Relieved
I’ve been to see Dad every day. Saturday and today were really wonderful, as when we arrived Saturday morning, he was off the IVs and without tubes except for a CVC (I’m guessing at this; stands for central venous catheter) in his jugular, which they were leaving in just in case. He’s puffy and uncomfortable, but his pain is being managed well and he’s moving about and sitting up in his easy-chair for long stretches of time. They have him walking "loops" around the PCU, which is the Progressive Care Unit. Sometime late on Friday night they moved him out of the CSICU and into PCU. He has a private room there, which is far quieter than ICU. They are giving him a blood thinning drug called Heparin. You can see his incision, looking rather like a red zipper in his chest. He is mentally alert and pretty cheerful, except when complaining about the food. They let my children in to see Papa, and that really seemed to cheer him up. He has pictures of the boys and their drawings taped to his walls. He’s getting quite a few visitors each day. All of this is VERY, VERY GOOD.
The one big question at this point is whether they will decide to install a pacemaker. I guess after they open your hood and monkey around with your engine, it can take a while for that engine to find a steady RPM—OK, car metaphors aren’t really my strong suit. They have a small, external "pacing" machine that’s sending little electrical signals to his heart, telling it when to beat. His heart is taking some time finding its own "pace," which isn’t atypical. If it continues to be sluggish, they will slip a permanent pacemaker in under his skin to do that job. They are waiting to see what it does over the weekend before they make a decision. I don’t know if this would extend his hospital stay, but I imagine so. Without this pacemaker, it’s possible they will send him home on Tuesday. TUESDAY?!
So. Fucking WOW. I am amazed and awestruck over what the doctors, surgeons, and nurses have done to him. For him. It is bewildering to consider how on earth someone (many someones) figured out how to perform this modern miracle, over and over and over again. They ripped him open, stopped his heart, repaired it, restarted it, and put him back together again—a mere four days ago. And there his sits—ALIVE—watching TV, reading gun magazines, visiting with his grandsons, teasing the nurses, bitching about the saltless food, and planning to return home.
I didn’t know this little gem until Mom shared it with me during the ride to or from the hospital a day or so ago: The doctors had told my father that he would live only three to four years without having the surgery. Now we just might have him around another twenty.
November 2, 2008 at 8:00 pm
Yay.
November 2, 2008 at 9:55 pm
I’m sure with all of the love and support he’ll make a fantastic recovery
November 3, 2008 at 10:07 am
Oh honey, I’m so glad.
November 5, 2008 at 3:28 pm
I just wanted to say that I’m so glad your dad is doing well. I’ve been away from LJ for a while, so am very behind in knowing what’s happening with my friends. But I’ve been thinking of you and your family a lot and am thrilled that everyone seems to be doing well.