May 31, 2007 at 10:42 AM MDT Hello! Happy Birthday to me. I'm celebrating the 23rd anniversary of my 30th birthday. Works for me! Cam has been making wondrous strides. When the pain doesn't have him immobile, he does great. He's going to a therapist that works him hard and doesn't take any nonsense. Just what he needs! He can now get out of his wheelchair, lay on the floor, and get back up by himself. He is getting on his hands and knees, and working on getting his core strength back. We have started using weighted balls for arm lifts to work the obliques. He can feel that his muscles are sore. That's good! The band that has been around his mid-chest has moved down lower, and he doesn't feel like he's being squeezed to death. He can feel when I massage his lower back now, and it feels so good to him. Now for some more WONDERFUL NEWS! We have been chosen for the fall UTAH HOME MAKEOVER!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am so excited I don't have the words to express it. They will bulldoze the house in September and build a brand new 2-story home in its place. We will be sent on a 10-day vacation while it's being done, and then come back for the unveiling. I cry when I see those shows on TV, and now I'm going to be crying for a totally different reason. What a blessing. More later. Cam is being tested for new work skills today.
May 20, 2007 at 11:00 PM MDT Wowie. This seems to be written farther apart each time. Patti, my sister, is leaving for her mission in Ireland a week from tomorrow. This month has gone so fast! My other sister Barb and Patti and I went on an all-nighter Thursday and Friday. We all went to Ricks College in Rexburg, Idaho, so we went back and walked the Campus. The trip up was great, Id. was great and the trip back fantastic. That's the last sisters’ trip for the next 18 months. I was very concerned about Cam, but he didn't need me at all, and was quite pleased with himself and his autonomy. Good for him! The bus is a good substitute for Sharon's auto service. He thinks I am annoyed driving him places, but I'm not. Lots happening. Cam is going to intensive therapy tomorrow, a 2-hour deal with a half-hour travel time in the wheelchair. He is very apprehensive about it, fearing the pain that may ensue. I don’t blame him, but I feel that he will do very well. All Leighton has to do is say, “you can’t do it!” and Cam will blast through whatever it is. I thought reverse-psychology was for the younger set. Oh, well, whatever works, I say!
We’ll write more tomorrow and let all ya’ll know how he did, and what he did. Thanks for your love. Right back at ya! Sharon
May 17, 2007 at 12:13 PM MDTHello, all. Good news! I spoke with Becky Reeve yesterday, my old mission president's quadraplegic daughter who has been wheelchair bound for 45 years and she is now beginning to take steps on her own after working with a therapist here in Provo, actually 8 blocks away from my house! She told me directly that, in her opinion and from her experiences working with her current therapist and watching him work with others, I should be out of the chair and walking by Christmas if I start working with him now. Kewl!
The program is the Sit Tall Stand Tall program here in Provo. The fellow has been helping people stand and walk for 25 years now. Quite a rigorous program, I am told, but if you want to achieve the "impossible", I guess it takes some effort. As Rex C. Reeve Sr., my mission president used to say, "Triumph is just 'Try' with a powerful 'Umph' behind it", and Becky used to tell us, "The difficult you can do immediately. The impossible just takes a little time."
Well, today I'm going to see that therapist then go to the Wellness Institute to work out and keep in as good shape as I can. I can take the bus virtually to the door for only $0.75! Cheep, the little birdy says.
I have submitted my headshot and resume to audition for a movie, "The Food Boy", and my agent tells me much more is coming up to audition for. Looking forward to getting back on set. In the meanwhile, I'm still preparing to speak before adoring audiences ... well, at least before listening (and paying) audiences. I see myself speaking all over the world, helping people feel strengthened to overcome their challenges and succeed were they had doubted before. That sounds like a lot of fun to me!
Regarding my healing, our wonderful daughter, Heather, has been coming over after work for the past several evenings and giving me the most delightful massages. Last night she worked on a knot in my back beside the left shoulder blade. OH! Burn. It hurt so gooooood! She focused on those muscles for about 15 minutes and they started to itch like a mosquito bite. New blood was finally getting into them. Then my beloved Sharon quantum touched me for about 5 minutes and the muscle clicked unlocked. Ahhhh, relief! I mean an 80% relief of pain without pain killers. It was wonderful, I'll tell you! Things are getting better.
