Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Contact

Well, it's been 9 days since the last blog... Ashley is still busy and I am still not a good blogger. At least you can surmise that I have not had any surgeries or infections, which is totally awesome! It's been good to be up and about, going out to places like the grocery store, friends' houses, and church. We even went on our first real date since January (Chili's and the new Steve Carrell/Tina Fey movie, Date Night). I'm still trying to get some weight on me and get my legs working better. Other than that, not much to report. I am pretty excited about the 49ers' draft; we should make a serious playoff push this year. Boston is sucking less than last post, but my NHL team (Colorado Avalanche) got eliminated by the hometown heroes, the Sharks. I guess I don't have to root against them now.
The days go by and so does my food. :)

Monday, April 19, 2010

Still Cruisin

Quick blog: it's great to be doing great.
Excited about playoff hockey, not really excited about playoff basketball, the Sox are sucking, and the draft is nigh.
I drove yesterday, and am driving again today to the store and bank.
Went to church yesterday; I had really missed it.
I'm not a real wordy fellow. And my wife knows this, yet she makes me blog anyway!

Thursday, April 15, 2010

En Casa

For the third time this year, I'm back home. This time I have a good feeling that there won't be a fourth time until after surgery numero dos. It feels so right to be here. I've been eating a lot more than I was in the hospital; I think I could be up to normal rations relatively soon. Ash cut my hair today, and I preceded that with the shaving of my massive hospital beard. I had considered keeping it for the Colorado Avalanche playoff run, but I've never liked a beard that could catch food. My wound from the bowel obstruction surgery is still a little painful, but not as much as it was in the hospital.
So basically things are going great. We'd really love for them to keep going that way. It's been nice being able to have our prayer times not be all about things we need, but about the things that God has done, or even to get to pray for other people. The one lasting prayer request we have (aside from loads of thanks that I'm out of the hospital) is for no more complications. For now, take a minute to sit down, relax, and enjoy your home too.

Monday, April 12, 2010

Done (hopefully)

I am not in Palo Alto, but I am not home yet. I'm in Lodi for a brief waiting period to make sure I'm ok before I move 6 hours away. It was thrilling today to leave the hospital, to have my PICC line and staples removed, and to eat some steak at my parents' house with my two foreign exchange sisters. If everything goes fine tonight (sleeping) and tomorrow morning (eating and such), I will complete the journey home to my wife, who is going bonkers right now with homework and trying to get the apartment clean. I love her a lot.
This one will be short because I procrastinated until the end of the day to write this (to be fair, the first part was spent waiting for discharge and the second was spent in an internet-less car ride). But I figured this was blog-worthy, so here you go. The fruition of a boatload of prayer. But we're not out of the harbor yet. After all, I have been known to eat and suddenly become unable to eat. The doctors removed all the obstructions in my bowels, but if they can appear suddenly, they can come back suddenly. Please pray that they stay away so I can stay home. :)
Also pray for:
Safe drive to LA
No other complications (like fever)
Ability to ingest enough food and drink to sustain myself
Quick healing of my incision, which still hurts when I walk
My facebook friend Mary, whose cancer has resurfaced in her liver and the doctors don't have a clear idea where it's coming from
My real life friend Paul, who's recovering from pretty nasty pancreatic cancer
Peace in the Middle East while you're at it

Sunday, April 11, 2010

Not a bad day at all

Dan here, taking on blogging duties.
Today was pretty good. I found out that discharge is possible by the end of tomorrow at earliest; it's contingent on my ability to eat an amount large enough to keep me hydrated (which could be soon) and my wound's inability to develop an infection. So... awesome!
I also got to watch a great hockey game between Boston and Washington; it's unfortunately rare these days to see the great game televised.
Ash and I filed our taxes, which was done with considerable difficulty with things scattered between Stanford and LA. A refund from our nation's deficit will be nice.
A couple of friends from church surprised me today by stopping in; they had come up from LA to a wedding in Stockton and impulsively decided to see me in the hospital.
My mom came by also and brought some matzoh ball soup for me. I had asked earlier for some, since I missed Passover, but yesterday asked her not to bring it, because Stanford's soups had been both plentiful and banal. However, she brought it anyway, and I thought I'd try a little bit. Turns out, it was really good. Lots of flavoring. I had a whole bowl. I might have another in a little while.
I'm really hoping that I can get out soon. It's been too long that I've been away from home. It feels so right when I'm there. Plus, it means more clinical hours for Ashley when she dresses my wounds.
Thanks for praying for us. Keep praying; I'm not out of the woods yet. I have to get out of the hospital, have an embolization procedure, and then a second surgery--- then I will be cancer free!
Prayer Requests:
Continuous increase of appetite
No fevers/infections
Discharge soon
No coming back to the hospital with complications

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Tut tut

This blog will be short and to the point because Dan has such an aversion to blogging that he makes his sad and tired wife blog right after driving 6 hours away from him. Tut tut.

