Matt was able to stay with Abby today while I went home to visit my dad. It's really hard for me to be away when he is sick, and I had a lot of concerns. I was able to get a lot of the questions I had regarding his care answered. I took a lot of notes during our discussions with the doctor and respiratory therapist, then texted those notes to my mom and sister so that we all had the same information! I pressed the doctor for a plan (I like plans instead of the "wait and see" method of healthcare!) and was satisfied with what he laid out.
The good news is that Nurse Julie successfully got his oxygen turned down and a portable rank for him so that he could get up and walk!
I'm pretty sure the staff has me on their list. I might be blocked by security the next time I try to visit. (No, seriously, I was very sweet and had no reason to even raise my voice!). But this is my DAD! I have got to make sure he is okay, and I'm the one with enough medical knowledge to check up on the doctors and ask the right questions!
My hope is that if he continues to do well over the weekend, he can possibly go home Tuesday or Wednesday. It's been a rough week!
Abs is doing well at MW and is now on FULL FEEDS! That means that she is finally receiving all of her calories per day by gtube instead of relying on the TPN. If she tolerates these feeds over the weekend, the TPN should be stopped on Monday! (Insert happy dance here!). Then we can finally work on compressing feeds and deciding how much she can take orally.
I would be lying if I said I'm thrilled about her being gtube dependent again. This was supposed to just be a safety net!!!! That darn pancreatitis threw us for a big loop and has caused so many issues. While we are disheartened that she will come home completely gtube fed (she can eat orally, but isn't really doing enough to account for any calories), it's what is best right now. It's just a significantly bigger step back than we had planned when we agreed to put the tube back in.
I really hesitated to even begin calling myself a "tubie mom" again because it was only going to be used when absolutely needed. Otherwise, it would just be a fun belly accessory. But now....yep, I'm officially a tubie mom again! Time to be loud and proud!
Comments
Send your Dad some virtual "Get Better Soon" wishes from me, will you? ;)
"Abs is doing well at MW and is now on FULL FEEDS! That means that she is finally receiving all of her calories per day by g-tube instead of relying on the TPN. If she tolerates these feeds over the weekend, the TPN should be stopped on Monday! (Insert happy dance here!)." No more TPN?! Thanks be to God!! ;-D
I am so very sorry that Abby will be returning home completely g-tube dependent {Just like she used to be} I can only imagine how disheartening that cosmic leap backwards must feel.... :-(
Love you later, Raelyn