Phillip Sherwood

I’ll get something out really soon. Been very busy. I’m doing well overall but my leg swelling has been very difficult to get under control now that the clotting has worsened. The new kitten has been a lot of fun watching all his antics

I spent the majority of the weekend resting because I have a whopper of a head cold with slight upper chest congestion so I went to the VA doctor at lunch and he prescribed me some antibiotics to take for a week. Tomorrow I have a follow-up appointment with the doctor who implanted my pump to do a slight adjustment. The pain medication has almost completely calmed the spasms and pain but I still get the leg shakes once in awhile. I’ve found the pump to be a mixed blessing. The good is that it has been very effective with the pain and spasms but the bad has been a reduced feeling in the lower extremities and my legs fill up with fluids and become very heavy and difficult to maneuver. The abdominal functions like renal and digestive are out of whack as well. One thing is that I can’t feel it when I need to go to the bathroom and now I’m back on the clock. My night sweats have also thrown the hydration factor for a loop. I’m sure things will begin to settle down after a bit but until then I’m still restricted from standing, stretching and any type rigorous upper body activity. I’m hoping for a better night.

I’m not burning off of all eight cylinders today and my sleep cycle is all out of whack. I spent a long miserable night scratching my itches I’ve been feeling since the evening of the surgery. I took soo much Benadryl last night I thought it would knock me out enough to keep me from scratching the inside of my longs. The effect of the pump is instantaneous but I still have to take all my oral meds in the interim. Before the surgery began the doctor told me they were going to fill the pump with morphine bit I requested he either upgrade it to something else or to use children’s baby aspirin. He then rewrote the script for dilaudid instead after I explained the many time I’d been prescribed but with little to no positive effect. Today my head feels as if it has been in a fish bowl so when I go in to the clinic next week for my follow-up, I will need to get him to throttle back the dosage.

I am sitting in my chair right now sipping on a Mountain Dew and wearing an Alabama t-shirt while I write this post. The signifigance of the t-shirt is that this is the first time I have been able to lift my arms high enough over my head to do so Dad and I just finished taking a stroll through the garden outside. He has a giant green thumb and was identifying all the different species of plants. Lunch was London Broil steak and it was delicious. I have been getting periodic updates from the benefit race being held today at Sand Mountain Motocross Park and it sounds like Dave Scilabro from LocoMotoMX and race promoter/track owner Billy Raines have done an awesome job putting this all together to help out Al Lewis and myself. I am hoping the N.E.A.T. series banquet is held in Jan 08 so I can attend and give thanks to my fellow racers in person.

I also want to recognize and extend a special thank you to my girlfriend Melissa who has been by my side since before the accident and for helping me get through the emotional difficulties in dealing with all this. Her strength and unconditional compassion has provided me that extra “umf” to make it to the next day. Her son DJ is and has been my hero since meeting him when I first arrived to Huntsville in 2005. Also her young daughter Lillie Grace was always willing to go accept my awards at the races and carry them back for me. I call her my trophy girl They have all been an absolute blessing and I am fortunate to have them in my life.

As for my staff of caregivers here at Shepard, they are wonderful. Kind of like drill sergeants who smile. My weekend nurse and tech (the car wash crew) are the best! Well that’s all for now because it’s movie time. Stay tuned for my post tonight.

Phillip (Felipe Gomez aka El Gato Volador)

P.S. I was given the name El Gato Volador which means Flying Cat while racing in Bolivia. It comes from a funny song by a group in Panama at the time. Felipe Gomez was my racing pseudoname in Colombia.

Today is a really good day despite the networks not broadcasting the Alabama footbal game. Probably for the better since they are being whooped up on. Last night I slept well until they came in to turn me around 4AM. Getting to sleep has not been a problem but falling back asleep once I’ve been woken is the next hurdle. The pain is controlled very well today allowing me to have a good physical therapy session. Breakfast was really really good! Since they don’t make omlettes to order, I requested scrambled eggs with diced onion, tomato, pepper, and cheese and oh how good it was. Dad figured out how to position the hoist to automatically recharge the internal battery so it doesn’t run out anymore halfwy through the transfers from chair to bed or vice versa. The two times the lift went dead, the transfer was brutal. Lunch was good too with lasagna and garlic bread. My mexican brother Cesar works at the Honda dealership in Laredo, TX is helping me with getting a new Honda Odyssey for when I get back home. I got to see the family lounge up on the 6th floor today and was impressed with how nice it is. My breathing exercise aparatus is due every two hours and I’ve found that I inhale a greater volume while laying in the bed than sitting upright in the chair. Also washed my hair today and it felt so great that I wanted to pat my feet like a dog does when you rub his belly. Also got some new shoes that fit better and don’t leave pressure marks on my feet like the other ones. My feet swell while in the chair but go down when I am back in the bed and they are elevated. Today is a good day. I will write more tonight.

 Phillip