Appetite: Better but not good enough to get off of TPN, which is the goal. Dan got a hamburger on his lunch tray, was delighted, ate half and has had no room for much else. Dinner was nibbled at most. So far, food is staying down and going through without causing much of a problem. This needs to continue so Dan can go home.

Infection: Fever returned a bit today, but not high enough to be considered a "spike" (38.5 C). Incision is still oozing, but the docs wants to give it time to drain before opening any more. All of the staples will most likely be removed Tuesday or Wednesday. One of the labs drawn Thursday came back "suspicious" (they take 2 days to grow), so another test was done today. No antibiotics until another fever spike or a sudden change in the wound or labs.

Spirits: Doing well, though getting restless and sad to be in the hospital for so long again. Also, we are no longer in the same place. It's getting harder to keep driving away and leaving Dan in the hospital. I won't be able to return until next Monday at the earliest, so we're hoping and praying Dan will be released this week without any complications, so he can get his butt home.

Prayer Requests:
* More appetite and ability to eat and snack throughout the day
* Cooperative digestive system...no vomiting, no distention, no premature full feeling
* Resolution of infection (where ever it is)...no fever, no discharge from wound
* Pain control...continued improvement of pain
* Increase in mobility and energy
* Wisdom for the docs to know what and when things should happen
* Discharge from the hospital within this upcoming week
* Comfort for hearts sad to be apart :(

Friday, April 9, 2010

No Bon Appetit

As an update to yesterday, the most obvious source of infection is the incision. Dan no longer has a fever, but the incision is still oozing. The surgeons are being cautious and slow with removing staples, as they do not want Dan to have an entirely new open wound. They are still holding off on antibiotics unless Dan has another fever spike.

Today has been somewhat better. We got a little more sleep and Dan woke up early enough for the docs to see him out of bed for once. He said walking is a easier, and he is definitely taking longer strides. He finally got tired of the hospital gown, which is a good sign to me.

The problem of the day is a lack of appetite. We aren't sure if the cause is the extremely nutritious TPN telling his brain he is satisfied or that his stomach his tiny or that things are going through or a combination of all of these. After dealing with an intern who doesn't always think things through well (we just got the chief resident to give him the "what-for"), I think we've convinced the docs to decrease the TPN calories. Hopefully, this will let Dan be a little more hungry. Dan is glad he is eating other things besides clears though...sunchips, bread, crackers, etc.

We're bummed because I have to leave for school tomorrow. There have been too many good-byes said at the front of the hospital. I won't be able to return for at least a week, so we are still praying that Dan will get out of the hospital sometime next week. I hate being away as so many things are going on. Hopefully, I receive only good news over the phone.

Now, I need to get him up to walk. The Simpsons is seriously distracting him from moving around. Doh.

Prayer Requests:
* A big(ger) appetite
* No more vomiting
* Continued decrease in pain
* No more fever
* Wound healing...no need to open the wound
* Safe travels for me tomorrow
* Dan getting discharged next week...and coming home

Thursday, April 8, 2010

Hunt for the Infection

Last night was a teeny bit better than the last, though Dan continued to vomit and have bloody noses. We're hoping that the nausea and throwing up is from swallowing blood and not from the food. As Dan threw up again this morning, he is weary of trying to eat for fear of throwing up again. With a 3-4 incision in the belly, throwing up is quite painful.

McGreeky came in this morning with an agenda: find what is causing Dan's fever and illness. About time. Despite the wound being slightly infected, the surgeon is concerned infection could be elsewhere being allowed to run rampant. So, Dan will be getting blood cultures, urine samples, and an abdominal x-ray. The x-ray is also to see what is causing Dan so much pain in his left side, as the docs aren't sure what it could be. Another issue emerged when McGreeky changed the new incision packing: Dan bled, quite a bit. Due to a couple of blood thinning medications, Dan isn't able to clot very quickly...this is contributing to Dan's very frequent bloody noses. The doc is taking away one med and decreasing the dose of another med, which should help things.

