Linda was released from the hospital for the second time on Wednesday and is home and doing well now!
Davin was up there yesterday doing some minor errands and he says she's been able to stop the shots she was receiving to break up the blood clot in her leg, and is able to take oral medication instead. What a relief!
Also, he said that she's getting around better inside her home, and needs the walker less than she did even at the beginning of the week. Every day is a little better, which is especially amazing considering that some people with her level of complications at the beginning might still not even be conscious yet. It seems like it's been a long time, but it's just over six weeks since her stroke. We are definitely counting our blessings!
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Linda Back in Hospital
Dear Faithful Readers,
Linda was discharged from the Boulder Community Hospital rehab center on Friday, Oct. 23. The transition home was fairly exhausting for her though she did sleep some 14-16 hours within the first 24 hours of her return. This was very relieving to her since she had experienced significant difficulties getting sleep in the hospital. Saturday was spent mostly resting though she did have a visit from one of the home care nurses who walked through some minimal physical tests and paperwork. Supposedly, Linda is to have fairly regular visits from a nurse with this service to monitor her progress along with several therapists who will visit each week, several times a week for occupational, speech, and physical therapy. On Sunday she was able to get up more often and was able to get a few things for herself, take her medication, and be generally more ambulatory. She was still fairly easily fatigued as it is definitely a different story to function at home vs. the hospital. It's definitely going to be a process of healing though she is definitely remaining strong, positive, and trying to become more and more active. However ....
**NEWSFLASH**
On Monday, we took Linda for a routine follow-up with her family doctor. Her doctor identified what she believed to be a blood clot in Linda's leg. We immediately went down to imaging for an ultrasound and the results proved that she indeed had a large cluster of blood clots. Then, on the advice and instruction of her doctor, Linda was admitted to the hospital via Emergency so that she could receive treatment for the blood clot. Originally, she was only to be there for about 24 hours, but we received news this afternoon that the doctors are worried about her blood sugar levels and want to continue monitoring her reaction to the blood thinner. So, please, prayers that she makes it over this hiccup in her recovery process. We will keep you posted when more information becomes available.
PS>Brian and I are still here at Linda's so if you need to get her a message, you can call her home and we will relay. She has really appreciated all the cards and well wishes!
Linda was discharged from the Boulder Community Hospital rehab center on Friday, Oct. 23. The transition home was fairly exhausting for her though she did sleep some 14-16 hours within the first 24 hours of her return. This was very relieving to her since she had experienced significant difficulties getting sleep in the hospital. Saturday was spent mostly resting though she did have a visit from one of the home care nurses who walked through some minimal physical tests and paperwork. Supposedly, Linda is to have fairly regular visits from a nurse with this service to monitor her progress along with several therapists who will visit each week, several times a week for occupational, speech, and physical therapy. On Sunday she was able to get up more often and was able to get a few things for herself, take her medication, and be generally more ambulatory. She was still fairly easily fatigued as it is definitely a different story to function at home vs. the hospital. It's definitely going to be a process of healing though she is definitely remaining strong, positive, and trying to become more and more active. However ....
**NEWSFLASH**
On Monday, we took Linda for a routine follow-up with her family doctor. Her doctor identified what she believed to be a blood clot in Linda's leg. We immediately went down to imaging for an ultrasound and the results proved that she indeed had a large cluster of blood clots. Then, on the advice and instruction of her doctor, Linda was admitted to the hospital via Emergency so that she could receive treatment for the blood clot. Originally, she was only to be there for about 24 hours, but we received news this afternoon that the doctors are worried about her blood sugar levels and want to continue monitoring her reaction to the blood thinner. So, please, prayers that she makes it over this hiccup in her recovery process. We will keep you posted when more information becomes available.
PS>Brian and I are still here at Linda's so if you need to get her a message, you can call her home and we will relay. She has really appreciated all the cards and well wishes!
Friday, October 23, 2009
Today's the Day!
Barring any more delays, Linda should be home today! We are so grateful for the prayers and well-wishes. It has been an amazing journey so far, and we have all been blessed by all of you.
Yay!
Yay!
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Linda's coming home!
