Abby and John visited dad this morning, and Grace and I stopped by this afternoon to see how he was doing. It's so amazing to see the positive steps that Dad is making, from eating three cups of mandarin oranges (and some blueberry pancakes!), to getting his chest tubes removed, to doing his first solo walk with no nurse. When Grace and I walked in to the cardiac floor, we saw dad walking around the fishbowl on the tail end of the first of two solo loops. It's hard to think that he's only 3 days from having his surgery! While he's in his room, he's keeping himself entertained with his incentive spirometer (now with a 1500mL goal), crossword puzzles with mom, a MASH marathon, and the Packers game - though I'm not sure you could really call it a game today...
The doctors and nurses are hoping to have him discharged either Monday or Tuesday. At this point, they are still working with him on managing his fluid levels, and they are monitoring both his phosphorus and potassium levels. Once those things stabilize, then he's homeward bound! We're all overjoyed at the prospect of getting to spend Thanksgiving together at home - what a blessing!
Dad said that his pain levels are actually much less than he expected. He was expecting some sharp pain around the incision or where they cut through his sternum, but he says that it isn't so bad as long as he is not coughing. The main "pain" at this point is a general ache, much like you feel when you have the flu, though the pain meds are generally doing their job. He told us that getting his chest tubes removed was pretty interesting, apparently they had tied his sutures during surgery such that they were ready to be pulled tight as the tube was removed. I think it's a lot like when you need someone's finger to help tie a proper bow on a present -- as the finger gets pulled out the knot just cinches right up!
Thank you everyone for your continued support! I know it means a lot to dad and it certainly means the world to us to hear that everyone is rooting for him. We all know there are lots of steps to go, but we know that dad is going to dominate every one of them!
Love,
Andrew, Abby, and Leslie
The doctors and nurses are hoping to have him discharged either Monday or Tuesday. At this point, they are still working with him on managing his fluid levels, and they are monitoring both his phosphorus and potassium levels. Once those things stabilize, then he's homeward bound! We're all overjoyed at the prospect of getting to spend Thanksgiving together at home - what a blessing!
Dad said that his pain levels are actually much less than he expected. He was expecting some sharp pain around the incision or where they cut through his sternum, but he says that it isn't so bad as long as he is not coughing. The main "pain" at this point is a general ache, much like you feel when you have the flu, though the pain meds are generally doing their job. He told us that getting his chest tubes removed was pretty interesting, apparently they had tied his sutures during surgery such that they were ready to be pulled tight as the tube was removed. I think it's a lot like when you need someone's finger to help tie a proper bow on a present -- as the finger gets pulled out the knot just cinches right up!
Thank you everyone for your continued support! I know it means a lot to dad and it certainly means the world to us to hear that everyone is rooting for him. We all know there are lots of steps to go, but we know that dad is going to dominate every one of them!
Love,
Andrew, Abby, and Leslie
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