ICU, Day 35

Mom had a ho-hum day... just more practice on the same things. But more progress soon. =)

ICU, Day 34

Mom had a great day. She was moved to a different room yesterday, so she has a view of outside, and more privacy. She's been working today to use her valve more, and she's been eating apple sauce. She also got her NG tube out of her nose, for the first time in two months. Her nose is a little tender, but she's very happy to have it out. There's talk now about moving her to a rehab facility, but nothing definite yet. Keep Mom in your prayers, and throw one in for Mary Ann (her nurse) too. =)

ICU, Day 33

Mom was worn out today. She did a lot of working out this morning, so that exhausted her for the rest of the day. But she's still improving. She's had Mary Ann for a nurse lately, and she's a wonderful nurse. She's been pushing Mom to do things for herself, and to get better in general, and it's working fabulously. She was the first one to start pushing things, to get Mom off the sedation and to start the rehabilitation. =)

ICU, Day 32

Mom had the valve on a lot of the time today, so she was talking a little bit, which was really cool. She also had physical therapy and speech therapy, so she was really worn out. They changed her trache size today so that she won't have to push quite so hard to talk, so she's doing great.

ICU, Day 31

Mom had more physical therapy today, and has been on the oxygen collar all day. She had the valve on for a little while, and made her first sounds today, but it was a foreign feeling having it on. She had to adjust her breathing because the valve is a one way valve, so she can get air in from it, but has to breathe out through her nose or mouth. With more time, she should be able to adjust to it. She also had a speech therapist come in today, and they worked on talking. She was also able to swallow with the valve on, but they didn't try any food or liquid yet. More progress tomorrow. =)

ICU, Day 30

Mom had a great day! She went on the collar at noon, and at 7pm, she's still on it. They'll probably take her off around midnight, then put her back on in the morning so she can rest. They tried putting the valve on so she could talk (the oxygen mask would go over that, so she'd still be getting a slight concentration), but she coughed and it flew across the room, so they're sticking with oxygen for today. She also had more physical therapy, which exhausted her, but she's doing great.

ICU, Day 29

Mom did physical therapy again this morning, and was sitting up some more. She was also on the CPAP setting for quite a few hours, so she's staying strong. There's talk about her getting the valve tomorrow so that she can talk again. Things are looking up. =)

ICU, Day 28

Mom was on the CPAP setting for 12 hours today, so she was initiating all her breaths, which is good. She had more physical therapy today, where she was sitting up, moving her feet and legs around, so she was busy today. I talked to her doctor, and he was saying that when she is breathing on her own consistently, there is a possibility of moving her to San Ramon, which would be fabulous. That way, she'd be closer to home, with a staff that she knows, and she can finish her rehab there.

ICU, Day 27

Mom didn't get on the collar this morning, but she did have the vent turned down so she was doing the work for a couple hours. She's also been helping the nurses when they turn her, and started a little physical therapy today, so she's had a busy day.

ICU, Day 26

Mom really worked hard yesterday, and she was off the vent for two hours this morning. So she's a little worn out. She's spent the afternoon on sedation, but she's getting good rest. They may try to take her off the vent again tonight. Either way, she's getting better.

ICU, Day 25

Mom did fabulous today! She was off the ventilator for about 20 minutes this morning, breathing on her own. It got to be a little too much, so they put her back on the vent, but she was alert and communicating a lot today. Rick, Brooke and I were all there this evening, and she was smiling and making faces, so her sense of humor is coming back strong. And tonight, they took her off the vent again for an hour, and she did great! So she's really feeling better, we are sooooo happy! Keep the prayers going, she's not out of ICU yet, but she's well on her way. =)

ICU, Day 24

Mom's stats are steady, and she's breathing on her own. The ventilator is on as backup, but it's set very low. They're saying they're going to take her off the ventilator tomorrow and put her on a collar, which will provide her with oxygen, but no pressure. We'll see how things go.

Oh, and the mentions of swelling before, I talked to the doctor about what's causing that. He said that because she's being pumped up with so many fluids, there's no other place for them to go, so the cells are taking up the extra fluid. It's strictly a cosmetic thing for her, nothing to worry about, and when she's not getting so much fluid, the swelling will go away.

ICU, Day 23

Mom is doing even better today. They kept her a little more sedated today, but she was still waking up to see people sometimes. Her stats are under control, so she just keeps pushing on.

ICU, Day 22

Mom had a good day. She's not being sedated, so she is awake a lot more and responsive. Her white count is normal, her temperature has been below 100, so the infection(s) are being taken care of with the antibiotic. Now she needs to get off the respirator so she can get up and about. She's having a hard time getting comfortable, but she can't tell us what's going on because of the trache, so it's a game of yes or no questions, and all she can really do is nod or shake her head. I think we're doing well enough sometimes, but it's got to be frustrating for her. Good progress though.

ICU, Day 21

Mom had a good day today. She got the chest tubes out, the stomach bulb tube out, her blood pressure is up enough that she doesn't need the medication anymore, and they're working on lowering her sedative so that she is with it more. She was even able to "talk" to Rick. Pray for more good days. It was a busy day for her, but a good turning point.

ICU, Day 20

Mom's blood pressure is still low. They gave her blood and blood pressure medication to try and get her stabilized, but it's still low. Her blood sugars are down, which is good (the insulin helped). Her temperature is still a little high, which isn't good. We're still playing the waiting game.