Today should reveal some things. Reasons for pain, reasons for fever, reasons for vomiting. God willing, today should also find Dan able to eat more and keep it down. We really don't understand why all of this is happening, but it needs to change soon. Very soon.

Selfishly, I need the docs to get things settled this week because I am leaving for school again on Saturday. I would simply hate to have still this sick while I'm hundreds of miles away.
Unfortunately, I have to go back if I have any hope of graduating (which I do). Due to my clinical schedule, I won't be able to come back to see Dan for almost a couple of weeks. Accordingly, Dan and I are asking for prayer that Dan would be released from the hospital sometime next week. I wouldn't be able to be here for the release, but at least I would know he was doing well enough to get out.

This is truly a miserable situation that is just being prolonged. Pray that God moves now. That's what Dan needs more than labs or meds or doctors: he needs God to save him from this mess.

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Wound Infection #2

As if Dan didn't have enough to deal with, his wound has become infected. It has looked a little red and angry today, but we were just watching it. Then, he spiked a fever of 101.1 this afternoon. Finally, we got the team to pay more attention to the incision. The intern thought they would take out a staple or two tomorrow to let any pus drain out. The nurse and I helped to convince the resident (his superior) that maybe that should happen today. So, 3 staples got removed and a good deal of drainage came out of the wound. It was deja vu as this happened with Dan's last incision--which is now a wound that we are still dealing with.

The plan is to let the incision drain and to recheck it tomorrow. If it doesn't look markedly better, Dan will be started on antibiotics. Hopefully, the wound will be able to heal better this way and not need to be opened all the way.

Dan really isn't feeling well right now. His immune system is pretty low (WBCs=2.5) after being in the hospital for so long (TPN is causing some problems with immunity also), so it is taking a lot out of him to fight this infection. He's been tired and sleepy all day. He's fighting some nausea here and there. He's still in pain. I just convinced him to give in and go to sleep, though I don't know how much that will help him.

I'm really not sure what tomorrow will look like. The doctors were anticipating advancing his diet, but Dan didn't really eat enough to be sure he can tolerate the clears. As I blogged earlier, his GI system is sending mixed messages, so that isn't helping the docs make decisions. Yet, the resident commented tonight that it might take real food to get Dan's bowel working again...though he cannot give a regular diet yet. A catch-22 of sorts.


I wish we had chosen to do Cyberknife. It may not have worked, and Dan might have needed more treatment later on. Yet, it would have been a week of out-patient visits. I might still have a job. Dan might have been able to finish his credential. I would have had Dan around to celebrate my final semester of nursing school. Yes, I understand that those are all potential outcomes and that complications could have arisen there, too. Yet, I cannot bring myself to see this surgery as a success.

I haven't the faintest idea what to pray for now. A wound infection, nausea, vomiting, non-improving pain...all of these things have been prayed against, yet they have happened. Yes, God has a plan for Dan. It just hurts to see Dan continue to suffer more and more set-backs as he tries to be in God's will. Of course, Dan has more faith than me. Always has. I know we're not supposed to test the Lord, but sometimes I just yearn for proof that He actually loves Dan and is caring for him.

So many people declared that 2010 would be a year of victory for Dan. No more cancer, a new hip, a teaching credential, a new job, etc. Instead, Dan is stuck in a hospital bed with half as much cancer, losing his strength, losing his immune system, losing so many things.

We need a turn-around. Dan needs to feel better in the morning. Dan needs to be able to eat and not be nausea. Dan needs his pain to abate. Dan needs his infection to resolve. Dan needs his immune system to bounce back. Dan needs a miracle.

Mixed Messages

Question of the day: is Dan's GI system awake, asleep or obstructed?

Since Dan passed a little bit of gas yesterday, he was allowed to have sip on some clear liquid last night. Things went down fine, but around 3 or 4 in the morning, he got a bloody nose. He proceeded to swallow some blood which made him throw up quite a bit. The nurse got nervous as it was mostly bile (too much bile in vomit means the GI system is not absorbing and passing the bile through quickly enough), called the on-call resident who put Dan back on NPO.

