Up to the 6th Floor, Talking about rehab

Hey everyone. Bob has moved up to the 6th floor, which is very good news.  He has been in the ICU since last Wednesday so it will be nice to actually get to sleep for hour blocks at a time.  They are hopeing he will get to leave soon and go to St. Luke's rehab. He has been getting in the chair for all his meals, and has been eating good. The main concerns now are his lungs, he has doing ok, but there's always a concern for that when you've been in the bed for 16 days.  All the docs are amazed and  are happy he's made it through all of  this. There is a new sore on his leg, so they are a little concerned with that.  Praise God though, this has been a long jouney, but hes coming through good.  He remains mentally clear. Last night he had a good talk about rolla roasters with his night nurse he gave her a set of purple ones.  Right now Colleen and Larry are here, and Carl and Helen friends from Clarkston came by, I may be catching a ride back to Orofino tomorrow with them.  Then coming back up on Friday so mom can take a break.  Mom and I kinda need a break from each other.  Keep on praying though, so far his recovery has been good. He is still pretty weak in his legs, but he did eat with his own arm today for a little bit so he is getting stronger.  Love you all, Aloha!

Katelyn

Sitting up, breathing good and Eating

Today is good, Dad ate some breakfast, all his coffee, and he ate some lunch. Both times he was up in the chair.  He gets really sleepy though, but Physical therapy is impressed with the strength he has, and from what I observed he looks more balanced.  If  he keeps improving mom or I might take a break and go back to Orofino. But that all depends on how he is doing.  So if anyone is coming this way or going back to Orofino, let us know we could hitch a ride maybe.  Yesterday mom and I took a break during one of dads "quiet times" and found a polo field, so I got to meet the horses there and they might have some jobs for me if we are still here when season starts.  I was going through major horse withdrawals.  Dad is keeping in good spirits, he keeps joking around a little, his throat is still pretty congested from the tube, so he has a hard time talking.  He's very expressive with his face though. He keeps losing track of where he is and how many days he's been in the hospital, but that is normal in the ICU.  He still is mentally clear other than that.  Its really cold in spokane today, I am probably going to be staying inside.  Thanks for all your prayers and keep praying for a good recovery so that his lungs can get good enough to move up to the 6th floor, where he will be able to sleep more than 20 min at a time.  He made a joke about the swine flu, since he just had a pig valve put in.  He saw the news and made a funny face like "oh no" joking around.  I don't think we have to be concerned about that.  haha.  Love you all, Aloha,

Katelyn

4-27-09 AM

Bob was sitting up for 2 hours this morning, he doesn't have as much strength in his legs as he did last night, but the neurology nurses came in and ran him through some testing and his brain function and motor skills all came out clean!  PRAISE GOD! There is no brain damage that they can see, they were blown away, the head neurologist is overjoyed too.  This is all just miracles, and we pray that they keep coming, we are still not out of the woods, but he is recovering well.  He was able to talk a little bit today, his voice is still kind of hoarse from the tube. Today he is breathing all on his own, just with the oxygen in his nose, no mask, no tube.  Its amazing! Right now its just me and Mom up here, Rich and Diane just headed out, and Holly was here with me all day yesterday so that was nice.  I think that Colleen may be coming later today or tomorrow.  Its always good to see people though, so if you're in the area let us know.  Love you all, thanks for praying, keep on praying.  Aloha!

Katelyn  

Sitting up, breathing good 4-26 PM

Hey everyone,
After remaining stable on the cpap machine, around 6pm they decided to let him sit up in a chair. So he sat for about an hour, still wasnt able to talk much because of the constant flow of oxygen through the mask, but he was able to make some good expressions and laughed a little bit. Today was a great day, and we pray that he keeps improving. He is so happy to be off the ventilator, he will be even happier when he can actually speak again. He gets frustrated sometimes giving us signs and nodding all the time, and he cant tell any jokes that way either, so thats no fun. He still has a long way to go, his strength in his legs is not back yet, but he can lift his arm up pretty good, and has a good squeeze in his hand. I always tease him, "Dad you want to arm wrestle." God has just given us one miralce after another. Keep praying, and we love hearing from you all. Ill talk to you soon! Aloha,
Katelyn

Just Breathe

This morning they took him off the breathing tube, and hes breathing with a oxygen mask. He's having a little trouble calming down enough to breathe normally.  He really wants to be off of that tube, but we'll just see if his levels and heart rate go down and he can breath smoothly.  Thats pretty much all that has gone on since last night.  Praise God, and hopefully we will get everything worked out so he can say off the tube and be able to talk to us.  

