May 31st 2011 update

Well it has been several days since Monica has been home, so I thought I would post an update.
The healing process is very slow, and Monica still has a lot of pain.  During the surgery she had a couple of ribs fracture, so that is where she is having most of the pain.  We did get out to the neighborhood pool a few times over the memorial weekend, and she was happy to get some sun.  Even though she is not able to get in the water, she did enjoy being able to sit on the edge of the pool and put her feet in.

Every night we have to clean the site where the drive line enters her body.  The process includes sterilizing a table in our room, getting all our cleaning supplies ready, and putting on masks and sterile glove.  Monica's mom is great at this, and has been doing an amazing job.  Saturday night was my first time doing this, and I will say it was a little nerve racking.  Know that I am responsible for doing a good job and preventing infection can be overwhelming.  I know it will get easier with time, but the first few times made me a little nervous.

Wednesday update

Monica is home!!!!!!!
12 days after major surgery the Doctors released her from the hospital this afternoon. She is still dealing with some pain, but excited to be home. They did an echo test before she left, and the size of her heart has gone from 8cm to 7.1cm! This is very good news that her heart has already seen improvement in this short amount of time.

Monday Update

Today was a pretty good day for Monica.  Still has pain, and some swelling, but we can see improvement everyday.  While I was there she took a long walk, and we made it to the dining hall next door.  Pretty sure the Chick-fil-a she had was better than the hospital food!  She also had her last two chest tubes removed, so now the only thing she is connected to is the LVAD.   The LVAD tech has been in every day to give us some training on the unit.  The pump can either run off of two batteries for about 12 hours, or a power unit
that she will plug into at night.  Pretty amazing technology.
Here are a couple photos from today.

Weekend update.

I took the boys down to see Monica yesterday. She was still in a lot of pain and just worn out. Kasen came into her room and was so excited to see her. Her walked around her bed and then saw her incision which stopped him in his tracks! He said, "mommy, I see your cut!". I think he got a little choked up seeing her like that, but both boys were very happy to see her.
Today she was feeling better than yesterday, and took a long walk down the hall. Still having a lot of pain, but feeling better overall.  I have been taking photos of Monica everyday since the surgery, and she told me that the one I took today, I should post it here.

Darren

Friday Update

Monica is still working through the pain.  While I was there, the PT had her walk all the way down the hall and back.  She told me her legs feel like jello, and her feet are so swollen that she could hardly get her shoes on.
The nurse was also showing us how to change the dressing on her "drive line"  The drive line is the small 1/4 inch round tube that come out just below her rib cage, and connects to her LVAD controller.  I have attached a picture below.  The dressing on this line has to be changed every day in a sterile environment.
We all had to wear masks and gloves.  Should be fun keeping the kids away while we do this at home.

Darren

Thursday update

Not much change today, although her pain might be a little worse.  They have her off of morphine,
and have cut back her percocet to one pill per dose, instead of two.  She has PT at 3pm today.
Hopefully the pain is better by Saturday, because I plan on bring the boy for a visit to see mommy.

We Miss You Mommy!

Darren

Wednesday update!

Big day, in that Monica was moved from the ICU today to a regular room.  She still have two chest tubes in, but most everything else has been removed.  Still in a lot of pain, and she has been itching all over.  Some of the itching is due to the morphine, and they are trying to cut back on that.  She rested pretty well last night, but the pain has been maybe been a little worse today.  They were starting physical therapy this afternoon, and are going to have her walk down the hall.  I guess they have a schedule to keep, but I can not imagine how painful that is.

Darren

Tuesday update

Monica had a pretty bad night last night, and could not sleep. Then someone thought is would be a good idea to give her a bath at 4am!  She seemed a little more comfortable this morning, but said she felt drugged, and was having some hallucinations.  I guess the Morphine is really starting to effect her.
My niece from Texas flew into town last night, and has been visiting Monica this morning.  I know that was a nice surprise for her, and hopefully will remember her visit.

I have attached a photo of some of the tubes and wires connected to her.

Monday update.

Monica slept 4 straight hours last night, so it is a good sign that the Drs can now manage the pain enough for her to sleep. She has a good amount of swelling in her feet. Her overall pain is still pretty bad, but maybe a little better than yesterday. Her blood level was pretty low yesterday, and we are waiting to hear if they need to give her some today. They had her up in a chair for 2 hours yesterday, and will try to get about three hours sitting up today.

Darren

Sunday

It is so hard to sit with the one you love, and see that person in so much pain.
The last two days have been long and painful for Monica. The Doctors are pleased with her progress, and her numbers are looking good. They just got her up an sitting in a chair for a few hours, and changed her dressings. Hopefully we can get the pain under control soon.

Darren

Saturday update

Monica had a long night last night, and was in a lot of pain.  Just saw her in the ICU, and she was having
a very hard time breathing through the ventilator.  She is writing us notes with her left hand, and just can't get comfortable.  The Drs say that her numbers look good, but can not totally knock her out, because they need to keep her a little awake so she can breath on her own.
UPDATE:  They just removed the ventilator and she is breathing on her own.  That was very  painful for her, but hopefully she can start to feel comfortable soon.
I have to take the boys to Kasen's scouts crossover awards campout this afternoon.  He has been looking forward to this for so long, but it is very bad timing.  I will try to give another update tomorrow.  Keep praying for her healing!

Darren

Surgery Day

Thursday night Monica did not sleep much at all.  At six AM Friday morning they came in to get her
to take her to pre-op.  The surgery started at 9:22, and finished at 1pm.  The Drs said everything went well, and it was the fastest LVAD surgery they have ever done.  Monica was taken to ICU, and will be on a ventilator until Saturday afternoon.

Getting ready for surgery

My LVAD surgery is tomorrow, and I was put on a study to try to receive a new LVAD that is not FDA approved yet.  It is a much smaller unit, but I just found out that I was not picked to receive that one.  I will get the Heartmate 2 which I am ok with, and I know it will work out great.  Here is a link that shows what the LVAD does. Click Here!

The time has come...

Well, after two visits to the hospital in the past two weeks, my family and I have finally decided to proceed with the open heart surgery to implant the LVAD. It has been quite a struggle, emotionally and physically for me and my entire family. When I was diagnosed with CHF (congestive heart failure) in January, I never imagined I would still be dealing with this 5 months later. I expected with some medication, rest, and a few Doctors visits, I'd be back to normal in no time. I found God's plan to be different than mine. After weeks and weeks of praying, meeting with surgeons, multiple visits back to the hospital, and many family discussions, we all agreed, there was no better time than now. My ejection fraction is still functioning (pumping) at 10%, and my heart is still extremely week; according to echocardiograms. I am going to spend Mothers Day with my wonderful boys and celebrate Kuper's 4th birthday this weekend. On Wednesday, May 11, I am checking into Emory for a few more test, and on Friday morning, May 13, I will have a bionic, super mom heart attached to my weak, nonfunctioning heart. Please pray for a speedy recovery and for the doctors to find out exactly what went wrong with my heart originally.