Seizure during PT; experiencing apnea

We just got a call from Methodist, so I'm heading down immediately.  Dad had a major seizure during PT this morning, and he's experiencing periods of apnea (not breathing) for 15-20 seconds at a time.

That's all I know.  Heading down and more later.

Don't mess with the Dillon sisters OR our faith in the Mayo Clinic

All I can say is that the one-two punch of Tracy and me being a patient advocate for Dad has to sting a bit. I'm still laughing a bit after finding out from Tracy this morning that she "warned" the night nurse that I was coming straight from the airport, and if she thought Tracy was thorough and asking questions, just wait for me to show up.

So the last update was around 2AM last night, thinking that Dad was fully asleep and that I was nearing my pacific time zone normal bedtime. I closed down the computer, nestled into the cot, and not ten minutes later, Dad was up.

For the night.

I actually really enjoyed the night. It was like a slumber party, where one person says, "Okay, seriously, we need to get some sleep here or neither of us is going to function in the morning." Only to go about three minutes before the next topic or question would come up from Dad. We talked about how wants to go back and visit Vietnam (now that he has a passport, he has wanderlust!), about hotel taxes (this is when he was a bit confused thinking we were still in Minnesota, and then had a bit of a laugh of how it's easy to get confused as all the hospitals start running together), about my good friend Eric who had his car accident last November (Dad was wondering how he was doing in his recovery, as they've bonded on their rehab and life-altering experiences a bit). There were also topics that really didn't make a lot of sense -- he kept asking about where the group of photographers was staying. When asking him for more information, he kept thinking that they had come in the "front door" with me when I arrived. I was actually pretty pleased with how well he sounded and mostly coherent.

So they came and got him at 6AM to take him to pre-op to prep him for having the blood clot filters put into his veins. I saw a few of the doctors, but most stayed away as they figured out Dad was in pre-op, and not in the room. I left around 7:30AM to head back out west to shower, say a quick hello to a few of the kids as Dillon went off to school, through the monsoon rains to Elkhorn, made breakfast for Mom, and tried to fall asleep right around 10:30.

10:45AM: Our neurologist from Mayo Clinic showed up on my caller ID. I immediately picked up. I chatted about my night with Dad a bit, some first impressions based on my expectations (all while trying to get my own bearings after JUST having fallen asleep). He then told me that he did get the scans we'd sent, and he'd had a chance to look at them.

I swear, time pretty much stands still between the "I've looked at the scans" sentence and the next which indicates what he saw. This doctor is the master at not changing his tone or approach, no matter what the news. So this is what he indicated (don't read if squeamish, as I'm going to put it all out there :)):

• The MRI taken was not a complete MRI, but rather a "quick" shot, which didn't have the complete series normally taken, and it appeared Dad was moving a bit in a few of the frames. So, not a high quality scan for him to look at.
• The scan remains ugly, and the reports are even uglier. Out of Omaha, anyway.
• He feels that the trauma of Dad hitting his head, starting the cranial bleed, the large blood clot residing in the empty cavity where Dad had his temporal lobectomy was what was causing this latest downturn. The body will rev up to fight against and get rid of the extra blood, break down the clot, and filter it out. Causing some swelling in the process as the extra cells go in and try to break it down.
• While a bit blurry, he feels in his best estimation, that the necrosis/mass is pretty much the same as a month ago, possibly even just a tiny bit smaller than the previous scan. That would be amazing news if that were the case, meaning that the necrosis possibly has slowed down enough for the brain to start recovery.
• He feels that surgery isn't something that should be considered to clear out the clot and the excess blood, as the body will do that naturally anyway over several weeks, and why put Dad through more trauma that could introduce more problems.
• Next steps: As long as Dad isn't getting worse (which he seems to have stabilized somewhat), we're going to bypass the appointment in Rochester next week, and just send up a new MRI (complete series, and one where Dad remains still).

