Prayer Warrior Spotting - Canada

Another prayer warrior sighting!  This time in Niagara, Canada!

Thoughts & prayers from Canada!

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It's Moving Week

The following update is from Natalie!

It's moving week for the Peters! -- which explains a lull in our blogging.  Here are some updates!

Natalie and a team of friends are moving the Peters into their new apt this Saturday.  The following day, Thomas has a day pass from rehab to visit the new apartment.  He is very excited to see their new home for the first time and the couple will be able to ensure the set-up is workable for Thomas.

They have been very busy with preparations for his transition home!  He is scheduled for discharge on the 29th of this month, if all goes according to plan!  As we have mentioned before, he will then be in out-patient rehab 3 days per week.  Those specifics are still being organized.  His therapists have been helping them determine what medical supplies and equipment will be needed, including a hospital bed and power lift to help get him in and out of bed.  Thomas' therapy sessions continue as usual, and day by day they see improvement, but there is an even greater focus right now on his occupational therapy sessions focusing on home-skills.  Natalie continues spending sessions at rehab for home-care training and practice with Thomas.  They will take a short break from out-patient rehab during his first week home, so they can settle into their own routine for his care.  During his first week home, they hope to have a home health aide to assist during this transition.  During this week, Natalie will begin a transition back to work and plans to work primarily from home. 

Last week Thomas had an outing to the Metro Access Headquarters here in DC to apply for his disability membership.  He will be using Metro Access to commute to rehab.    

Thomas' episodes of AD have been under control since the last update and for several days now he has had no trouble with his blood pressure.  AD is something that will always be a factor, but becoming familiar with the triggers has been a great help! 

Reminder, it is Day 3 for the Novena to St. Jude!  Keep praying along with us!

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Novena to St. Jude Starts Tonight!

Dear friends: Thomas and Natalie celebrated their 6 month anniversary today. Thursday was 3 months since the accident, and in 10 short days, Thomas is going to be discharged from rehab. (Meanwhile, Natalie is moving into a new handicap accessible apartment, and finalizing all the may details arrangements to make home living possible for Thomas.)

In the midst of all of this is (on October 28th) the Feast of St. Jude. Saint Jude is one of Thomas and Natalie's dearest patrons (Natalie credits him with their getting together in the first place). He is also the patron of impossible causes, things "almost despaired of," (as well as hospital workers and hospitals).

We would love for you to join us in this novena -- one of the oldest novenas of the Church. You can begin it tonight and end it October 27th, or you can begin it tomorrow and end it on October 28th -- his feast day!

The prayer is below, and also linked on the Novena page. Thank you, as always, for your love and support!

Novena To St. Jude 

Most holy Apostle, St. Jude, faithful servant and friend of Jesus,  the Church honors and invokes you universally, as the patron of difficult  cases, of things almost despaired of, Pray for me, I am so helpless and alone. 

Intercede with God for me that He bring visible and speedy help where help is  almost despaired of. Come to my assistance in this great need that I may receive  the consolation and help of heaven in all my necessities, tribulations, and  sufferings, particularly -(make your request here)- and that I may praise  God with you and all the saints forever. I promise, O Blessed St. Jude, to be  ever mindful of this great favor granted me by God and to always honor you as  my special and powerful patron, and to gratefully encourage devotion to you. Amen


May the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus be adored, and loved in all the  tabernacles until the end of time. Amen.
May the most Sacred Heart of Jesus be praised and glorified now and forever. Amen
St. Jude pray for us and hear our prayers. Amen. 
Blessed be the Sacred Heart of JesusBlessed be the Immaculate Heart of MaryBlessed be St. Jude Thaddeus, in all the world and for all Eternity.

Our Father...

Hail Mary...


(Icon written by Anna Edelman, Windows Into Heaven Icons)

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Prayer Warrior Spotting - Rome

Another prayer warrior has been spotted: an especially perfect place for prayers for the American Papist  - St. Peter's Basilica, Rome, Italy!  Thank you for sharing the photo and of course for the prayers!

Just a quick note to let you know that you were prayed for in Rome! 

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Update: AD, Leg Muscles, Fingers + the St. Francis Novena!

Straight from Natalie:

Since arriving at rehab, we have been learning a lot about a syndrome, common to all SCI (spinal cord injury) patients, called autonomic dysrefelxia (known as AD).  AD is very dangerous and can be life-threatening if not treated immediately.  AD can be triggered by any persistent irritant, such as full bowel or bladder, being too hot or too cold, restrictive clothing, stress, or pain. 

Around 3am Monday morning Thomas experienced his first episode of AD.  The irritant  was successfully identified, and eventually they were able to get his blood pressure down, but his headache persisted and he was taken to the emergency room for a CTscan, as a precautionary measure, to ensure that no brain damage occurred.  By the time everything was resolved, Thomas had lost the night's sleep and was too fatigued to participate in therapy that day. The following day Thomas had a normal day of rehab, but later, Thomas and Natalie were enjoying a quiet evening when he had another episode of AD.  After a painful and concerning 2 hours, the trigger was once again identified. 

