July 11, 2013 - Thirty One Days in ICU

There is something to be said about being in the hospital for any length of time... you lose all perspective of time!  Today has been an emotional day for both Paul and I.  Neither of us slept well last night.  We both had a rough time with the life and death decision of having the tracheotomy and the fact that Paul had to continue life support on the ventilator.  You would think these are easy decisions to make, but actually they are not.  That all aside, Paul had a good day.  So good in fact that he posted on the blog and I didn't even know about it until this evening when my oldest sister told me about it via Instant Messaging.

Paul did have a bronchoscope this morning to clear his airways.  I hate that they have to do this as I know from what one of the resident doctors told me... each time they go in, there is a chance of damaging the airways and/or causing an infection.  But they did it, it seemed hurried to me, but his airways were cleaned and he did well with it all. Breathing treatments will continue round the clock, every four hours to help keep the airways clear and hopefully reduce the need for future bronchoscopes. 

Paul did well with his first weaning this afternoon.  He spent two hours off the ventilator before getting tired and needing to be put back on it.

An ultrasound was preformed on his arms and legs to check for the movement and new development of blood clots.  The previous blood clots that were found in his arms weeks ago are still there, they have grown smaller, but are still present in either arm.  And no new blood clots have been reported as I type this.  So that is good news for the day! 

Paul's blood sugar was also down this evening, and cause for another celebration since he did not need an insulin shot! 

A good day and we are praying tomorrow will continue to bring smiles, rest, breathing on his own, rest filled sleep and healing.

Good night and may you all be blessed.
Jo