Star54
Well-known member
Glad to hear he is in step down...now you need to rest up also! My prayers to both of you!
David is out of the CICU!
- Thread starter davidswife
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davidswife
Well-known member
The Pacemaker/Defibrillator is In!
The Pacemaker/Defibrillator is In!
Everything went really well and I am in David's room now waiting for him to come back up. Thank you again to those who posted their experiences with their devices in the thread I started in Heart Talk yesterday.
They got the computer on David's TV working so I can keep company with all you guys while I sit with him in the hospital (as long as he doesn't want to watch TV!). He is in a new wing of the hospital where all of the rooms are private rooms and they are big and bright with a flat screen TV that can get internet access with a wireless keyboard (but which wasn't working yesterday when David got moved to this room from CICU). There is also a really nice couch that opens up and one family member is allowed (actually encourageed) to sleep over. I didn't last night because I was still sick. I am feeling much better today but will not be sleeping over tonight as I have to drive back home tonight because our twin daughters are starting high school tomorrow. I'll head back down tomorrow after they leave for school and will stay down here until David is realeased, hopefully by the end of the week (our girls will stay with friends). Our older daughter is doing great at college (her first year). She can't stop saying how much she loves it! So, thankfully, things are finally becoming a little less stressful.
My biggest problem now is that this keyboard is really slow and the screen is a little hard to see from the couch so I may run out of patience really quickly! Please excuse any typos!
Nadine
The Pacemaker/Defibrillator is In!
Everything went really well and I am in David's room now waiting for him to come back up. Thank you again to those who posted their experiences with their devices in the thread I started in Heart Talk yesterday.
They got the computer on David's TV working so I can keep company with all you guys while I sit with him in the hospital (as long as he doesn't want to watch TV!). He is in a new wing of the hospital where all of the rooms are private rooms and they are big and bright with a flat screen TV that can get internet access with a wireless keyboard (but which wasn't working yesterday when David got moved to this room from CICU). There is also a really nice couch that opens up and one family member is allowed (actually encourageed) to sleep over. I didn't last night because I was still sick. I am feeling much better today but will not be sleeping over tonight as I have to drive back home tonight because our twin daughters are starting high school tomorrow. I'll head back down tomorrow after they leave for school and will stay down here until David is realeased, hopefully by the end of the week (our girls will stay with friends). Our older daughter is doing great at college (her first year). She can't stop saying how much she loves it! So, thankfully, things are finally becoming a little less stressful.
My biggest problem now is that this keyboard is really slow and the screen is a little hard to see from the couch so I may run out of patience really quickly! Please excuse any typos!Nadine
CThrock
Well-known member
So glad to hear that David is doing well. Will continue to keep him in my thoughts and prayers till he is safe at home. Glad to hear you are feeling better too. May God bless and be with you both and may David continue to improve daily.
YIPPEEEE!. I'm so glad to hear that David is making progress. Nadine, give him a squeeze. Hopefully all will go well from this point forward. Hope the pacemaker settles him into a good rythmn and as you said previously his INR is gotten into a good level. I'm praying that you are able to spring him from that hospital by the weekend. Take Care
AgilityDog
Well-known member
You will be so surprised at how much better David feels tomorrow. I remember getting my PM 10 days after OHS - the next day it was like WoW! I'm AWAKE! Although the shoulder will be owie. The slow heartrate/arrythmias after surgery are really draining when you are down so low from that Mack truck that hit you. This one's just a little Chevy S-10.
I'm glad to read the good news. Having the defibrillator and pacer is a good thing. The bad part was having to need it in the first place. My good friend (who is also my brother-in-law) acquired one several months ago. It has saved his life and kept him out of the hospital on more than one occasion. He retired on a Friday this past June and two days later he was sitting in church. He wasn't feeling at all well and the next thing he knew he was jolted by his defibrillator. He was upset that this was how he was starting his retirement. Bottom line was that he had had another MI but it was very mild and he is still here to enjoy more retirement. I always think of my new valve as the fix rather than the problem and am very thankful for it.
I hope your hubby has a smoother recovery from here on out. We all know how this surgical experience is just as hard, if not more so, on the family as it is on the patient. You sound exhausted. I do hope you get some rest and start to feel better soon.