This is the news everyone, including Linda, has been waiting for: she's coming home! Linda will be home this Thursday - that's right, in two days. She will be able to do most of what she needs by herself since her recovery has gone so well. There will be some tasks Alicia and I will help with at first, but Linda has already handled this healing process so well. She will still be working with a therapist for the foreseeable future and her physical mobility is still a work in progress. But, she seems to have not let everything that has happened slow her down any more than it had to. And, she's been motivated and active in doing therapy, along with having enough patience to give herself the time she needs to heal. I'm so proud of her for handling it all so well! And I'm just excited for her to be back home. She so deserves it. See you soon, Linda!
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Hello, Linda!
We had a very special reader today, as Linda was able to log in from the hospital and catch up on her back story. Hey there, Linda!
Hopefully she'll be able to log on soon and put in some updates of her own :-)
Until then, she wanted me to let you all know that she is getting some practice in with using her cane instead of a walker, so she can be done with that soon. They're having her work on going up and down stairs and try to use her CPAP machine at night, all in the hopes of (drum roll please) sending her *HOME* late next week. Can you believe that?
There is still a lot to be done before she can come home, but she's making great strides in rehab. She's walking much better than she was on Sunday when I saw her, and I was surprised then by her ability. Things are changing fast!
Also, we brought Scruffles up for a visit for the first time, and they were quite happy to see each other. We're praying that it won't be long until they're back together full time.
Hopefully she'll be able to log on soon and put in some updates of her own :-)
Until then, she wanted me to let you all know that she is getting some practice in with using her cane instead of a walker, so she can be done with that soon. They're having her work on going up and down stairs and try to use her CPAP machine at night, all in the hopes of (drum roll please) sending her *HOME* late next week. Can you believe that?
There is still a lot to be done before she can come home, but she's making great strides in rehab. She's walking much better than she was on Sunday when I saw her, and I was surprised then by her ability. Things are changing fast!
Also, we brought Scruffles up for a visit for the first time, and they were quite happy to see each other. We're praying that it won't be long until they're back together full time.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Flowers!
Jon Rush reminded me... YES, Linda can receive flowers now that she's out of the ICU. She has more shelf space and a large window, and the rules are more generous on the rehab floor.
Thank you Jon. :-)
Thank you Jon. :-)
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Movin' on Up!
Linda is out of the ICU! Woooooohoooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!
She spent her first full day on the Rehab floor yesterday, and is poised to take the place over! She's still in the same hospital, but in a totally different area, where all of the patients are there for long-term physical rehab. Linda's getting all different kinds of therapy, and it adds up to several hours a day. It makes me tired just thinking about it, and I'm sure I'm not the only one!
Today she let us know that she can wear her own clothes and shoes, and she needs them for her exercises, so Anya and I brought some up for her. (Alicia had packed them, and did a wonderful job, throwing in some extras that were very welcomed. Big hand for Alicia!)
While we were there, we got to watch part of a P/T session. They had her walk down the hall (she used a walker, but only for balance) and lay on a large adjustable, elevating gym mat. The mat was pretty neat, she could do all of the "floor" exercises, without having to get down to or up from the floor. She's rockin' and rollin' and really wants to get back to her old level of intensity. It's good to see her moving so much, after all that time when she could only lie there.
She's eating in the dining area with the other rehab patients, so she can meet some other people now. The Neuro-Trauma ICU was an amazing unit, but it isn't really designed for patients like Linda, who have social needs as well as medical ones.
Hopefully in the next few days we'll find out more about how long Linda will be in this segment of her treatment, and what may come next. She had a battery of tests of Friday, but they haven't been analyzed yet. When they are, the docs and the folks from all the different branches of therapy will meet and hammer out a treatment plan.
The updates will probably be a little fewer and farther between while she's in rehab. She's not able to do her own updates yet, but she doesn't have the time or need for us to visit her daily like we did when she was in the ICU. Plus, blessedly, things aren't happening with nearly the intensity they used to! We'll still keep you updated as often as we can, though.
Thanks again for everyone who's been praying for Linda and sending positive thoughts. They're all making a real difference in her life!
She spent her first full day on the Rehab floor yesterday, and is poised to take the place over! She's still in the same hospital, but in a totally different area, where all of the patients are there for long-term physical rehab. Linda's getting all different kinds of therapy, and it adds up to several hours a day. It makes me tired just thinking about it, and I'm sure I'm not the only one!
Today she let us know that she can wear her own clothes and shoes, and she needs them for her exercises, so Anya and I brought some up for her. (Alicia had packed them, and did a wonderful job, throwing in some extras that were very welcomed. Big hand for Alicia!)
