Yucky stuff

Last night was pretty miserable. The NG did its job and drained nearly a liter from Dan's belly...that's a lot considering he threw up 1.5 liters already! Yet, as effective as it was, it also kept Dan awake because it kept triggering his gag reflex. A couple doses of Benadryl were in order just to keep him comfortable and sleepy. Then, we had a little scare when his pulse was running in the 150-160s. An EKG proved it was just the NG physiologically and psychologically speeding up his heart rate. After a bolus of fluid and some sleep, it's running in a normal range now.

At the moment, we are awaiting the CT. Dan has to have the contrast fluid pushed through his NG. Might be easier than drinking it, but it still fills up his belly too much. The CT will show how severe the obstruction is and what is needed to fix it.

When McGreeky came in this morning, he said he was putting in the orders for a PICC tomorrow due to how much fluid the NG was emptying. He believes this might take a while to resolve and doesn't want to Dan to keep going without nutrition. So, hopefully, by tomorrow night, Dan will have some TPN to get him going again. As this is another waiting game, none of us are sure how long he'll be on TPN this time. I guess it's nice to already know how to administer it at home, though.

I'm pretty nervous about the CT as it could mean more surgery. I just wish this would have been caught at one of the trips to the ER or at the follow-up appointment with McGreeky. (Oh, if wishes and wants were candies and nuts...I actually don't remember the end of that saying.) Honestly, I think McGreeky is a little nervous, too.

Alright, back to spending time with Dan. He has to keep this contrast down so the CT will show what it needs to. We cannot wait until he can eat and drink like normal again. Oh, and no more hospital stays. Good grief.

I will update this after we hear CT results.

Prayer Requests:
* CT that shows only a simple bowel obstruction (no twisted or strangulated bowel)
* No need for surgery to resolve the obstruction
* Quick and complete healing
* Smooth PICC placement tomorrow and starting of TPN by tomorrow night
* Understanding doctors and nurses
* Wisdom for the doctors
* Encouraging news today
* Comfort for Dan--he hates the NG tube