I hope your hubby has a smoother recovery from here on out. We all know how this surgical experience is just as hard, if not more so, on the family as it is on the patient. You sound exhausted. I do hope you get some rest and start to feel better soon.
hall
Well-known member
Glad to hear he is doing better. Now you need to get your rest. That is nice they have a couch for someone to stay if they want. Prayers for both of you.
R&N Brown
Well-known member
Very glad to hear that David is making progress, sounds like he is getting the full experience though! I am sure he feels very fortunate to have you with him.
Same advise as others here, get your rest too, but please continue to post your experiences, It's very good reading.
Here's wishing a quick recovery for Dave.
Rob
Same advise as others here, get your rest too, but please continue to post your experiences, It's very good reading.
Here's wishing a quick recovery for Dave.
Rob
Now for the last step: home.
Speaking from the in-hospital spouse point of view, I always tried to kick Pat out of the hospital room early, because I know that it's deadly boring there, no matter how much you love the person. Of course, where I've been, they didn't have sleepover couches or internet access. And the TV channels are completely insipid.
Still, know that we do appreciate that you don't want us to go through it entirely alone. We do realize how hard it is to split your attention and try to be everywhere at once. Just the driving is exhausting after a while. It's mind-numbing to get in the car and know you're driving for the next hour or more, and that you have to do it again in order to get home.
Best wishes,
Speaking from the in-hospital spouse point of view, I always tried to kick Pat out of the hospital room early, because I know that it's deadly boring there, no matter how much you love the person. Of course, where I've been, they didn't have sleepover couches or internet access. And the TV channels are completely insipid.
Still, know that we do appreciate that you don't want us to go through it entirely alone. We do realize how hard it is to split your attention and try to be everywhere at once. Just the driving is exhausting after a while. It's mind-numbing to get in the car and know you're driving for the next hour or more, and that you have to do it again in order to get home.
Best wishes,
Marguerite53
Premium Level User
I am catching your story in the later chapters.... hadn't been checking on everything in my brief visits here lately. But I do need to chime in here and say: Lady!! You are one tough woman!! That is an enormous heap of emotional stuff to have on your plate all at once. Sending your first child off to college (I wept and wept) and having twins, no less, starting high school! Those are very large moments. And then David's bumpy ride; of course the most encompassing and deeply felt.
You need to rest!! You need to laugh! You need to drink lots of fluids!! David has lots of people watching out for him. Please be sure to watch out for yourself. Having him home will be plenty of work and worry. He'll be in heaven (truly, home is heaven after a hospital stay like any of ours), but he'll need fussing over and watching closely. Whether he'll actually need close watching or not; you'll be wanting to give it to him!
I love your avatar photo! What a gem of a photo. The love just shines.
Thanks for joining us and may Lady Luck be perched upon your shoulder for the rest of this journey.
Best wishes.
Marguerite
You need to rest!! You need to laugh! You need to drink lots of fluids!! David has lots of people watching out for him. Please be sure to watch out for yourself. Having him home will be plenty of work and worry. He'll be in heaven (truly, home is heaven after a hospital stay like any of ours), but he'll need fussing over and watching closely. Whether he'll actually need close watching or not; you'll be wanting to give it to him!
I love your avatar photo! What a gem of a photo. The love just shines.
Thanks for joining us and may Lady Luck be perched upon your shoulder for the rest of this journey.
Best wishes.
Marguerite
Nadine, thanks for keeping us updated on Davids progress, so glad he is in a private
room, that helps a little with getting some rest. Also it will be nice for you to be able
to stay and not have to run back and forth. Hope both of you continue to recover
rapidly. Laura B.
room, that helps a little with getting some rest. Also it will be nice for you to be able
to stay and not have to run back and forth. Hope both of you continue to recover
rapidly. Laura B.
Hey there Nadine - sounds like you are at the Ritz Carlton - flat screen TV's, pull out couches... I imagine you can't wait to end your 'vacation' so I hope check out time is early Glad you are feeling a little better. Talk about bad timing for all of this to happen at once with school starting and a first year college student to boot. You are doing an amazing job being in three places at once. All my best to David. I am sending good vibes his way. Good luck to both of you.