While we were there, we got to watch part of a P/T session. They had her walk down the hall (she used a walker, but only for balance) and lay on a large adjustable, elevating gym mat. The mat was pretty neat, she could do all of the "floor" exercises, without having to get down to or up from the floor. She's rockin' and rollin' and really wants to get back to her old level of intensity. It's good to see her moving so much, after all that time when she could only lie there.
She's eating in the dining area with the other rehab patients, so she can meet some other people now. The Neuro-Trauma ICU was an amazing unit, but it isn't really designed for patients like Linda, who have social needs as well as medical ones.
Hopefully in the next few days we'll find out more about how long Linda will be in this segment of her treatment, and what may come next. She had a battery of tests of Friday, but they haven't been analyzed yet. When they are, the docs and the folks from all the different branches of therapy will meet and hammer out a treatment plan.
The updates will probably be a little fewer and farther between while she's in rehab. She's not able to do her own updates yet, but she doesn't have the time or need for us to visit her daily like we did when she was in the ICU. Plus, blessedly, things aren't happening with nearly the intensity they used to! We'll still keep you updated as often as we can, though.
Thanks again for everyone who's been praying for Linda and sending positive thoughts. They're all making a real difference in her life!
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Kissing Many Things Goodbye Today! And a Great Big HELLO!!!!!!
Today they removed Linda's trach and catheter, and since she passed her swallowing test, we expect to see her nasogastric tube (NG tube) go, too!
This whole time, Linda's been receiving nutrition either through her IV or through her NG tube, but now they're saying she may get ACTUAL FOOD tonight for dinner since she's passed the swallowing test today.
Beforehand, the nurse explained that for the swallow test, they would take her to the x-ray department and feed her radioactively-tagged foods of varying textures. As she swallowed the foods, they watch on the scans to see if they go down properly and not into her lungs, etc. I joked with her, "Wow Linda, there's good news and bad news. The good news is that you get to eat real food! The bad news is that it's all radioactive." She looked at me and shrugged her shoulders and said, "I don't care!" with a big goofy smile. Yay, Linda! It's good to see her sense of humor is back.
Other big news, maybe the biggest, is that Linda seems to be making and retaining new memories quite well now. It's literally like she "woke up" some time over the last few days. She's remembering conversations about her rehab choices, and which tests and medications she's had, and when her kids and grandkids have been in to see her, and everything else that's happened. She has no recollection from before the weekend, and it's unlikely she will remember that, but that's pretty normal. And really, most of that stuff was awfully unpleasant. If she had to "lose" some time from her life, I can't think of three crummier weeks! We'll just chalk that up to taking out the trash, and move on. ;-)
I asked her if she knew that she is doing much better than everyone has expected her to, and she said, "I figured I must be, because anytime someone comes in who doesn't see me every day they say, 'WOW, you look really great!!!!!'" Hee hee! Yep, she really is looking good.
She says she's still pretty overwhelmed by the hospital routine (which is essentially all new to her) but that she may be ready for visitors sometime soon. Keep checking here and we'll keep you posted. I know a lot of folks want to come and see her, so we'll try to get that moving as soon as she's up to it. You guys are really neat people! Linda's blessed to have so many people praying for her, caring about her and checking up on her :-)
We believe that Linda will be moved tomorrow. Of course, nothing's ever sure in a hospital setting until after it's done, but that's what they're saying today. They're not saying where she's going yet, but the smart money at this point is on the LTAC that Davin described yesterday. We'll keep you updated as we find out what's happening.
This whole time, Linda's been receiving nutrition either through her IV or through her NG tube, but now they're saying she may get ACTUAL FOOD tonight for dinner since she's passed the swallowing test today.
Beforehand, the nurse explained that for the swallow test, they would take her to the x-ray department and feed her radioactively-tagged foods of varying textures. As she swallowed the foods, they watch on the scans to see if they go down properly and not into her lungs, etc. I joked with her, "Wow Linda, there's good news and bad news. The good news is that you get to eat real food! The bad news is that it's all radioactive." She looked at me and shrugged her shoulders and said, "I don't care!" with a big goofy smile. Yay, Linda! It's good to see her sense of humor is back.
