Abi, Mom and Carly in Zion Canyon 8/9/10 the day before the accident
The Accident - Day 1
Tuesday, August 10th 2010
She was taken to the family doctor in town to have the cut stitched up, and she seemed fine to him as well. She was talking, filling out forms, etc. Then all of a sudden she started slurring her speech, became dizzy and threw up. This was probably two hours after the accident. They rushed her to the ER...after tests, evaluations and stabilizing medications, she was air lifted around 10 PM to the Intermountain Trauma Center in Salt Lake City. Janie flew with her, while Carl, Tripp, Noah and Abi drove 4 hours to meet them in Salt Lake City. We had been told that Carly might not be with us by the time they completed that 4 hour drive. Katie flew in to Salt Lake from Los Angeles early Wednesday morning.
Carly has major brain trauma with right vertebral artery dissection. This means the artery kinked internally cutting off blood flow and the clots formed that moved up in her brain causing multiple strokes. The vertebral artery runs along her neck / spine and up the rear of her head. They have had her in an induced a coma off and on, but overall the prognosis is not good. She has at minimum suffered a stroke, unknown brain damage and is not out of the woods for additional issues, including clots, internal bleeding and brain swelling.
During the day today (Wednesday, August 11th), they took her off all sedation and medications to try and get her to wake from the a coma, and attempted to get her to respond every two hours for most of the day. She reacts to touch and becomes agitated and moves around when they poke at her, but she has not regained consciousness and been able to open her eyes. This evening they gave her a low dose of sedation to help her through the night, and they were keeping an eye on a mild fever and rising pressure in her brain.
We are praying for a miracle and a full recovery. The entire Mimstribe is together here in Salt Lake City right now. Many of the photos you see on this site were taken only one day before the accident
Critical - Day 2
Wednesday, August 11th, 2010
They took her off all medications to try and rouse her from the drug induced a coma early this morning. She moved around in bed more, and she reacted and became agitated when they poked at her and rubbed her chest to wake her, but she was unable to wake up and open her eyes. She is currently on a respirator, feeding tube, multiple IV’s and everything that usually goes with those things. Her neck is in a brace to keep her head in position, and her hands are lightly restrained to help keep her from pulling out tubes. While she was off sedation, she kept trying to cough up her respirator and was chewing on the tube and swallowing on her own.
She is still in a coma.
This evening she was put back on a mild sedation to help her through the night, and when the nurses sent us home to sleep they were considering mild pain medication as well. She was fighting a mild fever and her brain pressure had been slightly elevated from what has been her norm. The nurses said this was normal, as the worst usually occurs 24 to 48 hours after the accident, and we hit that time frame last night.
Slowly - Day 3
Thursday, August 12th, 2010
She is also breathing more on her own! She is on all of the lowest settings on her respirator, and the doctors say that she could probably breathe on her own, but they are worried that she wouldn't be able to swallow properly. They also said that they do not usually take people off the respirator while they still have the bolt in their head to measure inter cranial pressure.
Her brain pressure continues to be OK. It does spike when she is agitated, but it quickly goes back down, which is the important thing. The doctors are keeping the bolt in to measure things, but seem optimistic that she won't have any more pressure problems so long as there aren't any more complications.
The doctors say that nothing good happens fast, so slow and steady progress like this is what we want.
Carly's Miracle - Day 4
Friday, August 13th, 2010
Later this morning, around 10:00 AM, they removed the bolt from her skull. The bolt was a small sensor inserted into her skull to measure her inter cranial pressure. This was a big step, because it means that the doctors are much less concerned with rising brain pressure, internal bleeding and some of the things that cause more serious complications. Around 11:00 AM, Carly opened her eyes once and responded to commands asking her to squeeze and release our hands. At 12:00 PM, she woke up, opened her eyes and began gagging so badly on her respirator tube that they removed it. Once it was removed, she was able to answer yes and no questions by nodding her head, she was able to hold up two fingers when you asked her how many fingers you were holding up, and she was able to squeeze and release your hand when you asked her.
Since they removed her from the respirator, she’s had breathing treatments to help break up mucus, and just a little while ago they took her off the oxygen mask she’d had on since they took the tubes out. She is still on blood thinners, the feeding tube is still in, she is very exhausted, and her breathing is still a little wheezy.
Those caring for Carly are very encouraged by her unbelievable recovery! The doctors are still cautious but they are admitting that she is dong much better than expected, and recovering much faster than expected. No doubt it is still a very long road, but you cannot believe the joy of the Mimstribe at this point! We have been so blessed with the miracle of Carly’s progress, the prayers and love from everyone, the great care from Intermountain Health Care, all the doctors, nurses and respiratory staff who continue to provide unbelievable care.
Please continue to pray, rejoice and give God glory for all that has happened. We have a long way to go, and she is still in serious condition, but we are so encouraged by Carly waking up and making the progress she is! She needs to rest to build up strength and continue to heal. The family needs wisdom in making decisions about coming changes.
