John was finally moved from the CCU into a room in the Intermediate Care wing on the same floor. It indicates progress and the need for a little less intensive, round the clock care. He is in a private room with a great view of the air conditioning units. I told him, "What's new? We got our usual parking lot view!" This is our inside joke about the rooms we seemed to be assigned when we took wonderful company trips to great resort hotels.....that was the old days...Invariably, our friends the Hutchins from Medford would get an awesome suite overlooking the pool or the ocean, and we would draw the one with a view of the roof of the front entrance or the parking lot. We just laughed after awhile.
Anyway, today was a day of removing tubes from his chest, catheter, etc. which was not all that fun, but allows him to move around more easily, which is a goal for his treatment. Unfortunately, the nausea keeps hanging on making it difficult for him to want to do anything, eat, or move anywhere. The cute nurse who moved him from CCU to this wing said that now he goes into boot camp! If he can shake the nausea, I think he will really be ready for all of that....breathing exercises, walking to the bathroom in his room and other walking they will have him doing. That would be a big prayer request for him.
A few visitors have dropped by...my brother Kent and sons Grant and Jason, Dave and Karin Davis, and Kathi Marcus. John has had sleepy conversations, but has not felt very peppy to carry on a very long conversation. Kraig, who was working in Portland today, also stopped by a couple of times.
Many thanks for continuing to encourage us, and especially John.
For those of you who are trying to post comments on the blog and having trouble, I tried to do it myself to see if I could figure out how, and I had trouble too. I will ask Jerry to post on this blog some step by step instructions on how to do it, and hope that will help. I read some of the blog comments to John just now, and he really enjoyed that.
Our new nurse Rachett (sp?)...no just kidding..Christine is really very nice...came in just now and said that tomorrow Boot Camp officially begins. He will be taking all meals sitting in the chair...no longer in bed. He will be walking. They will be getting up around 6:00 a.m. and having him move around before breakfast, etc. Wow! I'm glad I'm not staying here! We hope he will have a good night to be in shape for the morning. Thanks again to all.
Monday, October 19, 2009
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Three Steps Forward, One Step Back
John's comfort level this morning was compromised when he took a Vicodan about mid morning which caused him to be very drowsy again and then nauseated. This sick feeling to his stomach stayed the rest of today which, of course, meant that he was not very interested in eating much.
The Jamba Juice was what appealed to him most in small amounts. So, I think it is quite clear now that the narcotic drugs are not only not all that helpful, but are actually causing him to feel more uncomfortable generally.
He did get a shave and a sponge bath which made him look pretty good and had to have felt good too. He kept one sleepy eye at a time on the Tennesee/New England game (played in the snow), but the drowsiness got the best of him.
The game plan for the night is to manage his discomfort/pain with Tylenol and the nausea with some Compazine possibly, and hope he has a reasonable comfortable night.
I had an early bowl of soup with my brother, and am headed to Bailey's condo to get a good night's sleep. The kids have all called, and life moves on. It was really great having them here
the last few days. They were good tonic for their Dad and a real comfort for me.
Thank you for your comments on the blog. I hope John is perky enough tomorrow so that I can read them to him. That will encourage him for sure.
The Jamba Juice was what appealed to him most in small amounts. So, I think it is quite clear now that the narcotic drugs are not only not all that helpful, but are actually causing him to feel more uncomfortable generally.
He did get a shave and a sponge bath which made him look pretty good and had to have felt good too. He kept one sleepy eye at a time on the Tennesee/New England game (played in the snow), but the drowsiness got the best of him.
The game plan for the night is to manage his discomfort/pain with Tylenol and the nausea with some Compazine possibly, and hope he has a reasonable comfortable night.
I had an early bowl of soup with my brother, and am headed to Bailey's condo to get a good night's sleep. The kids have all called, and life moves on. It was really great having them here
the last few days. They were good tonic for their Dad and a real comfort for me.
Thank you for your comments on the blog. I hope John is perky enough tomorrow so that I can read them to him. That will encourage him for sure.
Sunday Special!
Today really seems like a special day because John is sooooo much better, alert and talking, and actually able to stay awake for more than a minute!
