Monday, January 12, 2015

This Great-Big, Teeny-Tiny World

Not too long ago, I wrote a blog post about Joe's illnesses and our time in the hospital. 
I was actually nervous to write it.
Our family and some close friends knew what was going on with Joe's health, but I knew once I put our story out there, it would be REAL. 
I have this thing where I kind of shut down and process things before I talk about them. 
It's my way.
It was actually easier to sit in the ICU with my phone off just staring at Joe and his monitors than it was to update people.

Once I was able to get my feet underneath me and articulate what had been going on, though... Wow.
You guys.
You sure know how to make people feel loved and lifted up and not alone.
Every Facebook comment, private message, email, text, phone call, treat delivery and visit made such an impact. 
Friends from high school that I haven't talked to in over a decade were sending us prayers. 
Friends and family from across the United States and around the world were cheering us on ... People were sharing our story with their people and strangers were praying for us.
It was so wonderfully overwhelming and humbling.
Joe was kind of in and out the whole time we were in the hospital but when he was "in," we were reading / listening to / discussing your sweet words and messages.

We spent nine days in the hospital. 
It feels surreal. 
Like it happened years ago. 
Or like I watched it happen to someone else. 
I don't know if that's my subconscious mind protecting me or the extreme sleep deprivation one endures in this situation, but, like I said in my previous blog, parts of our journey are fuzzy and others are crystal clear.


We are home now and Joe is on the mend. He went from panicked touch-and-go ... to the doctors thinking that he would maybe depend on an oxygen tank for the rest of his life ... to right now only needing supplemented O2 at night and as-needed --And we are hoping he can lose that in a week or two.
What an amazing turn around. 
I am so thankful to God and so grateful to all of you. 
I believe your prayers, your positive thoughts, your good ju-ju made a difference in our lives.
And, while I sincerely hope this is the very last damn blog I ever write about a health scare, I am so happy to be writing it with a heart full of gratitude and awe.
THANK YOU all so very much.
Love,
Beth&Joe 

Saturday, January 3, 2015

One Week of Mercy

Good morning from Mercy Hospital.
Today marks one week of Joe and I being here.
I have kept this off of social media because, well, things have been uncertain and for once, I haven't really known what to say.

Long story short, Joe and I have been here at the hospital for a week because he has a very bad combination of influenza and pneumonia. If you know Joe's cancer and heart history, you probably know that this is dangerous territory.

We came to the ER on Saturday afternoon and were put in the ICU late that night. Saturday night and Sunday were the scariest times either of us have ever experienced. The bottoms of both of his lungs were collapsed, his heart was racing, he couldn't breathe, and they truly didn't know if he was going to make it. I was completely helpless. Looking back, parts of those days and nights are a blur and other parts are crystal clear. It's weird.

After five days in the ICU, we were 'promoted' to the Step Down Unit. It's still on the ICU floor and can accommodate Joe's need for a large amount of supplemented oxygen but it's on a different side because he no longer requires 1:1 care.

He has had some chest pain throughout this ordeal and yesterday they noticed that the enzymes in his blood are elevated, indicating that his heart is stressed. This is tricky because they will need to do an Angiogram so they can see what's going on with his heart, but they can't do this when he is still dependent on so much supplemented oxygen. Therefore, this has been scheduled for Monday when we are all hoping he needs less oxygen.

He has made huge improvements over the last week. He has gone from needing 10 liters of O2 to needing just over six. He has gone from barely able to stand to the two of us taking a couple (slow, romantical) strolls around the halls ... with our nurse chaperoning and hauling his IV tree and O2 tank. But still. <3

We are exhausted but optimistic. We don't know what recovery will look like, we don't know if he will need an oxygen tank once we are released, we don't know what the deal is with his heart, we don't yet know what the damage is to his lungs.
BUT--I know he is insanely strong. And he inherently has an incredibly positive attitude. And we are receiving wonderful care.
And prayers help. So please send plenty of those up for our guy.

We are so happy to finally feel like we are on the 'back' end of this.  I have alternated between ugly crying and being on auto-pilot over the last week. We rang in 2015 in the ICU, for crying out loud. I feel like it's safe to say that Joe and I have really experienced a lot of ...life... in our time together. Our terrifying and exhausting week has gifted the two of us moments of candid togetherness that have been so raw. We have really gotten to know each other on some crazy levels.

I'm sure you are wondering about the kids--Max and Sam are in Fargo with their grandparents and Logan and Samma are going back and forth between their dad and Grandma Ginya. All four are being spoiled and having a blast. They know Joe has the flu but they don't know anything about the hospital or pneumonia. They will all come home on Sunday--my parents will be there--and we will decide from there if we will have them come up for a visit or how we will handle it.
Thank you to our close family and friends who have supported us this past week with messages, treats, visits, calls, and love.
And to all of you learning about this for the first time, thank you in advance for your prayers, juju, karma, etc. It helps and we appreciate it so much.

XOXO
Team Nudie