ICU, Day 19

Mom is being kept sedated today so the trache can heal up more solidly, and she can rest and heal. Her blood pressure is a little low, so they're keeping an eye on that, but everything else seems to be stable. It's American Idol's premiere tonight, so we'll be watching that. One day at a time is the mantra.

ICU, Day 18

The procedures went well. The trache went in, so she doesn't have the ventilator in anymore. She looks so much better, and this will help her heal faster. She has a couple tubes, one on each side of her chest, to keep the fluid coming out from around her lungs. The tubes are only temporary, until the talc takes full effect. She started out shivering, and then developed a slight fever, which is probably a reaction to the talc. Tylenol and a cool washcloth on the forehead has helped cool her down. She's resting, so now it's just a matter of time.

Oh, and Michael G., one of the night nurses, is also really awesome. =)

ICU, Day 17

Mom had a fever today, but they had her off sedation for awhile. We got to visit with her, she was able to shake her head a little bit for responses, but she looked pretty out of it. Hopefully, the procedures tomorrow will get things moving, because her progress has been rather stagnant.

ICU, Day 16

It's 11:00 and they're taking her in now to drain the abscess. I was talking to the nurse and the nutritionist (unofficially), and there's talk about the trache next week, as well as doing something about the fluid that keeps collecting around her lungs. One possibility (again, nothing official yet, just possibilities) is to put in chest tubes to keep the fluid coming out without them having to manually drain it. They want to keep the fluid out so she can keep breathing full power without the resistance the fluid is creating. When we know how things went, it will go in here. Pray extra hard for her this morning.

It's 4:30 now, and she's had her abscess drained. They've sent the fluid they got out over to the lab to see what was in it. There was a little blood in there, but they're not sure what else, so we can only wait.

They're going to go in on Monday morning and put in the trache so she can get off the respirator, and they're also going to put some talcum powder around her lungs to help prevent the fluid from coming back.

ICU, Day 15

Mom's abscess needs to be drained. They're going in tomorrow morning to drain it, and they'll be using a CT machine at the same time so the can have eyes on the needle. They're not cutting her open, as she's been cut open enough lately. Her temp is still a little high, but it's not a fever, and her white count is going down more. They figure the abscess has a lot of yeast and a little bit of bacteria in it, since she's been on anti-biotics that would kill the basic viruses. There's no active talk about the trache yet, but the calendar is being watched. The fluid around her lungs is coming back again, so there's no rest for the weary. Keep her in your prayers. She's still hanging tough.

ICU, Day 14

Mom got her teeth brushed with a real toothbrush and toothpaste, and her hair washed with real shampoo and water today. Audrey is a blast of a nurse. There is no verdict about what do to with the abscess, or what to do about a trache. Her white count has gone down more, and her temperature is staying pretty normal now. Her swelling has gone down more too. Her left side looks great, her right side is almost normal. So it's just a matter of waiting to see what the doctors say. I've been telling her every day this week what day it is, and reminding her that her sister comes out on Friday, so she'll fight to be better so she can visit with her.

ICU, Day 13

The results of the CT scan showed that Mom has an abscess in her spleen. There's talk about draining it, but that could be trouble with her lungs struggling still. There's more fluid in her lungs, and talk about a trache because she's been on the respirator for so long. She still has a fever, but it's not as bad. Her white count is down some (yay), and she has more color in her face (she was looking a little pale yesterday). Her swelling has gone down a little bit as well, in both sides. She's still communicating with head nods and shakes (subtle, but they're there) when you ask her questions, as long as she's not sedated. They also have her on what the nurses like to call Milk of Amnesia, so she won't have to remember any of this happening to her. Keep her in your prayers.

ICU, Day 12

Mom's white blood cell count is up. It's been up the last two days (that I know of), and her temperature has gone up and down, staying on the up side more than the normal side. They did a CT scan this morning, but I don't know the results yet. The doctor is thinking it's an infection in her abdomen, due to all the work they had to do in there, but there won't be a game plan until after the scan is read.

Thanksgiving to ICU, Day 11

Okay, I figured that since it's looking like Mom will be out of commission for a little while, it would be easiest to create a blog to keep everyone updated as to what's going on with her.

I'll start by summarizing what's happened so far. Mom went in to the hospital with a blockage in her small bowel on Thanksgiving. She was in and out for almost a month, but mostly in.

She had surgery on December 27th to get something happening. The doctors removed 10 feet of her small bowel and she now has an ileostomy. The parts that were killed by the radiation, as well as the blockages were all in that section, so that's the good part. The bad part was that there is still cancer on the rest of her small bowel, and it has moved up to her lung. Doing surgery to remove those areas of would be overkill. Think grains of sand on sandpaper, that's about the size and population of the cancer on the rest of her bowel and lung. The doctor said the surgery went well, and he was pleased with everything they were able to get. He also said it was a major surgery, and that her body would be in shock. They took her into ICU after recovery, and got her settled in.

In the middle of the night, Mom had some problems. Her heart was struggling, she had a lot of fluid in her lung, and she developed a bleed in her abdomen. They took her back into the OR, removed the fluid from her lung, and fixed the bleed. They also attached a pump to her stomach. They put her on a ventilator, sedated her, and kept her blood pressure and clotting in check with medications. They also had to give her more blood, because she lost a fair amount from the internal bleeding.

She's been getting better slowly but surely. She has good days and bad days, but things are looking up right now. They've drained her right lung three times, and her left lung once. I asked the doctor why the lungs keep filling up with fluid, and he says it's most likely due to the cancer.