Dad has been doing well today. I caught the new doc for a brief moment. He reported that dad is progressing for sure. He said if he can stay at 60% consistently for a few days and get own to 50% he may go to a regular floor. He reports things are moving in the right direction so that’s good. Dads spirits are up and he is eating and moving more and his respiration is much better. Prayers for continued improvement and a move out of CCU.

Kim

PS – I try to enjoy nature as much as possible as it helps me so much. Today, I walked down to the beach to see the sunset and caught this beautiful picture right before it started raining. I had a 1/2 mile walk back in the pouring rain. Luckily I don’t melt.

I saw Dad this morning and he had a good night. He was able to get some sleep is eating more and has an appetite. He also reports that he feels like he is breathing better. He has been better able to move around and has even made it to a chair to eat several times with help from the nurse. His oxygen is about the same but I am very encouraged that they have stepped down the flow so much. He has the same nurse as yesterday and he reports that things are going well. I am encouraged that things are moving in the right direction. Thanks for your continued prayers and support.

-Kim

12/12 Update

10AM – I spoke with the doctor finally.  He was able to show me the cat scan which shows he still has pneumonia he is working through and the bullous in his lung is quite large.  That is still a wildcard so no one really knows how that is going to behave or affect his healing.  They are just keeping a close eye on it.  His oxygen was still stepped down and his saturation was good. I got to speak with Dad for a few minutes and he reports he is tired and has quite an appetite back.  He has graduated to some more foods like tomato soup and oatmeal so he was super excited about that.

4PM – I went in and spent a lot of time with his nurse today – Brian who is fabulous!  I was shocked to see that Dad’s oxygen was down to 40% and his saturation was still 96.  He does much better when he is lying on his stomach so he spends a lot of time that way.  His respiration is just outside the normal range where it was very fast and shallow previously.  I am taking all of this as positive signs.  

Please keep your prayers fervent…they are working!

Kim

Just got back from NCH and dad was resting well. Over night they stepped down oxygen flow to 70% and his saturation is normal. This is great progress. He’s eating and moving and just overall showing positive signs. We are very encouraged. PS – still haven’t talked to any doctor. Nurses are awesome at what they do. Thanks for your comments and continued prayers.

I don’t have much to report because I still haven’t been able to talk to a doctor and he had a different nurse today. The lack of communication is so frustrating.

He is still on high flow oxygen but his numbers are good. Hopefully, as he continues to heal they will be able to step it down a bit soon and see how he does.

He is eating a bit and has an appetite so that is also a good sign. He reported that he is hungry but they are limiting his intake so that he doesn’t aspirate.

He is expelling more from his lungs which is good as well.

They are continuing to monitor the clotting.

Mike and I just left the hospital and he was sleeping soundly and all his numbers were good.

My main goal is to get information on the bullous in his lung from the doctor. I have not seen the cat scan or been given any information on that as of yet.

Please keep him in your prayers. They are much appreciated.

I just wanted to say thanks for all the comments. I am reading them and responding when I can, just not making all the comments publicly viewable. I can also be reached directly via text at 7O4-43O-527O or email pease.mike@gmail.com

We had contact with Dad’s nurse and she is fabulous. He is doing well but they are taking it hour by hour. He is still on 100% oxygen but his saturation has stayed up so they may try to step it down a bit today. They have been keeping him on his belly and side which has helped a ton. He wouldn’t do it for me (I knew being on his back constantly increased the chances of pneumonia) but he seems to be cooperating with the nurse. She joked that she doesn’t mess around 🙂

If he does well, they may try to get him up and walking to a chair to sit. She is playing that by ear because she doesn’t want to push it.

He is talking quite a bit, very coherent and alert which is all good!

The hospital is requiring me to provide a negative PCR test since I was with him for a few days which is proving to be an act of congress. There are no places to do it and the results take 72 hours if I can even find a place. Our plan right now is for Mike to go over there since he hasn’t been exposed. The nurse said we will be able to go on the floor but not in the room. We will be able to see him through the glass window and talk on our cell phones. I think this will help my dad so much. This is NOT ideal but it is what it is.

He is a strong and stubborn man so I’m hoping it works to his advantage in his recovery. He always finds a way to get things done.

Prayers are much appreciated.

Kim

Yesterday, dad went to the ER. Leading up to that, he hadn’t felt good last week and did a home test which was positive for COVID.

Kim flew down on Monday and got him eating and drinking again (he had let himself get very dehydrated) and got his oxygen going up and in the right direction using nebulized hydrogen peroxide but it was too late. His oxygen was not increasing fast enough so the decision was made to take him to the ER.

He was admitted to the ICU and what we know so far is this:

The good news is that we spoke with him on the phone last night and thankfully, his oxygen is back to almost normal just using regular oxygen therapy.

-He has a previously undiagnosed lung bullous which prevents them from pushing too much oxygen into his lungs because of the risk of a collapsed lung. Therefore, they can’t use a b-pap or any other type of ventilation. The doctors and nurses are perplexed because that is usually only found in people with chronic lung disease like COPD or emphysema.

-He developed pneumonia as well.

-They also found Deep Vein Thrombosis in his leg so they had to give him meds to make sure he doesn’t throw a clot.

We have not received an update from the hospital yet today but we will update everyone when we know anything else.

Please pray for his recovery and for the doctors and nurses entrusted with his care. To make things even more difficult, we are not allowed to see him at all.