June 11 Sunday

Just got off the phone with Danielle, hearing about her day in the hospital and chatting with Helen as well, who is on sleepover duty tonight.  After an OK sleep last night, Danielle woke up feeling nauseous and threw up – a frustrating turn of events when we are hoping that every day is a little bit better instead of worse.  Pain management and control of nausea and heartburn is an issue that we hope will be smoothed out after a visit from the acute pain service today, who have switched things up after the PCA pump was taken away yesterday.  Instead of fast-acting pain relief which knocks her out for a few hours only to wake up in agony, they have switched her now to a longer-acting version of the medication she was on before, administered three times a day with the ability to top up pain relief as needed.  The hope is that they can stay ahead of the pain and nausea instead of running into a pain crisis every few hours.  Already on the phone this evening she sounded better and also more hopeful about having a better pain management plan – there is something comforting about having a bit of a plan.  Control of the nausea and heartburn will also be beneficial to increasing appetite, as her food intake has been very low (I think it was just a creamsicle today along with the electrolytes in her IV fluids)

The surgeon was in to see her today and discuss some of the concerns she has about her continuing pain.  He did agree that peristalsis (wave-like muscle contractions that move food along the digestive tract) has been slow in reactivating, but he is confident that there are no obstructions and that things should return to good functioning order in time.  This is reassuring, although it certainly would be nice to know how long it will take yet – but surgeons are not able to foretell the future of course. 

Dad and Mom were up again to visit today, and Danielle was also able to sit outside for a bit with Carina – so nice to enjoy the fresh air, even during a heat wave.  A big highlight today was a visit from Martha, who was quite happy to see her Mommy after such a long absence.  There were lots of things for her to see and absorb, some questions about Mommy’s PICC line and “when are you coming home?”, and I am sure there will be more questions as she churns these things around in her mind.  Danielle did some reading with her and got some good snuggles in, and when it was time to go, Martha was happy to have her Mommy accompany her as far as the elevator before parting ways and going home.  Certainly this is a huge adjustment for her, and we are thankful that she has handled the upheaval fairly well.

Danielle and Timothy were able to listen in to the audio portion of their church service this morning – it is a strange feeling to be sitting in a hospital room on Sunday and missing out on the fellowship of the church family, especially on a day when they are celebrating the Lord’s Supper, but it is a blessing to be able to participate in this limited way.  A number of cards and encouragements came home from their church mailbox, and they are thankful for this support.  They even received a few little rocks in their mailbox, little doodle rocks with Martha and Ava’s names on them – a touching token reminiscent of their wedding favours from a few years ago. 

Devotions tonight come from the comforting words of Psalm 139, knowing that the Lord knows all things, that He sees us in our struggles and He takes perfect and complete care of us always:

You have searched me, Lord, and you know me.

You know when I sit and when I rise;

You perceive my thoughts from afar.

You discern my going out and my lying down;

You are familiar with all my ways. 

Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely.

You hem me in behind and before,

And you lay your hand upon me.

Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,

Too lofty for me to attain.

Psalm 139:1-6

Prayer requests:

For patience and easing of frustration as we wait for today’s pain management plan to hopefully keep pain under control and make for a better day again tomorrow

For Timothy as he begins his new job tomorrow