This is my first time to post to this blog. Kalie and Jerry were great to think of communicating in this way to all of you wonderful family members, friends, and dear ones who have been so supportive. They have been doing all the posting so far. Kalie flew back to Adam, Montana and Savanna yesterday morning, and Jerry and Kelley just left to drive home to Bend. Kraig, Leslie and McKenzie (Brendan went home with friends last night) are still here for a few hours, and then will head to Hood River to start their week.
John's nurse greeted us this morning, saying, "You're not going to believe it! We have a new man here today!" Edel, the sweet Irish nurse, is our favorite and has been incredibly wonderful with John. John was sitting up in bed working on the breathing apparatus which is so important to keep his lungs cleared. He still sounds a little like the Godfather with his raspy voice, but it has also become much stronger....more than a whisper. He doesn't remember much of the last three days because he was so out of it with the double anesthesia from the two surgeries and then the narcotic drugs he was given. Finally, the doctor who is covering for Dr. Tsen this weekend, made the decision to stop all the heavy drugs for pain as he felt John's system was ultra sensitive to those drugs, and they were keeping him from waking up. So, through the night, he only had tylenol or a low dose of Vicodan if his pain was intolerable. That really made the difference. I can't tell you what a relief it is to have him back and awake! His biggest complaint is that the night was sooo long and boring. I'll take that as a good sign...that he is bored.
Challenges today are to get him to eat, do his breathing exercises, sit up and move around a little more, and continue to keep good vitals. Our friend, Dave Davis, offered to bring John anything to eat that would tempt his taste buds. John said that would be a Jamba Juice Berry Protein Workout with Soy. (John is figuring out how to get a workout, one way or another....you know how he is). So, the Daver as we call him, is bringing one from a Jamba Juice clear over by Lloyd Center (the closest one he could find on line) all the way back to Good Sam! What a friend!!!
Speaking of friends, my dear friends Brada and Tom Bailey have made their downtown condo available to us during this time. It has been much appreciated as Kalie and I could sleep, shower, etc there these last few days. Actually, last night was my first night in their bed as I had been staying at the hospital on the waiting room couches since the surgery. I just wanted to stay close by. Also, our friend, Betsy McKillop, flew home from Kansas City, where her Mom and other extended family live, and came from the airport to join me and the kids for dinner. My friend from childhood, Kathi Marcus, daughters Debi, and Kimi and her husband Steve have been with us for awhile every day. We refer to them as our Sun River family because of the ten+ years we all spent time at Sun River when the kids were little. Old friends...dear friends.
Now I could go on and on about the support and care we have experienced from all of you. The
power of your prayers for John and us is immeasurable. Your kind expressions of love through e-mails, blog responses, and calls have been holding us up and getting us through. Thank you so much. You just can't know how much it has meant.
I'll try to do a good job like my kids in keeping up this blog for awhile more, and promise to not make it so long in the future. I'm just kind of overflowing with gratitude right now. Love, Karen
P.S. I goofed right out of the chute and sent the posting after just typing the title...oops, I'm just a beginner at this.
This is my first time to post to this blog. Kalie and Jerry were great to think of communicating in this way to all of you wonderful family members, friends, and dear ones who have been so supportive. They have been doing all the posting so far. Kalie flew back to Adam, Montana and Savanna yesterday morning, and Jerry and Kelley just left to drive home to Bend. Kraig, Leslie and McKenzie (Brendan went home with friends last night) are still here for a few hours, and then will head to Hood River to start their week.
John's nurse greeted us this morning, saying, "You're not going to believe it! We have a new man here today!" Edel, the sweet Irish nurse, is our favorite and has been incredibly wonderful with John. John was sitting up in bed working on the breathing apparatus which is so important to keep his lungs cleared. He still sounds a little like the Godfather with his raspy voice, but it has also become much stronger....more than a whisper. He doesn't remember much of the last three days because he was so out of it with the double anesthesia from the two surgeries and then the narcotic drugs he was given. Finally, the doctor who is covering for Dr. Tsen this weekend, made the decision to stop all the heavy drugs for pain as he felt John's system was ultra sensitive to those drugs, and they were keeping him from waking up. So, through the night, he only had tylenol or a low dose of Vicodan if his pain was intolerable. That really made the difference. I can't tell you what a relief it is to have him back and awake! His biggest complaint is that the night was sooo long and boring. I'll take that as a good sign...that he is bored.