The situation still remains pretty ugly in Omaha, however. Dad's still very weak on his left side (caused by the pressure on the brain in just the right parts). He had a lot of visitors today, with all four siblings in the past 24hrs: Brother Mike and his wife Jodi yesterday; Sister Gloria and brother-in-law Don were in (and will be here tomorrow as well), Sister Cathy and her husband Doug, and brother Larry. The priest from the church was also in, along with me, Tracy, Mom and Grandma.

Physical Therapy started today (FINALLY!), so Dad was very tired at the end of the day. Hoping his tech sitting in the room tonight will give him a good shave and possibly even a haircut (she's a former beautician). And hopefully it's restful sleep.

I'm off to do that myself. Been a long day and a half - seems a lot longer than just yesterday afternoon that I left Portland. More tomorrow.

An update as I sip on some chicken broth

Dinner tonight at Methodist Hospital for me consists of some chicken broth (double batch) and some saltines. I really should have let Scott get me lunch at New Season's like he offered. Oh well. Fasting is good for you.

So upon landing in Omaha, Rich brought me straight to the hospital. I'm staying up here tonight, as I really want to talk to the doctors in the morning. I've gone "to work" from the moment I walked in. Got Dad some Kendall boots (since he's not getting out of bed, he's at high risk for blood clots - these are pressurized boots that simulate circulation -- kinda), got caught up with his nurse, and got her ink flowing in the chart about what I wanted to talk to the doctors about.

Apparently, if you can believe this (which I can't), some of the doctors have been writing in the chart "end of life care" - which is making sure Dad is comfortable. This was called to Mom's attention by our oncologist who wondered what that meant. Well, NO ONE talked to anyone in the family about this, and that's a big no-no. We are NOT giving up yet, and want to fight this aggressively and watch out for his well-being. That means Physical Therapy. That means watching for blood clots (he's getting little filters put in tomorrow to stop any from breaking off and going to his heart or lungs).

Those of you who know me have an idea of how fast I turned from being upset to just being plain mad. Within the first hour of my arrival, I felt good about the progress made. I even got the tech to set up my cot (which was very nice, but not quite nice enough to recover from the fact that he had the fluorescent light on so he could read. . .pretty much like the exam lights right in Dad's eyes as he was trying to sleep!). To prevent Dad from trying to get out of bed on his own, they have a tech that sits in here overnight when no one is around. He's now in the hallway where there is enough light for him to read.

Dad briefly woke up when I got here. We had a pretty short, but good, conversation. I asked him if he was okay with us being roommates tonight, and he got a smile on his face (not a big one, more of a smirk), and said, "Sure!" He thinks he's in Minnesota, but he's oriented to know that he's in the hospital, and he knew who I was.

Tomorrow morning is going to come awfully early, so I'm going to wrap up my chicken broth and crackers, and try to get a few hours of sleep. More tomorrow.

Thanks to everyone for their notes, their prayers, and their kind messages.

Please keep Dad in your prayers

I'm heading to Omaha in a few hours after getting word from the doctors that I should get there. We could use all the prayers and thoughts you have right now.

More details after I get to Omaha.

Monday night update

(picture on the left is from a few weeks ago)

So much, yet so little, has happened to let us know what is going on. Two CT scans and one MRI later, and we're still left wondering what's happening beyond the bleed caused from the fall. Thankfully we were able to figure out a way to get the scans up to the doctors at the Mayo Clinic (the neurologist called me over his lunch hour today to find out what was going on) -- overnight express to a courier service, and then have the courier service walk the scans up to the front desk of our neurologist. The doctor should have the scans tomorrow afternoon and hopefully we'll have a plan of action by end of day tomorrow.

According to Tracy and Mom, Dad's mouth on the left side isn't drooping as severely, but he's quite a bit more confused and slurring his speech today than yesterday. When I talked to him, it was pretty difficult to understand more than just a few words at a time. He sounds quite a bit weaker today than he did yesterday even (and yesterday he didn't exactly sound strong). Dad's left side is very weak, to the point of holding a cup of fruit in the left hand so he can use a fork in his right hand isn't working well. He's pretty much bed-ridden right now, requiring three people to help him stand and "walk" to the chair.

