Earth Mother 2 Angels
04-11-2009, 12:49 AM
{{{{{{{{{{{{ THANK YOU!!! YOUR PRAYERS ARE WORKING!!!! }}}}}}}}}}}}
What can I tell you? Bad day yesterday, terrific day today!
Jim reported that Jon did well during the night, and he had a wonderful, caring nurse, who was grateful for Jim's help with turning and bathing Jon. We were heard! The CCU Manager knows that I'm not afraid to go to the hospital's Patient Representative with complaints, because I have done so in previous years with both Michael's and Jonathan's hospitalizations. But, if I can resolve an issue satisfactorily on the "local" level, I prefer to do that.
Jon was in excellent form today! The antibiotics seem to be agreeing with him thus far, and the Levophed worked well to maintain his BP, to the point that we were able to wean him all day and take him off of it this evening! YAY!!! YAY!!!
Jon was awake, alert, aware for much of the day. He smiled at his nurses and me, just because. My spirit soared with his smile, and his obvious rebounding. All vitals were stunning today. With no fever, good BP, and very good urinary output, Jon's sepsis is resolving it appears. YAY!!! YAY!!!
Jon has a urinary tract infection, which is no surprise, and that seems to be the source of the gram negative infection causing sepsis. The x-ray of his gut revealed a mild ileus, which just means GAS! He will get some milk of magnesia tonight to get his bowels moving, and I'm sure that the gas will belch out into his pouch something fierce too. Gtubes are notorious for the gas problem, especially the way the nurses ignore air in the syringes, when they bolus feed or give meds. Jon's belly was much softer today, another great sign! He is tolerating the formula, even though it has some soy in it. His thyroid is unchanged, which is incredible to me.
His chest x-ray revealed that he still has plueral diffiusion (fluid in lung), most likely from the bolus he received yesterday to bring up his BP. It's an ongoing issue, and I have no idea when it will be resolved. No evidence of aspirate, so that means that he didn't aspirate during his Depakote rages. Thank You God.
He also seems to be tolerating his seizure meds at their current doses. I hope he continues to do so, as we all know that this can go tilt at any time. So far, so good. Neuro ordered blood levels for tomorrow.
He is still getting 40% O2 through his trache (a mask over his trache), and his respirations and sats are stunning. Stunning. RT suctioned some goober today, but not much, and it's a little whiter and thinner than yesterday. All good. Jon coughed on his own, and that is really good. I changed his trache and did all of his trache care on my own today, without supervision. I had a moment with the canula change, where I was a tad bit nervous, then I just said a little prayer and told Jon, "Fasten your seat belt, Jon boy. Mama's flyin' solo!" Out with the old, in with the new in seconds! Voila! Okay. Cross that off the list. Now I have to learn suctioning, and Jon's RT, who treated Michael, as well as Jon, showed me the procedure, as he suctioned Jon today. I've been watching of course, but I need to hear them explain it over and over, before I do it. I'm sure that I can do it, as I suctioned Michael down his throat for months in 1985, after his varicella pneumonia. It's just another thing that I want to do perfectly.
Trache and Gtube sites are perfect! YAY!!! YAY!!! No signs of infection or irritation!!! YAY!!! YAY!!!
When I returned from lunch, and our two wonderful nurses from yesterday who served Jon today, were giving me an update on Jon's tests, Coordinator Jan stopped by to tell us that Jon was being moved back to the Ritz! The hospital census is down (that's a good thing), so our unit in the old ICU was being closed, and Jon and the other remaining 2 patients, were being moved to the Ritz! YAY!!! YAY!!!
While his nurses got all of their transfer work done, I gave Jon his Gtube meds, changed his trache and packed up Jon's room. I helped slide him from his bed to the new bed, and carry stuff to his new room, where I unloaded and organized it for the new nurses. I know the routine now! CCU Ritz to step down, back to CCU Ritz, back to step down, back to CCU Old ICU, back to CCU Ritz. He will likely return from whence he came today, the step down in the Old ICU, sometime next week after his surgery, if he has it.