Challenges today are to get him to eat, do his breathing exercises, sit up and move around a little more, and continue to keep good vitals. Our friend, Dave Davis, offered to bring John anything to eat that would tempt his taste buds. John said that would be a Jamba Juice Berry Protein Workout with Soy. (John is figuring out how to get a workout, one way or another....you know how he is). So, the Daver as we call him, is bringing one from a Jamba Juice clear over by Lloyd Center (the closest one he could find on line) all the way back to Good Sam! What a friend!!!
Speaking of friends, my dear friends Brada and Tom Bailey have made their downtown condo available to us during this time. It has been much appreciated as Kalie and I could sleep, shower, etc there these last few days. Actually, last night was my first night in their bed as I had been staying at the hospital on the waiting room couches since the surgery. I just wanted to stay close by. Also, our friend, Betsy McKillop, flew home from Kansas City, where her Mom and other extended family live, and came from the airport to join me and the kids for dinner. My friend from childhood, Kathi Marcus, daughters Debi, and Kimi and her husband Steve have been with us for awhile every day. We refer to them as our Sun River family because of the ten+ years we all spent time at Sun River when the kids were little. Old friends...dear friends.
Now I could go on and on about the support and care we have experienced from all of you. The
power of your prayers for John and us is immeasurable. Your kind expressions of love through e-mails, blog responses, and calls have been holding us up and getting us through. Thank you so much. You just can't know how much it has meant.
I'll try to do a good job like my kids in keeping up this blog for awhile more, and promise to not make it so long in the future. I'm just kind of overflowing with gratitude right now. Love, Karen
P.S. I goofed right out of the chute and sent the posting after just typing the title...oops, I'm just a beginner at this.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Update
Dad's continuing to improve. He's getting his voice back...with a little surly attitude to go with it. "Let's go" he says. "Where John?" "Home." "No, John, you need to get a little better first." Shi# and Son of a bi#$% are his favorite responses of choice. Disorientation is normal, but the nurses are going to try to get him off of morophine and on some other pain medications to help with that. He's eating normal food and the goals for today are to get out of ICU and to really work on his breathing. I'm headed back to CO. Jerry and Kraig and Mom will take it from here. Thanks to everyone for your continued support! - Kalie
Friday, October 16, 2009
Sitting up and eating
Dad continues to do well breathing on his own. The nurses got him into a chair and have him sitting up. He's had a little bit of sherbert and juice. (He's got a temporary permission slip from Wellspring Heart to eat ice cream!) We've been talking to him and he whispers back while watching the Rutgers football game (with his eyes closed). He's still pretty groggy but his level of alertness improves each time we go in to visit. The doctor expects him to be ready to move out of CCU/ICU (we thought they were separate but they're really the same thing) and into a regular recovery room tomorrow morning. We're hoping he (and we) get some sleep tonight. Thanks to everyone for your continued support and prayers - it's really helped us get through the tough parts. Yeah...go Dad go!
Breathing!
Dad's made some great strides. He's been breathing on his own for a few hours and the nurses took out his breathing tubes about a half hour ago. After taking his tubes out, Adel said "Now you can say Hi Karen!" Dad was able to whisper "Hi Karen" - good. Then the nurse said "John, do you know where you are?" He shook his head yes. "John, where are you?" "In heaven" said Dad and then a big grin came over his face and he kind of laughed. Then, as mom and the nurse were laughing, he said "In the hospital." It's so great to see he's got his sense of humor back. Seems that he is feeling less fearful and more comfortable with his status. So are we.
More progress
John continues to stabilize. His nurse, a fine Irish woman named Adele, was very encouraging during our last visit. John is clearly responding to our questions with nods:
"Dad, will the Beavers beat the Ducks in the civil war this year?" (nodded yes)
"Dad, do you want us to tell all your great friends and family you're doing well?" (nodded yes)
"Dad, do you look sexy with your entire frontside shaved?"(vigorously nodded yes)
We've passed on all of your good wishes to Dad. I know he feels blessed to have all of your support. Thanks, Jerry and family.
"Dad, will the Beavers beat the Ducks in the civil war this year?" (nodded yes)
"Dad, do you want us to tell all your great friends and family you're doing well?" (nodded yes)
"Dad, do you look sexy with your entire frontside shaved?"(vigorously nodded yes)
We've passed on all of your good wishes to Dad. I know he feels blessed to have all of your support. Thanks, Jerry and family.
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