UPDATE  February 27 They finished up tinkering with her keppra dose and watching the EEG and we are headed home today to recover. We will see the neurologist in three weeks.   February 25 We are having our Groundhog Day (the movie) moment. Some sort of infection seems to have worked it’s way into mom’s brain causing many of the same symptoms she suffered from earlier in January. Massive headache, word salad when she tries to speak and lots of confusion. Of course she can’t have a huge surgery while she is so sick and especially not one where during the recovery period it is so crucial that she follow strict instructions. She’s on a 24 hour EEG today to see how she responds to a double dose of anti seizure medication.  February 24 No surgery today or tomorrow. Maybe not for weeks. The encephalitis seems to have re-emerged. Mom is devastated.   February 23 in the words of Phil Alspaw,  “Good evening everyone, Sharon has had a difficult day. Surgery is pushed at least one day. There is no reason for everyone to go tomorrow. But there is reason for everyone to pray tonight. Please ask God to take care of our friend. “  February 20 We can’t thank you enough for your continued prayers, well wishes, dinners, cards, hugs and time. The love and support we feel is overwhelming. If anyone has any questions about hanging out with us in the waiting room on Monday please text 907-887-3890 February 13 Open heart surgery will be on February 24 in Kalispell.   February 8 It appears that the oral diuretics Mom is on are doing their job well enough that she was discharged late on Thursday evening. We stayed in Kalispell overnight, had a follow up appointment and headed back home to Libby. We will have another appointment with the heart surgeon on Tuesday and I would imagine (😬) set a date for heart surgery.   February 5 After so many ups and downs and unknowns these past few weeks, Mom’s health is trending up. She had 1300 ml of fluid removed from her left lung yesterday afternoon and had instant relief. Fluid will continue to collect in her lungs because of her faulty heart valve making the new name of the game manage lung fluids and allow encephalitis to heal. Doctors think the longest we will be able to wait is two weeks. Mom’s cognitive ability is massively improved. Prayers are being answered moment by moment. Mom, and our whole family, has been humbled and infinitely blessed by your prayers, words of encouragement, time and gifts. We will never be able to fully express what that has meant to us.  February 3 Yesterday Mom had a very decent day and had a good time watching the Chiefs beat the 49ers 😅 She was really engaged in the game and knew what was going on. In the early am her breathing took a serious dive and she was put on a CPAP machine. Later in the morning over 1400 ml of fluid was removed from her right lung. Many, many signs point to heart failure instead of pneumonia. For the moment this means that open heart surgery has been put back on the front burner. The encephalitis seems to be improving and overall her cognitive abilities are trending upward which is a relief and definite answer to all the prayers.  February 2 Mom had a really, really good night last night. Some antibiotics have been dialed down or eliminated altogether. The acyclovir is still on board. Friday was really the last time we had a lot of info from a doctor. January 29 NO VISITORS AT THIS TIME. It has been confirmed that she has pneumonia. January 27  Right now Mom is struggling with nausea and headaches. She is still struggling with memory and putting sentences together. She’s had some very, very lucid moments and even a few minutes where she seemed her old self. This was quickly followed by getting sick. She is in the thick of the ups and downs of recovery.  For anyone wanting to visit she has been put on a strict stimulation management protocol so please expect time with her to be very short, or to have to wait for her to wake up. Sleep is her precious and hard to find best friend right now.  January 24  Mom has been sleeping better and is more coherent when she’s awake. She’s able to speak better and can tie words together much better than the last couple days. She’s also been able to write down a couple things from memory and copying and her handwriting is still the same. She was also able to read a card aloud pretty well. We think her brain is showing a lot of good signs of improvement! The neurologist and hospitalist both want to keep her on this treatment for at least another week, possibly two more weeks and then begin to focus on rehabilitation afterwards. Thank you everyone for the donations, gifts, flowers, candy and most of all PRAYERS for her complete recovery!! January 23  Mom can read and write her initials! All things considered she is doing really, really well. She has, at least, another week of Acyclovir treatment to get through to kill the virus. Her bloodwork is trending more and more positive. January 19   Today Mom was tested for seizures and they didn’t see any on the EEG. She doesn’t have any stroke like things going on on her MRI scans. The docs are going to give her preventative drugs for the possibility of seizures as well as give her more blood thinner to prevent possible stroke. Her antiviral treatment can take between 10-14 days on I.V. To start seeing results. Once that virus is gone then they will worry about her heart which hasn’t gotten any worse since they have her the initial sonogram last Tuesday. She’s sleeping a lot and when she’s awake has problems putting her thoughts into words but she has good motor skills and is being a trooper through it all. The recovery may take a long time and she may experience personality changes, we are hoping not too much though and hoping she will remember things. Thank you for keeping her in your prayers!  January 18  Mom is currently being cared for at Kalispell Regional Medical Center in Kalispell, MT room 224. Right now she is being treated for Herpes Simplex Virus 1 Encephalitis and waiting to get well enough for a heart surgery to repair her mitral valve. Dad is staying at Springhill Suites. As of right now, due to the nature of HSV Encephalitis, it is almost impossible for her to receive visitors even though both Dad and her would love to. If you want to come visit please expect to keep it super short right now. Voice messages and text messages are welcome (please don't be offended if they aren't responded to tho!)! If you love Sharon you can be sure she loves you back and will reply when/if she can! Prayers of protection for her brain and memories are needed as well as prayers for Dad, that he would led clearly by the Holy Spirit to be a savvy caretaker and decision maker for Mom. Since they are not in Libby right now any donations for hotel stays and meals are welcome. Feel free to use the Meal Train linked through this website. Make sure to check out the care calendar in the future if that is your calling. This is a super slick website and the kids (Haven, Lewis, Seth and Libby) are all keeping it updated. This will be the best place to come for updates!