Since it was about 6:45 p.m. when we arrived to the Ritz room, the day and night nurse were there to speak to Jon's nurses. I just loved these two women, who took care of Jon yesterday and today. It was as though Jon had 3 Moms taking care of him. They did a great job of getting him out of sepsis. Awesome nurses, wonderful, pleasant, cheerful, friendly, sweet ladies. I felt as though I'd known them forever, and they were my new best friends!
So the trainee nurse, who lost her 17 month old daughter, is huge Lakers fan, and she gave report that the Lakers game is on Channel 9 and starts at 7:00. First thing you do, turn on the TV for Jon! I just laughed. How darling! Meanwhile the other nurse was going on about me, and all of the things that I do with Jon's care, and that Jim comes in at night, and that he is involved in Jon's care, "and these two great, incredible, loving parents need to be handled with TLC." Wasn't that sweet? Awww ...
The Ritz nurses are young and very cute, especially the blonde! Oh Boy! Jon's eyes lit up! His eyes were asking, "Where have you been these past 28 days?" I'm not kidding! I asked him if he might spare a smile for his new nurses, and he could. Oh yeah! GRINNING BIG TIME and flashing those blue eyes ~ BABE MAGNET is BACK! Oh man, did he flirt with these girls! Yeah, he's feeling better now!
The Lakers game was turned on first! Nice big flat screen TV on the wall! And the remote goes up and down on channels (the OLD ICU remote only allows you to go up, not back or down). Great big room! A place to put his radio and stuff from home. Thank You God for a low hospital census!
And, I saw several of the nurses who had cared for Jon in the Ritz as we came in and when I left. "We're baaaacccckkk! You can't get rid of us! We live here now!" I have got to bake some brownies for these people!
As I was filling the new nurses in on Jon, and our family showing them the photos, and then describing what I've been doing with regard to Jon's care, the cute blonde asked, "Well, what do we do then?"
I said, "Your nails. I've got it covered!"
If I could hang IV's and use a PICC line, I guess they could just do their nails. Or they could just serve as consultants to me with medical questions. I figure that eventually, if Jon's in there long enough, I will learn how to do the PICC line at least, if he comes home with one. Or not. That's where home health nurses enter the picture.
Jon did speak once today, and I read his lips ~ HAMBURGER. Awww ... broke my heart. Of course he means veggie burger! He wants to eat and be at home. God bless him.
We watched Indiana Jones (the last one), but he became restless and drowsy, and resisted sleep. He kept sliding down in the bed and leaning to the right, and I had to reposition him as his tube feeding was going. I must have pulled him up and over 20 times today. And lifted and turned him with his nurse 3 times. I think I will use our Homedic massager tonight. Yes, that sounds really good to me. If you don't have one, do yourself a favor and buy one. They are incredible!
The Infectious Disease doc dropped by this afternoon to discuss the test results and the plan to go forward with the current regimen, because "it's working." I'm always trying to get this doc to lighten up a little, but he is a tough nut to crack. So today, I asked him, "Did you look at his penis? I know that sounds odd ... but did you?" He gave a half smile and said that he had, and I said, "I know about 3rd spacing and dependent edema, but it looks more peculiar to me than in his previous hospitalizations." He assured me that it wasn't anything alarming, and I guess that I have to accept that.
What amazes me most about Jonathan is how he doesn't want to pull anything out. He isn't fussed about the trache or tube or even his ginormous undercarriage. He has accepted all of this hardware in/on him as part of the deal to getting better and out of there. Please join me in giving thanks that this is so. What a blessing that, when his hands are free, he only wants to stretch, rub his head or eyes or nose or hold something. I can't even imagine being this tolerant of all of this nonsense. He is just incredible, awesome, and beyond description.
How many ways can I say thank you to you for your enduring prayers and friendship and love for our sweet, brave boy, and for us? I just pray that you truly know how much your support of us means to us, and that we love you dearly, and that you are also in our prayers.
Many, many blessings upon you for staying with us on this very long journey. I had no idea when it started that we would be here now, still in CCU, still striving toward the day when Jon gets into his wheelchair, into our van, and comes home to his room.
