Karen's stepdad

[artrx]

Still holding your family in my prayers, karen.

 

[pilgrimgal]

Things have been going OK lately, but now we have another problem which is MRSA infection. (methicillin-resistant Staph. aureus, a bacterium that is resistant to many antibiotics).

Oh, oh, not good. Will in the Name of Jesus.

 

[karen freeinchristman]

Update - the MRSA was not an infection, it was only a confirmation that he is a carrier, so no problems have actually come of that. They just need to be aware of the fact. So that was good to hear.

Pa (Jerry) was due to have a tracheotomy last night, because they wanted to remove his respirator, as it is not good to be intubated for so long. But this morning, I received this email from my mom and I feel so happy that I had to share it with you all who have been so supportive through prayer (my mom sent a 'group' email to her very large support network of friends and relatives):

Hi everyone,

This morning at nursing shift change, around 7 a.m., Jerry took his ventillator tube into his own hands and pulled it out! He had been scheduled to have a trach put in today in surgery at 3:30 as he was considered very borderline as to getting off the ventillator and the
docs thought it would help him wean off it by having the trach for a couple weeks. Jer thought otherwise.

After his auto-medical procedure, he was put onto an oxygen mask to see how he did on his own breathing, then after doing pretty well though working a bit hard at his breathing, he was dialized for a 3-hour session to pull fluid from his lungs, and then put onto one of those small oxygen tubes under the nostrils. He breathed more easily as the afternoon went by and slept, snoring lightly and sounding like his "at home in the recliner" self.

The docs wanted him to breath slowly and to cough on his own, and he did pretty well on both, his respirations being at about the same rate as they had been on the ventilator.

So, please pray for him to continue in this manner or even more slowly and deeply through the night and into tomorrow. If he can hold his own that way, he will not have to be reintubated nor have the trach put in.

By the time I left tonight at 8:00 he was whispering that he wanted to stand up and wanted to go up to a regular room out of ICU. It is hard to keep him focused on simply slow breathing and coughing, for better or for worse. All of his other issues are continuing to improve, as well.

Waiting to see what tomorrow brings; thank you all for your great support.

--june

I am just amazed! God has done amazing things! Praise God and Thank you to the Medical team at UC Davis Medical Centre, too!!! This is just so wonderful, because it's the first time in weeks that he has been able to communicate with his own voice!

 

[No Swansong]

Wonderful News!!!!

 

[pilgrimgal]

Karen, this is good news. Thanks for updating us and sharing June's email.

God is good to heal and restore.

Sounds like Jerry has a great attitude and will power.

Amen and Amen!

pilgrimgal

 

[artrx]

That's wonderful to hear, Karen! I pray for continued healing!

 

[karen freeinchristman]

More good news - last night Pa also took out his feeding tube! The nurses put it back in because they didn't want to call out the doctors in the middle of the night for that reason, but this morning the doctors decided to take it out, and Pa actually ate 3 bites of tapioca pudding! So they are going to start to feed him. And the physiotherapist is going to start working with him today, too, to help him get some muscle strength back after being in bed for so long.

They are a little worried that he will continue to rip out all of his lines, though. He is on painkillers (for the amputation pain), and so can't really just be told not to do it. So they are thinking that someone will have to be with him 24 hours, in which case my mom will probably have to hire a sitter for the 12 hours of nighttime that she needs to go home.

Also, he didn't need any dialysis yesterday, either, so it looks like his kidneys are beginning to regain function!

It truly is a miracle. I really thank you guys for praying; my whole year-group at seminary were also praying so it was an international prayer group!

 

[karen freeinchristman]

Just updating everyone who has been so wonderful for prayer support.

Pa is now out of the ICU. He is off dialysis completely. He is off the feeding tube completely. He is off the respirator. Hallelujah!

He is beginning to slowly gain his strength back, but still needs a lot of physiotherapy from being in bed for so long.

He has accepted his amputation pretty well, and it is healing well. His leg wound is still open (the one from the initial bypass surgery), so that still needs some more healing.

We would like it if his appetite would increase, as he isn't eating that much. But perhaps that is because he has been so sedentary.

I was able to speak to him on the phone for a couple of seconds (my mom wasn't supposed to have her cell phone on in the hospital). He sounded great.

My mom says that if he is able to increase in strength over the next couple of weeks, he could be home before Christmas.

Thank you all so very much for your prayers; we know they helped.

 

[No Swansong]

Wonderful news Karen!

 

[karen freeinchristman]

Just wanted to update that on Dec 19th, my stepdad finally left the hospital and is home with my Mom!

They are doing pretty good, just trying to adjust to life, my stepdad as an amputee and my Mom as his carer. May God give them the strength and grace that they need.

Thank you all once again for the prayers.

 

[artrx]

Keeping them in my prayers as they learn to adjust. It's great he could be home by Christmas.

 

[karen freeinchristman]

Need prayers again.

My stepdad has been making great recovery up until about two weeks ago, when a sore on a toe of his remaining leg wasn't healing, and so they put three small stints in a vein in his thigh, which went fine, but this morning they went to see the doctor again and there is now some infection in the bone of the toe that has the sore, and so he will have to have that toe cut off. His surgery is in about two weeks and he'll have to stay in hospital for about 5 days. My mom and stepdad are very upset about this, because of course, their fears come from the ordeal they've already been through.

 

[TomUK]

My prayers remain with your family Karen.

 

[artrx]

My prayers as well, Karen .

 

[No Swansong]

Karen how about an update?