Katelyn

4-25-09 PM Update

Bob had a good night sleep last night. Before we left last night around 9pm we were able to go in and see him when he woke up, and he was able to squeeze our hand a little, nod and respond with facial gestures. And when we said something funny he would roll his eyes at us when we couldn't figure out something, or said something funny.  So he's in there, seems the same as before he went into surgery. He still is on the ventilator so he cant talk, they tried taking him off of it this morning, but he wasn't quite ready, so they may try later today. But because he was so sick before going into surgery, he might take a couple extra days than normal open heart patients.  Thats ok though, we want him to be strong as possible before he moves out of ICU.  Today has been more mellow, and given all of us a chance to rest and recuperate from yesterday, it was a miraculous day, but exhausting.  But as for now dad's levels are good, the fluid on his lungs is drained more than this morning and he remains stable.  Gwen used to work in the Cardio ICU so she's been hooking us up with all the good nurses, and is able to get us more in depth updates and help us to understand everything, she's amazing we are so lucky to have a friend like her.  Thanks for all the prayers, keep them up, God is working miracles here. We've been meeting lots of other families in the ICU that have similar stories and we've been able to support each other through the struggles and the joys.  Its amazing how we are so interconnected.  As for the waiting room crew today, Rich and Diane are here again, they came up yesterday afternoon, bringing Sara( who is missing prom for us) with them, Breck came earlier yesterday.  My cousin Laurel and her husband Micah were just here and left, and Dick Haveman will be here later this afternoon. So thats all for now, Praise God! for such a good day, and good recovery so far!  Aloha,

Katelyn

Valve is in, Surgery went well, PRAISE GOD!

Hey everyone,

Bob is out of surgery! Praise GOD!! He is stable, and they replaced the valve with a pig valve since the infection wasn't too far up the valve.   The surgery took about 3-4 hours, and it went smoothly, so hopefully there was no bad activity in the brain.  We will know for sure when he wakes up.  He is in the Cardiology ICU right now and is pretty weak, but now that his heart is working properly he will be able to grow stronger.  Thank you for all your prayers.  I was able to stay pretty calm during surgery, Katie and I took a very long walk in the park.  It was so amazing, this morning was like winter, there was fog and frost over everything.  It was so gray and just erie, then the sun came out, and even though its still chilly, a crisp cold the sun was so beautiful and there was blue skies. That brought us so much peace and hope. Alleiluiah!! Give prayers of thanksgiving and continued healing, we are over another hurdle, but there's still a long road ahead.  Love you all, Aloha!

Katelyn

10AM Friday morning, In surgery

Bob just went through the surgery doors.  The surgery time is expected to be 3-6 hours, depending on what they find when they get in there.  The surgeon talked to us this morning and told us that he will either put a pig valve in, or a cadaver valve.  The surgeon is very hopeful and so is everyone else. My dad was excited to get this over with, and get on the path to recovery, and we have support here, Breck is on his way up, and Rich and Diane.  Althea and Pastor Lindsay are with  my mom and Katie and I are going for a long run.  Keep on praying, God is hearing all your prayers and he is working miracles, Praise God!  He has gotten us through so much, and blessed us with so many great friends.  We love you all, Ill keep you posted.

Katelyn

Heart Surgery is ON

Hey, 

So I guess in order to get things rolling so dad can start on recovery the cardiologists have decided to go ahead with the surgery tomorrow, Friday.  He will go in around noon for the surgery, and they may have to do some invasive testing before the surgery, so those decisions will be made tomorrow.  Its a scary surgery but God is with us and in control, all will go well hopefully.  The neurologist said on Monday the possibility of little strokes ( bleeding in the abscesses) in the brain is there, but she thinks that dad will pull through fine.  Pray for us tomorrow, as waiting outside the operating room is the hardest, and for dad to be calm going into surgery, he seems excited that they will be getting this show on the road, so he can start getting better.  He was ready to go on Tuesday.  Hes been sleeping good all day, and should get a good nights rest still on the ventilator.  Then tomorrow it begins.  My friend Katie is coming up to be with us tonight, since everyone just headed back ( haha funny timing) and then Becky and Althea will be coming in the morning.  So just keep praying, Ill keep you updated.  Love you all.

