A Couple of Pictures

This is the circa 1970's hospital bed next to our big log bed. It looks even funnier in person ... reminds me of a child's toddler bed next to the parents' bed. It works though. E. likes having the ability to sleep at an incline to keep the pressure off his head, without having to rearrange pillows all the time (the ability to raise his foot also comes in handy with his swollen right foot, although he tends to prop it up with pillows like in the picture). Peanut likes having buttons to push and make Daddy seem like he's on a roller coaster ride. I like having the side rails up at night to ensure that he doesn't fall out of bed. (Notice the walker right next to the bed. And the football, of course. Peanut brings dad the football and wants to play catch, after showing off the three-point stance he learned from his brothers.) And yes, I realize that's a horrible mix of plaids and quilts, but what.are.ya.gonna.do? Focus on the handsome boys in the picture and you may not notice the plaids and colors working against each other. :)

Nothing better than watching a little "Sid the Science Kid" while snuggled up with your daddy. That's a great way to start the morning! Peanut even brought his bowl of Cheerios into bed to share.

Some Random Updates

The head: It continues to heal little by little. E.'s got an appointment next Tuesday to get his staples out. Can you believe how quick that happens? He's still getting some whop-dinger headaches, but only takes minimal pain meds. He's also suffering some yucky bouts of nausea (not related to the pain meds). Sleep comes in short spurts (also affected by the midnight and 4:00 a.m. wake-ups for meds), but the mid-afternoon nap seems to help.

The arm: E.'s right arm continues to be swollen and tender from the infiltrated IV and the superficial blood clots. It is especially sensitive around the wrist area, which makes putting weight on it while using the walker difficult. A re-check with our primary care physician today confirmed that the blood clots are probably superficial as they are below the elbow (anything above the elbow is much more concerning). Since blood thinners and/or anti-inflammatories are not an option, he'll have to settle for warm compresses and elevation.

The foot: The foot, you ask??? Yes, the foot. After the initial physical therapy in the hospital, E. has been complaining about pain in his right foot. Concerned about blood clots, we visited with our primary care physician today. Turns out, it's "plantar fasciitis," which involves pain and inflammation of a thick band of tissue that runs across the bottom of your foot - connecting your heel bone to your toes. The bottom of E.'s foot is swollen and VERY, VERY sensitive. Again, because of the recent brain surgery, the typical medications cannot be taken. It was suggested he ice his foot several times a day and elevate it as much as possible. Generally speaking, it will heal in 8 to 10 weeks.

(So, are you picturing this yet? E., head full of staples, trying to shuffle along in his walker with a bum right arm and a bum right foot? It may not be pretty, but it sure isn't stopping him.)

The blood sugars: E. wound up being released from the hospital with the long-acting insulin, but not the regular insulin. We have been unable to keep his blood sugars in that "below 200" range which is optimal for proper healing, so we paid a visit to our primary care physician. Like we expected, she prescribed some regular insulin which will be given according to a blood sugar level scale. The amount of units given (of both the regular insulin and the long-acting insulin) will have to be tweaked regularly, with the steroid doses fluctuating like they are.

Physical therapy: E. is supposed to be getting physical therapy two or three times a week for eight to twelve weeks. That is what is prescribed. It has not started yet though because insurance authorization is required first, which may take a week or ten days. Crazy. In the meantime, E. is getting around the house quite well and I've even caught him walking without his walker a time or two (which drives me insane!). We've taken a couple of walks down the street. I walk alongside him and his assistant, Peanut, helps by pushing the walker along.

Handicapped parking placard: E.'s doctor authorized him to get a temporary handicapped parking placard. Although E. is not thrilled with the whole idea, I reminded him of the brighter side: front row parking at Wolfpack games! He's already making tailgating plans, so I know he liked the thought of that! The doctor filled out the applicable DMV authorization form. Now I just have to go to DMV, submit the form and get the placard. I dread going to the DMV. I hate the DMV. I am scared of the DMV. But I will be brave. As an added note, while the truck was parked in the hospital parking garage, someone stole the front license plate off the truck! (It appears that they also attempted to steal the rear plate, as the license plate frame is missing, and so are several screws.) I now have to fill out some "Lost or Stolen License Plate" form at DMV as well, and return the remaining plate in exchange for new plates. I did say I would be brave, didn't I? I think a visit to DMV requires more than bravery though.

Attitude: E. may be stubborn and ornery, but he's got an attitude that can't be beat. He never complains about a darn thing. He still dishes it out like always (and gets it back in return). We still laugh. A lot. And these brain tumors? "Just another bump in the road." With an attitude like that, how can you not follow his lead? I'll tell you what ... I fall in love with this man over and over again, each and every day.

Home Sweet Home

Monday turned out to be a long day of waiting.

We waited for someone from the neuro surgeon's office to confirm E.'s discharge.

We waited for the diabetic trainer, who gave us 1/2 of the training we needed, and then said she'd return for the remainder since doing it all at once would be "overwhelming."