Mom did give him basically a day at the salon, though -- she cut his hair a bit, trimmed his unruly eyebrows, and gave him a shave. She said it made HER feel better if nothing else. The bleed in his brain seems to have been halted as well (which is a very good thing!) based on the latest CT scan.

Dad's oncologist returns to the office tomorrow, so he likely will be up early in the morning to conduct rounds and see Dad. The Mayo's neurologist is going to call him as well after that and they can compare notes as to what the next steps are. We're inquiring as to whether or not he needs the little green filters to be put in to avoid a blood clot moving from his legs to his heart or lungs (he was taken off of the blood thinners on Saturday in anticipation of emergency surgery that didn't materialize), as well as cranking up the steroids to the highest level to try and get him a little strength to fight whatever it is that's bringing him down.

While his time on the phone is pretty limited right now, I'm sure that a note of encouragement or a card to the house (where Mom is now returning each night after we got a "sitter" in the room to make sure Dad stayed in bed) would go over well. I'll check his email later tonight and pass along any messages already sent.

Keep thinking positively.

Sunday Update

Not exactly a restful night for anyone. After taking his normal medication at night that allows him to sleep, apparently Dad seemed a bit too much out of it around 3:00, so they scheduled an immediate CT scan to determine if the bleed was getting worse in his head. Thankfully, not much had changed at all, so they let him go back to sleep once back in his room.

The risk of going in for surgery appears to have passed for now, and Dad is inhaling food like it's going out of style (likely mostly caused by the increased steroid dose that he's receiving via IV). It's now the "hurry up and wait" game of waiting for the doctors to consult with each other and figure out what's next.

An attempt for a shower was thwarted this morning with extremely fatigued Dad with little to no strength to help the nurses. I think they're going to try again this afternoon. At this point, we really don't know what is next. Anxious for Dad's normal physicians and medical staff to get updated and stop by tomorrow morning. For now, things appear to have stabilized a bit with the bleeding in his brain, and the swelling continues to be worked on aggressively by the steroids.

Urgent admission to the hospital this morning

Dad was half-joking this afternoon when I was talking to him from his hospital bed at Methodist that he needed to do something to spice up the blog posts a bit. I told him this wasn't necessary to go this far.

Let me take you back a few days.

Dad has been increasingly unsteady on his feet, often bumping into walls as he starts to lose his balance. His strength is not very good right now, so the ability to correct when he starts to lean to the left isn't there, so the wall or a door jam stops his fall. He has hit his noggin a few times pretty hard (remember, he has a field cut in his vision out of the left eye, so he really can't "see" the door jam or the wall to try and catch himself), and he's all beaten up on the left side with bruises and small cuts from falling.

I guess things were pretty bad yesterday, with walking getting more and more unsteady. They got some labs (which showed very low anti-seizure medication levels, and he did have a seizure on the way into the hospital this morning, but I get ahead of myself). Tracy noticed that his left side was drooping a bit, and the nurse practitioner did an evaluation on him for a possible stroke. The fact that he could lift both of his eyebrows and passed "most" of the tests, they didn't do further testing.

Fast forward to last night at midnight, Dad fell in the hallway. Not having any leg strength to speak of at all, Mom called Rich to come over and help get Dad up and back to bed. Stern warnings to Dad to not try and get up on his own, as even having a walker by his bed doesn't help as his arm strength really isn't much. Well, Dad had to get up to use the bathroom around 4:30 or 5, and this time he fell in the bathroom, hit the counter above his eye, and it required a 911-call to have the professionals help get him up and back to bed.

When I called early this morning, they were in the car on the way to the hospital. Dad's whole left side was pretty much dragging and required two people to get him to the car. The doctors had called ahead and he went straight to admissions and his room. They ordered a CT scan to rule out a bleed in the brain caused by the falls/hitting his head, and to give him a high dose of IV steroids to pump up his strength a bit.

