, HBO. She is all set now .

But within 10 minutes of watching the show she was fast asleep.

Today was a very pleasant day. Charlie is doing so well, her labs are also improving, and she is getting ready for her big day on Tuesday.

Tomorrow, she will undergo another surgery, to replace her allografts, the usual type of surgery she has been doing.

Tuesday, is officially the beginning of phase 2 of her road to recovery, it is called the reconstruction phase. She will leave the acute stage behind. I am so excited, but at the same time worried, because now the risk of infection is multiplied by 10, the protocols will change, her surgeries will be longer and more debilitating, we will be once again be learning what this new phase will brings us, I remain humble, and confident in God and his divine mercy.

As I rejoice today, I will continue to pray, because Charlie still has a painful road ahead of her.

I thank you for your generosity, love and prayers.

May God Bless You!

André