More Miracles - Day 5
Saturday August 14th, 2010
Carly had a great night last night, and the nurses said she was able to rest. At 11:00AM this morning, right after the neuro team had made rounds, the physical therapists came in to evaluate Carly. The intention was to help her sit up and swing her legs around and dangle them off the bed, and test some of her motor functions. When Heather the PT asked Carly to raise her arms she immediately recognized Carly’ extension and hand form as that of a dancer. Turns out Heather is a dancer as well and had an audition with Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company in the afternoon. That queued Heather to know she could push Carly a bit and she asked Keith her nurse to get her unplugged to “travel”. They decided to see if she could walk a few steps. Guess what? She walked an ENTIRE lap around the shock/trauma ICU over 400 feet! Amazing how God appoints just the right person at the right time to care for Carly.
She walked with great assistance, but her legs were working just fine! She has equilibrium issues, and still cannot hold her head up without assistance. It also looks like she is having slight trouble with her left side, but everyone is amazed! The neuro team said she is making stellar progress, but said that we still have a very long road ahead of us. She still isn’t really talking, but she is doing much better with swallowing and coughing up the mucus in her throat. Once she has that down, she will probably move out of ICU.
Keith, one of her nurses that has been with her for several days now, said that you hardly ever get to see something like this happen, but that THIS is why they do what they do. He has been a shock/trauma ICU nurse for thirty years.
Please pray for continued progress, Carly’s comfort and frustration with not being able to communicate, and for wisdom as we make decisions for the future.
The Amazing Carly Mims - Day 6
Monday, December 4, 2017
Carly had a good night last night, but is extremely tired today. This morning Heather, Carly’s physical therapist, came in and had her sitting up in a chair, and they went for a walk again. This time they used less support. Instead of having one person on each side to support her, Heather held her around her waist from behind. It is amazing to see how God has put exactly the right people in Carly’s life right now. Heather is also a dancer, and recognized that Carly was by the way she was raising and extending her arms yesterday. As a result, Heather now realizes that Carly has more muscle memory and balance than your average person, and she has been pushing her harder. Afterwards Carly spent some more time in the chair, and we were able to wash her hair and braid it for her!
Carly is having a good day as far as progress, but is not as happy. Yesterday she was tired, but she was all smiles most of the day. She still cannot communicate with us verbally, and we can only imagine how frustrating that must be.
Praise God for Carly’s miracle of life and progress! Please pray for comfort, peace and joy for Carly, as well as continued healing. Janie, Carl, Noah and Abi are going to be staying in Salt Lake City for some time, so please pray for short-term and long-term living situations, wisdom, peace and patience. All of the big decisions need to be made early this coming week. School for Noah and Abi starts next week, and college for Trip starts the following week. Katie is leaving to return to Los Angeles sometime late this coming week.
Graduated - Day 7
A quick late-night update. Not long after we posted the last update, we got the news that they were hoping to move Carly out of the Shock/Trauma ICU sometime tonight, and onto another floor in a normal room. Around 6:00 PM, Carly’s nurse, Keith, came in and we moved! She’s in a room with more space for us to spend time with her and a private bathroom. She’s no longer constantly hooked up to monitors keeping track of her vital signs. They come in every few hours to check them, and that’s it! She is only hooked up to one IV and the feeding tube now.
The move to another floor means that Carly is out of the woods on a totally negative outcome (aka, not waking up, no motor functions, no ability to swallow, can’t communicate with gestures, etc.). There are still major neurological issues that will take intensive rehab, therapy and time to deal with. Carly still hasn’t audibly talked. She has mouthed a few words, and some of us have thought we heard a whisper.
While today was a wonderful day as far as progress, it was a very hard one for Carly emotionally. She seemed very sad, and as a result made less of an effort to communicate with us. She has a lot to process and work through, so please continue to pray for comfort, joy, motivation and peace.
Vu Family - Day 8
Monday, December 4, 2017
Today was a good day. Carly seemed happier, and continued to show progress. She walked down the hall and back again, and did excellent in physical, speech and occupational therapy! She brushed her teeth all by herself, and even unscrewed the cap from the tube of toothpaste this morning. She did much better communicating what she needed to us. Carly has officially mastered thumbs up or thumbs down for yes and no questions.
The Mimstribe has been so blessed by everyone’s prayers and support. Especially the Vu family! Tripp’s girlfriend, Thy, is from Salt Lake City, and her parents, Khanh and Viet offered to let us all stay with them on Friday night last week. They were amazing hosts! We were able to stay with them Friday through Sunday night, and they took amazing care of us! Viet made amazing home-made Vietnamese food for us, bought us bagels from Einstein’s (Cedar City doesn’t have a bagel shop!) and even brought Chick-Fil-A to the kids at the hospital on Monday (another favorite not available in Cedar City)! We can’t even begin to express our gratitude at their generosity. Thanks Vu family!
Rehab! - Day 9
Monday, December 4, 2017
Around 11:00AM, the nurses came in and said we were moving! Carly is all settled in her new room. She has a wardrobe, and the girls are all going shopping to buy her some comfortable clothes, since she can now get out of the hospital gown! The Rehab Unit has a wonderful staff, and they have three different areas of therapy that Carly will be doing. Speech, Occupational and Physical. Her therapy hours are from 8AM to 4PM, and they work with her for a minimum of 30 minutes at a time, with rest breaks in between. We spoke with the Speech Therapist, and they told us that often speech is the last thing to come back, so we shouldn’t worry about that.