Thanks for your continuing interest and especially your prayers. I'll be going to the temple tomorrow, I hope. Life goes on and continues to be good, better and better, actually.
Love to you all. Cameron Cv. ------------------------------------------------ May 10, 2007 at 08:24 PM MDT Hello. Things have been going so slow lately. Cam has not had much improvement in his back. The spasms have been horrendous, and he has stayed in bed 2 days this week. Seeing him in so much pain is really hard, not to mention a cranky attitude to everyone when he is in pain. I really hate to keep writing the same things over and over again. We got a letter today from a friend who had broken his neck at 18 and the person here in Provo who helped him so much. There have been people who have been paralyzed for years and are walking with braces. We are going to call the guy and get an evaluation done to see how much he can help! I am quite encouraged with all he has done for others. I will let you know how things go. Cam will be qualified for Vocational Rehabilitation: transportation, schooling, fixing the truck so he can drive it and get the wheelchair in the back by himself, testing and a few other things. We will find out about what all is available on Monday or Tuesday. In that vein, things are looking up for the future. Now, we must get the pain under control. We have been giving him deep massages, which feel very good, and then made a discovery. We now believe that pushing so hard on the muscles over the rods and bolts has bruised his muscles, not allowing them to heal. We are experimenting with very soft massaging on the sorest spots, and that seems to be more relaxing to him. We will continue with that, and see where that goes. Yay! Cam is talking to the guy I wrote about above, so we will see how positive this guy is about the situation. Cam's parents have been so wonderful to us. They were here again for a BYU graduation, and spent some great time with us. Sometimes I feel like I am losing my mind and somebody else found it, or is keeping it from me. If you find it, will you fax it back to me, or email it? Thanks : )! Thanks for your love and prayers! Sharon
May 03, 2007 at 10:44 AM MDT Hello all. Well, today is the 3-month-aversary of my accident. A celebration may be in order...?
My last communication was just before my first opportunity to speak and I promised to report how it went. I have been told that what was presented was well received and found to have some value to the listeners. Very, very glad of that! For myself, it was very enjoyable and I look forward to speaking again.
I am working on a power-point presentation to make things much more enjoyable. You see, my main topic has to do with the important topic of why/how trials and pain are beneficial to us, not just in mortality but also in the eternal scheme of things. In addition to briefly explaining how I came to be in a wheelchair at age 51.5, I tell the story of 5 miracles that took place during my first several days in the ICU, miracles that have made this tragic experience more of a MAGIC experience, taking Howard Workman's explanation of MAGIC:
A: Attitude is all important and answers to primary questions are vital to having a proper & positive attitude. God gave me essential answers in miraculous ways those first days in ICU.
G: Grattitude is essential to happiness. I am so grateful for the peace those answers have given me, and the power to move forward.
I: Integrity is an absolute must, integrity to live true to correct principles of healing, growth, relationships, and love. Without integrity, all is based on a sandy foundation and will ultimately be swept away by opposition. Integrity puts solidity into everything we build.
C: Courage, Compassion, Consistency, etC. Whatever good you "C" must be included to make a happy and productive/prosperous life.
And, of course, the MAGIC starts with M: Me.
Well, that's Howard's stuff. He does a great magic show based upon this and his rates are very reasonable. I'd be happy to forward to him any contact information.
My presentation includes, as one of the 5 miracles, a brief explanation of how this trial of paraplegia is a blessing in my life because a deeper understanding of the eternal Plan of Happiness. To help explain it I have some pix of the heavenly places I was raised in British Columbia as well as some footage of some of the stage/film work I've done. Soon I'll have a good presentation that can be projected up. I'm looking forward to speaking all over the world.
If you know of any organizations that may be interested in having me speak to their people, I would love the opportunity.
As for my progress in healing, I have been unable to continue going without pain-relief pills. It just got too intense, but I am able to keep it down to only 2-3 pills a day. We finally got smart and put two small, thin pillows down on the bed about 3 inches apart and I laid on those on my back, thus supporting my back without any pressure on the spine or the muscles that cover the steel rods and screws that are keeping my bones in place. I slept 100% better last night because of that. Ahhhhhhhhhh!
Well, that's it for this update. Thank you for your continued interest and, especially, you continued prayers. I know of the power of your prayers in our behalf and cannot thank you enough.