Well, sure enough, there's bleeding in the brain, and they felt it was from the primary hit a few nights ago, and piled on by the falls last night. At first they were going to do surgery right away, but now they want to wait and just see. He's been on blood thinners, so they're giving him a few units of plasma/platelets and some vitamin K to thicken up the blood a little, hoping this will clot on its own. He had lunch, but that's it until probably tomorrow sometime so that if things worsen they can take him into surgery with the smallest risk possible. He is slurring his speech some, and apparently his left side is pretty impacted. Hopefully that is reversed with the steroids and the reduction of the size of the blood clot in the cavity where he had the necrosis removed in the surgery in May.

He did have an MRI as well to determine the level of swelling from the necrosis, but the only report we've received is that it showed that there was not an immediate need for surgery, and that they would monitor closely over the night and into the morning.

Mom is staying the night up there tonight to keep a close eye (no beds on the neuro or ICU that Dad could move to), so hopefully there's some sleep for them both after a rough couple of days.

Dad is keeping his sense of humor somewhat - he told me today that when he gets out of the hospital, he's going to start wearing a helmet around the house. Probably not a bad idea considering the past few days.

I'll keep the blog up to date as we know more. I'm on stand-by to head home any day this week, but for now keeping my ticket to fly home on Saturday. For now, he's "stable" per the medical staff. An interesting few days ahead await.

Is time flying for anyone else?

On Saturday I told myself that I would do an update "tomorrow." It's now nearly a week later. Not sure where the time went, but here we go:

I did talk with the neurologist at Mayo Clinic. He still thinks that the MRI is reflecting necrosis (treatment effect from the radiation). We will be heading up in a few weeks to see the neurologist and have another MRI taken, so we will see at that point how this is progressing. Still nothing new to treat (no way to really treat this necrosis outside of giving it time). No new chemo, no new medications, etc.

Dad's doing pretty well, but still tired and struggling with having the energy/strength to do what he'd really like to do. He's been going to physical therapy three times a week to build back up the muscle mass that has been zapped by the steroids. He's also been hanging out a bit more over with the grandkids, watching them all ride bikes in the driveway while he holds baby Kaitlyn. Who, of COURSE, already loves her Grandpa Dillon.

More after visit to Mayo Clinic - if not before.

No word yet, but I did talk to the Mayo Clinic today

Well, I've learned something: it's faster to drive an MRI CD and personally hand it to the secretary in the Neurology Department than it is to express ship it. When I talked with the front desk today of Dad's neurologist, she indicated that the scan had JUST been uploaded to the system on Friday afternoon. Not Friday the 24th. Friday the 31st. At least we know what the delay has been.

I expect to be in the middle of a meeting this week when the neurologist calls back (which is fine, I just hope folks around me don't get upset when my ringer is on full-blast all week so that I don't miss it). Hopefully some news soon on next steps.

In the meantime, Dad's hanging in. He's not feeling the best (nausea, fatigue, weakness), but he's trying to be a trooper. He even tried to change a light fixture the other day. Let's just say he's not quite ready to resume THOSE duties, or tasks that require a ladder. I'm sure the scrapes and bruise from the fall will heal quickly. :)

I'd love to give you a personal report from Dad, but I honestly haven't talked to him in several days. He's spending the waking hours at rehab, and that is exhausting him, so when he's home, a lot of times he's resting. Calls are in to the various medical professionals around town to ask about new dosages / removing some of the drugs he's on to see if that may help with the nausea/fatigue, but it may just be something he needs to fight through as the necrosis works its way through his system.

I'm sure she will never ask, but if there's ever a time that someone would want to come over and hang in the house so Mom can escape for a few hours, call her. She's going to hurt me for even putting this in here, but I know day-in and day-out of all of this can take a toll. So give her a call if you have an interest in stopping by and either hanging out with Dad, or bring over a good book to read for a few hours.

Other than that, the Nebraska-like weather has finally decided to leave Oregon. We set an all-time record for consecutive 90+ degree days. It was even HUMID! Finally today it was back to nearly normal, with the forecast getting us right back where we should be for the next few weeks.

Hope all is well with everyone!