Rhena
I imagine you can't wait to end your 'vacation' so I hope check out time is early Glad you are feeling a little better. Talk about bad timing for all of this to happen at once with school starting and a first year college student to boot. You are doing an amazing job being in three places at once. All my best to David. I am sending good vibes his way. Good luck to both of you.Rhena
davidswife
Well-known member
We're still at the Ritz!
We're still at the Ritz!
You know, Rhena, we joked when we first saw the new wing that it looked like a Ritz Carlton!
David had a really good day today. He still has some soreness where the pacemaker was implanted but actually has no more discomfort from the OHS! The pacemaker/defribrillator is so big (about half the size of a cell phone) and David is so thin (5'10" and 150 lbs) that he has quite a lump above his skin. The cardologist said that he could have put it under the muscle but that would have necessitated a surgical procudure to change the battery. He said that there is still some sweliing but that it would still stick out some. He gave David permission to eat some junk food to fatten him up a bit (boy, why don't I get those kind of doctor's orders?)! David has a great attitude - he couldn't care less about it sticking out.
So now we are just waiting for them to get the coumadin level in order. This is David's 10th post-op day but they did not start the coumadin until two nights ago (after the pacemaker surgery) and his INR was 1.09 yesterday and today it was 1.23. They do not want to bring him up too fast and risk bleeding at the pacemaker site. So we will be here probably through the weekend. The nurses are all just wonderful and David knows that they can take better care of him better than I can now while I am still not 100% (but I am feeling so much better and should be 100% by the time he gets home).
Okay, I will update more later. David has been patiently waiting for me to walk around the floor and this slow keyboard is driving me crazy!
Nadine
We're still at the Ritz!
You know, Rhena, we joked when we first saw the new wing that it looked like a Ritz Carlton
!David had a really good day today. He still has some soreness where the pacemaker was implanted but actually has no more discomfort from the OHS! The pacemaker/defribrillator is so big (about half the size of a cell phone) and David is so thin (5'10" and 150 lbs) that he has quite a lump above his skin. The cardologist said that he could have put it under the muscle but that would have necessitated a surgical procudure to change the battery. He said that there is still some sweliing but that it would still stick out some. He gave David permission to eat some junk food to fatten him up a bit (boy, why don't I get those kind of doctor's orders?
)! David has a great attitude - he couldn't care less about it sticking out.So now we are just waiting for them to get the coumadin level in order. This is David's 10th post-op day but they did not start the coumadin until two nights ago (after the pacemaker surgery) and his INR was 1.09 yesterday and today it was 1.23. They do not want to bring him up too fast and risk bleeding at the pacemaker site. So we will be here probably through the weekend. The nurses are all just wonderful and David knows that they can take better care of him better than I can now while I am still not 100% (but I am feeling so much better and should be 100% by the time he gets home).
Okay, I will update more later. David has been patiently waiting for me to walk around the floor and this slow keyboard is driving me crazy
!Nadine
I'm glad things are going better and that you both will be home soon. I can imagine how exhausted you must be with everything going on and beign run down on top of it.
.............David has a great attitude - he couldn't care less about it sticking out.
So now we are just waiting for them to get the coumadin level in order............
Okay, I will update more later. David has been patiently waiting for me to walk around the floor and this slow keyboard is driving me crazy
Nadine
Nadine, I am looking forward to hear more good news from you. I applaud for David's great attitude.
As for INR, I stayed in the hospital for ten days because my doctors were conservative on raising it quickly.
Happy all is well, and may you both feel better and better from now on.
ALCapshaw2
Well-known member
Nadine -
I nominate You and David as the MODEL Patient Couple of the Year. You BOTH have a Great Attitude and have jumped in with both feet to be proactive in David's care and treatment options.
It also sounds like his surgeon and the Hospital Staff have been Role Models in all aspects of his care and treatment.
CHEERS all around !
On the matter of the SLOW Keyboard, my guess is that your are a prisoner of the "Glass Format" which is as "Slow as Molasses in January" with some servers.
