Gosple Music Benefit

Troy is home! He has taken a big step on the long road of recovery. We are happy to have him out of the hospital. Bill and Tammy have been singing gospel music for years and Bill sang country long before that. Every year he comes to Louisville to have a jam session with some the people who used to play music with him. This years session is being held on Labor Day weekend and they would like to make it a benefit to aid Troy and Robin. All proceeds from this event will help pay for medical expenses. You can imagine the strain on a family when going through a serious illness. Combine medical prescriptions with a lowered income, and that can cause some stress. But God has been good. This is something that God has laid on Bill and Tammy's heart and we are here to spread the word. There are no tickets, donations will be taken. Please prayerfully consider contributing to Troy, and come out and enjoy a good time with family and friends. Refreshments will be served. It will be at Cloverleaf Baptist Church, 4401 Manslick Rd, Louisville, KY, 40216, on September 4th, 7:00 pm. If you can not attend and would like to contribute, please send contributions to 8312 McKenna Way, Louisville, KY 40291. Please make checks payable to Troy Clayton. You may call 502-937-7007 with any questions. Thank you for your love and support. "Our God is an Awesome God"

Home

Troy was in better spirits today; much better than last week. He got to leave the hospital yesterday on a day pass and go home. He was sleeping on the couch when I checked on him around noon. He told me today that the day went really well, even better than he expected. He got to eat food that he liked. He got a haircut. Some friends came over. And the dogs were very excited to see him. He was in therapy when I arrived today, they were really working him hard. He is doing everything well. The struggle is endurance; he tires quickly. He is walking alone and will not be taking a walker home, as originally discussed. They were going to come in some time today and remove the feeding tube from his abdomen and the pick lines from his arm. They are expecting that he will be leaving tomorrow before noon! I can't believe this day is finally coming. His recovery since he has been in the rehab hospital has been amazing to watch. My job as blogger is almost over! I will keep you posted for a few weeks after he is home, because I some times wonder how people are doing after a serious illness. And the doctor says it will be 6 months to a year for a full recovery from this. But I probably will not post everyday. Thank you for all of your prayers. "Our God is an Awesome God"

Down Days

Troy was very discouraged when I got there Thurs afternoon. He was upset because they told him is discharge day was set for Tuesday, if everything continued to go well. He had his heart set on leaving the end of the week. He was angry. He didn't even want to do his therapy. As hard as we tried to lift his spirits and encourage him, nothing seemed to work. He just wanted to go to his room and sleep. He was trying hard to convince the nurses that he was ready to leave. Then the doctor came in and put him back on an IV drip because he was dehydrated. He said he had to stay until Tuesday. His hopes were squashed. Our family meeting was scheduled for Friday, and I thought he was just having a bad day and would be better by then, but he wasn't. Pray for his spirits to be lifted. The therapists say that when people get down, it makes them just want to lay around, especially when they go home. This can really hinder their progress. They must keep up the therapy to get strength back. The temptation is strong at home to just lay on the couch when they don't feel good. He gets to go home on a day pass Sunday. We hoped this would make him happy and look forward to something, but he still seems angry that he is not getting to go home. We can not give up on him now, we have come to far. This is just another challenge for us. We must be the ones to make him persevere. Pray for us to have the right words to say to him. Pray for Robin. Even in the difficult times, "Our God is an Awesome God"

Troy had a biopsy done this morning on his pancreas. The CAT scan results showed some cysts and they wanted to check them to see if medications needed to be changed. He was eating lunch when I arrived this afternoon. He got to rest for just a bit before they came to get him for an hour and a half of therapy. He is still doing remarkably well. Strength building is a main focus at this point. Continue to pray for his recovery and for the family. "Our God is an Awesome God"

Troy got his trach completely off yesterday. And they took away the walker. They are being very aggressive with the therapy. He is eating, trying to intake enough calories to get off the tube feedings. He says things taste ok, but he has no appetite, so eating is not that easy. He is trying to keep it up though. He has been sleeping a little better at night, but is looking forward to going home. He thinks he will be able to improve more when he is home. We have not gotten results yet from the CAT scan. Pray that he will have a smooth transition to home life and that he will adjust to a new diet. His 1st week in rehab has been amazing. His improvement...I don't know how to describe. It's funny how you ask God for something and then your amazed when it happens. To see this recovery-from how bad he was, to where he is now-is a miracle. I thank you once again for being there with us and for all of your prayers. "Our God is an Awesome God"

Troy didn't have therapy today, but he will have 3 hours again tomorrow. They had given him some weights to work with today in his room and he has some putty that he is supposed to be squeezing to improve his hand muscles. When Byron and I arrived this evening they were giving him some liquid with medicine in it, in preparation for a CAT scan he was going to have tonight. They are checking the condition of the pancreas. Everything else is going really well. He hasn't been sleeping well at night and he says he dreads the night time. Pray that he will get some restful sleep at night so that he can have more strength for his therapy sessions. "Our God is an Awesome God"

Talk Talk Talk!

Troy was sitting in the wheelchair when Byron & I arrived tonight. Kim & Ronnie came shortly after us and Troy wanted to walk down the hall to the sun room. We were still sitting there when Robin arrived. He was very talkative. He even said at one point how he was surprised that he wasn't getting tired from all the taking (which proves that he is getting stronger). He talked for a solid hour and a half!! We even joked to him about how he was making up for lost time. We couldn't get him to talk for so long and now we couldn't get him to stop! He called Bill on the phone and got to talk to him for a while too. He and Byron and Kim were telling stories and laughing about childhood memories. It was a nice visit. "Our God is an Awesome God"