Other big news, maybe the biggest, is that Linda seems to be making and retaining new memories quite well now. It's literally like she "woke up" some time over the last few days. She's remembering conversations about her rehab choices, and which tests and medications she's had, and when her kids and grandkids have been in to see her, and everything else that's happened. She has no recollection from before the weekend, and it's unlikely she will remember that, but that's pretty normal. And really, most of that stuff was awfully unpleasant. If she had to "lose" some time from her life, I can't think of three crummier weeks! We'll just chalk that up to taking out the trash, and move on. ;-)
I asked her if she knew that she is doing much better than everyone has expected her to, and she said, "I figured I must be, because anytime someone comes in who doesn't see me every day they say, 'WOW, you look really great!!!!!'" Hee hee! Yep, she really is looking good.
She says she's still pretty overwhelmed by the hospital routine (which is essentially all new to her) but that she may be ready for visitors sometime soon. Keep checking here and we'll keep you posted. I know a lot of folks want to come and see her, so we'll try to get that moving as soon as she's up to it. You guys are really neat people! Linda's blessed to have so many people praying for her, caring about her and checking up on her :-)
We believe that Linda will be moved tomorrow. Of course, nothing's ever sure in a hospital setting until after it's done, but that's what they're saying today. They're not saying where she's going yet, but the smart money at this point is on the LTAC that Davin described yesterday. We'll keep you updated as we find out what's happening.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Day 21 : Moving on up (soon, or not!) and no more trach!
Great news today, Linda's lungs are looking clear and much improved today. She's going to be getting rid of the trach! That's one item I know she won't miss, although it served her very well over the last 3 weeks. I asked her if she wanted to keep it as as souvenir, but she declined...
Otherwise, she's in good spirits. She told Brian and I that she's overall very positive, only occasionally upset, and is motivated to work hard to get better and get home!
We're getting very close to changing phases from acute surgery and post-surgical care to rehabilitation and therapy. This is great news that we've been preparing for at least a couple weeks. I believe she will be moving on in a couple days or so.
On the other hand, hospitals have their own rhythm and gait to them, and it's just best to go with it sometimes - we are still not certain just what type of care will be best for Linda and exactly when she will be ready to go, but Brian and I took a tour of the most likely place today. It's what's known as an LTAC (Long Term Acute Care), which is designed for stays of 25-30 days on average and focuses on therapy and rehab more so than a short term acute care hospital would (where a typical stay is 5-7 days). So what we really know for sure is that we don't know exactly where or when, but that moving from this hospital to therapy/rehab is going to be a huge improvement and will help her get back to the life that she had.
Otherwise, she's in good spirits. She told Brian and I that she's overall very positive, only occasionally upset, and is motivated to work hard to get better and get home!
We're getting very close to changing phases from acute surgery and post-surgical care to rehabilitation and therapy. This is great news that we've been preparing for at least a couple weeks. I believe she will be moving on in a couple days or so.
On the other hand, hospitals have their own rhythm and gait to them, and it's just best to go with it sometimes - we are still not certain just what type of care will be best for Linda and exactly when she will be ready to go, but Brian and I took a tour of the most likely place today. It's what's known as an LTAC (Long Term Acute Care), which is designed for stays of 25-30 days on average and focuses on therapy and rehab more so than a short term acute care hospital would (where a typical stay is 5-7 days). So what we really know for sure is that we don't know exactly where or when, but that moving from this hospital to therapy/rehab is going to be a huge improvement and will help her get back to the life that she had.
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Wants to pack her bags!
Linda had a good day, her nurse said he's surprised at how quickly she's getting stronger with standing and walking. She's nowhere near back to normal, but he said it can come back quickly once it starts. Words of encouragement!
The best part of the day was she remembered something she asked me to bring Saturday, right when I walked in she asked without being prompted! I hope this means her post-aneurysm memory is getting back on track.
We talked (yes, talked! She's able to talk thru her trach now, even without the Passy-Muir valve) about going to the rehab center, getting out of ICU. I think she's excited. She asked for me to pack up her clothes, pictures and magazines into her suit case! I told her and she knows she's not going to leave for at least a few days, but I think its her way of saying "I'm ready!"
The feeding tube is probably going to go away soon, based on how well she's doing with swallowing/breathing. We're all ready for that, sooner the better.
That's all for now, thanks for your prayers and support.
The best part of the day was she remembered something she asked me to bring Saturday, right when I walked in she asked without being prompted! I hope this means her post-aneurysm memory is getting back on track.