Carly is doing really well today, and she’s moving her legs around more when she’s resting in bed. She’s happy, but still tired, and she wore her glasses for the first time today! It must be wonderful to see again:-)
The Journey is Moving Forward - Day 10
Monday, December 4, 2017
Tripp and Thy left earlier in the week to return to Cedar City to register for college and get back to work. They will come back to Salt Lake City on the weekends. Katie is leaving tonight to return to Los Angeles to work. She has four intense weeks until the end if iCarly shooting and then has a hiatus for 4-6 weeks. We greatly look forward to the “General’s” return! She has truly been the one catching the small details and making everyone march. Dominic is catching a red-eye flight back to Florida tonight to get school started and get back to work. Noah and Abi were registered for school in Salt Lake City today, and are starting on Monday.
More than ever we also feel the outside love of extended family, those who are not related but are woven into our lves in such a meaningful way. There are many others who are friends and friends of friends, and the web goes on and grows much larger. No doubt the force of the entire list that’s praying for Carly have been heard in a mighty way!
Carly had a very busy day yesterday, since it was her first day of rehab. She was wiped out by 4:00PM and slept until 8:00PM. She had a very restless night, and was constantly moving in her sleep, and finally slept deeply and stopped wiggling around 4:00AM. This is all part of the brain injury. Her big progress yesterday was swallowing. She ate a few spoonfuls of pudding, and chose an Oreo to try after that. She was also allowed a few sips of water. They are still leaving the feeding tube in for now, while we wait on results from a swallow test that they did today. They need to make sure that she’s not aspirating, and what she’s swallowing isn’t going into her lungs. Once she can swallow properly, her feeding tube will be removed within a week.
Please pray for safe travels for Katie and Dominic as they return to Los Angeles and Gainesville, and for Thy and Tripp as they drive up to Salt Lake City on Friday. Also pray for Noah and Abi to have a smooth transition to their new school, and for Carly’s progress to continue. Pray for strength, wisdom and calmness for Carl and Janie as they deal with the various doctors working on Carly’s case.
A Long Road - Day 11
Monday, December 4, 2017
She does answer questions with thumbs up or thumbs down, and with yes and no nods, and she always seems to understand what we are saying to her, so the doctors are confident that her intelligence is intact, and that for the most part, her memory hasn’t been damaged. She knows where she is, who we all are, and where she lived and was working and going to school before the accident. When she is walking in the hall for physical therapy, she can read the room numbers and find her own room!
We are still hopeful and we still believe that God can work miracles, but the news from her doctor on her swallow test is not good. Especially since her body has had a hard time processing the formula that goes through the tube, and as a result she has been having blood sugar issues and has needed insulin on several occasions. Janie is going to chat with the nutritionist and find out when we can start supplementing her feeding formula with some Juice Plus, and eventually some Juice Plus Complete shake mix, so she can finally start getting some real nutrition!
Please continue to pray for Carly’s recovery, and for the transition Noah and Abi will be going through as they both start at new schools on Monday. Please also pray for safe travels for Tripp and Thy, as they are driving up to Salt Lake from Cedar City tonight to see Carly!
Sleep - Day 12
Monday, December 4, 2017
Last night they gave Carly a medication to help calm her and control the movements at night. Unfortunately, it did not do very well at all! It caused very bad nausea and stomach distress that stretched well into the first half of Saturday. The doctors have given strict instructions to NOT try that medication again, but in a few days they will most likely try another.
Carly continues to make slow progress. Yesterday, during physical therapy, they took her for her first walk outside! Carl and nurses accompanied her, with IV pole in tow, and she went all the way down the elevator, outside and walked to the next building over. Not only is she walking better, and now only requires the assistance of one person instead of two, she was able to find her own way back to her room! She read all the signs along the way and pushed the buttons on the elevator. She is truly amazing!
During occupational therapy, she was asked what month it was, and she answered correctly (non-verbally), and then they asked her to today’s date, and she responded by not writing the actual date, but the words “today’s date”. No doubt she still has her personality. Her handwriting is still very small, and this is related to the brain injury and her lack of speech, and is called micrographia. We all joke and say that Carl must have been brain damaged for years, because his handwriting is microscopic and impossible to read! We have been told that her handwriting will grow larger, especially as she learns to talk again.
Every little accomplishment takes so much time and energy on her part. She is wiped out after each thirty-minute therapy session, which is partly why the doctors gave her medicine to see if they could help her sleep more restfully. She is allowed to rest some during the day, and she sleeps peacefully when she naps in the afternoons.
Carly is such an encouragement to us, and she has been so strong and brave. Our source of hope for Carly’s recovery continues to come from the Lord. Please pray that Carly would be calm as she sleeps at night, and have peaceful and restful sleep, without involuntary movements, so that we can avoid the game of finding the correct medication to help calm her.
A Lesson in Customer Service - Day 13
Monday, December 4, 2017
Unfortunately Carly is still not sleeping well at night. She was awake most of last night from midnight to 7:00 AM doing her leg dancing. She did manage to get some good sleep from 8:00 PM to 12:00 AM. The doctors will most likely try a new medication with her tonight, because she was so exhausted all day from not having slept.
