Mom
Was just notified that mom's surgery is complete. No bypass was needed, just a valve repair. This was frightening to us because she was precariously unhealthy going in to surgery: failing kidneys, inability to eat, saturated lungs, and diabetes. But she is out of the OR, as of a few moments ago.
Maybe now my headache will go away and I'll be able to sleep!
Maybe now my headache will go away and I'll be able to sleep!
Replies
I am SO glad to be surrounded by nurses on DS! I need this stuff explained to me.
Good news tonight. Mom is doing better, and all her meds are being cut. Only 2 morphine doses today. Oxygen is down to 60%. No fluid retention and kidneys are working well (attributed to medication). No infection--all cultures are negative. And she smiled an hour ago!
I have never, ever heard my grumpy, stoic, all-business father sound as happy as he did a few minutes ago.
Sentimental addendum: to clear my head, I took my son, River, with me to the comic book store. It\'s grey and raining here. River broke the silence by saying, \"You know, it\'s sad that Bill Miller never got to do things like this with his daddy.\" He sat and thought a while longer and said, \"I think Bill Miller\'s daddy didn\'t realize how special his son is. And that was a real mistake to make.\"
The subtext about our close father-son relationship was incredible. I do feel sorry for people who can\'t see someone special right in front of them, and let those opportunities slip away.
That is a sweet story and I have no doubt you are an amazing dad. Your mom is in my prayers.
Wow... How incredibly proud you must be to know you\'ve raised a son who can realize those relationships. That kind of thing is hard to teach... You\'re raising a little man :)
Oh! And since your mom is infection free, that is amazing!! Also that she has no edema and is able to regulate her fluids say her cardiovascular system is working well, which is HUGE!!! I hope she continues her upward trend :)!!!!!
How\'s Mom???
From sister:
Finally talked with the pulmonologist. He says the breathing tube
stays in for another 48-72 hours. He will work on weaning her through
lowering the pressure, etc, but doesn\'t want to move too fast. She
still has some meds for her heart and fluids which are all
inter-related and all moving on a slow, steady pace. He agrees that he
wants all her tubes out but says it does no good to move too quickly
and then hit a wall.
He was very positive. He felt she has made good progress over the
weekend and was pleased about that. He thinks the surgery was
successful in its goal. He will talk to us every day this week, he
says. He also thinks the other specialists are calm about the
progress.
Mom is less sedated now and more agitated. It is very, very hard to
see her like that. A close friend came today and it had her in tears
which surprised me. I was proud of myself for holding my own
and being able to keep my voice going through it. She is trying to
pull out her tubes and it is hard to tell how much hope she has. She
is aware of days passing. I hung up pictures of the grandkids and some
art of theirs and she knows it is there for her to see.
Please pray for her emotional and heart strength, and please send
light news that I can share with her when I jabber in her ear. I have
a hard time thinking of what to say.
I wanted to tell you that we had a good visit tonight. She was less
sedated and yet more calm. They still have her wrists strapped down
though so she won\'t pull out her tubes, which she hates of course. I
talked to her for a long time and she was very responsive. She wanted
me to keep talking, wanted me to keep petting her hair, and to hold
her hand. I think she understood a lot of what I told her. Some things
she\'s remembering now and some things I tell her again because she
already forgot.
She\'s doing well with less O2 support and her kidneys are still doing well.
Dad and I had a good talk this afternoon. He\'s processing this pretty
well considering the situation I think. I held back the tears for all
four visits today and I\'m glad that I\'m becoming stronger as she\'s
becoming more alert.
Hey Matt- someone I look up to told me it\'s ok to hurt but I understand the desire to stay strong. I really have been thinking about your mom every day hoping she\'s all right. Sending you a warm, soothing hug.
What kinds of stories does she like?
It is very hard to see them in an agitated state... I know when I\'m working as a nurse, my side that empathizes really just wants to push more meds to sedate them, but of course, it\'s not in their best interest in a lot of cases. The restraints are hard to see also, because they seem so unnecessary when you\'re not dealing with a \"combative\" person, but that is what the soft restraints are really for, so people don\'t pull lines.
It is awesome to hear that her kidneys are still doing well!!!! If all her organ functions are not only working, but doing very well that is a HUGE, HUGE things :)
Many prayers still going her way. It sounds like the next two days could be exciting for her in her progress :)
I think anyone would be agitated to be awake, alert, and feel \"ok\" but to still have a giant tube stuck down their throat. I know I would. Especially not being able to communicate her wants and needs, the frustration and agitation would only become greater. I\'m so glad that your sister and your Father are there as much as possible and giving her the things she needs: physical touch, conversation, pictures, and love. It should help her. I\'m so excited to hear that she is doing better and that her organs continue to stay strong. I\'m crossing my fingers and keeping everyone in my thoughts that everything stays on this positive track.
Mom failed CPAP test, and has to keep breathing tube in. Fluid has returned to lungs, and heart rate is back up to over 100 (is that due to Epinephrine? Or heart problems?). Lasix for another night. Bad day--but no infection and kidneys seem good. Today is one week in ICU.
Oh wow. I\'m thinking of you all. Not an easy time, I hope you sister and dad are hanging in there too
I am sorry to read this news. I will keep praying for your mom, you, and all of your family.
The increased HR can be due to either. Epi is usually given to keep the vessels vasoconstricted so there\'s a good blood pressure to the brain and they don\'t drop too low; good perfusion. It also increases heart contractility so more blood is actually pumping out of the heart. It can also just be a fast heart rate because of stress or many other factors like abnormal EKG\'s (supraventicular tachycardia is pretty common). They can give Adenosine to see why the heart is beating so fast. There\'s no infection, which is GREAT, so that could be ruled out. Adenosine will tell you if it\'s the heart\'s electrical impulses that is making it beat so fast or if it\'s another issue. If she has a-fib or a-flutter (I think you mentioned she did) Adenosine may just temporarily reduce her HR, it may go back up. It may also be the thing that blocks the cascade of tachycardia.
The fluid on the lungs is not surprising, I\'m sure she\'s getting chest xrays every day so they can keep an eye on it. The lasix is good, and her kidneys are tolerating all her meds, which is awesome. ICU is a roller coaster of good and bad days. Being sedentary and in one position for so long is really hard on a persons body. Hugs to you guys, and still sending prayers...
Praying for your mother...and also for you, Matt. This is such a difficult time for your family.