We talked (yes, talked! She's able to talk thru her trach now, even without the Passy-Muir valve) about going to the rehab center, getting out of ICU. I think she's excited. She asked for me to pack up her clothes, pictures and magazines into her suit case! I told her and she knows she's not going to leave for at least a few days, but I think its her way of saying "I'm ready!"
The feeding tube is probably going to go away soon, based on how well she's doing with swallowing/breathing. We're all ready for that, sooner the better.
That's all for now, thanks for your prayers and support.
Saturday, October 3, 2009
DJAMST in to see Linda
Davin and the all the kids and I were healthy enough to get in to see Linda today. She calls just DJAMST, because it's all of our first initials in order (Davin, Jen, Anya, Maya, Sage and Tiernan.) Her room in the ICU is pretty small, but it's still larger than our pop up camper, so we made it work for about 20 minutes. Then the kids and I cleared out so Davin could have some 1 on 1 time with his mom.
Linda was on her Passy-Muir valve again, and this time she was talking like a champ. She's still on the quiet side, but she can belt out full sentences and complex thoughts. It was really good for the kids to be able to hear her, I think they are feeling much better about how she's doing now.
She had some advice for all of us. She wants us to stay active and keep our bodies in good shape. Also, to know to remember that God made us, and that we can rely on Him to help us.
She also told us that she's SHOCKED at how weak she is. Because she spent the first week and a half or so just laying in bed under sedation, and she hasn't been able to do much since then, she's lost a lot of muscle mass. She still doesn't remember how long she's been in the hospital (19 days) and so it's even more surprising to her how much muscle she's lost. So, to sit up, get to a standing position and walk a few steps to a chair is tremendously difficult for her now. The P/T folks are working her out a couple of times a day now, and hopefully she'll be strong again soon.
A bit of bad news today; we don't have her glasses! We have her reading glasses! I've noticed that she can't see the items taped on the walls, or the clock, etc, and I wasn't sure why. Today she told us that she's got the wrong glasses. They're better than nothing, but she can't see anything farther away than an arm's length. Since Brian and Alicia have looked in every nook and cranny in her house for her glasses, and we know her coworkers have checked all over the office, we believe her glasses may have been lost in the ER. We need to find her eye doctor and see what it will take to get her a replacement set. Poor thing!
Also, because the incision from her brain surgery is healed up, and the ventriculostomy is out, they said they can wash her hair later today. This will be her first real shampoo since the aneurysm. She looks fine, but she's had blood and betadyne and everything else in her hair, and I bet she doesn't even realize how much better that will make her feel to get clean. Yay for shampoo!
BIG NEWS!!!! Her nurse stopped Davin and started to tell him about the process to move her to a rehab center. It's good to get more information about this, since it could be happening soon, maybe even in the next week! We don't know how long she'll be there, but it's a big step on the way to going home.
Linda was on her Passy-Muir valve again, and this time she was talking like a champ. She's still on the quiet side, but she can belt out full sentences and complex thoughts. It was really good for the kids to be able to hear her, I think they are feeling much better about how she's doing now.
She had some advice for all of us. She wants us to stay active and keep our bodies in good shape. Also, to know to remember that God made us, and that we can rely on Him to help us.
She also told us that she's SHOCKED at how weak she is. Because she spent the first week and a half or so just laying in bed under sedation, and she hasn't been able to do much since then, she's lost a lot of muscle mass. She still doesn't remember how long she's been in the hospital (19 days) and so it's even more surprising to her how much muscle she's lost. So, to sit up, get to a standing position and walk a few steps to a chair is tremendously difficult for her now. The P/T folks are working her out a couple of times a day now, and hopefully she'll be strong again soon.
A bit of bad news today; we don't have her glasses! We have her reading glasses! I've noticed that she can't see the items taped on the walls, or the clock, etc, and I wasn't sure why. Today she told us that she's got the wrong glasses. They're better than nothing, but she can't see anything farther away than an arm's length. Since Brian and Alicia have looked in every nook and cranny in her house for her glasses, and we know her coworkers have checked all over the office, we believe her glasses may have been lost in the ER. We need to find her eye doctor and see what it will take to get her a replacement set. Poor thing!
Also, because the incision from her brain surgery is healed up, and the ventriculostomy is out, they said they can wash her hair later today. This will be her first real shampoo since the aneurysm. She looks fine, but she's had blood and betadyne and everything else in her hair, and I bet she doesn't even realize how much better that will make her feel to get clean. Yay for shampoo!
