One decade later...

... Dad's ticker is still ticking!  It hasn't been an easy road some of the time -- last year just before Thanksgiving he had another fun ER-hospital-rehab trip that dragged on weeks longer than it should have when (if I recall correctly) a coughing fit turned into vomiting turned into aspiration pneumonia.  But he made it home in time for Christmas and has had a great year; he and Mom took a vacation around the Southwest just last month.

We are all so grateful still to have Dad in our lives!

Cardiologist visit, from Mom

Well, I am feeling happier now that we have seen the cardiologist. He explained to me that the pacemaker is working just fine. It is designed to keep his heart rate from going too low and the defibrillator part will keep it from going too high. Richard's heart seems to be going in and out of rhythm--which it did in the hospital, too, when he was in intensive care. This afternoon it was back in rhythm.

There are things they can do medically for this problem. In fact, he could live with the problem if the meds to regulate the heart don't work. Dr. Sher put him on an alternative to amiodarone, which Richard had stopped when we read the dreadful possible side effects. I can't remember the name of the prescription, and we left it at the pharmacy--it sounds something like Sokolow. (Richard has ventured out on his own to dump a squirrel or I would ask him.) He is also starting him on coumadin, so that if the other drug is not effectiive, he will be less likely to form clots. We still have to get the Holder monitor tomorrow (Friday) and the echocardiogram on Monday.

Then Mom mentioned yesterday:

Dad got his Holter monitor this noon. He started his new meds this morning and he feels terrible--very tired and light-headed. I don't know if it is from the meds or from his heart being out of rhythm.

More - from Mom

We saw Dr. Shear yesterday, who was pleased with the way Dad's surgery has healed up. But when Dad complained about just not feeling well, he called Dr. Maff--Dad's internist--and asked him to work him in. So we saw Dr. Maff this morning. I mentioned that Dad's pulse had been 58 last night, and it was 116 this morning, so he did an electrocardiogram which showed Dad's heart is out of rhythm. He had his secretary schedule a holder monitor for Friday, and an echocardiogram for Monday. He then told us to see Dr. Sher, the cardiologist, sooner rather than later, and gave me a copy of the electrocardiogram to take to him. He will only be in his Reisterstown office this week, so we managed to get an appointment there for tomorrow afternoon.

I am really upset that the pacemaker doesn't seem to be doing its thing! I want to call the doctor who implanted it, but Dad says to wait until he sees Dr. Sher.

And finally...

Dad went home on Saturday, as they'd hoped. He was quite tired on Saturday evening so he didn't go to church that night, and he has spent the weekend getting caught up at home on newspapers and mail and defending his garden from deer. He took a couple of short walks (though not so short considering he just got out of the hospital!) on Sunday, using his walker just in case he needed it for balance. His life is rapidly returning to normal -- such a contrast from two years ago -- so thank you for all your prayers!

Progress

Mom has been sending emails to everyone so most of you have the updates. Here's the follow up on the swallow test:

He passed!!!!! When I was there this afternoon they brought him a lunch tray, and about an hour later, a dinner tray. He ate moderately from the lunch tray, and passed up the dinner tray. It looked fairly good, so I ate it! Tomorrow the catheter comes out, and I should think the pic line, since he is eating. Then maybe he can come home sometime over the weekend.

Thanks for the prayers!

And here is today's summary:

We are awaiting word whether he will come home today (Saturday) or tomorrow. After coughing out his breathing tube in the ICUand sneezing out his feeding tube earlier this week, his pic line--the open line that went in under his collarbone--fell out yesterday as he was preparing to take a walk. But because that came out, they had to put in a regular IV, since no one is allowed to be in the hospital without one, in case of emergency. His catheter was also removed, so he feeling a lot of freedom. I think they only have a line attached to his IV when they are giving him fluids or meds through it.

He called this morning and told me that Dr. Backs was in the hospital but he hadn't seen him yet. I told him not to get his hopes up too high about going home today.

We are naturally thrilled that progress has been made even with Dr. Shear gone. Looks like this ordeal may end soon!

Slow, slow, slow

Much as we'd all like to see Dad up and about and eating normally by now, the doctors are being more cautious. Here is Mom's email from Wednesday:

Richard called me this morning, unhappy to report that Dr. Shear had gone out of town until Monday. A Dr. Baxt will be seeing him in the meantime. Dr. Baxt said they were going to remove his tube gradually, over four days. I am not sure why he made that choice--too much fluid still coming up? From stomach or lungs? He won't be getting any food until then--not real food, that is. They also plan to remove the many, many staples from his stomach today.

He just called as I was writing this and told me a physical therapist came today and got him up into a chair. I guess he walked him about ten feet in his room, too. (I didn't know there were ten feet in his little room!) Richard wanted to take more of a walk but the therapist said they would do that tomorrow--he wants to do things slowly, too. Dr. Shear has mentioned several times that Dick is fragile, and I guess all of this is in keeping with that theory.

We later sorted out that he was talking about removing the stomach tube gradually. Yesterday they turned off the pump on the tube, and here is Mom's post from this morning:

Dick called me this morning. First he told me he wanted his walker, in case he needs it, and would I please go to the attic this morning and see if I could find it? (I did and I found it.) Then he said that the PA (I think) told him that Dr. Backs--I called him Dr. Baxt yesterday--might completely remove his ng tube to day and (horrors!) order a swallow test. Will you all please pray that if he has a swallow test he actually passes the whole thing the first time? I think it is spaced out over three days. The failure to pass the swallow test the last time was one of the things that led to his long hospitalization.

If our swallowing therapist from last time shows up, Dad needs to run away!! He asked Mom to pick him up to go to OLLI classes anyway -- that's as good an excuse as any. ;-)

Monday Update

Well - the big thing to report from yesterday was that Dad was moved OUT of ICU into a regular room again. They have him back on the fifth floor since his stomach problems are the main and real reason he went to Sinai in the first place. He is in room 514 this time.

He was approved to move pretty early in the evening - but then transport didn't actually show up until 7:30 pm. At that point Sarah, Katie, Mom and I were all with him and we decided we wouldn't leave until they moved him! We then stuck around until about 8:00.

Once again we will miss our friends in the ICU waiting room - but we are glad to be done with that now!!!

They did the upper GI series for Dad yesterday - finally! A week later! The only thing we know right now is that he has an ulcer (Stuuumack OOoollllser - You Can't Take it With You...) which they are treating with antibiotics. We also know that there is no blockage.

That is it. Dad seems to be in a really good mood - which is great! I wouldn't blame him if he was in a really crotchety mood. With any luck we will have him home in a few days.