You can ESCAPE that Keyboard H*ll by clicking on "User CP" (on the Blue Line), scrolling down to the little window at the bottom left corner of the page, click on the drop down Menu to reveal 3 options: Glass Format, ValveReplacement, and vBulletin3.
vBulletin3 works Best for me (on AOL).
IF that doesn't work for you, ask Ross to 'Fix It' for you.
Who won the race around the Unit?
Keep on Keepin' on!
'AL Capshaw'
I nominate You and David as the MODEL Patient Couple of the Year. You BOTH have a Great Attitude and have jumped in with both feet to be proactive in David's care and treatment options.
It also sounds like his surgeon and the Hospital Staff have been Role Models in all aspects of his care and treatment.
CHEERS all around !
On the matter of the SLOW Keyboard, my guess is that your are a prisoner of the "Glass Format" which is as "Slow as Molasses in January" with some servers.
You can ESCAPE that Keyboard H*ll by clicking on "User CP" (on the Blue Line), scrolling down to the little window at the bottom left corner of the page, click on the drop down Menu to reveal 3 options: Glass Format, ValveReplacement, and vBulletin3.
vBulletin3 works Best for me (on AOL).
IF that doesn't work for you, ask Ross to 'Fix It' for you.
Who won the race around the Unit?
Keep on Keepin' on!
'AL Capshaw'
davidswife
Well-known member
Thanks AL!
Thanks AL!
Wow, what a difference AL! I never heard of "glass format" but that is what it was set at. I switched it to "ValveReplacement" and now I feel like I am driving a Rolls Royce instead of a Yugo!
Thanks also AL for the nomination - we humbly accept!
David's INR is slowly creeping up - it was 1.09 two days ago, 1.23 yesterday and 1.35 today. The surgeon said that they would rather bring it up slowly than overshoot and he feels bad for David that it is going so slowly. He wants to get him to 2.0 and he is hoping that he will be able to discharge David in the next day or two. David is in no rush and is very happy with all of his doctors and just wants them to do whatever is best even if it means being here a couple of days longer. They are also dealing with trying to get his blood glucose under control. David was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes two years ago (he has never had a weight problem but his father was diabetic). He has been on metformin but in the hospital they have been giving him insulin too. His sugars have been running high (180s) and he is concerned about that but I keep telling him that it is normal since his body has been through a trauma and he doesn't have to worry about the numbers, that is for the nurses and doctors to worry about. So I don't mind him being here a little longer to straighten all that out too.
We are heading down to the lounge now for a lecture on what to do once you get home (which hopefully will be soon!). I'll update more later.
Nadine
Thanks AL!
Wow, what a difference AL! I never heard of "glass format" but that is what it was set at. I switched it to "ValveReplacement" and now I feel like I am driving a Rolls Royce instead of a Yugo
!Thanks also AL for the nomination - we humbly accept
!David's INR is slowly creeping up - it was 1.09 two days ago, 1.23 yesterday and 1.35 today. The surgeon said that they would rather bring it up slowly than overshoot and he feels bad for David that it is going so slowly. He wants to get him to 2.0 and he is hoping that he will be able to discharge David in the next day or two. David is in no rush and is very happy with all of his doctors and just wants them to do whatever is best even if it means being here a couple of days longer. They are also dealing with trying to get his blood glucose under control. David was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes two years ago (he has never had a weight problem but his father was diabetic). He has been on metformin but in the hospital they have been giving him insulin too. His sugars have been running high (180s) and he is concerned about that but I keep telling him that it is normal since his body has been through a trauma and he doesn't have to worry about the numbers, that is for the nurses and doctors to worry about. So I don't mind him being here a little longer to straighten all that out too.
We are heading down to the lounge now for a lecture on what to do once you get home (which hopefully will be soon!). I'll update more later.
Nadine
Wowzers Nadine and David. Happy to hear that you guys are on that slow road to recovery. I completely understand the blood sugar stuff. I too am type 2 and my sugars were every where while I was in the hospital. Just give it some time. Those numbers will fall back into place once he gets home. In fact I was sent home with insulin and syringes which I used faithfully for a few weeks past discharge. So take care and you guys are the best
deano89
Well-known member
hes heading in the right direction and will soon be heading home best wishes for a good recovery hear on in
The INR creeping up is perfect.