This morning, when Dan's team rounded, he explained about the bloody nose and that he wasn't nauseous at all otherwise. The docs agreed Dan could be back on a clear diet today, especially since his bowels were making lots of noise and letting free lots of gas. About the time the tray of clears came, Dan got another bloody nose (heparin and toradol and a dry nose is making this happen a lot). Dan also received a rather large dose of dilaudid. Between swallowing blood and his head swimming from too much med too fast, he threw up again. Great. His day nurse also felt that his vomit had too much bile in it, so she asked Dan not to eat any more until the team makes a decision. Dan insists that he is not nauseous anymore and wasn't until he received the pain med and really doesn't think the episode had anything to do with eating.

Dan's body is once again sending mixed messages. Good messages: passing lots of gas, active bowel sounds earlier, no nausea when eating. Bad messages: vomiting bile, quiet bowel sounds now, no BMs. Though we know the vomiting could be from multiple things (food, drugs, bloody nose, gag reflex), it is often assumed that food is the problem. Unfortunately, the longer it takes to find out if Dan can handle solid food, the longer he has to be here. As his stay will hit the 4-week mark on Sunday, he'd really appreciate no more hang-ups. Of course, we also want the docs to make the appropriate decisions.

Thanks to the dilaudid, Dan is sleeping like a baby. This is a nice thing as no one let us sleep last night. We have a lot of walking to do today to catch up on our slowness this morning. Hopefully, Dan will also have eating to do....without throwing up.

Prayer Requests:
* No more throwing up and no need for another NG tube
* Dan's ability to eat and tolerate the clears well today
* Wisdom for the doctors making the decisions (hopefully, quickly)
* Control and improvement of pain
* Continued healing of incision and wound
* No complications or infections (he had a fever again last night)
* Ability for Dan to come home with me very soon
* A period of peace, health and rest for both of us...very very soon
* Encouraging news and events today

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Not better

We're already having a hard day.

There's no point in trying to make up points of encouragement or happy anecdotes. Dan's not really progressing much. He's still in pain, he's still exhausted, he's not motivated to get up and no matter what anyone says, he never feels like things are getting better. Sure, he could barely walk around the unit on Sunday but now he can--he's still not better. Sure his pain was 8/10 after surgery, and now only gets up to 4/10--that's not any better either.

To be frank, I sometimes don't want to get up in the morning. All that is ahead of me is forcing Dan to do things he doesn't want to do, trying to determine whether or not his pain is better/worse/new so as to tell the doctor, hoping for progress that doesn't ever happen how doctors expect, changing the linens, trying to talk Dan into getting cleaned up, trying to do the homework I have no motivation for and then putting on a happy, encouraging face for everyone else. It's exhausting and rather unchanging.

I apologize for the lack of cheerfulness or good news. This is a blog to update on how Dan is doing, and today, he's not doing great. His heart rate is back up, his energy is lower and he barely talked to McGreeky when he came in this morning. As far as the surgeon can tell, Dan isn't doing any better than yesterday and that doesn't make sense. Labs are good, incision is healing, etc. Dan should be feeling better. Alas, if you have been following this blog, you know Dan seldom feels like he is supposed to. It's frustrating to watch elderly patients cruising the halls, but see Dan just lay there. Yet, there's nothing we can do but "wait and see".

Though, he got out of bed and walked once around the unit, he just got too tired and went back to bed. So, we're back at square one for the day: wake up. Sometimes, that truly is the worst part of the day.

Prayer Requests:
* Sudden and long-lasting energy and endurance for Dan
* Resolution of pain (muscular and intestinal)
* Passing of gas--lots of it, today
* No infection or complications
* Motivation for Dan to move and want to get better
* Motivation for me to keep encouraging him and to keep doing my schoolwork
* Unmistakable improvement today
* Good news and encouragement
* Wisdom for me to know when to go home again
* Ability for Dan to be able to come home with me soon
* Our marriage
* Hope

Monday, April 5, 2010

Nursing Student

I must make a confession: though I am a nursing student, I am not always fond of Dan being cared for by nursing students. I know, I know...hypocritical. However, some SNs just aren't on their game and let mistakes happen. Accordingly, I have become a wee bit more watchful tonight, as Dan has a SN again. This one is graduating in May like me, but has fought with this IV pump multiple times tonight and if I chewed gum like her, I think one of my preceptors would have smacked me. Oh well. We all have to learn. Dan is her easy patient, so I'm pulling for no mistakes this time around.

