Wow, it's been a hot minute.
The patient is finally sleeping,
so I'm going to grab a second and
update what's been happening.
Let me start with the excellent care we
are receiving.
These people are the BEST.
Friday we were on "standby" for surgery.
But since it's not life threatening,
we kept getting pushed for other
trauma cases that were more urgent.
They finally came and got him around
1:00. I visited with Kyle on the phone
for a little bit and then dashed to the
local WalMart (13 minutes away) to get
my thyroid pills, a hat to wear in here,
a traveling neck brace so I can sleep and
not kink my neck, and some fun slippers
to keep my feet warm.
(And be able to take my boots off...)
When I got back to our room there was a
surprise from Jim & Sabrina.
They are beautiful and cheerful and
go a long way to make our room
more pleasant.
Thank you guys!!!
The doctor came to see me after surgery
and said he had VERY strong bones which
is why they didn't just turn to mush when
he landed on them.
He had no difficulty at all attaching
6 screws (3 per side) to stabilize
his lower back.
He said he would need to wear a brace
for a first while, but foresees a full recovery.
That was EXCELLENT news.
Then, the trauma team got together and
decided it would be best to put off any
further surgery until at least Monday to
give his body a chance to recover a bit.
We had a good dinner and were both
exhausted and asleep by about 8:00.
There were LOTS of visits in the night.
They drew blood twice, and Rod got
really really hot at one point and
started taking everything off.
Including his oxygen, oximeter,
and ECG leads. Not to mention
his hospital gown.
The thermometer said his temp was
normal, so we put everything back on
him, gave him some more meds and
put him back to sleep.
(He took his oxygen off many many
more times... a continuing issue.
I just put it back on TWICE...)
In the morning we got another shift
change, (last night's nurse, Devin, was
AMAZING and so patient with him!)
We got Lexi back again.
Another outstanding nurse.
She used a different thermometer that
showed he had 103 temp.
The other one was still showing normal.
So she got an old fashioned one and yup,
he has a fever.
It was a busy morning.
There were respiratory treatments (every
4 hours all day), chest x-rays,
CT scan of his chest and abdomen,
visits from the trauma doc,
the hospitalist, the social worker,
and umpteen nurses.
Also they continually dropped off
bottles of Ensure and meals for him to
sleep through.
(He DID eat some of his breakfast.
Bacon makes EVERYTHING better...)
It was decided that they probably are NOT
going to do surgery on his ribs.
And then the PT guy (who said he has been
talking to a gazillion doctors on Rod's behalf,
trying to convince them to let him in...)
he showed up, a good guy, big, burly,
NO NONSENSE.
He said he was going to help Rod get out
of bed for the first time.
Rod was so excited he took everything off
again so he could put pants on and go home.
No, we are just walking 3 feet to the door.
Poor guy, he was so deflated.
But he was anxious to do at least that much.
We had to keep holding him back.
We did manage to get him standing,
but as you can see from his face,
it wasn't all it was cracked up to be.
His BP plummeted, 86/60.
His oxygen dropped to the 70's.
And he was VERY unstable.
So we let him stand, walk 1 step forward,
1 step back, and 2 steps sideways in
each direction and that was enough.
They will build on that each day.
Right after that, the trauma doc showed up
again with the news that his CT showed
some blood in his lung cavity.
There was some originally, and a bit more
now than before, so they had decided
a chest tube was the best course of action.
I left.
(They also tested for Covid, but I never heard
anything more, so it was negative I guess...)
More drugs following the chest tube,
so then he was loopy and ready to nap.
But dinner showed up.
He actually ate a good bit of the stew.
Said it was delicious.
And then 2 more brethren from the local
ward arrived to administer the sacrament.
A long time member,Jim, and a new(ish) member
Wesley, who just recently received his endowments.
It was his first time administering the
sacrament, as well as his first time
doing the annointing.
And then Jim gave Rod another outstanding
blessing.
VERY confidently promised he would
heal completely, the doctors and staff
would find themselves performing their
duties beyond their normal abilities
and he would heal completely.
The Lord has work left for him to do.
Very similar to the blessing he received
on Friday.
He checked on our needs - he was requested
to report back to the Bishop.
I imagine in the coming days I'll need a
place to grab a shower.
But for now I'm fine doing what we are doing.
After that I tidied up the room a little.
We have quite the campground going on.
Then I ate his lunch.
And replaced his oxygen a few more times.
We turned on a movie, but he fell
asleep so I turned it off.
And now he's snoozing.
Getting expert at the breathing treatments.
I'll try to keep these current.
I'm sending mass texts each morning and
when there are major updates...
but you can check here as well.
Thank you everyone for all the thoughts,
prayers, texts, emails and well wishes.
He feels so loved and cared for.
We love you!
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