Katelyn

Preparing for the Heart surgery

Hey everyone, we are kind of  "On Call" for the heart valve surgery, they told us yesterday that if he doesn't do well over night they might have to do surgery this morning, and then today they said, "maybe tomorrow".  So its just a wait and see thing.  He is still on the ventilator, and will probably be on there until his surgery, which they are hoping to do on Monday, if he can wait that long.  His vitals are stable and when he wakes up he can communicate by nodding and small finger motions, we just ask yes or no questions.  Is hard for him not to be able to communicate, so when visitors or we come in and talk to him, his blood pressure goes up so we have been staying quiet in the room and we just try to get him to sleep.  Right now the Opdahl clan is here, Harlan, Barb, Grandma, the brothers Martin and Dennis.  Cindy left this morning, she had been here for a couple nights with Grandma, Rich and Diane were here also and just headed home today.  Its nice having all of them here, calming for us at least.  We are taking turns sitting in the room 2 at a time in the ICU and just being silent and making sure Dad doesn't need anything and in case any docs come in.  The sun is out a little today so thats nice, yesterday it was pretty gray.  But Ill keep you all posted on when the surgery is suppose to be, if he can make it til Monday that would be best, giving the brain more time to heal.  Im getting a little anxious for the surgery, just as yesterday was a reminder of how surgery is kind of nerve racking, and that was a relatively small one.  So just pray that dad will have peace awaiting the surgery and continue to grow stronger, and that he wont get to frustrated not being able to talk to us if they keep him on the ventilator til Monday.  Ill keep you posted.  love you all, keep on praying, praise God!  Aloha,

Katelyn

Through kidney surgery

Bob is through the surgery and the urologist did find a few large clots that he got out of there, and they think most of the bleeding is still due to the catheter, so they are just going to try and get it so it doesn't move around as much.  Which is hard because Dad is constantly rolling from side to side.  But due to his many areas of concern they don't want to take him off the ventilator.  So he's is headed back to the ICU where they can slowly extabate him.  He is in post op now and will soon be up in the ICU.  Thank you for all your prayers, Praise God for getting us over just another hurdle on this journey.  Ill keep you posted. Aloha,

Katelyn

Scope of kidneys

Right now Dad is in pre-op for a kidney surgery, just a small one, a scope to go in and find the source of the bleeding and  see if they can fix it there. They think it might be somewhat due to the radiation seeds put in when he had prostate cancer treatment. He received 2 units of blood yesterday night, and that seemed to pick him up a lot he had a good day yesterday.  If his breathing doesn't improve today they may take him in for open heart surgery tomorrow.  Also before he goes in for that surgery, they have to do a kind of invasive scope of his heart to make sure he doesn't have any blockages.  They briefly explained that so we can choose that one or a CT scan which is less accurate.  Or they could go in blind because of the risk in his brain.  SO...decisions.  We are kinda letting the docs decide what they think is best for now, they know more than us.   He had some bad nightmares and hallucinations last night, not associated with the medicines he's on.  So pray that he will be peaceful and continue to get stronger for his surgery.  He is getting stronger in his body, he can roll himself up alright, and he stood on the scale by himself for about 10 seconds, and he was up in the chair for 3 hours yesterday. So he does have strong days and mentally he is still all there. Still joking around and talking good.  Right now Diane,Rich, Grandma and Cindy are here with us now.  Keep on praying for strength and healing for Dad. Praise God for all the healing so far!  Love you all, Aloha