By the way, Dan is doing alright. (He was supposed to blog in exchange for taking the computer away from me, but he thought checking sports stats would take priority.) The NG tube came out this morning, freeing him from one more tube. His heart rate stayed up for most of the day until McGreeky came in. After he left, Dan and I went for a walk. When I hooked him back up to the pulse ox (measures oxygen and heart rate), his pulse was barely high. Now, it's back to the normal range. Yay! He still has a teeny fever, but that's better, too. His new wound looks good--like a football, Dan says. The staples will probably come out sometime next week, so long as everything goes well. His pain is under control, and he is much less sleepy since they changed the medication today. He still has a pain that the doctor cannot explain, but Dan said it is getting better.

Tomorrow, we're hoping for gas! That would mean a clear diet finally, and some progression toward the true test: solid food. Accordingly, we'll keep walking around the unit and staying out of bed as much as possible.

Keep praying. We're both tired of this hospital business. Dan wants to eat and go home. Seems pretty simple, right? Oy.

I'm off to sleep, too. I need to be alert when the nursing student comes in...maybe I should crawl in bed with Dan and freak her out again! Ha. Don't worry, we'll be nice.

Prayer Requests:
* Passing of gas tomorrow!
* No infections or other complications
* Ability for Dan to eat normal food without any pain or recurrence of obstruction
* Resolution of weird pain...and all pain very soon
* Energy and endurance
* Ability for Dan to come home with me soon...this is getting very old :(
* NO MORE COMPLICATIONS EVER EVER EVER AGAIN
* Encouraging news and events tomorrow

Sunday, April 4, 2010

Easter in the Hospital

Unless you are a little kid, holidays in the hospital can be pretty boring. People feel sorry for children missing Santa Claus or the Easter bunny, but adults get to fend for themselves. Accordingly, if we didn't have a calendar in the room, we wouldn't know it's Easter today! Though it is a bummer to not be with our families or finding hidden eggs (yes, we still do that), we hope that this is one of the last holidays spent in here. Well, we hope it's one of the last days spent in here period!

Dan is doing alright today. He's still having considerable pain, but it's better than last night. Oddly, his pain is on the opposite side of where the biggest band was, but the surgeon isn't concerned about it as of yet. The NG tube has to stay until tomorrow since it was still draining quite a bit. Though, the foley got to come out this morning. Dan has some post-anesthesia affects still (low fever, high heart rate), but they will be considered normal as long they resolve by tomorrow.

The goal for the day is to get Dan out of bed, get walking, and wean off the oxygen. So far we have been successful. Dan got out of bed by himself (for the most part), went for a teeny walk and sat in a chair for a couple of hours. He is now as clean as is possible without the possibility of a shower. Apparently, that wore him out, as he is now asleep again.

Long term goals are similar to before surgery: bowel sounds, pass gas and be able to eat. Dan will be NPO (no food or drink) until he can pass gas, which could be anywhere from 2-5 days from surgery. At that point, he'll start with clears and work his way up to solid food. God willing, Dan could squeeze out of this joint by next weekend eating happily again. (McGreeky does NOT think that's going to happen, but you can't blame us for hoping).

Enjoy Resurrection Day, as that is what today should be about...Jesus and the price He paid for us to receive salvation. Dan and I certainly missed going to church to celebrate, so if anyone knows of a good webcast of an Easter sermon, let us know. For now, here is one of my favorite musical reminders of God's grace and mercy for us. (The Power of the Cross by Keith Getty)

Oh, to see the dawn
Of the darkest day:
Christ on the road to Calvary.
Tried by sinful men,
Torn and beaten, then
Nailed to a cross of wood.

This, the pow'r of the cross:
Christ became sin for us;
Took the blame, bore the wrath—
We stand forgiven at the cross.

Oh, to see the pain
Written on Your face,
Bearing the awesome weight of sin.
Ev'ry bitter thought,
Ev'ry evil deed
Crowning Your bloodstained brow.

Now the daylight flees;
Now the ground beneath
Quakes as its Maker bows His head.
Curtain torn in two,
Dead are raised to life;
"Finished!" the vict'ry cry.

Oh, to see my name
Written in the wounds,
For through Your suffering I am free.
Death is crushed to death;
Life is mine to live,
Won through Your selfless love.

This, the pow'r of the cross:
Son of God—slain for us.
What a love! What a cost!
We stand forgiven at the cross.