BIG NEWS!!!! Her nurse stopped Davin and started to tell him about the process to move her to a rehab center. It's good to get more information about this, since it could be happening soon, maybe even in the next week! We don't know how long she'll be there, but it's a big step on the way to going home.
Friday, October 2, 2009
Better breathing!
At midnight a lot of fluid was drawn from Mom’s lungs, & earlier at about 4 pm more had been drawn from the other side. This will help Mom’s overall oxygenation. No wonder she’s been coughing so much! The suctioning made her throat sore & she told me so. A cardiologist will review her condition & medications tomorrow & make any needed changes. She is receiving medication for heart arrhythmia and others for heart health maintenance. Today Mom also sat on the side of the bed - a good amount of activity.
Mom gave me some advice today! She said I am overqualified for my job & to make sure I don’t get stuck there. She said not to work overtime this week but to take overtime after that for the money. I reassured her that Davin and I were seeing to her financial matters as well as the details of her insurance and benefits. Mom also opened cards from Benita Woody, Susan Buhr, and from Gloria, Dave, Allaina, Bruce & Provence from NSIDC. She was so happy to read those and know friends were thinking of her.
Mom gave me some advice today! She said I am overqualified for my job & to make sure I don’t get stuck there. She said not to work overtime this week but to take overtime after that for the money. I reassured her that Davin and I were seeing to her financial matters as well as the details of her insurance and benefits. Mom also opened cards from Benita Woody, Susan Buhr, and from Gloria, Dave, Allaina, Bruce & Provence from NSIDC. She was so happy to read those and know friends were thinking of her.
ZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Not a lot to report from my visit, because Linda slept the whole time. I asked the nurse if that was OK, because in the past they've asked us to keep her up, but he said that it's fine. So I let her saw logs to her heart's content. If you can't sleep away a lazy Friday, what good is a stay in the ICU anyway?
She did wake up for about 8 minutes on the Passy-Muir valve, which knocked her right back out.
Also, we got news about her thoracentesis from yesterday. They were only able to do one side, and hope to do they other side later today. Even so, they pulled out 600 ml. That's 20 oz. of fluid they found in her chest cavity, just on one side, preventing her lungs from expanding. Think about that the next time you're drinking a 20 oz. bottle of soda, that's a little scary, isn't it?
Poor thing!
She did wake up for about 8 minutes on the Passy-Muir valve, which knocked her right back out.
Also, we got news about her thoracentesis from yesterday. They were only able to do one side, and hope to do they other side later today. Even so, they pulled out 600 ml. That's 20 oz. of fluid they found in her chest cavity, just on one side, preventing her lungs from expanding. Think about that the next time you're drinking a 20 oz. bottle of soda, that's a little scary, isn't it?
Poor thing!
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Look Who's Talking!
Linda had a trial run with the Passy-Muir valve today, and she was able to talk for 15 minutes! The speech therapist kept her going, asking her questions about her house, and her dog, and stuff that she likes to do, etc. It was SO NICE to hear her speaking! They said they'll try it for a little longer every day, and soon she'll be talking like a champ and using the valve all the time that she's awake.
Right now her voice is very rusty, and it was a lot of effort to speak. So, she was out for a nap after the 15 minutes. But she was so happy to just be able to talk out loud. I actually got pretty teary, I was so excited for her. And PROUD of her! What a big step this is!
The valve works by allowing air to go in through it, but not go out. So, when she breathes out, the air passes the trach and goes up through her vocal chords and out her mouth, just like normal speech. So, if she wanted to, she could talk on the phone or into a microphone, and it would sound just like anyone else.
While the valve was on her trach, they used a nasal cannula to deliver oxygen to her. So, the oxygen wasn't going into the trach, it was going up her nose. Her saturation was excellent the whole time, which bodes well for her getting off of the trach entirely, hopefully soon. Yay!
AMAZING NEWS!!!! I believe Linda remembered something today from yesterday. I may be reading too much into this, so I'll tell you all what happened and you can decide what you think.
Yesterday, one of the respiratory therapists came in to do the regular trach cares, and she didn't like the placement of Linda's pulse oximeter or "pulse ox." She took the old one off of her Linda's finger, and put a new one on her ear lobe. The therapist and I chatted a bit, because I'd never seen one on an ear lobe before, and she explained all the places you can put them.
