Eight Days after Surgery, 11:30pm

Hello All,

Well, it would be an understatement to say that today could have gone better. Anne ran into some bumps in the road.

Anne was told that the next Barium Swallow test would be done Friday. She won't be able to think about eating, drinking, or going home till sometime after that.

Late this afternoon the surgeons team decided (what seemed suddenly) that they needed to open the incision in Anne's neck because they suspected infection around the incision. The way it sounded when this was explained to us earlier in the afternoon was that the bottom end of the incision would be tapped into and fluid would be allowed to drain. That was not the case. After I had gone for the day the surgeons came to Anne's room after supper time and let her know they were going to open the entire incision. This pretty much put Anne into a atate of shock. She totally didn't expect this, she was alone, and she was very nervous. She called me and said her body was shaking, so I came back in tonight however the job had already been done. Anne was still under the influence of the drugs from the procedure, and she was dreaming like crazy, halucinating, and talking about her dreams. She talked about how they stuck needles in her neck all up and down the incision before cutting her skin. Finally around 10pm Anne calmed down, and was resting comfortably. The incision will monitored closely and be treated so that it will heal from the inside. She is on increased anti-biotics now.

We also learned today that tomorrow Anne will be taken down to radioloty for another procedure. They need to insert tubing (I believe thru her back) and up against the lining of the lungs to drain the excess fluid that has been in there for the past few days. This fluid is the reason for Anne's breathing difficulties this past weekend. Anne isn't looking forward to this. I will be back in there first thing in the morning so I can be with her up until this procedure happens. As you can expect, Anne is anxious about this too.

Regarding the failed Barium Swallow test, the leak that was detected is expected to heal on it's own in due time.

As you can see, not alot of good news today. We look forward to these steps being completed, and that they make things easier for Anne so she can get better soon. As you can imagine, these procedures are not without risk, so please continue to keep Anne in your thoughts and prayers, and thank you for being there.

Eight Days after Surgery, 11:30am

Hi Friends,

Well, we have mixed reviews today. Anne is resting fairly comfortably, however, she is given oxygen which helps with her breathing. She still has the pulmonary effusions (excess fluid around the lungs) which is the culprit as far as Anne not being able to get deep breaths. She described it as feeling like a tight bungie cord around her chest, or a bra 3 sizes too small. Somewhat uncomfortable for her, so she does her best to relax thru it.

They swapped out her double IV pole for a single pole today. It was pretty entertaining to watch the nurses swap and move all the components with all the tubing from one pole to the other.

Anne's potasium is low, so they give that thru the IV, and at the same time they give Lasix (as a diaretic) to make her pee more to get rid of salt related fluid. It's kinda like shoveling 'you know what' against the tide, but she needs both going on at the moment.

Anne isn't generally as happy as she has been to date. She eagerly awaits a visit from the surgeon because she did not pass the 'barrium swallow test' this mornin and she wants answers as far as what that means. The test showed there is a leak in there where the surgery happened, and what we know about this so far is that it means no eating or drinking yet, nor going home yet. We'll know more about what the plan is shortly,,,, we hope.

They completed a chest catscan this morning to rule out any blood clot issues, and there is none of that. It was said that a potential cause for shortness of breath could be a blood clot that moves from the legs to the lungs. This was ruled out.

Anne is still doing the coughing and breathing exercises. She walked once today (so far) and at the moment is 'not on top of her game' so she doesn't feel like walking right now. She'll bounce back. A hospital stay can't be all fun and roses, right??

I sense she may be a bit discouraged this mornin with the recent developments, however she rests fairly comfortably with the oxygen, and she just needs to be patient as she waits for news and plans from the surgeon or others who know.

Patience is a virtue.........