Prayer Requests:
* Safe, complete, uncomplicated recovery
* No infections, no internal bleeding, no bowel damage, etc.
* "Awakening" of bowels (bowel sounds, gas, etc.)
* Control and continued improvement of pain
* Ability for Dan to get moving, get eating and get out within a week (that's the normal recovery time for this type of surgery)
* Ability for Dan to come home with me soon
* Good health and endurance for me (I don't want to get Dan sick)

Saturday, April 3, 2010

Night One

Dan made it back to his room accompanied by lots of tubing, though not as many as after his last surgery. After the nurses got everything situated, I could finally say hello to my hubby after a few hours of waiting. He is still in a good deal of pain, though the PCA (pain button) has helped considerably. I have yet to see the incision, as Dan is tucked in and cozy for now. The NG tube is still in, but draining only a small amount.

Dan wanted to know how the surgery went, so I told him, but I bet I'll have to remind him tomorrow. He wants the surgeon to explain it, too. Hopefully, morning will find him feeling better and more alert. Of course, there is probably a long road of healing up ahead. Our prayer is that the recovery goes as smoothly as the surgery did.

Pray for no complications (no infection, no internal bleeding, etc.) and a cooperative digestive system. Also, pray for easing of the pain so Dan can sleep and regain strength.

Recovery Room

Dan got out of surgery after only a couple of hours.

McGreeky said they found 3 thick bands of scar tissue wrapped around his bowel, which were causing Dan the pain when he ate. The surgeons had to make a large incision to check all of Dan's bowels for adhesions. Luckily, he didn't have many adhesions elsewhere in his bowels, but these bands were causing some serious problems. McGreeky said they took care of those bands, checked everything out and closed him up. There was very little blood loss and the open surgery time was very short.

So, the surgery was definitely necessary, though there was no way to see this for sure on the CTs. Tomorrow, they should be able to remove the NG again (which will thrill Dan). They will wait until there are bowel sounds and passing of gas before letting Dan try eating again. Hopefully, eating will go much better, though this is still a concern.

For now, we are waiting for Dan to get out of the recovery room and go back to his room. As McGreeky said, "we aren't victorious until Dan is out of the hospital." Keep praying.

Prayer Requests:
* Quick and uncomplicated recovery
* No infection, no problems
* Successful eating trial...completely successful!
* Ability to get out of the hospital and go home within the week
* NO COMPLICATIONS AND NO MORE OBSTRUCTIONS

Waiting Rooms

The doctor officially decided to do surgery to get rid of the bowel obstruction. He will be doing a lysis of adhesions (cutting the scar tissue that is holding the bowel up). McGreeky said he would try to do this through a scope (laparoscopically) first, though there is a high chance he will need to make a larger incision. If they simply find adhesions, they can take care of them and close Dan up. If they find that his bowels are "very sticky" (lots of adhesions), the surgery could take quite a while longer. Additionally, they are hoping to not find a need to resect any of Dan's bowel. That would potentially create more problems and longer healing.

Basically, McGreeky doesn't know what he is going to find when he takes Dan into surgery. He gave us a time estimate only because I asked: 2-6 hours. Lovely.

Currently, Dan and I are waiting in his room for transport to pick him up for surgery. He was supposed to go at 2, but a trauma surgery took precedence. So, we wait. Unfortunately, Dan has to wait with another NG tube until surgery. Bummer.

His parents, my parents and his aunt and uncle are waiting in the surgical waiting room. I'll join them as soon as Dan is actually taken back to the OR. Hopefully, we won't be waiting more than a few hours this time.

I will update as I can. Keep praying.

Prayer Requests:
* Successful, short, simple surgery
* No complications whatsoever (no infection, extra bowel obstructions)
* No bad surprises
* Peace for those of us in the waiting room
* Quick and unremarkable recovery for Dan
* Ability for Dan to eat comfortably and go home within the week :)

Friday, April 2, 2010

Good Friday?

As a kid, I never really understood why Good Friday is called Good Friday. I mean, Jesus was beaten, betrayed and killed. What is so good about that? Now, with a little more Biblical and theological understanding, I know that what happened on Good Friday was the best thing to happen to humanity since...ever. Still, meditating on the events of the Crucifixion does not leave one in a joyous mood. Our sins put Christ on the Cross. He was innocent, yet paid the price on our behalf. It wasn't fair, but it saved our souls. Wow.

