Yesterday was a bit of a rough day for David, as he & we had all anticipated it might be. He had not slept much at all on Thursday night (the ICU is not a restful environment!), so he was at a disadvantage from the start. Yesterday morning he battled the evil hiccups. Because his surgery was up high in his abdomen, his diaphragm was manipulated & it's reaction to this manipulation was to produce hiccups. With each hiccup, his abdominal musculature would spasm -- OUCH!! Luckily, the hiccups were much less frequent in the afternoon & evening. He also had a PT treatment to get him sitting on the edge of the bed & then standing at bedside. While he was so enthusiastic about getting moving again, each transition in position (from lying down to sitting & from sitting to standing, then the reverse) was very painful. We all know how driven David is, so he was disappointed in his performance. But in my best cheerleader mode, I reminded him of everything his body had been through the previous day, & that standing at his bedside after all of that was the equivalent of a mountain climber summiting Everest!
On yesterday's plus side, he lost several tubes! They took out his Foley catheter, arterial line, central line, & CO2 monitor. So, all he is left with now are two peripheral IV lines, two draining tubes from his abdomen, & the gastric feeding tube. He is allowed to have ice chips & sips of water by mouth, but these small amounts of intake tend to make him nauseous. Also on the plus side is the incredible support we have! Nelson, Sharree, & Carl have been with us every minute of each day, which has given us so much strength for this step of the journey. Friends have been bringing us in delicious meals -- my kitchen & refrigerator look like those of a fine restaurant! We will be forever grateful!!
Hopefully he was able to get some sleep last night & today will be a better day, where he can feel that he is making progress. I'll keep reminding him to just take one hour at a time, do the best he can, not get discouraged, & soon he will be home! He does have his cell phone with him, so if you would care to send him some well wishes, feel free to text or email him!
Pushing forward with your support! Big hug, Janet
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