Katelyn

Hurry up and WAIT

The heart doctors, cardiologist and surgeon, just came in and told us that since Dad is looking stronger and responding to medicine to maintain the heart, they want to hold off on the surgery as long as they can.  Dad is at congestive heart failure level, but as long as it doesn't get any worse and they can keep him getting stronger.  So now its a waiting game. The neurologist said the risk doesn't decrease as significant amount until a month out, but the heart docs still feel waiting as long as they can as long as his heart doesn't get worse, will be good, because they don't want to fix the heart and mess up his brain.  About a month out the brain risk goes down to 2 %.  But they don't think the heart will wait that long since it is leaking from the valve. They are going to monitor him closely and if anything starts to go downhill, he will go into surgery.  Dad did get some good rest last night, and had 2 units of blood put in(since his urine has blood in it, which they are still looking in to).  He is looking and feeling better today, and looking at more hospital time is grueling, but the docs are coming up with a solution and its better not to rush into anything.  Sorry to put you all on edge, its kinda going to be that way for awhile.  If the heart makes it to a month, great, but that means we are in this hospital a LONG time, which seems AHHHH. But what ever gets Dad better is what we want.  We are stronger today, Dad is feeling stronger and Mom and I feel much more comforted.  Ill keep you guys updated so just keep an eye on the blog.  Love you all. Your prayers are working, keep it up. Aloha

Katelyn

4-21-09AM

Hi everyone,  We still don't know what time the surgery is. I will post it as soon as we find out.  Its a beautiful sunny day in Spokane.  Dad got a few good naps during the night,  he had a little trouble getting to sleep a couple of times, but when he did he slept good.  I slept off and on in the waiting room, found a good enough couch in here.  Mom will be here at 7am.  The surgery could be today or tomorrow.  Dad wants it as soon as possible, hes' all psyched up to go, he wants to get that heart fixed and on the way to recovery.  Love you all, Thanks for your prayers.  Aloha,

Katelyn

Here we go..heart surgery

It's been a long day, we've been waiting for doctors to tell us when and how the surgery will take place, what the risks are etc.  And Im glad I didn't write this a little bit ago, because we were all pretty upset and not as hopeful. But 

even though there is 

risk, we believe in God's miracles and that He can do the impossible.  The neurologist that did all the research about risk today just came in and talked to Dad and me (earlier she sent a letter with all the stats, risks, etc, with a few  of the resident docs thats been with us since the beginning, and thats when mom heard, but her hope has been restored again). The valve needs to be replaced, and now is the window, because the brain ultimately would need a month, but the heart cannot last that long, so luckily this is the right time to do it.   The neurologist basically told us that , Yes it is risky, and there is a 10-17% chance of complications (anywhere from a small stroke to being fatal).  But she has seen people come out of this before, and to look at the bright side there is an 86% chance of no complications at all, so the odds are in his favor, and so is God.  Ill keep you updated on when the surgery is, hopefully tomorrow morning.  Ill be with dad all night tonight, and everyone just keep praying 

and hopeing for the best.  We love you all, and are so blessed to have such amazing family and friends, and Bob knows you are there for him.  Praise God!  and as I type dad is getting some good rest for the surgery. Talk to you soon, Aloha

Katelyn

PS: The wave pics were taken at Pipeline on Oahu this winter.  That is God's raw power right there, and these images comfort me, for some weird reason, so I just though I'd share them.  Also check out Nick Vujicic  http://www.lifewithoutlimbs.org/. His story is amazing too. watch the video Verve intro, I got to see this guy speak in person last month.

Update 4-20-09 Heart News

Well. Yesterday was okay, Dad was feeling stronger and we had lots of company and the most of the worries was being in the bed too long and just getting stir crazy with that. Rich and Diane and family were here, and part to of the Hicks fam was here (Derrick , Mike and Heather) so thats always a great experience. The Coles were here too, Katie and I went to downtown spokane and rode the carousal, since I was missing the horses at the ranch. We also found a Restoration Hardware store down there that we did a funny photo shoot with that made Dad laugh (restoration hardware is the rolla roasters #1 customer). Mom went to a Lutheran church up the street, and then a walk in the park, So yesterday was good. 