Still waiting for the final report from the Mayo Clinic

We're waiting on the input from the docs at the Mayo Clinic on the latest MRI. The radiologist in Omaha saw some significant swelling (almost assuredly necrosis continuing), but they mailed up the MRI scan films to Rochester to get their opinion.

Sometimes waiting in the hardest part.

Dad has been a little down, with anxiety and confusion adding to the problems. He's back to "thinking" that he heard something vs. it being actual truth. The sense of time is off (AM/PM), so it's a little challenging right now to keep spirits up until we get the final report. Anxiety is not something that Dad handles well, so upset stomach and headaches are showing up. Hopefully that all gets resolved when we hear the Neurologist reassure him (and us) that we just took out a large lobe of his brain, and it showed radiation damage. Everything I've read and heard or seen in the past few months has me convinced that we need to just get past this swelling and all will actually be just fine.

Convincing Dad of that is a bit harder.

He's been off the phone and the computer (mostly), so there is definite focus on getting his spirits back up and that this is necrosis working at him, and not a big, ugly tumor like he's thinking it is. Physical and Speech Therapy continue with regular visits, which is trying to hold on to muscle mass that the steroids are robbing him of -- steroids are really evil, but the alternative of not having them really isn't even an option. He needs them to keep the swelling at bay. It could be months before they're able to wean him off of them.

In the meantime, Tracy just let me know that they found Dad's sunglasses on the mantle at their house. They'd been missing for quite a while, so they decided that was reason enough to go out and get a TCBY with everyone in tow. Who can argue spending time with those four adorable grandkids, Tracy and Rich, Mom and frozen yogurt? Apparently not even Dad.

Call the house first - but if there's anyone that was looking to stop by and pay a quick visit (or a long one?), I think the company would help lift some spirits around the house. Convincing him that it takes a year to recover from the type of surgery he had, and that it was radiation necrosis and not tumor removed, is an uphill battle right now.

Strength in numbers!!

I'm off to water my plants - it's 105 in Portland today. Incredibly unusual. And this is day four of it. I want my 75 degrees and sunshine with low humidity back, please! :)

MRI and a few labs tomorrow

Well, things aren't as well as they were when Dad returned from the Mayo Clinic about five weeks ago. He's back to leaning a bit to the left, really fatigued (and sleeping quite a bit), and not quite the bundle of energy he was upon returning to Omaha.

The concern is that the necrosis is still very actively creating new swelling in areas that don't have a lot of "give" to allow for the swelling to spread out and let the brain breathe. The neurologist at the Mayo Clinic indicated that this is not entirely unusual, and that there will be ups and downs along the way until the necrosis has peaked (and that will happen). Without having my degree in Neurology, I'd predict an increase in steroids after the results of the MRI are back. The results will come back Thursday afternoon, and a meeting with the oncologist to talk about next steps.

Dad is still actively involved in PT and Speech Therapy, despite being really, really tired and not feeling up to it. It's important to keep that up, however, as the first 60-90 days after surgery offer the best chance for recovery of anything that may have been lost.

We sure missed Mom and Dad in Portland the last five days. Grandma and Tracy and baby Kaitlyn took a flight out here to meet me and Uncle Mike (who drove up from Redding, CA) for probably the best five days I've had in a long time. Lots of laughs, great scenery, and of course some good food. Next time, Mom and Dad are coming out!!

Steroids causing a few unwanted side effects. . .

I feel a little guilty. It's been nearly three weeks since my last post. It's not that I haven't been thinking of you all; it's just been a bit busy back to "normal" life. As I'm sure you can all relate, I've had a big box of things to go through next to my desk. . .since October. That got done today. Why now? Grandma is coming to Portland this week. I want the best possible impression for her, as I'd love to have her come back often. She's flying out Thursday with Tracy and little Kaitlyn. Auntie Mary is beyond excited for the visit. My house hasn't seen the likes of a cleaning effort like this in, well, years.

So back to Dad. . .

