June 9 (evening): My dad was released from the hospital this evening. He's thrilled to be able to go home where he can rest and heal. He'll be on oxygen 24/7 until he goes back to the doctor in 2 weeks. I am sure he'll need it for quite awhile.
Thank you all for your support and prayers. My family and I are deeply grateful!
June 8 (late evening): There's been a little setback w/my dad. He was home from the hospital this afternoon - was home about 15 minutes, sat on the couch, looked down and his shirt was soaked. The wound from his chest tube - where it was removed on his right side had opened and was gushing blood and liquid. My dad is a free bleeder, so my mom and my dad freaked and they called 911. My dad was taken by ambulance to emergency. They ran all kinds of tests on him and everything looked good ..... except his breathing. They gave him a choice of staying one more night or going. My dad decided to stay another night to make sure everything is ok.
He will be on oxygen all night and they will give him med's to help w/breathing. I pray his breathing was affected b/c he was so scared. Please, Please pray for him! Hopefully - he's better and definitely can come home tomorrow. I will update when I know more.
June 8 (afternoon): After 10 days of fighting the battle of his life - my father was released today from the hospital. GOD is GOOD, isn't he? He doesn't have to go to rehab, he got to come home instead. He was sent home with an oxygen tank because it's necessary for him to stay on oxygen - but he is doing tremendously better.
It's been a long 10 days - but the battle isn't over. Now, he gets to come home to his surroundings and everything that he feels comfortable and fight the battle not to smoke. I am so scared and so worried! Both he and my mother say they will NOT smoke. Please join with me in prayer for them. I know this battle will be tough - but it's one they CAN win if they set their minds to it. I love them both so completely and I want them to live a long life for me, for their grandchildren and for each other. I want them to choose life, their children and their grandchildren - instead of smoking! I have said all I can say to them. It's up to them to see what's in front of them and realize that having another 50 years with each other and their family is more important than instant gratification.
Daddy, I am so proud of you. You are a fighter and I know you want to live. I saw it in your eyes. I am so lucky and so thankful to have you as my daddy. I am rooting for you. I know you can do this! I am so thankful to God for bringing you through this. I love you!
June 8 (morning): Still haven't had a chance to see my daddy yet. Kids home for summer makes it tough - especially since they don't allow kids in ICU or CCU. My dad was moved to CCU last night. He's still doing well. But the nurse told my mom the doctor ordered for him to go to rehab to help him w/walking. My mom was a bit confused about that - she says he's walking fine (well as good as he did before). Hopefully we'll find out later whether or not he'll have to go to rehab. He's still getting breathing treatments, but he wasn't on Bipap machine last night.
I am so grateful for all of your prayers and love and support for my dad and my family. My heart is so full knowing that so many people care about us. I love you and I pray you are truly blessed!
June 7 (afternoon): I wasn't able to see him today, but my mom said they had him up walking around the floor. He's giving the nurses a run for their money now. They should move him out of ICU and into CCU soon. He still needs Bipap machine and breathing treatments. His lungs are just so weak from 50 years of smoking.
June 6 (evening): I went to visit my dad today. He seems to be doing better. He's his old fiesty self. He has most all of the tubes out and he's thrilled about that. He still has to have the Bipap machine at night and they are still giving him breathing treatments. It was great to see him smile and laugh! I am happy my daddy is feeling better.
June 4 (evening): My mom called - she said they took the chest tube out. YEA! And that also they took him off the bipap machine during the day. He only has to be on it during the night. He's on regular oxygen now. That's incredible! I am so pleased. My daddy is a fighter and HE will come out of this! I can't wait to go see him tomorrow - he'll actually be able to talk to me : ) Will update more tomorrow....
I took a few pictures.... apparently illegal (I was told by the nurse after I took them : ). I just want to document this for my dad. I want to him to see (and
remember) the journey he has come through. For some reason these pictures are much smaller than the others. I will try and fix that later and re-load.
June 4 (morning): I went to visit my dad early this morning. They did a ct scan of his lung again this morning - results back soon. He seemed to be doing better! His spirits were up and he was showing me his glowing sense of humor. Still alittle annoyed by the bipap machine, because he can't talk w/it - but definitely feeling stronger. The nurses came in several times while I was there to do percussions on his back (it's where they pound on your back w/a cupped hand in hopes of breaking up mucus). They also got him out of his bed and put him in a chair - which he hated. But also better for him b/c it helps him to cough up the mucus and other gunk in his chest. The Heart Doctor came in before I left and he said the ct scan was back on his lung. He said his lung was tremendously better. His lung is NOT collapsed anymore! GOD is GOOD! The percussions and bipap machine had helped to move around the mucus and break it up. He also said they would take out his chest tube today (it goes in his side into his lung to drain gunk, blood, etc.). YEA! I know he will be pleased - the chest tube is really painful for him.
June 3 (evening): The tests came back. Not the news we were hoping for. His lung collapsed again : ( He apparently has a lot of mucus and such built up on his lung and it caused it to collapse. The doctor will go in tomorrow with a scope to clean and repair. The good news is - his kidney levels have returned back to normal. The doctor told my mom they wouldn't have to put him back on the ventilator. That's fantastic news! I hope it's true. They just have a few more tests they are waiting on and those will be back tomorrow. Hopefully it will reveal a clearer picture. He's still on the Bipap b/c his lungs are responding as well as they would like. The doctor said "a man can't smoke for 50 years and have the medical history he does and not suffer lung damage." I know there's damage - but my GOD is bigger than this! And I know He alone can bring him through this!