Today, the same respiratory therapist came in to check on the supplies in Linda's room. As she walked in front of Linda, Linda looked at her, blinked a couple of times, then slowly moved to point to her earlobe and the pulse ox. I said, "Yes, Linda, she's the person who put your pulse ox on your earlobe, you do remember that?" She smiled and nodded her head.
I really do think she remembered her from yesterday! If so, that's the first time I've seen that happen. Hopefully we'll see more of that. Keep praying, your prayers are working!
Meanwhile, back in lung news... Later today they're planning to do a procedure called a thoracentesis. They'll use ultrasound to find pockets of fluid that are outside of her lungs, but inside her chest cavity. Then, they'll use a local anesthetic, and insert a needle or catheter and draw out that fluid. The doctor said that this will allow her lungs to inflate more fully, so she can breathe better and cough more efficiently. Hopefully, this will help resolve her aspiration pneumonia more quickly, since her lungs are causing her so much trouble right now.
Linda asked me to read out loud to her today from a book called Spontaneous Evolution. We read two chapters, and it's pretty interesting so far. That's the first time she's asked for a read-aloud, and she seemed pretty on track with paying attention. We even "discussed" it a bit, through her notes. I thought that was a tremendous bit of fun, and something she just wouldn't have been up for even a week ago.
The only weird, downer bit of news today is that last night she had a period of abnormal heart rhythm called atrial fibrillation, or "afib." They're saying that it's not really a big deal, and they've added a medication to help keep it under control. I just don't like adding new problems at this stage of the game.
Right now her voice is very rusty, and it was a lot of effort to speak. So, she was out for a nap after the 15 minutes. But she was so happy to just be able to talk out loud. I actually got pretty teary, I was so excited for her. And PROUD of her! What a big step this is!
The valve works by allowing air to go in through it, but not go out. So, when she breathes out, the air passes the trach and goes up through her vocal chords and out her mouth, just like normal speech. So, if she wanted to, she could talk on the phone or into a microphone, and it would sound just like anyone else.
While the valve was on her trach, they used a nasal cannula to deliver oxygen to her. So, the oxygen wasn't going into the trach, it was going up her nose. Her saturation was excellent the whole time, which bodes well for her getting off of the trach entirely, hopefully soon. Yay!
AMAZING NEWS!!!! I believe Linda remembered something today from yesterday. I may be reading too much into this, so I'll tell you all what happened and you can decide what you think.
Yesterday, one of the respiratory therapists came in to do the regular trach cares, and she didn't like the placement of Linda's pulse oximeter or "pulse ox." She took the old one off of her Linda's finger, and put a new one on her ear lobe. The therapist and I chatted a bit, because I'd never seen one on an ear lobe before, and she explained all the places you can put them.
Today, the same respiratory therapist came in to check on the supplies in Linda's room. As she walked in front of Linda, Linda looked at her, blinked a couple of times, then slowly moved to point to her earlobe and the pulse ox. I said, "Yes, Linda, she's the person who put your pulse ox on your earlobe, you do remember that?" She smiled and nodded her head.
I really do think she remembered her from yesterday! If so, that's the first time I've seen that happen. Hopefully we'll see more of that. Keep praying, your prayers are working!
Meanwhile, back in lung news... Later today they're planning to do a procedure called a thoracentesis. They'll use ultrasound to find pockets of fluid that are outside of her lungs, but inside her chest cavity. Then, they'll use a local anesthetic, and insert a needle or catheter and draw out that fluid. The doctor said that this will allow her lungs to inflate more fully, so she can breathe better and cough more efficiently. Hopefully, this will help resolve her aspiration pneumonia more quickly, since her lungs are causing her so much trouble right now.
Linda asked me to read out loud to her today from a book called Spontaneous Evolution. We read two chapters, and it's pretty interesting so far. That's the first time she's asked for a read-aloud, and she seemed pretty on track with paying attention. We even "discussed" it a bit, through her notes. I thought that was a tremendous bit of fun, and something she just wouldn't have been up for even a week ago.
The only weird, downer bit of news today is that last night she had a period of abnormal heart rhythm called atrial fibrillation, or "afib." They're saying that it's not really a big deal, and they've added a medication to help keep it under control. I just don't like adding new problems at this stage of the game.
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