  This morning he had the echo on his heart ( scope down the throat to look at the heart).  He didnt sleep real well in anticipating it.  And the hope was that the vegetation( infection) would be decreased enough and the heart would repair its self.  But it has not decreased enough and the way it is healing it still isn't sealing shut  and it could cause heart failure later on or soon, so they need to go in and do a heart valve replacement surgery.   We thought we could see the end of the tunnel, getting out of the hospital on possibly Wednesday, but now it seems to be a longer tunnel.  There has to be a right time for the surgery is the tricky part.  They have to thin the blood for the surgery but they dont want to compromise the infection in his brain.  So they are going to talk to the neurologist to see when they can operate and if  the abscesses have shrunk enough to do the surgery without risk of brain damage.  Pray that the abscesses have lessened and they can do the surgery soon, and get him on the way to a full recovery.  We are all so tired of just being in the hospital, and we were hoping this would be a sprint, but it looks like its gonna be a marathon.  But the good thing is, they know what it is, and know how to fix it.  And there was no abscesses in the heart.   I cant imagine staying in this hospital any longer, and I cant even imagine how my dad feels, being restricted to the bed this long, at least we can escape a little bit.   We just pray that we have the strength to carry on, and survive this.  Mom and I are up here all the time.  My moms great friend Gwen is letting us stay at her house( which is such a blessing), and Gwen also was a nurse at the Intensive care heart unit for 10 years here at Sacred Heart, so she knows the in and out of the heart surgery world.  She recommended the best valve doctors, so we are trying to get one of them.  They would all do fine Im sure, its just these guys are good in the valves.  Just keep praying and staying positive, thats is all we can do right now. If any of you want to come hang out at the hospital we love seeing all of you.  Looks like we will be camped out here awhile longer.  Love you all, and thank you for all your prayers, God is healing him still, we just need to hang in there.

Katelyn

4-18-09 Update

Thank you all for all your comments I read them to Dad this morning.  He enjoyed hearing from all of you.  Last night he didn't get too much sleep, just a lot of tossing and turning because he was just uncomfortable.  Also since he has just started Physical Therapy, he is a little discouraged about his strength.  He can itch his nose with his arm, but still cannot feed himself.  The lesions on his feet seem to be getting lighter, which is a good sign about whats happening in the brain, shrinking the infections.  On Tuesday they scheduled another eco, to see if the heart valve is getting cleared up.  The main thing right now is his urine, its got some blood in it, but they think its from that catheter, so that has been fixed. The kidney ultra sound came out clean so there is no abscesses to worry about in there.  Right now what he really needs is sleep, so he can have more strength, but its very hard to get rest in a hospital since they are always poking you and testing things.  Tonight hopefully is feeling better and able to sleep soundly, Im probably not going be able to stay with him again, because Im so tired. So pray that the nurses are very attentive to his needs and his breathing.  Hes been a little irregular with his breathing when he sleeps, but they say its not too bad yet.  They took an x ray this morning of his lungs and there is still some fluid in there. Now that he has started physical therapy, they had him up in the wheel chair for a couple minutes today, that should help drain the fluids in his lungs.   Breck and Sara, Rich and Diane are with us right now. The Coles will be up later, my mom went with her friend Gwen, who we are staying with, to a concert thing today, so that will give her a good break from the hospital.She needs it, hopefully that will give her more peace.  It was a nice sunny day, so I went for a run in the park ( well half run half walk).  that was really nice, I kinda fell asleep in the middle of the field, but there was lots of people around so it was safe. haha.  I forgot how I love those cold crisp spring days here in the northwest.   Thank you all for all your prayers, thats keeping us going, God is Great!! My dads been a little discouraged, so please pray for him to be strong in mind and body, and know that he has peace through God.  Love you all, and Dad and family says Thankyou!  

Full update as of 4-17-09 PM

Here is a summery of what has been going on:

2 weeks ago Friday, Bob felt really sick, with really bad headaches and flu like symptoms, as the days passed he got new symptoms such as lack of appetite, knee pain, delayed motor skills, eye infection.  He went to the hospital about 3-4 times between that Friday and this last Saturday. Somewhere along the way he was diagnosed with an eye infection, and then Wegener's Granulomatosis, which is a neurological disorder that is very rare.  He was displaying many symptoms of that so he had an appointment set up for Tuesday April 14, in Spokane with a specialist. On Saturday after he was taken to the ER when he was in extreme pain, they gave him staroid meds for the pain and sent him home while he awaited his Tuesday appointment.  Then on Sunday he was very sick and couldnt coordinate his hand to eat or move, and he was very faint and weak.  On Monday morning he couldnt get up out of bed, and had lost all energy and was in extreme pain, aches all over his body.  He was taken to the ER in an ambulance then was immediately taken to Sacred Heart in  Spokane in the ambulance.  When he arrived here the doctors immediately started to work on dealing with the largest areas of infection such as his knee and lesions on his toes.  And they took an MRI of the brain then too.  On Tuesday morning he went in for knee surgery on his knee. They had to go in and clean out the infection in the knee.  While he was in surgery they also did a eco of his heart to help diagnose him correctly.  The cardiologist did find what was there, its an infection on the heart valve spreading the infection through the blood stream, endocadartis is the official word. It wasn't the nerve WG disorder, but the infection from the heart valve spread  through his body in the blood stream.  Later that day with the help of the blood cultures taken in one of his earlier hospital visits in Orofino, they were able to see what bug(virus) it was that was attacking his system. It was staph aureus, MSSA,( so not the MRSA worst one so that was good). His docs,  this is kinda funny, his docs from the first day and who are still following up with him, were Dr. Grahm and Dr. Mallo (the" rolla roaster team", haha, dad said that).  Before they figured out the bug they had him on a broad range of antibiotics, and then when they found out what it was they put him on 2 specific ones.  The hope is that the antibiotics will go through his system, stop the infection from spreading, and shut down the abbesses from growing.  

He  was in Intensive Care Unit on a ventilator and sedated for the rest of the day on Tuesday and through the night.  On wednesday morning they ext-abated him, took the breathing tube out and he was awake and aware, was able to eat actual liquid meals, like soup, milk etc. He has not been able to feed himself yet since his arm is weak, but he was eating.  And finally he was allowed to drink water, which he says is the greatest thing ever!  He was denied water all the time before that point. ON Wednesday morning,the neurologist gave us MRI results, he was able to look at the scan and find 8 absences of septic emboli in his brain, The neurologist walked us through and showed us the images and where the infection is.   Bob isnt showing signs of brain damage or seizing, that is very good and means that he might recover without any lasting brain problems.  One of the concerns at the time is seizures, so the dr. ordered an EEG brain wave test on his brain, that was on Bob for Wednesday afternoon, til Thurs morning.  The readings came back clear there was no seizure activity, and every time the Neurologist comes in he is very excited and amazed to see how Bob is improving.  On Thursday he did really well. He was still in the ICU but was very alert and joking around all day.  He ate 3 meals. Gave his nurse Shaun a rolla roaster and gave the sales pitch. They moved him up to the 8th floor, the Neuroscience floor, at 3am On Friday morning.

And Friday April 17th is today,  Hes really tired today, but still clear.  I think hes just exhausted.  He had an MRI this morning on his spine, and that checked out clean.  So thats great!  and the other concern for today is that he has blood in his urine, but they arnt too alarmed about it. They did an ultra sound this afternoon on his kidneys to see if there is an abscess in there, if its large enough they will have to do a procedure to drain it.  But overall the antibiotics are working, the infections disease doc came in today and check up on him.  The main concerns right now is the kidney and his breathing, he has a little fluid in his lungs so we just have to get him up sitting, which he did today once, and get  him breathing deep.  And the physical therapist came into day and checked on his strength, the was able to sit on his own after he was helped to sit up.  And he stood for a little bit with assistance. So thats all good news. Right now he just really needs a good night sleep so he can have more strength, so pray that he'll get a good nights sleep and the other issues will be cleared up.  We asked the doc today how much longer we will be here, she said Wednesday best case scenario, and then probably a week at the rehab center, that is if everything stays getting better, and we don't encounter any more problems.  On Tues they will have to do another eco of his heart to make sure the infection is going away and there is no further damage to the heart.  So we will be here awhile longer it looks like.

  Breck is coming up tonight and Rich and Diane are here now, Mom and I have been here every day, all day and were here really late last night. I personally am getting antsy by being in this hospital all the time.  But I think Ill go running tomorrow. Hopefully all this info doesn't overwhelm you, Thank you all for all your prayers, Dad says Hi and Thankyou.  Praise God for all the healing that has taken place!  Talk to you soon.

Katelyn