He's doing "okay." We're back into the wondering what's going on - is it new medications? Additional necrosis/swelling? Weaning off of the steroids causing problems? Lack of solid sleep since mid-June finally catching up? Not sure. Dad had a good couple of weeks upon the return from the Mayo Clinic. Incredibly energetic, starting back up with physical therapy and speech therapy to continue working on the progress made in Minnesota. The problem? He slept about three hours at a time, no matter what time of day/night. Lots of activity for him - up in the middle of the night having a snack, checking emails/news, etc. Not exactly restful.

After hitting several of the undesirable side effects of the high dose of steroids, the doctors dropped him down pretty aggressively. This has resulted (we think) in once again extreme fatigue, bad headaches, and a bit of a "fog" as he's walking around. So they increased the steroids back up yesterday (to 12mg/day from the 8mg/day dose early this week). Hopefully this will reduce the swelling and give him some relief. Poor guy. He was on top of the world, considering himself to be the luckiest guy on the planet. He's gone from doing "GREAT!" to what he calls, "Good."

There's every reason to believe that the increase in the steroids will help him with the latest symptoms, but hopefully it doesn't rear the irritability and lack of solid sleep again.

Mom is thinking that if there is a day that Dad is up to it, having friends come over and take Dad out for a convertible ride (in the VW Beetle), out to lunch, or out to coffee would be great. Call the house first, but assuming the headaches and fatigue get better within a few days, he'll be ready.

Hope you all had a fantastic 4th of July, and are enjoying the summer months.

Adjusting to life back in Omaha

The frequency of posts is likely to go down quite a bit now that things are a bit calmer and not as much to report. I think Dad is making Cox telecommunications wish they'd never offered him an unlimited calling plan, as he's burning up the minutes on the phone. He's still doing well, but the steroids (we think) are causing him to not sleep very soundly at night.

I'll get an email from him at 1AM, and then again at 5:30AM. . .so I know there's not much more than a series of naps going on back there. He still sounds good, though, but lack of a really good night of sleep is going to catch up with him. I've said it a lot, but when he's tired, everything is more difficult.

The calendar is pretty open for lunch dates, social visits, and phone calls. Just contact Dad directly there at the house or via email.

Life is returning to (and I'll borrow a term from my good friend Eric, here) the "new normal." Mom and Dad are both still pretty exhausted from the past couple of months, but something about being home in their own bed makes things just better. Stopping by for a quick visit with the grandkids and to see Tracy and Rich. . .I don't think any of us will ever take that quick pop-in for granted again after spending the time in Rochester, six hours away from familiar faces.

I'm off to Vancouver, BC, this weekend for the wedding of some good friends. It feels great to be getting on a plane again for fun, and not out of necessity. :)

Home

I look back over the last ten years or so since I've left Omaha, and there have been times I've been very anxious to get home to see everyone and spend time. That feeling I'm sure pales in comparison to the feeling Dad had last night and today as they drove back to Omaha after spending pretty much since May 3rd in Minnesota.

Short story: they're in Omaha and beyond thrilled to be there.

Longer story: so the MRI yesterday was pretty routine - in that they were getting a baseline of post-surgery. As expected, the pressure on the brain stem was greatly relieved. This has resulted in Dad keeping his eyes open nearly all of the time, steady when he walks, and going way beyond just the basics of living. He even helped Rich load the car this morning and unpack the car when they got to Omaha. It sounds simple, but he wasn't able to do those things in April and May - he was focused on just staying awake and doing the bare essentials. Amazing turn around.

The plan is to follow up at the Mayo Clinic in ten weeks. There is no further treatment of chemo at this time (because there is nothing to treat). They're going to watch him closely to ensure that all continues to go well. The MRI also showed great relief in the swelling of the brain - no longer crossing the mid-line because the brain was running out of room on the right. There is no question that the surgery saved his life, and to say he probably had weeks to live had he elected not to do the surgery is not a stretch at all.

