It was 35 degrees, cloudy, and breezy when I took Colin out at 7:45.
Bob was not as alert yesterday morning as he was the day before but that is to be expected. While I was there, his lung doctor and the nurse had to replace one of his chest tubes that had worked loose. He did interact with me and the nurse some. The lung issues continue to be a problem. I was able to talk with both his lung and heart doctor while I was there. Otherwise,things are about the same.
It was 42 degrees and raining when I took Colin out at 7:30.
Al went over to see Bob late yesterday afternoon. He was alert and mouthing words Al could understand. His blood count was good, they are giving him iron, and all other vital signs were stable.
It was 44 degrees and windy when I took Colin out at 8am.
I spent an hour with Bob yesterday afternoon. When I arrived the nurse was getting ready to bathe him and change his gown. We talked as well as interacted with Bob while she took care of him.
Things seem to be slowly moving in the right direction. They had his bed in the chair position and he had been up all morning. He is breathing on his own. The swallowing is getting better. The collar is still on to keep the secretions moist and to protect his airway because he still has the lung issues and the cough. I could understand some of his mouthing, mostly short responses to my questions.
It was 44 degrees, cloudy, and breezy when I took Colin out at 7:30.
I did not call to check on Bob. Knowing they put the chest tubes in I am sure he was sleeping most of the day.
Stubby
====================================================================
It was 32 degrees, cloudy, and calm when I took Colin out at 7:45.
Update from yesterday’s trip to the hospital. Bob was just getting ready to go down for a chest CT when I arrived. The doctor had removed the chest tube on Friday but fluid was back in his lungs again yesterday. I did visit with him while they were getting things ready for transport.
He was breathing on his own and recognized me, nodding yes when I asked him a few questions. He mouths words but I nor the nurses can figure out what he is trying to say. They gave him a pad and pen but he could not write. That may be because he was trying to use his left hand because the right one has the oxygen sensor on it or right now just cannot write due to all he has been through.
The doctor came by after Bob left and spent at lest 20 minutes talking with me and answering questions. Bob has been breathing on his own though they still have the trach in for support if needed. They lung infection is back with a vengeance and is causing all the problems. The doctor is going to put in at one and maybe two chest tubes this morning.
It was 23 degrees, sunny, and calm when I took Colin out at 7:45.
With Bob in regular ICU now the nurses have more patients and are very busy making it harder to get a phone update. I finally talked with a nurse late yesterday afternoon. Everything is pretty much the same.
It was 25 degrees, cloudy, and calm when I took Colin out at 7:30.
I stopped in to see Bob yesterday morning on the way to my 8:30 appointment. He was in a less critical area of CICU and had been off the ventilator and on his breathing collar since 5am.
Late yesterday afternoon, just as I had arrived back home, I had a call from Bob’s case worker. He had been moved to the second floor ICU. The summation of the conversation is they are trying to determine which type of rehab he needs to be moved to based on his needs with the vent collar, etc. I will probably know more today.
As Barbara said previously that she wouldn’t be updating today, I’ll open with this post.
Her last update had Bob sitting up in a chair, and sounded like forward progress, which is good news. It’s also becoming very clear that this was a near thing, and Bob is not clear yet. It will be a longer recovery than any of us hoped for. Hang in there Bob, and Barbara, lots of folks are here rooting for you.
In other really good news, we’ve heard from OFD AKA Dave Hardy. He has had some setbacks with his recovery but is continuing his time on this earth 🙂 We were really starting to get worried that something very serious had happened. Hang in there Dave, and drop in once in a while. I’ll extend the same offer to Mrs OFD and Dave, if there is anything we can do, don’t hesitate to ask. There is a large pool of talent and resources here.
Speaking of which, Bob has built a nice community here, and it’s clear that it might be a while until things are back to normal for him. In the mean time, I’ll try to keep the fires burning, or at least keep the coals banked… clearly I’m not him, but I can open a thread, and post some links. If you are in the habit of checking here, please continue to do so. If there is something you’d like to talk about please comment.
Any of you stealth preppers who are used to passing your story through Bob, please consider relaying through me. Those of you actually living the life always have valuable contributions, especially wrt the most mundane aspects. Anyone can do gear reviews or pontificate on the best bushcraft skills to have, but who has practical experience dealing with the <i>ahem</i> ‘output’ of a dozen human beings in a grid down exercise? My email is my last name at aol dot com. I don’t check it often, so there might be a delay if you don’t point me to it in a comment.
That all said, it was mid-40s this am when I let the dog out, and cool with a mostly clear sky as I sent the family off to start their day. Beautiful pink and orange in the sky. Take a moment to notice the world around you, and the beauty in everyday life. You won’t regret it.
nick
It was 16 degrees, sunny, and calm when I took Colin out at 7:45.
The nurse called me yesterday with a couple of updates. Bob was spiking a fever and the fluid in his chest was still a problem. They were going to try to drain the fluid with a needle but ended up putting a chest tube. Since they were not sure if the infection was in the lung or the picc line, they removed it for 24 hours just to be safe.
I checked on him late yesterday afternoon. He was in the chair and they had the vent collar on him instead of the respirator. He temperature was down and he was following commands and mouthing words.The nurse this morning said he had a good night and they were getting ready to put the vent collar back on.
There will not be an update Thursday morning. I am heading to Winston this afternoon and Al is coming up here to take care of Colin.
It was 32 degrees. cloudy, and breeze when I took Colin out at 7:45.
I stopped to see him yesterday while I was down in Winston but he was very sleepy. The nurse said this morning they may try to get him up in the chair today. He is responding to commands, still on the breathing support.