It is common for companies to post their mission, core beliefs and customer service statements in prominent locations. It is not very often that those lofty words and statements match the actions of the company and the employees that represent the company. Intermountain Health Care has a very simple core value statement. It is simply:
-Mutual Respect. “We treat others the way we want to be treated.”
-Accountability. “We accept responsibility for our actions, attitudes and mistakes.”
-Trust. “We can count on each other.”
-Excellence. “We do our best at all times and look for ways to do it even better.”
When you think about it, providing this extra care and concern for the people being treated at IHC costs little if anything, yet it is a value that increases everything. We could all make life a little better for those around us by following those four steps and demonstrating the compassion that the IHC employees have shown us.
Please pray for Carly to get the much needed rest and sleep that she needs at night, and for Noah and Abi’s first day of school tomorrow.
Two Weeks - Day 14
Monday, December 4, 2017
It’s hard to believe that tomorrow marks exactly two weeks since Carly’s accident. So much has changed, and so much has happened at such a lightning quick speed.
Carly still has not been able to swallow or eat solid food. Please continue to keep this in prayer. She also still has not spoken, but the doctors have assured us that this is typical of a brain injury, and as of right now they see no reason why she won’t be able to speak in the future.
She was able to sleep better last night, thanks to a new medication. They are using it again tonight, so hopefully she will continue to have restful sleep!
Leaping Forward - Day 17
Monday, December 4, 2017
It will take several days of eating for her to reach her goal of 1,800 calories and 1.5 quarts of liquid a day. Once she is able to meet that goal two days in a row, they will remove the feeding tube. So it looks like the tube will be out in 4-6 days.
We also had a good conference with Dr. Ryser, who is the head of the rehab unit. The entire team meets every Tuesday to prepare an evaluation of the patients. Dr. Ryser took the time explain in detail how the artery was dissected, and exactly what that meant. He also had requested a detailed comparative analysis of Carly’s first MRI, right after the accident, and the second MRI, from six days after the accident. Originally, we had thought the second MRI showed evidence of multiple strokes and more brain damage, but it turns out that the first MRI just hadn’t been notated in as much detail. He went over the results of the comparative analysis, showing the pictures and explaining it so that we could all understand. The great news is that most of the problem areas that showed up very well on the most recent MRI were already present in the first MRI.
Dr. Ryser and the entire team are now very positive for a fabulous recovery, and for the possibility of a full recovery. On Tuesday they were projecting two more weeks of in-hospital rehab, but with the passing of the swallow test and her physical therapy progress in the last two days, the time frame is very likely to become much shorter. Even though being released from rehab will be an amazing step, Carly still has a long way to go, and she will be living in Salt Lake City with Carl, Janie, Noah and Abi indefinitely while she goes to intense out-patient rehab.
Thank God for Carly’s miracle, and for the wonderful caregivers of Intermountain Health Center! And for the blessing of the amazing Blalock family. They have opened up their beautiful home for the Mimstribe to stay with them (more details to come).
We were also very happy to hear that Josh Galletta is stable in Jacksonville. Please pray for his recovery to be painless, as they are already weaning him off the pain medications after only two days. Please also pray for his wife, Mary, as their second baby is due in only a few short weeks, and they are struggling to figure out how to deal with Josh’s injuries and the birth of their new addition at the same time.
Please pray for Carly to regain her speech, for continued speed in rehab and for all the details that the Mimstribe need to work out. Please pray that Noah and Abi would Please also continue to pray for Lauren and Josh, who are also going through major medical challenges.
Special Relationships - Day 18
Monday, December 4, 2017
Her therapy sessions are often back to back, and yesterday while being handed off from one discipline to the next she had Debbie (speech), Bonnie (occupational) and Kris (recreational) all at the same time. When you get four girls together, it can get pretty giddy! They really had Carly going with all smiles, and she was the happiest we have seen her since the accident. Each of the women is so special, and you really see that when you watch how they work with the patients, and realize how much they care for and encourage them.
When something like this happens in your life, you realize very quickly that it’s all about relationships. While our support system of friends and family are many miles away in Florida, Tennessee and other parts of Utah, we realize that Carly’s amazing progress is due to God’s hand on her and the situation. A direct result of the many prayers, emails and phone calls from those special relationships we have. Those that check this website fully understand the value of relationships.
Becky has the kind of gentle spirit that allows you to quickly relate with her. She immediately began to help with local area questions, school information, and thinking about how to find a place close to the hospital for us to stay temporarily. As usual, wonderful people attract other wonderful people. Becky and her husband Jim really understand the value of relationships and connections since they have been home fellowship leaders for some time. Becky mentioned our situation at her home fellowship for prayer, and Leah Blalock said, “We have a house much larger than we use, and now I know why. Send the Mims over.”
The rest of the story will continue tomorrow!
New Relationships - Day 19
Monday, December 4, 2017
This morning was a new day, and Carly seems to be in slightly better spirits, but is still down. Normally she does a half hour of each type of therapy in the morning, with a break mid-day and another round of therapies in the afternoon. Today they rearranged her schedule to give her more time in occupational therapy, so that she could bake brownies! The brownie baking went great, and Carl and Carly ate warm brownies while they watched one of Carly’s favorite movies, “Wild Hearts Cant Be Broken”.