I guess the grandkids were all super excited to see Grandma and Grandpa after such a long time, and I know that Mom and Dad were incredibly happy to see them as well. The hope is that things can get back to "normal" a bit for the summer. Dad will still have some speech therapy to do (2-4 times per week) to continue to work on some cognitive rehab, but that will be done in Omaha.

When I talked with them both today, they were both tired, but happy to be home. Dad said that leaving Rochester today was the happiest he's been to be on the road home since he left Vietnam back in 1967. After getting a few days in of some good rest in his own bed, the calendar will open up for visits, lunches out, dinners out, and spending time with the family and friends. It's unbelievable to think that he can now turn his focus to watching tee-ball games, getting little Kaitlyn to smile, telling Emily how much her eyes sparkle like a princess, and helping Sam steer clear of neighborhood traffic on his bike.

Everyone is home where they should be. Finally!

And he's out!

Not much to report, as I haven't actually been able to talk to anyone up in Minnesota outside of a few SMS text messages, but Dad did officially get out of the hospital today in time for his MRI. He completed that, and Mom and Dad are hanging around the Gonda Building where their 3:30PM appointment with the neurologist to review the results of the MRI is taking place.

Dad apparently didn't sleep well last night, but is INCREDIBLY anxious to get back to Omaha. Rich is driving up to Rochester to be there to help load the car and drive back to Omaha tomorrow morning. As always, when Dad's tired, things are a bit more difficult (following directions to complete a process, for example), but he's thrilled that he's out of the hospital and nearly home.

That's literally all I know. One would think that I could have gotten through to them on the cell phone today, but I'm sure Dad was lighting up the switchboards with his calls out that he didn't click over. As I learn more, I'll post it.

On target for getting discharged tomorrow AM - staples are OUT!

Talked to Mom this morning as Dad was just coming back from his morning PT session. They have Dad on track for getting out of the hospital quite early tomorrow (around 7:30AM) in order for him to make his 9AM appointment for an MRI down the street. Could be a hectic morning, but one that we've all been waiting for.

Dad woke up in his new room (better late than never) - more comfortable bed, an AC/heating unit that works well, and had another solid night of sleep without any eye pain. He sounds really good on the phone, and just got his staples out. Mom isn't sure who is more happy - Dad or the staff.

The neurosurgeon apparently was beside himself this morning, and couldn't get over how good Dad looked. That's a nice confidence boost for Dad to have someone that saw him a lot over the last month to say that. . .

So tomorrow - MRI and mtg with the neurologist. Then drive home Friday morning. That's the plan!

"Best I've felt in 5 years" -- Dad

Not much to report, other than Dad continues to feel really well - the best he's felt in five years according to him yesterday. He continues to get stronger by the day, and his "field trips" out to the gardens, to a park, and walks around the hospital continue. His endurance is increasing, as well as his strength and balance.

Yesterday they took Dad out to a park that had a various surfaces (bark chips, cement, grass, sand, bridges, sidewalks, gravel roads, etc.). He did just fine on all of them, and no concerns at all. It was a new place, and they "tested" him on finding his way back to the spot where they were a while ago, and he did just fine.

The best part of yesterday was that for the first time in a long time, he didn't have the pain in his right eye. He didn't know if it was the right combo of tylenol and ice packs, but it left him in the middle of the night and hasn't come back yet. This seems to be the biggest boon to his feeling better - so we all hope it continues (not sure if it's the ice, that the swelling has gone down on a particular vessel relieving pressure, or. . .?). Good riddance to the eye pain.

Staples get out tomorrow, and Dad is getting more and more excited to get home. As I'm sure Mom is too. I think Mom is going to get "Marriott Customer of the Year" for her extended stay, helping Marriott's bottom line for Q2. :)

MRI is Thursday, with the appointment directly following with the neurologist to talk about what's next. All signs point to Dad being home for Father's Day!

Routine continues in rehab

Not much to report out of Minnesota, which is a good thing. Dad has kept very busy with the PT, OT, and speech therapy the past two days. Physically, Dad is doing very well. Still not quite where they want him cognitively, however. They're a little concerned about just how well he looks, that if he were to wander off, he wouldn't raise any attention from the staff. To help mitigate such a circumstance, they've taken a few measures and are working with him a lot with finding his way "back" to where he started.

