Keep my wife in your prayers
- Thread starter RetiredUSNChief
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Keeping the proverbial fingers crossed and hoping for a great outcome.
Late seeing this: offered a prayer for each of you.
OP
Well... Sunday.
Saturday the Dr. of the blood vessels came in to do his show and tell about what he found.
Right leg has the better circulation with the vessel disease below the knee. She's got pink toes in that foot, especially when elevated. But the vessels aren't in a good enough condition to do anything with. Right now, they're leaving it alone and hoping that improvement in heart circulation over time will improve the vessel and flow in that leg.
The left leg, however, is worse. Blue/purple toes. The vessel disease extends from the right down to the ankle.
Right now, the "hail Mary" is to remove the vessel from the lower abdomen to her ankle, turn it around, and put it back. The caveat is he's not sure the vessel is healthy enough at her ankle to take the stitching. That's where he start the operation first... to check that end before going any further.
So he and the cardiologist need to talk to see if he heart can handle this. If this is the route we go, surgery will be this week sometime.
The goal here is not to lose a limb. Long term wound care would be required.
Her kidneys have picked up a bit so that's good. Her blood sugar has stabilized without insulin, so that's good. But then she wasn't eating much last week.
Yesterday she did eat well, though. So that's good. Her appetite was better, her appearance better. This morning her blood sugar was good, too. That could mean her diabetes might be largely diet controlled, with minimal insulin required.
And that's where we stand now.
Saturday the Dr. of the blood vessels came in to do his show and tell about what he found.
Right leg has the better circulation with the vessel disease below the knee. She's got pink toes in that foot, especially when elevated. But the vessels aren't in a good enough condition to do anything with. Right now, they're leaving it alone and hoping that improvement in heart circulation over time will improve the vessel and flow in that leg.
The left leg, however, is worse. Blue/purple toes. The vessel disease extends from the right down to the ankle.
Right now, the "hail Mary" is to remove the vessel from the lower abdomen to her ankle, turn it around, and put it back. The caveat is he's not sure the vessel is healthy enough at her ankle to take the stitching. That's where he start the operation first... to check that end before going any further.
So he and the cardiologist need to talk to see if he heart can handle this. If this is the route we go, surgery will be this week sometime.
The goal here is not to lose a limb. Long term wound care would be required.
Her kidneys have picked up a bit so that's good. Her blood sugar has stabilized without insulin, so that's good. But then she wasn't eating much last week.
Yesterday she did eat well, though. So that's good. Her appetite was better, her appearance better. This morning her blood sugar was good, too. That could mean her diabetes might be largely diet controlled, with minimal insulin required.
And that's where we stand now.
OP
Something I've noticed.
Not a lot of visitors/family seem to actually "do" much. I'm sure some do, though.
I do a LOT of the "menial" work for my wife in the hospital. Not because the staff sucks at it, but because it needs to be done and I'm not going to sit on my *$$ and do nothing about it.
The staff is fantastic. But I can handle changing bed linen, running down ice, keeping things neat and tidy, helping my wife to and from the bathroom, and a whole lot of stuff that doesn't involve the "medical" stuff the staff has to do.
I need help when shifting my wife up in bed, that's about it.
Staff is very responsive to requests.
But they are BUSY. Not once have I ever seen a single staff person "playing on a phone" on any shift.
I wish more people would take a hand in such roles for their family/friends when they visit or stay. I'm sure some do. It would allow the staff to devote more time to the medical side of patient care, knowing somebody is able to help with the time consuming menial work that also has to be done.
Not a lot of visitors/family seem to actually "do" much. I'm sure some do, though.
I do a LOT of the "menial" work for my wife in the hospital. Not because the staff sucks at it, but because it needs to be done and I'm not going to sit on my *$$ and do nothing about it.
The staff is fantastic. But I can handle changing bed linen, running down ice, keeping things neat and tidy, helping my wife to and from the bathroom, and a whole lot of stuff that doesn't involve the "medical" stuff the staff has to do.
I need help when shifting my wife up in bed, that's about it.
Staff is very responsive to requests.
But they are BUSY. Not once have I ever seen a single staff person "playing on a phone" on any shift.
I wish more people would take a hand in such roles for their family/friends when they visit or stay. I'm sure some do. It would allow the staff to devote more time to the medical side of patient care, knowing somebody is able to help with the time consuming menial work that also has to be done.
OP
Monday my wife had a vascular ultrasound in which the vein looked good in her left leg for bypass surgery. So it was a go for surgery yesterday.
The Dr. started the surgery at her ankle so he could verify the suitability of the blood vessel for the procedure prior to completely opening up her leg for the bypass.