Yesterday we wrote about the connection with Becky Motolla, which led to our current living situation. This is another amazing God story, and is one of so many on this journey! The Mimstribe continues to be blessed beyond anything we could hope or imagine.
We talked to Leah for less than forty-five minutes and had to pull ourselves away to go back to the hospital. She is delightful, a full on Texas gal with a true love for the Lord! She showed us around and Dawson gave instructions on the important things, like how to get the XBox 360 to work on surround sound and then switch back to TV. Then she handed us a key to the house and said she knew we would be coming in late, and they would probably be in bed because they were leaving the next morning at 5 AM for a week long vacation. Enjoy, and we’ll see you when we return!
Leah came to the hospital the other day to meet Carly, and maybe it was the two cute blondes relating, but I think Carly sensed Leah’s special spirit and perked up, gave great facial expressions to Leah and even hugged her! Certainly a special moment.
The garage sale in Cedar City today was amazing today. Viet, Thy’s mom had traveled down with the trip to help. Tons of people donated items to sell, and one of our neighbors, Terry Cook, was a huge help! She baked tons of amazing goodies for the bake sale, including home-made muffins, cookies, zucchini bread and peach cobbler! She also helped set up, put posters up and get the word out about the event!
We thank the Lord for all of our new friends (and the old ones who have all been so supportive!), and for the many prayers of everyone, and especially for the miracle of Carly and her progress. Pray for continued progress, happy days for Carly, for the feeding tube to come out and for the rest of the transition to Salt Lake City to go smoothly.
A Day of Rest - Day 20
Monday, December 4, 2017
Even with a short staff, the hospital was able to have someone stay with Carly, to allow Carl to go to church this morning. He visited South Mountain Community Church, which is where the Motolla’s and our new roomies, the Blalock’s, attend. It was a great morning! It is easy to walk into a church and critique the pastor, worship team, children’s ministry, youth ministry and facility in comparison to others. But those things are not the Church, it is the people. People all coming together to worship, to learn and to serve. In the short time Carl walked from the front door to a seat in the sanctuary, he was approached and engaged in conversation with three different people, and none of them were part of some special greeting team. That was in addition to the normal greeters and people holding open doors. This is a body that truly loves people, and of course we already knew that from knowing the Motolla’s and Blalock’s. If more pastors and those attending churches would focus on the people around rather than doctrine, programs and facilities, it would be wonderful!
Pray for Carly to eat better, that the feeding tube would bother her less and that she would be able to swallow her medications. Please also pray for energy for rehab next week, and that she would be happy and be able to find joy in such a difficult and life-changing time. Please also pray for the many decisions facing the Mimstribe.
Carly On the Launching Pad - Day 21
Monday, December 4, 2017
Tripp and Thy’s garage sale in Cedar City was a huge success. It was a weekend of hard work, but thankfully it brought us closer to boxing things up, which will happen in the next two weeks. The outpouring of friends and family has been tremendous and warming! We are truly blessed in every way possible.
Pray for Carly’s continued progress, and for continued guidance as the Mimstribe makes decisions. Please also pray that Noah and Abi would make wonderful friends in Salt Lake City.
Gestures - Day 23
Monday, December 4, 2017
The past two days Carly has shown more personality in every way! She is gesturing more. At breakfast she was tired of eggs. And instead of thumbs down for no, she raised one side of her lip - Elvis style. A typical Carly face! She also did that a few more times when Carl offered her a jelly donut, and she broke out laughing and giggling. Later in the afternoon, Noah was talking too much, and she gave him that special finger gesture, which caught everyone by surprise! She started laughing so hard she couldn’t contain herself, and went from the couch to the bed just rolling around and laughing! You had to be there, but it was truly great to see her personality back!
This is a packing weekend. Janie drove back to Cedar City yesterday afternoon to organize things. Carl, Noah and Abi will drive down to Cedar City on Friday after school to spend the weekend packing boxes and getting ready to store/move everything. Janie will return to Salt Lake City Friday afternoon, to be with Carly for the weekend. Katie will be driving from LA to Cedar City to help pack and take Gizmo and Izzy (our two cats) back to live with her in LA for awhile.
We thank God every day for the miracle of Carly and all the many blessings that have been showered on her and the Mimstribe. The outpouring of every one of our family, friends, friends of friends...it has all been so unbelievable and so important to us. Pray for Carly’s continued rehab and safe travels for everyone on the road this weekend.
Gifts - Day 24
Monday, December 4, 2017
Carly received a teddy bear from her close dancing friend, Zui, who she went to school with. Zui is pictured above with Carly:-) At first Carly was a little sad when she opened the package, but then she quickly cheered up and has kept the teddy bear on her bed with her! She was very touched.
This afternoon she watched “Mama Mia!” for some entertainment on the laptop.
Tomorrow Janie returns to Salt Lake City from Cedar City and Carl, Noah and Abi will be leaving for Cedar City.
Friends - Day 25
Monday, December 4, 2017
Today she received another package from one of her best friends, Kelly Stanton. Kelly has been pictures in a few photos on the site before, and was Carly’s roommate when she was living in Tampa and going to the Aveda Institute. She is pictured above with Carly, on her wedding day this past spring. Kelly sent Carly a great outfit, and a wonderful photo of herself and her husband Jeremy, who has also been friends with Carly and the Mimstribe for a long time. Receiving the photo was very emotional for Carly, and she has gotten up from her bed several times just to go look at it, and she always smiles. It is hanging right next to the photo that Abby and Justin Nelson sent her!