I love you ~ We love you ~
Love & Light,
Rose
What can I tell you? Bad day yesterday, terrific day today!
Jim reported that Jon did well during the night, and he had a wonderful, caring nurse, who was grateful for Jim's help with turning and bathing Jon. We were heard! The CCU Manager knows that I'm not afraid to go to the hospital's Patient Representative with complaints, because I have done so in previous years with both Michael's and Jonathan's hospitalizations. But, if I can resolve an issue satisfactorily on the "local" level, I prefer to do that.
Jon was in excellent form today! The antibiotics seem to be agreeing with him thus far, and the Levophed worked well to maintain his BP, to the point that we were able to wean him all day and take him off of it this evening! YAY!!! YAY!!!
Jon was awake, alert, aware for much of the day. He smiled at his nurses and me, just because. My spirit soared with his smile, and his obvious rebounding. All vitals were stunning today. With no fever, good BP, and very good urinary output, Jon's sepsis is resolving it appears. YAY!!! YAY!!!
Jon has a urinary tract infection, which is no surprise, and that seems to be the source of the gram negative infection causing sepsis. The x-ray of his gut revealed a mild ileus, which just means GAS! He will get some milk of magnesia tonight to get his bowels moving, and I'm sure that the gas will belch out into his pouch something fierce too. Gtubes are notorious for the gas problem, especially the way the nurses ignore air in the syringes, when they bolus feed or give meds. Jon's belly was much softer today, another great sign! He is tolerating the formula, even though it has some soy in it. His thyroid is unchanged, which is incredible to me.
His chest x-ray revealed that he still has plueral diffiusion (fluid in lung), most likely from the bolus he received yesterday to bring up his BP. It's an ongoing issue, and I have no idea when it will be resolved. No evidence of aspirate, so that means that he didn't aspirate during his Depakote rages. Thank You God.
He also seems to be tolerating his seizure meds at their current doses. I hope he continues to do so, as we all know that this can go tilt at any time. So far, so good. Neuro ordered blood levels for tomorrow.
He is still getting 40% O2 through his trache (a mask over his trache), and his respirations and sats are stunning. Stunning. RT suctioned some goober today, but not much, and it's a little whiter and thinner than yesterday. All good. Jon coughed on his own, and that is really good. I changed his trache and did all of his trache care on my own today, without supervision. I had a moment with the canula change, where I was a tad bit nervous, then I just said a little prayer and told Jon, "Fasten your seat belt, Jon boy. Mama's flyin' solo!" Out with the old, in with the new in seconds! Voila! Okay. Cross that off the list. Now I have to learn suctioning, and Jon's RT, who treated Michael, as well as Jon, showed me the procedure, as he suctioned Jon today. I've been watching of course, but I need to hear them explain it over and over, before I do it. I'm sure that I can do it, as I suctioned Michael down his throat for months in 1985, after his varicella pneumonia. It's just another thing that I want to do perfectly.
Trache and Gtube sites are perfect! YAY!!! YAY!!! No signs of infection or irritation!!! YAY!!! YAY!!!
When I returned from lunch, and our two wonderful nurses from yesterday who served Jon today, were giving me an update on Jon's tests, Coordinator Jan stopped by to tell us that Jon was being moved back to the Ritz! The hospital census is down (that's a good thing), so our unit in the old ICU was being closed, and Jon and the other remaining 2 patients, were being moved to the Ritz! YAY!!! YAY!!!
While his nurses got all of their transfer work done, I gave Jon his Gtube meds, changed his trache and packed up Jon's room. I helped slide him from his bed to the new bed, and carry stuff to his new room, where I unloaded and organized it for the new nurses. I know the routine now! CCU Ritz to step down, back to CCU Ritz, back to step down, back to CCU Old ICU, back to CCU Ritz. He will likely return from whence he came today, the step down in the Old ICU, sometime next week after his surgery, if he has it.