Unfortunately, the vein end at her ankle is too small (about 1 mm) to accommodate the stitching required. So they backed out and stitched up her ankle as-is.
So...now we're at the same place as with her right leg, namely long term wound care.
The hope now is that with her diabetes and blood pressure under control, and her kidney function improving, that elevation and general would care/treatment may eventually improve circulation to the point it was about three weeks ago, before the scales tipped the balance.
Her heart is stable, too, so there's that.
So long as infection doesn't set in, and she doesn't experience unbearable pain, amputation should not be required.
Here right leg is very pink, down to her toes.
Her left foot still has blue/purple toes, but I can see some deep red there as well. So it looks like things ARE improving. It's just going to be slow and tedious.
We had a short talk last night about her frustrations with people getting on her nerves about this.
Basically, I told her that we are saying/doing what we are because we care, and because of how she got here she should expect people to be quite blunt and plain spoken about it.
Out oldest daughter IS going to do what she does best...be harshly blunt about what she needs to be doing. Our son WILL do what he does best...point out that she's the reason why she's in this mess in the first place.
Being told she has to keep her legs elevated whenever not actually getting up and moving around is bound to get on her nerves, I told her. But it wouldn't take very long just sitting in a chair with her legs hanging down "because it feels better" to mess all this improvement up.
So... now we wait.
The Dr. started the surgery at her ankle so he could verify the suitability of the blood vessel for the procedure prior to completely opening up her leg for the bypass.
Unfortunately, the vein end at her ankle is too small (about 1 mm) to accommodate the stitching required. So they backed out and stitched up her ankle as-is.
So...now we're at the same place as with her right leg, namely long term wound care.
The hope now is that with her diabetes and blood pressure under control, and her kidney function improving, that elevation and general would care/treatment may eventually improve circulation to the point it was about three weeks ago, before the scales tipped the balance.
Her heart is stable, too, so there's that.
So long as infection doesn't set in, and she doesn't experience unbearable pain, amputation should not be required.
Here right leg is very pink, down to her toes.
Her left foot still has blue/purple toes, but I can see some deep red there as well. So it looks like things ARE improving. It's just going to be slow and tedious.
We had a short talk last night about her frustrations with people getting on her nerves about this.
Basically, I told her that we are saying/doing what we are because we care, and because of how she got here she should expect people to be quite blunt and plain spoken about it.
Out oldest daughter IS going to do what she does best...be harshly blunt about what she needs to be doing. Our son WILL do what he does best...point out that she's the reason why she's in this mess in the first place.
Being told she has to keep her legs elevated whenever not actually getting up and moving around is bound to get on her nerves, I told her. But it wouldn't take very long just sitting in a chair with her legs hanging down "because it feels better" to mess all this improvement up.
So... now we wait.
You knew the deal when you married her. This is what it takes to love a stubborn person.
Chuckman
Senior Member
I am sorry y'all are having to walk this road. I am very happy you are in a place with good care. Diabetes is such an insidious disease, and poor management has downhill consequences on so many other things.
Hang in there. She is lucky to have someone who can help her. Not everyone does. I know how much a difference it makes personally. My wife and i have been through some tough times in hospitals as well.
NCLivingBrit
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My experience working the hospital was most folks just want to bring 10 people in and demand free food for everyone.
OP
Yeah, that's what I tell people!
I have been following this thread quietly, with deep concern about the medical issues - and for you and your family.
Know every day that people do care and are rooting for you and a swift, positive outcome of the treatment, even if you can't see or hear it.
Know every day that people do care and are rooting for you and a swift, positive outcome of the treatment, even if you can't see or hear it.
DrScaryGuy
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Be glad she has visitors other than you.
She probably doesn't know it, and it sounds like she would never admit it, but going into the hospital and having nobody show up to visit is hard on people.
Way back just after high school, a young, pretty, popular girl I knew got hit with chron's. I wasn't really friends with her, but I was hanging out with somebody that knew her better than me. We decided to stop in to the hospital and visit her. Turns out nobody else had been up there to see her. She'd been in for a week or two, and all the many many friends she thought she had just went about their lives without her, and it hurt her pretty bad.
I don't think I've said it here, but my first date with my wife was in the hospital. I met her at a concert and she said she was going in for a surgery in a day or two. I told her i'd come visit because my lab was close and i was in the hospital all the time anyway. So when she was able to have visitors, she let me know. It wasn't really meant to be a date, or the start of anything, but that's how it turned out.
Had I not known about the one girl not getting visited by anybody, I never would have thought to go visit this new girl i met "just in case" her friends didn't show up.
And then I lost my privacy, my alone time, a big chunk of my income, my ability to go drink and party and date freely, etc. And I haven't had a moment's peace in about 12 years.
