Sorry to be late for my blog followers. It has been another very busy day for Lee. The good news is that his new lung is doing GREAT! The bad news is that his heart isn't adjusting very fast from the double coronary by-pass procedure. A lot of stimulation triggers Atrial Fibrillation and then they have to do a cardioversion. This is done by using a defibrillator to shock him or by using I.V. medication.
After I left him yesterday evening, he was sitting up in a chair beside the bed. I learned this morning that when they stood him up to put him back in bed he lost consciousness and then went into atrial fib. They had to use med to reverse him and that worked. He remained stable during the night.
Today he looks a lot better and gradually more and more tubes, connections, etc are being removed or eliminated. He said he felt like the room was 10 degrees cooler with most of the electronics removed above the head of his bed. While they were doing some more procedures today he went into atrial fib again and had to be reversed by shocking him. They do give him medication (same as used for most colonoscopies) and he does not feel it nor does he remember it. He was able to again be placed in the sitting position in this special bed that he is in and they were only going to get him out of bed when his blood pressure stayed higher than it was at that time.
I share this detailed information with you so you will understand how difficult this is for Lee and how he continues to be in a critical condition. We have been reassured that everything is under control and that he will progress only in the time frame that his body will allow. Meanwhile, he must stay in an area that monitors him very carefully. Whenever he can walk, he will be moved into a step-down area that is also an intensive care area and in that area the concentration will be on getting him up and walking with immediate access to monitoring when needed. It will be from that area that he will be discharged to return here to the condo and back into the rehabilitation program at the Center for Living.
During his recuperation, Lee will have to attend a minimum of 23 rehab sessions, during which time he will have weekly visits to the clinic for blood tests and to the hospital for bronchoscopies.These are done for determining rejection of the lung at the earliest stage so the medication may be adjusted accordingly. These will gradually decrease as he increases in recovery. We anticipate being in Durham at least through August. As you can see, It is still a long road home.......................more later.......................................Brenda
Brenda, I think I'll say what everone is thinking. You are a remarkable woman, and I think Lee is very lucky to have you by his side. I know this has to be tough on him, but I'm equally sure he is doing so well because of you being there for him. If there was a reqard for being the best wife in the world, I'm sure you would win. Keep your spirits up and continue to know that you have a support group just like Lee has in the hospital. If you need Julia or I, please let us know. We want to be there for you as much as we are for Lee.
ReplyDeleteThe Curry Clubhouse loves you!