Since it was about 6:45 p.m. when we arrived to the Ritz room, the day and night nurse were there to speak to Jon's nurses. I just loved these two women, who took care of Jon yesterday and today. It was as though Jon had 3 Moms taking care of him. They did a great job of getting him out of sepsis. Awesome nurses, wonderful, pleasant, cheerful, friendly, sweet ladies. I felt as though I'd known them forever, and they were my new best friends!
So the trainee nurse, who lost her 17 month old daughter, is huge Lakers fan, and she gave report that the Lakers game is on Channel 9 and starts at 7:00. First thing you do, turn on the TV for Jon! I just laughed. How darling! Meanwhile the other nurse was going on about me, and all of the things that I do with Jon's care, and that Jim comes in at night, and that he is involved in Jon's care, "and these two great, incredible, loving parents need to be handled with TLC." Wasn't that sweet? Awww ...
The Ritz nurses are young and very cute, especially the blonde! Oh Boy! Jon's eyes lit up! His eyes were asking, "Where have you been these past 28 days?" I'm not kidding! I asked him if he might spare a smile for his new nurses, and he could. Oh yeah! GRINNING BIG TIME and flashing those blue eyes ~ BABE MAGNET is BACK! Oh man, did he flirt with these girls! Yeah, he's feeling better now!
The Lakers game was turned on first! Nice big flat screen TV on the wall! And the remote goes up and down on channels (the OLD ICU remote only allows you to go up, not back or down). Great big room! A place to put his radio and stuff from home. Thank You God for a low hospital census!
And, I saw several of the nurses who had cared for Jon in the Ritz as we came in and when I left. "We're baaaacccckkk! You can't get rid of us! We live here now!" I have got to bake some brownies for these people!
As I was filling the new nurses in on Jon, and our family showing them the photos, and then describing what I've been doing with regard to Jon's care, the cute blonde asked, "Well, what do we do then?"
I said, "Your nails. I've got it covered!"
If I could hang IV's and use a PICC line, I guess they could just do their nails. Or they could just serve as consultants to me with medical questions. I figure that eventually, if Jon's in there long enough, I will learn how to do the PICC line at least, if he comes home with one. Or not. That's where home health nurses enter the picture.
Jon did speak once today, and I read his lips ~ HAMBURGER. Awww ... broke my heart. Of course he means veggie burger! He wants to eat and be at home. God bless him.
We watched Indiana Jones (the last one), but he became restless and drowsy, and resisted sleep. He kept sliding down in the bed and leaning to the right, and I had to reposition him as his tube feeding was going. I must have pulled him up and over 20 times today. And lifted and turned him with his nurse 3 times. I think I will use our Homedic massager tonight. Yes, that sounds really good to me. If you don't have one, do yourself a favor and buy one. They are incredible!
The Infectious Disease doc dropped by this afternoon to discuss the test results and the plan to go forward with the current regimen, because "it's working." I'm always trying to get this doc to lighten up a little, but he is a tough nut to crack. So today, I asked him, "Did you look at his penis? I know that sounds odd ... but did you?" He gave a half smile and said that he had, and I said, "I know about 3rd spacing and dependent edema, but it looks more peculiar to me than in his previous hospitalizations." He assured me that it wasn't anything alarming, and I guess that I have to accept that.
What amazes me most about Jonathan is how he doesn't want to pull anything out. He isn't fussed about the trache or tube or even his ginormous undercarriage. He has accepted all of this hardware in/on him as part of the deal to getting better and out of there. Please join me in giving thanks that this is so. What a blessing that, when his hands are free, he only wants to stretch, rub his head or eyes or nose or hold something. I can't even imagine being this tolerant of all of this nonsense. He is just incredible, awesome, and beyond description.
How many ways can I say thank you to you for your enduring prayers and friendship and love for our sweet, brave boy, and for us? I just pray that you truly know how much your support of us means to us, and that we love you dearly, and that you are also in our prayers.
Many, many blessings upon you for staying with us on this very long journey. I had no idea when it started that we would be here now, still in CCU, still striving toward the day when Jon gets into his wheelchair, into our van, and comes home to his room.
I love you ~ We love you ~
Love & Light,
Rose