He's had his picture taken (recent picture for the security folks to be able to quickly track him down), had a wrist alarm that would go off if he left the floor (since removed as apparently they don't work all that well), and are working with him a few times a day in taking him to a new place, and then having Dad find his way back to his room. Looking for landmarks, familiar sites, etc. Not exactly reassuring for Mom who will be trying to keep tabs on him at home, but we're really glad that the medical staff is working so diligently with him on this. Dad says he won't wander off without telling anyone, but we're not entirely convinced that he understands why we're concerned.

Other than that, they're working with him on learning how to work on reading some more. His eyes tend to jump around a bit, merging words/paragraphs together. They say that will improve over time. He's doing exceptionally well with all that they are asking of him - often going over the requested amount of reps or exercises in his appointments.

Dad is going to have his follow up MRI and appointment with the neurologist on Thursday, and hopefully home on Friday. He will get his staples out on Wednesday, three full weeks after surgery. He seems to be sleeping a bit better, and is really starting to realize just how lucky he is to be walking, talking, and laughing. I can't wait for him to get home and tell you all over lunch, dinner, or tea about his experience the past month.

I can't wait for him to get home. Mom, too.

Still doing well in rehab; patterns continue for sleeping

Just talked with Dad, and I realized that I hadn't updated the blog yesterday. Bit of a long day for me getting back to Oregon, work, going through five weeks of mail, and adjusting to just being home. Of course there were a few pints of local oregon microbrews to welcome me home with some friends, so that was a nice way to end the first day back at the office in a while.

Dad has officially returned his wheelchair, and is now walking EVERYWHERE. He even took the nurse down to the chapel at the hospital yesterday. That's no small feat. It's about a 10 minute walk down there - one way. After a day of rehab where he's been doing a lot of physical activity, one would think Dad would have been tired last night. No sleep, however. Or very little. Mom is going to ask the neurologist tomorrow about possibly rearranging the dosing times for the steroids, as that can cause insomnia if taken too late in the evening.

Despite the big hopes of getting staples out this week, it looks like next Wednesday is the day to have them removed. He's still also having quite a bit of right eye pain, which again seems to be referred pain from pressure elsewhere in the brain. Hopefully as the swelling continues to decrease, that pain will go away. He's also having quite a bit of trouble reading right now (paragraphs tend to jump around on him and it's hard to stay focused on the words), but they say that should go away with further rehab, and are actively working on it.

In talking with Dad just now, he said that said he hasn't felt this good for "over a year." He's apparently walking around talking to the staff about how he's "the miracle kid here." Despite not having a good night of sleep, he sounds really strong and had a good, full day of rehab. They were just opening up a care package from Tracy and Rich and the kids when I called. They were digging in to pictures, cards from the kids, cookies and rice krispie treats. He received another care package yesterday, so he's well-stocked for treats. :)

On track for getting out next Thursday. Unsure yet if he'll be back to Omaha before the weekend as they may take the next MRI and see the neurologist while they're up there, but regardless, Mom and Dad are both ready to get back to Omaha and get settled back in.

As strong as I've heard Dad sound in months

I just talked to Dad as I walked around the Denver Airport. He sounded stronger on the phone than I've heard him in MONTHS. And this is after a really packed day of rehab. The big news of the day is that the wheelchair has been removed from his room -- for good. Dad is now walking to all of his appointments, and even got permission to start walking outside (with an escort). He's doing really well, and is even MORE ready to get back to Omaha to see everyone.

The next week and a half is going to be hard on everyone - as he continues to get stronger, his will to get back to Omaha is going to get stronger and stronger. Good luck, Mayo Clinic. :)

Hopefully some better sleep is in store for him tonight, and those staples really can't come out soon enough. The doctors are due to come in tomorrow to evaluate and plan next steps.

It's our hope that Dad is home for Father's Day - or as this year most assuredly will be called, Grandfather's Day.