Help Larry's ICU Recovery Journey

Dear Friends, Family, and Kind Strangers --

I’m reaching out with a heavy heart to share that our father, who many of you know as Larry Uzzell aka LFactor, has been hospitalized in the ICU since December 12, and we’re asking for your help.

Larry was originally admitted for pneumonia but ultimately had to be intubated for worsening hypoxia. For the next two weeks, Larry had two cardioversions, multiple bronchoscopies, CT scans, and an MRI. Nothing could explain why he wasn’t “waking up.” On Christmas Day, Larry had severe encephalopathy and was transferred from WakeMed North to WakeMed Raleigh for neurological evaluation.

He still wasn’t strong enough to get off the ventilator, so to protect his airway, improve his breathing, comfort, and a better chance of weaning off the ventilator, he had to have a tracheotomy. During all of this, he was still battling pneumonia and his fevers were spiking as high as 104 degrees. After extensive neurological testing, including three different head CTs, another MRI, and two days of an EEG, we got news that they all came back with no abnormalities. Hospital staff continued to gradually wean him from sedation but unfortunately after a short period of time, he showed signs of discomfort and agitation.

To say these past four weeks have been hard is an understatement, but the fear of the unknown is the greatest fear of all.

Now onto some good news. After 22 days of being on sedation, Larry was able to successfully wean from it on January 6. It took him a few days to regain consciousness, and was still incredibly weak, but finally became a little more alert and slowly began to follow simple commands.

After a month in the ICU, Larry was placed in a long-term care hospital in Durham, NC where the goal is to extubate and ultimately liberate him from his trach. On January 13, he was off the ventilator for 12 hours, which is amazing! Before they can completely wean him from the vent, he has to successfully breathe on his own for 48 hours and pass a handful of blood tests. The rehab team has also gotten him to sit in a hospital chair for short periods of time. After a month of lying in a hospital bed, I know his body was relieved. He is still not speaking and goes in and out of responsiveness but is sleeping well and has tolerated most of the rehab he's receiving.

Although these are all baby steps towards a very long recovery, positive steps are encouraging. Larry will require many many months of respiratory, speech, and physical therapy to regain his health and strength.

Unfortunately, due to Larry’s condition, it will be quite a while until he is able to re-open Shrimp Mate or rock out with Nantucket, and the financial strain of medical bills, therapy, and everyday expenses is more than we can handle alone.

We are humbly asking for your help during this challenging time. Any donation, no matter how small, will go directly toward:

• Covering medical expenses and hospital bills.

• Supporting his rehabilitation and therapy sessions.

• Assisting with essential living expenses while he recovers.

Your generosity will not only ease the financial burden but also give my father and his family the peace of mind to focus on his recovery. If you’re unable to donate, please consider sharing this page with your friends.

And please continue joining us in prayer for Larry. Your prayers and positive energy mean the world to us. If you are local and able to visit Larry, we welcome it! Please contact Taylor and she can give you visitation details. Thank you for your kindness, love, and support.

With gratitude,

Taylor, Austin, and Dillon (Larry's children)

Isaiah 41:10

“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

*I will be updating our dad's progress and recovery on this page*