Wednesday Update 3/20

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Yesterday, Josh’s surgeon said that the best thing to do while he was healing was to maintain a sense of day and night, and to talk to him. I read comments from his group and website (I read posted comments to him before he went into surgery on Monday), and then red some dad jokes from a subreddit. He did respond to me by lifting up his hand, and at one point we connected for a high five.

Today, he is communicating “yes” or “no” with a thumbs up or down. There is some hope that the drain in his head can be removed soon.

Right now, we are waiting for him to wake up enough to talk.

On Monday, we worried about all of the risks associated with the surgery to remove the tumor, but now that’s done the concern is that he wakes up. I know that there is never a such thing as a “magic pill,” but I half expected him to return back normal following his surgery. And, all of the tumor has been removed, so it seemed like he would recover more quickly. But, I am learning that reality is very different from that.

The report on the tumor still hasn’t been released.

My sister, Amy Gauthier, has launched a GoFundMe campaign here. I have also added a Guestbook to Josh’s site which will allow visitors to leave a comment without having to attach it to a post on the site. This might be a way to share well wishes, tell a story, or just whatever you feel like doing. As I mentioned, these will be something that would be nice to read out loud to Josh.

I have also launched a Discord Server. You can use the widget which is displayed on the homepage to join the server. I wanted to add this because I know that Josh is a big user of Discord, and I thought that he might like to use it to chat with visitors when he is able to.

One last item is a Resources section, where I will post helpful information.

6 comments

  1. Thank you for keeping us updated! Josh, so many people in Shepherd are missing you, praying for you, and thinking of you!

    1. Thanks. Especially Theresa, she is in Grand Rapids. I returned home yesterday to watch over Kayla and Elijah.

  2. I’m glad to hear there is progress even if it’s not as fast as we would like. All things happen in their own time. If you all need anything please reach out and let us know what we can do.

  3. Very interested in the improvements, Josh makes each day, what an inspiration this young man is to us. Thank you for sharing with us !!!

  4. Sounds like good news for Josh, prayers continue, for him and all of his family.
    God bless you.
    Susan Brooks

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