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.
Showing posts with label ventriculostomy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ventriculostomy. Show all posts
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Day 15 Post-Aneurysm
Today we had some pretty great news! The ventriculostomy was removed this morning, because they aren't worried about her intracranial pressure any more. That's HUGE!
Also, they took the staples out of the incision on the side of her head. She looks much more Grandmotherish now, and decidedly less Frankensteinish without them. I'm not sure she ever got a chance to see them, but knowing Linda she wouldn't have liked them and would be glad to have them gone gone gone.
And, one of the neurosurgeons stopped by to talk to her for a bit this afternoon and said that she's doing great. He said that, since she's made it 2/3s of the way through the 21 days with no vasospasms, that her odds of having any now are much lower. Not that she's over the risk, by any means, but that's the best news we've had in that area, so I'm just going to take a minute to do a little happy dance over here...
Funky, funky, cha cha cha! Wheeeeeeee!!!!!!
OK, I'm back, and we're into the less exciting stuff now.
She still doesn't seem to be making any new memories, but her old memories are pretty rock solid! She wrote down the names of some of my family members from out of state, and some other folks, and asked all about them. That was good to see. She had no idea where Scruffles was, though, and needed to be reminded that he's safe at home with us, getting his food and medicine. The nurses assure us that this is normal, and will slowly get better.
Right now, the big worry is that she's not breathing very well. When she had the aneurysm, she vomited and and inhaled some of the contents of her stomach. This is very common, and it's called aspiration pneumonia. They've treated her from the beginning with antibiotics, but it can take a while for the lungs to clear all that stuff out, and in the meantime it just gets more and more irritated in there, so it can make itself worse.
Until they can get her lungs a little more cleared out, and get her breathing a little better (on less oxygen), they can't put the Passy-Muir Valve in her trach that would allow her to speak as well as use it to breathe. They're hoping that as soon as tomorrow, they can start transitioning her, but it will depend on how well she's doing.
If you're the praying type, this would be a good thing to pray for. She is incredibly frustrated with the communications options available to her, and being able to speak would alleviate so much stress!
There's not a lot of space in her room for flowers, and the ICU is very touchy about them, so we're asking people to wait until she's either in a different part of the hospital or back home to send any. She's loving the cards that are coming in, though, and she likes to look through them and see who's written to her. Since she can't really remember who all has made contact with her since she's been in the joint, cards are a good way for her to be reminded as many times as it takes that you've thought of her :-)
If you'd like to send a card and you have her home address, that's perfect! Brian and Alicia are staying at her house and are checking her mail and will get it to her as soon as they are in to see her. If you don't have her address, you can email me at hipmama1970@gmail.com and I'll send you an address to use.
Thanks for keeping Linda in your thoughts and prayers!
Also, they took the staples out of the incision on the side of her head. She looks much more Grandmotherish now, and decidedly less Frankensteinish without them. I'm not sure she ever got a chance to see them, but knowing Linda she wouldn't have liked them and would be glad to have them gone gone gone.
And, one of the neurosurgeons stopped by to talk to her for a bit this afternoon and said that she's doing great. He said that, since she's made it 2/3s of the way through the 21 days with no vasospasms, that her odds of having any now are much lower. Not that she's over the risk, by any means, but that's the best news we've had in that area, so I'm just going to take a minute to do a little happy dance over here...
Funky, funky, cha cha cha! Wheeeeeeee!!!!!!
OK, I'm back, and we're into the less exciting stuff now.
She still doesn't seem to be making any new memories, but her old memories are pretty rock solid! She wrote down the names of some of my family members from out of state, and some other folks, and asked all about them. That was good to see. She had no idea where Scruffles was, though, and needed to be reminded that he's safe at home with us, getting his food and medicine. The nurses assure us that this is normal, and will slowly get better.
Right now, the big worry is that she's not breathing very well. When she had the aneurysm, she vomited and and inhaled some of the contents of her stomach. This is very common, and it's called aspiration pneumonia. They've treated her from the beginning with antibiotics, but it can take a while for the lungs to clear all that stuff out, and in the meantime it just gets more and more irritated in there, so it can make itself worse.
Until they can get her lungs a little more cleared out, and get her breathing a little better (on less oxygen), they can't put the Passy-Muir Valve in her trach that would allow her to speak as well as use it to breathe. They're hoping that as soon as tomorrow, they can start transitioning her, but it will depend on how well she's doing.