Janie is currently driving back to Salt Lake City, and Carl will head to Cedar City with Noah and Abi once she arrives. We have wonderful friends and neighbors that have volunteered to take care of the cats for the next few weeks, so Katie has decided to wait on her trip to Cedar City, since picking up the cats was one of the main purposes of her trip. She has had a very long week at work, and is fighting a cold. Katie will most likely go to Cedar City to help finish packing in two weeks when she is on hiatus, and then spend some time in Salt Lake City with the entire family.
Lazy Sunday - Day 28
Monday, December 4, 2017
Two of the photos are of Carly and our cousin, Chris Parnell. One from when she was living in New York, and another from this past spring when she went to visit Katie in Los Angeles. Chris has been amazing, and has written Carly several letters, sent her photos and called to check on her. He’s been very supportive! A few days ago, Carly’s speech therapist walked in and and immediately noticed the photos of Carly and Chris! It turns out she’s a huge fan of his. She immediately started talking about the Lazy Sunday Chronicles of Narnia video that he did a few years back on SNL, and Carly immediately perked up. She perked up so much that the speech therapist decided to use the beat from the rap in the video for part of Carly’s therapy, and it ended up being one of Carly’s better speech therapy sessions!
Later that afternoon Carl pulled the video up on Hulu for Carly to watch, and it seemed to make her really happy:-)
It’s been a busy weekend for the Mimstribe. Janie arrived back in Salt Lake City on Friday night to stay with Carly while Carl, Noah and Abi went back to Cedar City to pack. Carl and the kids are now on their way back to Salt Lake City so that the kids can be back in school tomorrow. Please continue to pray for progress for Carly and guidance and wisdom as the Mims family makes decisions about the future. We have been told that Carly may be released and sent home on Wednesday or Thursday, which is truly amazing. There are many different things that need to happen in order for us to be ready for Carly to come home, and there is a lot of coordinating and planning that needs to take place to get her outpatient therapy scheduled and worked out.
God’s Amazing Creation - Day 29
Monday, December 4, 2017
The end of in-hospital rehab is near, and each therapy discipline is performing evaluations on Carly with us, so that we can better understand where she is and plan for where we are going from here. It has all become a little overwhelming. Similar to when a rocket takes off, there is much excitement and emotion while it speeds off into space, but you still know that there are light years to travel. Carly has done amazing things, but when you sit down with evaluations you realize how far she still has to go. The brain is part of God’s amazing creation, and when you look at it there is no doubt we were created and could never have evolved as some might believe. Add to that the unique personality each of us has, and it is really very amazing! When you sit through an evaluation, you begin to realize all of the things that we do automatically, that we take for granted every day. You realize how Carly is mentally having to re-wire each of those things, and you see how much effort it really takes. The next few days will be a big challenge and adjustment for Carly and for the Mimstribe, as we all get into full gear.
Pray for Carly’s continued progress, that she gets into out-patient rehab programs quickly, that things would fall into place and for her adjustment to her new home situation to be smooth. Please also pray for the rest of the Mimstribe, as Carly’s homecoming will be a big adjustment for everyone.
God’s Timing - Day 30
Monday, December 4, 2017
What a God story this is. The use of technology and social networking had thousands praying for Carly within minutes. God heard the prayers and did a major miracle, all in his perfect timing. When Carly was life-flighted from Cedar City to Salt Lake City, there was a very good chance that she would not make it. When she was admitted to the Trauma ICU, we were told she could be there for several weeks, even months. God’s timing was just seven days, and she was awake and walking within five. God appointed just the right people at the right time to provide the perfect care for Carly. Each one of the doctors, nurses and therapists who have worked with Carly in the last thirty days have become very special to us. All of them have been totally amazing, not only in medical skills, but in compassion, love and the respect with which they cared for Carly. Intermountain Medical Center is the most amazing place.
After being in the ICU Shock/Trauma unit, Carly moved to the Neuro recovery floor, where we were told she would spend anywhere from several days to several weeks gaining the strength needed to enter the inpatient rehab program. In God’s awesome timing, she was only there for 22 hours before they moved her to the inpatient Rehab floor! No doubt only God can work so fast. By now, everyone that comes into contact with Carly acknowledges God’s miracle and his timing.
Have you ever thought much about God’s timing? It’s easy to get focused on God’s will and forget the importance of His timing. Often it means being very patient to understand his plan, when our prayers are not immediately answered. Pastor Chuck Smith says that, “If God answered all of our prayers how we wanted and when we wanted, the world would certainly be a messed up place.” I have worked in ministry for the past sixteen years, and have seen many answered prayers and miracles. No doubt the miracle delivered to Carly and the Mimstribe has been the most amazing experience ever. His perfect timing in answering prayer, providing care and providing for the family has all been so evident.
