Randy is still tired and wants to sleep all the time but is unable to because the nurses keep coming in to check on him and Barbara helps keep him awake. Matt, on the other hand, believes in resting and sleeping. Randy ate solid food tonight for dinner. Barbara was feeding him fish and various side dishes the nurse brought in. He was able to eat slowly, as we all should. Grandma Young and Jackie Young visited Randy tonight.
PostScript from Barbara:
Other visitors today included members of the band (Dan, Russ, and Roger), Brent Evans, Glenda Evans, Toni Anderson (yes, he knew it was you), Liz Edmund, Gary Southern, Bill McMahon, and Hilary Coon (thanks for the plant and card from the research group!). Thanks also for the phone calls.
Randy is doing really well, he knows that it is 2007, and if things continue to go this well he will be home as soon as Thursday! It seems so soon, but the thought of him coming home is exciting. He will get some more of his tubes out tomorrow. The two doctors that operated on Randy also came in, and were both very nice. They emphasized that he is still making baby steps (if these are baby steps, then what could they possibly consider a big step??), and that he still has high blood pressure. He has to wear a medic-alert bracelet and carry a card in his wallet that says he has had an implant.
I'm feeling good. Good night to all!
Monday, December 3, 2007
New Digs!
He's out of the ICU and into the Intermediate Care Unit (IMCU). It's on the 5th floor of the University hospital, and the chairs here are very comfy. The room is warmer, and he has a flat-screen TV and a DVD player for our lounging enjoyment.
The occupational therapist, Jenny, just came in to ask about what he does and the layout of the house. It sounds like she's the one who will be helping him get ready to go home. We certainly don't know a time line for that yet, but it's a delightful thought.
Travis, Bill and Molly McMahon, Tracy Green, and Claudia Dines (thanks for the food coupons!) have all stopped by this afternoon, along with some of the regular family.
Now for a running commentary on the physical therapist meeting:
He's sleeping at the moment, but the therapists are here to interrupt him. He's a bit dizzy, but that could be from the pain meds.
He can touch his shoulders, no numbness in fingers or toes. Arm strength is good. He can get his socks off on his own... mostly... his balance is still a bit off, and all the tubes and cuffs are making it tricky.
Alarms going off... yeah, tubes get kinked when he moves around. Standing up now! Leaning forward a bit much, so he's leaning back a bit more to balance. Something hurts on his left foot. A few wobbly steps, using the therapists' arms as a walker. Sitting back down. Laying back in bed, and straightening tubes out.
So there are some things to work on. Balance, in particular, but pain meds are likely to be a factor with that.
Looks like there's some work to be done, but he's doing amazingly well. G - O - - D - A - D, Goooooo.... Daaaaad!
And thanks, Dr. Hunziker, and the consult team for checking on us.
The occupational therapist, Jenny, just came in to ask about what he does and the layout of the house. It sounds like she's the one who will be helping him get ready to go home. We certainly don't know a time line for that yet, but it's a delightful thought.
Travis, Bill and Molly McMahon, Tracy Green, and Claudia Dines (thanks for the food coupons!) have all stopped by this afternoon, along with some of the regular family.
Now for a running commentary on the physical therapist meeting:
He's sleeping at the moment, but the therapists are here to interrupt him. He's a bit dizzy, but that could be from the pain meds.
He can touch his shoulders, no numbness in fingers or toes. Arm strength is good. He can get his socks off on his own... mostly... his balance is still a bit off, and all the tubes and cuffs are making it tricky.
Alarms going off... yeah, tubes get kinked when he moves around. Standing up now! Leaning forward a bit much, so he's leaning back a bit more to balance. Something hurts on his left foot. A few wobbly steps, using the therapists' arms as a walker. Sitting back down. Laying back in bed, and straightening tubes out.
So there are some things to work on. Balance, in particular, but pain meds are likely to be a factor with that.
Looks like there's some work to be done, but he's doing amazingly well. G - O - - D - A - D, Goooooo.... Daaaaad!
And thanks, Dr. Hunziker, and the consult team for checking on us.
He's back!
Today is remarkably different in how clear Randy is speaking and how perfectly he is remembering everything. He is really himself today, complete with dry humor, smiles, and stories. He is able to take small bites and little drinks, he can focus clearly on all of his surroundings (well enough to read the calendar and clock on the wall), and he is sitting up very well.
Since the conversations can now take up an entire 20-minute visit, we cannot record every detail, but here are a few highlights:
Since the conversations can now take up an entire 20-minute visit, we cannot record every detail, but here are a few highlights:
- Randy said "I'm really tired--they keep waking me up and I haven't had a sense of day or night. But based on the light outside I'd say it's about noon." April replied, "You're good! It's 12:30." Randy smiled and said, "Well, I cheated--I can see the clock on the wall!"
- April commented that we wanted to hear all of his stories from when he was unconscious, and Randy said, "I kept waiting for Kelly's stories, and she didn't have any. I think I should have some stories from all of this, but I was gone. G-O-N-E. I was really O-U-T."
- We were trying to assess how far his memory extended. With a little prompting he remembered Thanksgiving, and then he remembered he had been getting ready for Tom Halliday's Christmas party. "That was a big party--I should have gone."