In a much much much less severe way, Dan's Good Friday wasn't all that good either. His diet was moved up to solids, but that didn't work very well. By noon time, he was in pain and vomiting. McGreeky got finished with his surgery early and told Dan he'd have a CT to make sure there was an obstruction and then be scheduled for surgery tomorrow.

By the time I arrived from LA (a nice, easy drive for once), Dan was headed to CT. Results showed...nothing. The CT was normal except for a very small amount of dilation of the same bowel that has been problematic. McGreeky called and said this was definitely not something to operate on. In fact, he said this CT looks even better than the one done last week. The other surgeon who came in agreed, put Dan on a clear liquid diet again and apologized repeatedly for how frustrating this must be for Dan. After banking on surgery tomorrow, we just had to take this change in stride. McGreeky told us that if Dan's symptoms persisted through the weekend, he'd have surgery on Monday. Sound familiar?

About half an hour later, McGreeky called back (he and Dan are on cell phone basis now). He had spent some time thinking about the situation and wasn't comfortable leaving Dan in pain all weekend. So, he was actually leaning more toward surgery tomorrow after all. He wanted Dan to keep drinking tonight to see how he felt and they would discuss things in the morning. He also put Dan on the surgery schedule for tomorrow just in case. The interesting thing is that McGreeky feels Dan is now a better candidate for a laparoscopic surgery, meaning he would not need to make a large incision to open Dan all the way up. Thanks to the improvement shown on the CT, it is possible for this type of surgery to be successful with less risk of missing something. (Of course, there is always the possibility that they will not find what they need to find and Dan will be opened up a little bit into the surgery.)

We tried to take this turn of events in stride, discussing what to say to McGreeky in the morning to get something done. Dan's pain seemed to go away, he was in good spirits, and he ate most of the clear liquid on the tray. It began to look like Dan wouldn't be in enough pain to convince the doc he needed surgery! Of course, another hour told a different story. Even the clears caused Dan pain and cramping. As he is now drugged and sleepy, we're pretty sure Dan will have a date in the OR tomorrow.

As the disciples must have felt scared and disappointed and doubtful in the day between the Crucifixion and the Resurrection, Dan and I (and family) are having a hard time grasping what God is doing here. Yet, the pain and sorrow for the disciples and believers of Jesus was replaced with rejoicing in that glorious morning when Christ conquered death. Wouldn't it be spectacular for Dan to have a glorious morning of healing and renewal on Resurrection Sunday?

Prayer Requests:
* Wisdom for the doctors in making the 'final' decision
* Safe, effective, simple surgery done laparoscopically
* Swift and uncomplicated recovery time (this has to be possible for Dan)
* Peace and comfort for those in the waiting room
* Resolution of this bowel obstruction once and for all
* Rest and comfort for Dan as he sleeps tonight
* A 'glorious morning' for Dan very soon

Thursday, April 1, 2010

Eating

So it's update time; sorry for not blogging yesterday. I tend to forget when Ash isn't around; she's more motivated than I am.
Yesterday and today were very similar. My mom came both days, we did the cryptoquip and crossword, I walked, watched TV and movies, and perused facebook more than the average day. The main difference was that yesterday I ate broth and jello, and today I had more milky products like cream of wheat and what may become a dietary staple in the coming weeks, Ensure (or other protein supplement to gain weight). Once again, they're working me up to solid food and seeing how my bowels respond. So far, everything's moving through. (yayyyyyy)
But here's the rub: this exact thing happened last time, and at the end of the solid food day, I was in some nasty pain and eventually threw up, restarting this process. I really want this food trial to work, but at this point, I can't say what I think will happen.
Ashley has been working her gluteus maximus off back at school these past two days, and for that I am really proud of her. She's going to make an excellent nurse one day. But for now, nursing school still makes her life pretty stressful. Tomorrow, she'll drive up and actually be on a break! Praise the Lord.
Insurance has been really weird. They kept trying to shirk payment of my bills by claiming I had an accident I didn't report. Yes, I had an accident that meant I needed a Whipple surgery. April Fools! If Obamacare makes health insurance worse, I'll really need God's healing! (not that I don't need it now...)
Anyway, please pray for one thing: that this works and we can go home together (and maybe even go to Easter with our extended family!).
Thanks friends. More to come later.
Dan