AD is very serious, but it is common among SCI patients.  The doctors and nurses at rehab are very familiar with it and are educating Thomas and Natalie about what to do when it occurs.  These episodes are unsettling, but they are a blessing in disguise: the couple is glad they are experiencing this before being discharged.  Every person's system has different triggers and their body reacts differently.  They are learning what triggers AD for Thomas and what his symptoms are.  This will be life-saving in future episodes.

Some exciting news to share -- Thomas has some new muscle groups waking up!  His adductors (inner thigh muscle) and his left calf muscle.  Muscle strength is tested on a scale from 1-5; Thomas' are at a 1 on the scale, but it's one more group of muscles his therapists can begin working on! 

A special thank you to all of you who have joined us in our novena to St. Francis for the recovery of Thomas' fingers (which is still on-going).  This week he has seen some return!  He now has slight independent movement of his left thumb, pointer finger, ring finger, and pinky!  Again, he is a 1 on the scale of strength, but this is incredibly exciting to see!  Today his therapists started stimming his left hand to encourage these new muscles!

Thomas and Natalie continue to have days of training together, focusing on different types of transfers, bed mobility, bathing, and weight lifting.  They have also been busy making preparations for Thomas' discharge home.  There are numerous details to sort out between his therapists and the insurance company to make sure their new apartment is prepared to meet the needs of his care. 

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Prayer Warrior Spotting - TX & CA

Prayer Warrior Spottings in Beeville, TX and San Francisco, CA!  Thank you for sharing the photos and of course, for the prayers!

Shared via Twitter: "Look at what Thomas & Natalie sent me!"

"Prayers from the National Shrine of St. Francis in the City of St. Francis on the Feast Day of St. Francis."

Also, as a reminder it is Day 3 of the Novena to St. Francis!

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St. Francis Novena, Wheelchairs + an Adventure Outdoors

Hi All! Sorry for the silence: it's been a busy busy week for Thomas and Natalie!

Many of you may not know that Natalie will be assuming the role of care giver, rather than having home assistance. This week Natalie spent her first full day at rehab working with Thomas and learning the techniques for his home care. They specifically worked on practicing transfers (from chair to bed, bed to chair, etc.). "It's fun to be working side by side together!"  Through October she will be spending a lot of time at rehab with him, learning and practicing everything to ensure his transition home is successful.

His team is in agreement that he will most likely be discharged the beginning of November, just in time to come home to the new apartment. He will then begin their day program, which is the same number of hours of therapy per day, but they get to live at home! And to that end, after a long search, they have found a new apartment that is wheelchair accessible. Natalie wrote: "Thank you for all of your prayers and tips to help us with our search!"

They also had a meeting this week with the rehab's wheelchair representative. Insurance will cover the one chair per seven years and there has been a lot of discussion about whether to get Thomas a power chair or a manual chair to go home in. For the longer-term a manual chair is ideal, for many reasons, but Thomas is not quite strong enough to be using a manual exclusively. But, because his status is changing (meaning, he continues to gain function), the wheelchair rep is giving Thomas a free loaner power chair until he is ready to purchase a manual chair! Great news!

Thomas and fellow patients were taken on an outing a few miles from rehab to give them real-world practice in their wheelchairs. They were given free time to wander and told to identify "barriers" in the community. Thomas said it went really well, but that barriers were certainly opening doors in the manual wheelchair, sidewalk ramps when crossing the street, and uneven sidewalks. He said people were friendly and helpful. He bought a coffee and, since we're having an Indian Summer in DC, he bought a volleyball to practice throwing! A successful excursion!

Lastly, yesterday Thomas began moving his entire left foot at the hinge! It's incredibly exciting!

NOVENA TO ST. FRANCIS

A Dominica Friar shared this story of St. Francis of Assisi (who's feast we celebrate today):

At Gubbio, there was a woman with both hands so crippled that she was unable to handle anything with them. When she heard that Saint Francis had entered the city, she immediately ran to him. With a sad and mournful face she showed him her crippled hands and begged him to touch them. He was moved with great pity. He touched her hands and healed them. The woman immediately returned home full of joy, made a cheesecake with her own hands, and offered it to the holy man. He kindly took a little of that cake and told her to eat the rest of it with her family.

 — The Life of Saint Francis by Thomas of Celano (1229)

This inspired Thomas to begin praying to St. Francis for recovery of mobility in his fingers. Thomas and Natalie are starting a novena to St. Francis today, and we invite you all to join us! 

Click here for the Litany of St. Francis and his prayer to the Immaculate Conception.
(Or click the "Novena" link above.)




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