Act 1 of this God story is now complete. Carly’s miracle has been amazing. Her hard work and determination in rehab have been unbelievable. Everyone has been blessed. The Mimstribe has many amazing memories of individuals who have touched our lives providing care for Carly and the family. We have been blessed with new friends who have gone out of their way to connect with us in a new community. Blessed with new friends who have taken us into their home to live. Blessed and touched by family and friends who have reached out, prayed, supported and been there for us. The emotions for us have been extreme in every direction for the past thirty days. I only wish everyone could experience the closeness of God in their lives the way that we have. I hope everyone realizes how quickly life can change and how important we all are to each other.
Today Act 2 begins, and there are many unknowns. What we do know is that God has answered the prayers of many, and his timing is perfect. We can only watch the rest of the God story unfold, and be aware of his goodness. No doubt we still need the prayers of all those who have prayed for the last thirty days. Major changes in every aspect of our lives have taken place in the last thirty days, and are continuing to take place. Many adjustments will be required of all of us in the coming thirty days. Carly has made amazing progress. We spent the last few days mirroring Carly in rehab, and realize the extreme work she has ahead of her. The simplest tasks that we do daily, requires huge effort for her. We have seen progress greatly slow down, and are told that the next phase can be very long and slow, yet we know it will be in God’s timing. We will miss the 24-hour support we have had from the Intermountain Medical Center team in caring for Carly. Yet we look forward to the new relationships we will make with those who will be assisting Carly in out-patient rehab, and look forward to going back to visit with all of those who have touched our lives in the past thirty days.
In your prayer time for Carly, thank God for an amazing miracle, for the unbelievable blessings of Intermountain Medical Center, their staff and the blessings and prayers of friends and family. Pray for Carly’s adjustment to new surroundings, for the many details that are yet to be discovered in that transition, for the adjustments Abi and Noah have to make to help care for Carly, and for Carly to quickly get started in out-patient rehab.
Sorry for the delay in updating the past few days! We have really missed the twenty-four hour support of IHC, and as a result haven't had much time to write daily updates.
Slow Progress - Day 35
Monday, December 4, 2017
As you know from the last post, Carly is HOME! Her departure from the hospital was a little traumatic, because we had driven two cars to the hospital that day. Janie went down to pull her car up to the door, where we loaded Carly and her belongings. Carl then walked to his car as Janie and Carly left the parking lot. Carly became very agitated and nervous the moment they turned onto the street. She was so upset that Janie had to stop the car. That is when, for the first time, Janie heard Carly's small voice say "Dad". Janie explained that he was in another car, and right about that time Carl pulled up behind them and stopped. From that point forward Carly was fine.
Carly was very excited to walk into her new temporary home! You may recall from a previous post that the Blalock's have graciously opened up their beautiful home and allowed us to live with them until we can get on our feet. Carly walked in and began to grin from ear to ear! She walked through each room in the house, wide-eyed and grinning. After exploring most of the house, Carly walked into the large glass walk-in shower in the bathroom Carl and Janie are using. Carl was worried she was going to turn the shower on, but instead she picked up every bath and hair product and looked it all over, dropping the items she didn't like on the shower floor, and then walking out! No doubt despite her lack of speech, she still has an opinion!
We have spent the past few days getting settled in with Carly at home and working every possible angle to get her into various rehab programs at Intermountain, University of Utah and The National Ability Center in Park City, Utah. In addition, there’s been a lot of paper work to get straight. Not only for those rehab programs, but also for the Social Security Administration. We have been working on various therapy drills that the rehab floor taught us before leaving the hospital. The bottom line is that there really isn't that much new to report on Carly's progress. While we know and realize Carly has a long way to go, we only have to look back at the last month to see the miracles and assure ourselves that she is going to make a full recovery.
On Sunday afternoon we went for a short walk/hike in the canyon close to the house. It was a great day to be outside! Carly does great walking as long as you let her go fast. When she slows down, balance becomes an issue, but she hasn't come even close to falling. It just scares you a little when she begins to weave around.
Carly's first outpatient rehab appointment at Intermountain for occupational and physical therapy is tomorrow. The appointment is mostly an evaluation. Please pray that she would get an appointment in speech therapy quickly! So far she is on the extended waiting list for this therapy, and does not have any future appointments scheduled with any of the therapies.
Rehab - Day 38
Monday, December 4, 2017
Carly had her first outpatient rehab session on Tuesday. It was a one hour occupational therapy assessment, and a one hour physical therapy session. As we walked into the rehab facility, the speech therapist greeted us! She set up an appointment for Friday, which is a huge answer to prayer. Carly is officially off the waiting list and will start speech therapy tomorrow, only one week after leaving the hospital and months before we had been told she could enter the program.
To give you an idea of where Carly is and how far she has to go, one of the simple tests during therapy involved placing nine pegs in nine well spaced holes. Most people can do this in 10-15 seconds. Using her right hand, Carly did it in 45 seconds. Using her left hand required over 3 minutes. We were surprised to find out that the actual test for hand strength and finger pinch showed almost the same strength on both the left and right side. In physical therapy, Carly did very well with balance and catching herself. It’s the initial balance that’s the issue.
On Wednesday Carly started Therapeutic Horseback Riding at the National Ability Center. If you are not familiar, horseback riding is a highly c tool for brain injury patients. It has tremendous benefit in balance and helping to build neuro pathway speed. Abi also went and it put smiles on everyone’s faces. It looks like it will be a great therapy/activity. Look for photos next week!