- We asked if he knew Steve was his hero, and he said "I heard about that--he saved my life. I'm going to have to pay him more." (Steve, now you have it in writing!)
- "Do you feel like a performing seal now, with all these people asking you to wake up and say hi?" "Yep." "Well, we brought some fish for you. Open wide." "Fish doesn't sound good."
- He does not like the chocolate pudding. He's going to try the vanilla next time.
- He remembers Thanksgiving (the last holiday), and going out with Andrea and Tyler to dinner on the Saturday before it happened.
- He wants to sleep more-- people keep waking him up every two hours, and he wishes they'd stop and let him sleep for seven hours at a time. Sorry dad... welcome to the ICU!
- He gets dizzy easily, and is very annoyed with it. He doesn't remember the last few days of having trouble breathing and, oh, living, so we told him some dizziness is acceptable.
- They wanted him to feed himself, and he had a few coordination problems. "I never thought I'd have trouble feeding myself!" (Kelly Hicken, he's eating the same way you did at the start of your recovery)
- They are moving him to the 5th floor intermediate care facility within the hour!
Gravity
As more people with medical backgrounds have come to visit with us, we see more and more what a miracle has been going on.
First, the surgeon, Dr. Arun Singhal, who worked on the heart. Early on we'd given him the moniker, "Dr. Death" because the only news he gave us seemed to be grim. Since then we've learned more about him, and he's apparently a well-known, well-respected surgeon. A doctor friend of my aunt Carol told her that Randy couldn't have been in better hands. Profuse apologies to him for any bad-mouthing that gets back to him. He was simply being honest about the situation we were facing. It was about as bad a situation as it gets.
The anesthesiologist was talking with mom as she was visiting dad, and he said that he just had to stop and see Randy because he thought after seeing the X-rays, for sure he wasn't going to survive. One of the nurses said that they cheered when he left the operating room alive... he was not expected to make it that far.
Kevin asked a nurse the other day how many aortic dissection patients they get. "You mean that survive this long??! Not many."
Every day has been drastic, miraculous improvements. A social worker is going to be getting together with mom to help prepare for the next steps, and we'll be getting more information from there on what to expect. I'm guessing people haven't been helping us plan the future, because statistically, there was none. We are humbled and grateful to be witnesses to this miracle.
First, the surgeon, Dr. Arun Singhal, who worked on the heart. Early on we'd given him the moniker, "Dr. Death" because the only news he gave us seemed to be grim. Since then we've learned more about him, and he's apparently a well-known, well-respected surgeon. A doctor friend of my aunt Carol told her that Randy couldn't have been in better hands. Profuse apologies to him for any bad-mouthing that gets back to him. He was simply being honest about the situation we were facing. It was about as bad a situation as it gets.
The anesthesiologist was talking with mom as she was visiting dad, and he said that he just had to stop and see Randy because he thought after seeing the X-rays, for sure he wasn't going to survive. One of the nurses said that they cheered when he left the operating room alive... he was not expected to make it that far.
Kevin asked a nurse the other day how many aortic dissection patients they get. "You mean that survive this long??! Not many."
Every day has been drastic, miraculous improvements. A social worker is going to be getting together with mom to help prepare for the next steps, and we'll be getting more information from there on what to expect. I'm guessing people haven't been helping us plan the future, because statistically, there was none. We are humbled and grateful to be witnesses to this miracle.
Morning update
I just got back from seeing my dad in his room this morning. Imagine my surprise to see him sitting up in a chair talking with my mom! He was awake, alert, with eyes wide open, and holding a meaningful conversation with her. His blood pressure is still a bit high, but they're working on that.
He doesn't remember anything about people who've come in to visit him. That doesn't surprise me, as surgery like that can take a few days to really come out of. He now knows it's 2007. His children are Matt, Kevin and April, and Tyler. When you ask who his daughter is, he replies Janell, though, so he does know her-- he's just having a little trouble putting her in the sequence.
He listened to mom's explanation of what happened, and got a bit teary-eyed when he told her he's sorry to put us all through this. We, of course, are simply delighted to have him still alive.
He's very touched by all the kindness that's been shown to us through this ordeal, and is excited to read the blog to catch up on what he's missed. Since he'll be reading... "Hi, Dad!"
The nurses came back in to move him back into bed, and after that he was exhausted. We left him to get some sleep, and we'll go in later to quiz him again on dates, places and children. And he thought the SATs were hard!
He doesn't remember anything about people who've come in to visit him. That doesn't surprise me, as surgery like that can take a few days to really come out of. He now knows it's 2007. His children are Matt, Kevin and April, and Tyler. When you ask who his daughter is, he replies Janell, though, so he does know her-- he's just having a little trouble putting her in the sequence.
He listened to mom's explanation of what happened, and got a bit teary-eyed when he told her he's sorry to put us all through this. We, of course, are simply delighted to have him still alive.
He's very touched by all the kindness that's been shown to us through this ordeal, and is excited to read the blog to catch up on what he's missed. Since he'll be reading... "Hi, Dad!"
The nurses came back in to move him back into bed, and after that he was exhausted. We left him to get some sleep, and we'll go in later to quiz him again on dates, places and children. And he thought the SATs were hard!
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