(Apologies to those of you who just got this in email form.)
It must have happened in aunt Irene's brain about 5 days ago - how to get her out of the hospital. There has been such a marked difference between last week and this week, especially in her panic level at changes in the ventilator. She's stronger, more able to 'skootch' herself up in bed. She's been able to write notes to the staff when they have not been able to read her lips. And she had been on the lowest setting of the ventilator for probably 3 days straight - no vent even at night to rest.
Today, Monday, is one of her dialysis days. In the past she's been very tired, so dad and I don't visit. "It's a long way to go to watch her sleep" was our thought process, and besides, those days gave us a chance to run errands and get other stuff done. Now, though, she's recovering from the tiredness of dialysis faster, so I thought I would surprise her by taking the drive today. When I got near her room, I saw that she was sitting in the chair! She was awake and alert and smiled so broadly when she saw me. She said that she had been in the chair for 2 hours, and was due to get back in bed soon, so she had hoped I would get there before they moved her. I also noticed that she wasn't on the ventilator but taking a page from Michelle's theory ("If you don't tell her, she won't panic"), I didn't point this out to her.
A few minutes after I arrived, the CNA came to move her back to bed, and when I stepped out of the room to let him do his thing, I ran into Michelle (our favorite respiratory therapist). She told me that aunt I had been doing so well, that the pulmonary doctor had placed orders for her to be off the vent for a half-hour "or as tolerated." That meant that if Michelle felt aunt I could stay off longer, she could keep her off. When I asked Michelle if aunt I knew she was off the vent, she said she did - and hadn't panicked at all. She asked for a little bit of the anti-anxiety meds, but had been fine. By the time Michelle put her back on the ventilator, aunt I had been off completely for 2 hours and 15 non-panicking minutes. Aunt I was SO proud of herself; that's why there's such a big smile on her face in the attached photo. I am so very proud of her, too. And to think I almost didn't go today to see this. She still has a long, tough road ahead of her to get strong enough, but I think she'l get there. She said this when this whole thing started and she's right: she's one tough cookie.
Dad's also doing quite fine. The visiting nurse came around yesterday and replaced his pressure bandage with a small gauzy bandage. If the small bandage was dry today, he'd get the go-ahead to take a shower. She came, she checked, he passed! She'll come back Thursday or Friday, then once again next week before he sees the surgeon on 7/24 for a wound check. Dad's still got a fair amount of bruising, but the swelling has gone down quit a bit and he didn't need any pain meds today.
Which means... We've started the "Meg comes home" countdown! I'm taking a late afternoon flight next Monday, July 20, and will be back on terra-very-Califirma around 10:00 that night. (But who's counting...?) OMG, I so need to get home and recharge myself.
Thank you again, everyone, for all your kind words and good thoughts. They've all paid off, in spades. (Keep sending them Florida way, though - none of it is wasted!)
It must have happened in aunt Irene's brain about 5 days ago - how to get her out of the hospital. There has been such a marked difference between last week and this week, especially in her panic level at changes in the ventilator. She's stronger, more able to 'skootch' herself up in bed. She's been able to write notes to the staff when they have not been able to read her lips. And she had been on the lowest setting of the ventilator for probably 3 days straight - no vent even at night to rest.
Today, Monday, is one of her dialysis days. In the past she's been very tired, so dad and I don't visit. "It's a long way to go to watch her sleep" was our thought process, and besides, those days gave us a chance to run errands and get other stuff done. Now, though, she's recovering from the tiredness of dialysis faster, so I thought I would surprise her by taking the drive today. When I got near her room, I saw that she was sitting in the chair! She was awake and alert and smiled so broadly when she saw me. She said that she had been in the chair for 2 hours, and was due to get back in bed soon, so she had hoped I would get there before they moved her. I also noticed that she wasn't on the ventilator but taking a page from Michelle's theory ("If you don't tell her, she won't panic"), I didn't point this out to her.
A few minutes after I arrived, the CNA came to move her back to bed, and when I stepped out of the room to let him do his thing, I ran into Michelle (our favorite respiratory therapist). She told me that aunt I had been doing so well, that the pulmonary doctor had placed orders for her to be off the vent for a half-hour "or as tolerated." That meant that if Michelle felt aunt I could stay off longer, she could keep her off. When I asked Michelle if aunt I knew she was off the vent, she said she did - and hadn't panicked at all. She asked for a little bit of the anti-anxiety meds, but had been fine. By the time Michelle put her back on the ventilator, aunt I had been off completely for 2 hours and 15 non-panicking minutes. Aunt I was SO proud of herself; that's why there's such a big smile on her face in the attached photo. I am so very proud of her, too. And to think I almost didn't go today to see this. She still has a long, tough road ahead of her to get strong enough, but I think she'l get there. She said this when this whole thing started and she's right: she's one tough cookie.
Dad's also doing quite fine. The visiting nurse came around yesterday and replaced his pressure bandage with a small gauzy bandage. If the small bandage was dry today, he'd get the go-ahead to take a shower. She came, she checked, he passed! She'll come back Thursday or Friday, then once again next week before he sees the surgeon on 7/24 for a wound check. Dad's still got a fair amount of bruising, but the swelling has gone down quit a bit and he didn't need any pain meds today.
Which means... We've started the "Meg comes home" countdown! I'm taking a late afternoon flight next Monday, July 20, and will be back on terra-very-Califirma around 10:00 that night. (But who's counting...?) OMG, I so need to get home and recharge myself.
Thank you again, everyone, for all your kind words and good thoughts. They've all paid off, in spades. (Keep sending them Florida way, though - none of it is wasted!)
Oh Meg, this is all wonderful news!
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