Carl has returned to Cedar City to finish packing and help with the final garage sales. Katie will be on hiatus from iCarly at the end of the week for at least the next month. She will be coming back to Cedar City to help with moving out of the house there, and will be in Salt Lake City for Carly’s birthday on October 1st.
We thank God for the continued answers to prayer in getting Carly into rehab so quickly! Please continue to pray for Carly’s progress.
Traveling - Day 43
Monday, December 4, 2017
The last few days have been very busy! Carly had her first outpatient speech rehab on Friday. The therapist was very encouraging and feels that Carly will certainly talk again. She also thinks that Carly will have a very high recovery level, but that it’s just a matter of time. Friday afternoon Janie, Carly, Noah and Abi returned to Cedar City to help with the last garage sale on Saturday and work on packing up the remaining things in the house to move to storage. We have been working hard to de-junk and pair down the house, so that we can fit in a smaller space in the future.
We weren’t sure how Carly would do traveling, but she did great! She had a wonderful time in Cedar City, and seemed very glad to be seeing some new faces. She especially enjoyed seeing Tripp and Thy! Her personality is really starting to come back, and she’s starting to laugh again.
On Saturday night, Jane Wood, Janie’s Mother, fell and broke her hip and fractured a wrist. Janie is in Memphis right now with her parents. Mimi (is what the kids call Jane) is not a candidate for surgery because she is so frail, her bones are so brittle and her mental status is so jumbled. So right now it’s just a waiting game to see what happens. They have brought in hospice care, and Janie is staying with Lewis, her father.
This coming weekend (the 25th) is the big moving day in Cedar City. Katie is leaving tomorrow to drive from Los Angeles to Cedar City to help finish packing, and get the move started. Carl and the kids will drive out Friday afternoon after school, and Saturday everything will be moved from the house to a storage unit. After the move has started on Saturday, Katie will leave to return to Los Angeles with Gizmo and Izzy (the two cats), who will stay with her until the Mimstribe has a permanent place to stay in Salt Lake City. A few days later, Katie will return to Salt Lake City to celebrate Carly’s 23rd Birthday on October 1st! As you can see, there is a lot going on, and it looks as though the Mimstribe will continue to be scattered between three states off and on for the next few weeks.
We thank God daily for the miracle of Carly, and the unbelievable recovery she has experienced so far. Pray for her continued rehab and for all the logistics to work out with Janie being out of town and the family moving without her help. Please also pray that Mimi (Jane) would be comfortable, and for safe travels for everyone.
Spectacular Charity Garage Sale Extravaganza!
South Florida Fall Spectacular Carly Mims Charity Benefit Garage Sale Extravaganza!
When: Saturday, September 25th, 2010
Where: The Garage and Driveway of Kelly and Jan Lyon in
The Coquina Neighbor of Coconut Creek
4288 NW 41st Lane, Coconut Creek, FL 33073
(off of Lyons Road between Sample and Wiles)
Time: 8 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Gates to the community will be open during these hours. All proceeds from this event will go to benefit the recovery expenses of our special girl Carly Jane Mims.
If you live in the South Florida Area, we need your STUFF!
• We are also in need of great and exciting gift packages or items for our Spectacular Carly Mims Charity Benefit Extravaganza Raffle! (Remember…..great and exciting items!)
• Want to volunteer? Want to help sort and tag? We need your help and we need it fast!
• Want to contribute yummy homemade baked goods to sell? Start your ovens!
• Call Jan @ 954-818-9294, Karen @ 954-899-3612 or Amy @ 954-857-6200
Mimi - Day 49
Monday, December 4, 2017
Carly continues to progress slowly. She’s doing amazing in speech therapy at the University of Utah, and while she still isn’t speaking, she has been mouthing to songs and we have heard a few whispers! On Friday, Carly joined Abi, Noah and Carl on a trip to Cedar City to finish moving the house and contents to storage. Katie drove out on Thursday, a day before everyone else, to help finish packing. On Saturday after moving everything to storage, Carl, Noah, Abi and Carly all returned to Salt Lake City and Katie retuned to Los Angeles with the cats. She will be keeping them there until the Mimstribe has their own place to live. It was great having all of the kids together in one place for a few nights! Carly really enjoyed the time with all of her brothers and sisters.
Janie was in Memphis last week with her Mom, Jane, as you might remember. She had suffered a fall and broken a hip and fractured a wrist. Jane passed away Friday afternoon. The funeral was yesterday (Monday). With all of the logistics involved, Papa (Lewis, Janie’s Dad) suggested that the family will do a private memorial at a later time, when everyone is better able to travel, rather than flying out for the service yesterday. Jan Lyon flew into Memphis on Sunday from Florida to be with Janie for the services and to help with logistics and things that needed to be taken care of. Janie and Papa are both doing well, and while you can never prepare for the loss of a loved one, in many ways it was a blessing that Mimi is now with the Lord and is no longer in pain.
For the most recent updates, please click here.
You can send a card to Carly at the following address. She especially enjoys pictures of those sending.
Carly Mims
2720 Harris St
Bozeman, MT 59718
Abi on Same Quad one Week Earlier