If you're the praying type, this would be a good thing to pray for. She is incredibly frustrated with the communications options available to her, and being able to speak would alleviate so much stress!
There's not a lot of space in her room for flowers, and the ICU is very touchy about them, so we're asking people to wait until she's either in a different part of the hospital or back home to send any. She's loving the cards that are coming in, though, and she likes to look through them and see who's written to her. Since she can't really remember who all has made contact with her since she's been in the joint, cards are a good way for her to be reminded as many times as it takes that you've thought of her :-)
If you'd like to send a card and you have her home address, that's perfect! Brian and Alicia are staying at her house and are checking her mail and will get it to her as soon as they are in to see her. If you don't have her address, you can email me at hipmama1970@gmail.com and I'll send you an address to use.
Thanks for keeping Linda in your thoughts and prayers!
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Catch up
On the afternoon of September 15th, Linda collapsed at work and was rushed to the hospital. After testing, she was found to have a burst aneurysm in her brain, and she was rushed into surgery to place a ventriculostomy, a tube to relieve the pressure in her brain, and monitor her intracranial pressure.
They also placed a central line, for long term IV access, an arterial line to monitor her blood pressure, and a tracheostomy to keep her airway open.
That first day, we were told she would not likely wake up for some time, and that, because she'd been so difficult to intubate, and had been in such bad shape when she reached the hospital, that most likely she'd pass away, or suffer severe disability because of this event. If she did wake up, it wouldn't be for weeks, or possibly months, and they said she may never regain any sort of meaningful consciousness.
Also, that first night, they noted that she hadn't moved her left side at all, and it was suspected that she had some permanent paralysis on that side.
But, by the next day, she was moving all parts of her body with some amount of purpose, and she could nod and shake her head in answer to simple questions.
The next morning, the 17th, she was far more awake, and writing notes to the family and the doctors and nurses concerning her wishes. The doctors and nurses were shocked and amazed, and we were over the moon!
That same day, she was taken into surgery to repair the burst aneurysm, and another aneurysm they'd found during an angio-CAT scan. We were told that the surgery would probably set her back a bit, since it was another insult to her brain. It added more risk to her recovery, but without it the rupture would eventually repeat and she would be in far worse shape.
The surgery was called "clipping", and would close off the aneurysms so they wouldn't be a danger any more. Dr. Mason performed it while using a tiny microscope, and it went as well as anyone could have hoped.
And, within an hour of the completion of the surgery, Linda was again awake and aware. We always knew she was strong and resourceful, but I don't think anyone knew how deep these qualities went!
Brian and Davin are Linda's sons and Alicia and I are the daughters-in-law. We plan to keep this blog running to update all of the people who are following Linda's story.
Please keep Linda in your prayers while she's on her Mindful Journey.
They also placed a central line, for long term IV access, an arterial line to monitor her blood pressure, and a tracheostomy to keep her airway open.
That first day, we were told she would not likely wake up for some time, and that, because she'd been so difficult to intubate, and had been in such bad shape when she reached the hospital, that most likely she'd pass away, or suffer severe disability because of this event. If she did wake up, it wouldn't be for weeks, or possibly months, and they said she may never regain any sort of meaningful consciousness.
Also, that first night, they noted that she hadn't moved her left side at all, and it was suspected that she had some permanent paralysis on that side.
But, by the next day, she was moving all parts of her body with some amount of purpose, and she could nod and shake her head in answer to simple questions.
The next morning, the 17th, she was far more awake, and writing notes to the family and the doctors and nurses concerning her wishes. The doctors and nurses were shocked and amazed, and we were over the moon!
That same day, she was taken into surgery to repair the burst aneurysm, and another aneurysm they'd found during an angio-CAT scan. We were told that the surgery would probably set her back a bit, since it was another insult to her brain. It added more risk to her recovery, but without it the rupture would eventually repeat and she would be in far worse shape.
The surgery was called "clipping", and would close off the aneurysms so they wouldn't be a danger any more. Dr. Mason performed it while using a tiny microscope, and it went as well as anyone could have hoped.
And, within an hour of the completion of the surgery, Linda was again awake and aware. We always knew she was strong and resourceful, but I don't think anyone knew how deep these qualities went!
Brian and Davin are Linda's sons and Alicia and I are the daughters-in-law. We plan to keep this blog running to update all of the people who are following Linda's story.
Please keep Linda in your prayers while she's on her Mindful Journey.
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