We waited for the medical doctor/hospitalist to give the "official ok" for discharge.

We waited for the diabetic trainer, who gave us the rest of the necessary education.

We waited for the medical doctor some more.

And some more. And some more.

We were thrilled to finally get the news that we could go home.

Then we waited for the nurse to remove E.'s port access.

We waited for all the discharge paperwork.

We waited for a wheelchair.

And then we were finally on our way!

Last stop: pharmacy. And guess what? We waited there too.

At the end of the day though, life was good. E. was at home. He sat in his recliner in the living room, watched some tv, visited with his dad and the kids, and ate some dinner.

He then got his handful of various medications and got situated in his spiffy circa 1970's hospital bed. Something still wasn't right though. Ahh yes, he was missing the remote controls. So, with the tv on and the remote controls in his hands, E. was soon in slumberland.

Sunday (8/29) News

There really isn't any new news.

E. continues to make progress. He did several laps around the floor today, as well as his physical therapy exercises. His medications have been modified a little. He took a shower and was able to clean his head and incision area a bit. Overall, he simply looks a lot better. A lot more stable. A lot more oriented. A lot more "with it."

We've decided a hospital bed would probably be beneficial at home, at least temporarily. We have a tall log bed and there was concern about him getting in and out of it. E. is also sleeping pretty elevated as to keep the pressure off of his head. A hospital bed will make that all easier, so one is being delivered to the house tomorrow. A 3 in 1 shower chair/beside commode/toilet support is also being delivered. I know some of you are jealous, so E. promised to loan it out once he is done with it. Go ahead and submit your name for the waiting list.

We have yet to hear back from the Diabetic Wellness folks to give us the Insulin 101 class, but we are hoping that will happen tomorrow morning. Then, fingers crossed, we'll be able to go home.

Hurricane Earl may be swirling around out there, but I'm tellin' you what ... our E. is a much bigger force to be reckoned with!

In Pictures

He doesn't look half-bad bald.

The swelling has really gone done in his right eye,

although we are told that swelling and discoloration can come and go.

And could get worse before it gets better.

A little better picture of the side view.

I guess "better" is all relative when you're looking at these kinds of pictures.

The front incision with 19 staples.

See the globby blood blobs we were talking about?

And the back incision with 16 staples.

A little "cleaner" looking.

The girls are teasing him . . .

He's bald and he's on steroids,

now all he needs is an earring. :)

Discussions re: Discharge

The hospital doctor did come in and confirmed that the blood clots are in the superficial vein of the arm, so that is good news. (If it had been a deep vein thrombosis or DVT, some sort of filter would have had to have been surgically placed since E. can't currently take blood thinners.) Warm compresses should help with the discomfort. E. was also advised not to be overly active with is right arm or lift anything heavy.

The hospital doctor also felt like E. and I could receive some "diabetic training" prior to discharge, which would allow E. to come home. We would learn more about monitoring his blood sugars and administering the right doses of insulin (regular insulin and long-acting insulin). The doctor has placed orders for that training, but I'm not sure when that will happen, or if a "diabetic trainer" is even available over the weekend.

Saturday (8/28) Update

E. had a decent night's sleep, but is still groggy. It is going to take a long time for his energy levels to come back up, and I think the extra sleep can only help him heal.

We still haven't seen a doctor regarding the blood clots, but heard a nurse mention that there were many tiny SUPERFICIAL clots. I expressed my relief, but she quickly pointed out that she cannot read any tests, nor provide any results. We would have to wait to hear from the doctor. E.'s arm, from the tips of his fingers to his elbow, is significantly swollen. It is also very tender to the touch.

E. took a lap around the entire floor again and seems to be getting more steady on his feet. When we returned to his room, he was ready to take a shower. He was able to get cleaned up (although neither of us felt comfortable washing his head, so the globby blood blobs remain). He brushed his teeth and combed his hair. Wait, strike that last part. He has no hair. :) The whole process really left him winded though. No sooner that we had got him back into bed, that the physical therapists arrived. Out he went for another walk around the floor. Then he had to do various exercises to help improve his balance (which has already shown an improvement from yesterday). Needless to say, he quickly fell asleep when he was done. The physical therapists did not feel like a rehab facility was necessary, but did recommend outpatient therapy (perhaps beginning with in-home therapy the first couple of weeks).

There have been a few small discussions regarding discharge planning. In terms of his head, he'll be ready to go home within the next few days. The problem that may keep him in the hospital though are his blood sugar levels. The steroids really wreak havoc on those levels. Although the steroids are slowly being tapered off, he'll still be on them for the next ten days or so. If he needs to remain hospitalized due to the blood sugar levels, we are going to request a transfer to a rehab facility. We are hoping that it would be quieter at a rehab facility than here in the hospital and he'd be able to get more rest. Everybody knows how hospitals have to be the worst place ever to actually sleep and rest. If there is a possibility that we can be educated on the insulin and administer it ourselves at home, we would prefer that.