June 3 (morning): I called first thing this morning and the nurse told me that the Doctor is not happy with the way his lungs are responding so he's running more tests. He's doing another xray and ct scan of his lungs. Please, Please PRAY!
June 2 (late evening): I just got back from visiting my dad. They had to put a Bipap machine on him because his oxygen level dropped. He's pretty annoyed b/c he can't talk. It covers his nose and mouth and is very secure to his face. I feel so sad for him. He has so many tubes inside and outside and he's just miserable. I sat by his side as long as they would let me. Holding his hand, stroking his hair (what little he has) and just reassuring him. He's so scared. But I KNOW he has a will to live. He wants to live - I can see it in his eyes. You always think of your father as being so big and strong. It's difficult to sit next to him and see him looking so small with tears rolling down his cheeks. My heart is broken. I wanted to stay there all night and just be with him. He would occassionally wake from sleeping and look over to make sure I was still there. I didn't want to leave.
June 2 (afternoon): They got him off of the ventilator!!! Thank you Jesus! When I called the nurse last night (in the wee hours) - I told her "my daddy is a fighter .... just fight w/him. he can beat this." Praise GOD! He still has a mask on to help deliver oxygen but he's BREATHING ON HIS OWN! He's still in a lot of pain from the ribs, the tube in his stomach and his lung. I know he still has a long road ahead of him. But today, in this moment - I am thankful! The doctor says that b/c of his history of smoking, stroke, seizure, heart problems, being overweight, bad diet .... the fight will be harder for him. But he's optimistic - and so am I! God is good!
June 2 (morning): I called very late last night. As I did every night (every 3 hours or so). They said he had a fever last night, so they ran tests to see where infection is. However, His fever is down today. They will try and weene him off of ventilator soon. Will update as I know more.... Please remember to pray for my sweet daddy!
June 1 (evening): He made it through the surgery! Praise GOD! They expanded his lung and drained 2 liters of blood from around his lung. He has a tube in his nose that goes into his stomach to drain it. He apparently has alot of old blood in his stomach. Perhaps from gastrits or an old ulcer. He's currently on the ventilator still in ICU in critical condition. They say he will be asleep most of the night.
June 1 (morning): They gave him blood overnight and his BP came up. He has to have emergency surgery today at 11am. They have to get the blood out otherwise it could be terribly bad for him. They decided to go down the throat w/a camera, as well as to inflate his lung. They said only doing the tube in the side won't be beneficial. However additionally - they will do the tube in his side to drain the blood. Please, Please PRAY!
May 30 (late evening): I left the hospital tonight and was feeling positive that my daddy was going to be ok. Then around 8:30 pm I got a call that told me they were moving him to ICU tonight. His BP was dangerously low. Scans showed his right lung is collapsed and filled with blood. He also has several rib fractures on his right side. His kidney was starting to fail because of low BP. They are going to put a tube in his ride side to drain blood and inflate his lung - but first have to check his heart. Please continue to pray!
This is my daddy before I left. He even cracked a smile for me : )
May 31: They think he has a problem w/his stomach. Finally identified the stuff he's throwing up as blood. REALLY? I told you that yesterday. Also he's not urinating enough, so they are bringing in kidney dr to check him out. He's been on breathing treatments every 4 hours for bad wheezing. He'll be in hospital another 3-5 days at least.
May 30: My mom actually tried to call me last night - but unfortunately, I didn't get the call. I called first thing when I saw the missed call at 10:30 pm. I KNEW something was wrong. I went to the hospital immediately. My dad has some pretty nasty bruises from the wreck. He had been throwing up all night. The nurses say that it's just what he ate. It's a rust color ... I think it's blood, maybe! The doctors say he has to stay in the hospital a few more days b/c he's wheezing pretty bad. They are giving him breathing treatments every 4 hours and monitoring him. His white blood count was off and so they are trying to figure out if he has an infection. They think it's in his lungs. Please keep praying! I will keep you posted as I know more.
Here he is on Sunday morning - the morning after the accident. He's so sad and so sick! He was also very hot. They didn't have a fan for him. And he's use to sleeping under one. I went to Target and got one for him. They told me it wasn't allowed .... yeah, okay - we'll see about that!
Nasty bruise on his stomach from the seatbelt. It was pretty bad!
May 30: My heart is broken! Sadly, my father was in a car accident last night. He was going to one of his favorite places and rear-ended a parked truck that was in the turning lane, stopped w/it's lights off. It was dark and he didn't see the truck. Of course, my dad refused the ambulance and the policeman brought him home. When he got home he was having difficulty breathing and complaining of chest pain.
The truck my dad hit was barely hurt. Here's what's left of my parents car.......
From these pictures you can see it was a miracle that my father actually walked away from this accident. I was so overcome with emotion when my mom and I went to look at the car. It's still very difficult for me to look at the second picture. I can't imagine what my daddy must have gone through physically, emotionally - in this accident. When I peeked in the driverside window, I saw the cross hanging from the mirror and my mother's Bible was in the front seat. I KNEW God was with him. And I'm so truly thankful!