Hospital food...no thanks
OP
Well...she's home again!
Just picked up a basket full of meds at CVS. And a bag of wound care stuff, too. Still gotta get a box of petralatum xeroform dressings.
Load of linen in the dryer, bowl of chicken noodle soup with a diet lemonade ready.
I'm beat, I haven't showered since yesterday, and I'm supposed to see the late showing of Godzilla with Boy.
Just picked up a basket full of meds at CVS. And a bag of wound care stuff, too. Still gotta get a box of petralatum xeroform dressings.
Load of linen in the dryer, bowl of chicken noodle soup with a diet lemonade ready.
I'm beat, I haven't showered since yesterday, and I'm supposed to see the late showing of Godzilla with Boy.
Good to be home 👍
OP
Cool! Thanks!
I just texted it to her...at 12:30 AM!
She'll see it in the morning!
OP
By the way... I've got several phone numbers from various friends of hers, in case she gets persnickety about find what she's supposed to.
Including to the hospital ward she was in! If she gives us lip about elevating her legs, I told her I'll call the hospital floor and have one of the MANY nurses and assistants who took care of her read her the riot act!
😁
Including to the hospital ward she was in! If she gives us lip about elevating her legs, I told her I'll call the hospital floor and have one of the MANY nurses and assistants who took care of her read her the riot act!
😁
Good.
Now get back up here and get to work so you can pay for this whole adventure.
NCLivingBrit
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It's good to have backup. I used to feed necessary ideas through my wife's mother because she never listened to me.
Glad she's back home and doing better mate.
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OP
Aaaaaand...back in the hospital.
I'm back up in Virginia for work and Beth's sister (and the kids) let me know she's back in the hospital today for suspected internal bleeding.
Black stool and apparently red in vomit.
HOWEVER...the vomit may be a non-issue. One up-chucking was clear fluid... the other was a bit after drinking some cranberry juice and something red she had eaten, and Beth said that had a taste to it of what she had eaten.
She's still not eating like she should (meaning appetite-wise...as opposed to carb-wise). So the stool issue could be related to that.
She didn't have any signs of internal bleeding the last couple weeks while in the hospital, so that's good.
I'm thinking at this point it's a case of "better safe than sorry", given her somewhat less than optimal heath right now while dealing with long term wound care.
Oh... and maybe it's related to the TONS of antibiotics pumped into her while she was there, not to mention the oral antibiotic prescribed when she went home (amoxacillin). I know antibiotics can be harsh, and she had several types.
Here's hoping that's the case and it's not serious!
I'm back up in Virginia for work and Beth's sister (and the kids) let me know she's back in the hospital today for suspected internal bleeding.
Black stool and apparently red in vomit.
HOWEVER...the vomit may be a non-issue. One up-chucking was clear fluid... the other was a bit after drinking some cranberry juice and something red she had eaten, and Beth said that had a taste to it of what she had eaten.
She's still not eating like she should (meaning appetite-wise...as opposed to carb-wise). So the stool issue could be related to that.
She didn't have any signs of internal bleeding the last couple weeks while in the hospital, so that's good.
I'm thinking at this point it's a case of "better safe than sorry", given her somewhat less than optimal heath right now while dealing with long term wound care.
Oh... and maybe it's related to the TONS of antibiotics pumped into her while she was there, not to mention the oral antibiotic prescribed when she went home (amoxacillin). I know antibiotics can be harsh, and she had several types.
Here's hoping that's the case and it's not serious!
Prayers again Sir!
Amoxicillin can tear your guts up. Just a thought, and sorry to intrude, but maybe some plain Greek yogurt might help? It’s good for restoring gut microbes from antibiotics and high protein / low sugar for someone whose diabetic.
OP
Well, doctor says it's looking more and more like havoc caused by all the antibiotics, like we were thinking!
She's off antibiotics now and on probiotics.
Makes sense, as massive amounts of several antibiotics, by IV no less, over nearly two weeks would essentially obliterate the bacterial flora in her intestines.
Not to mention taking oral antibiotics afterwards on little to no food.
Tests aren't showing blood from internal bleeding.
She's on a probiotic regimen now.
YAY! Some GOOD news for a change!
😃
She's off antibiotics now and on probiotics.
Makes sense, as massive amounts of several antibiotics, by IV no less, over nearly two weeks would essentially obliterate the bacterial flora in her intestines.
Not to mention taking oral antibiotics afterwards on little to no food.
Tests aren't showing blood from internal bleeding.
She's on a probiotic regimen now.
YAY! Some GOOD news for a change!
😃
More prayers for y’all .
Prayers sent brother!
How do you suppose it works that antibiotics and probiotics do the same thing?