Sunday 4/19/09

Hello Everyone,
Don is still in rehabilitation here in Greer. He has been enjoying Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, and Speech Therapy every day  He has walked with a walker a number of times and has actually walked on his own a couple of times, though he did have two people by his side just in case. The bed sores continue to heal and his speech is improving. He went into the surgeon’s office on Thursday with the expectation of having the chest tube removed but due to some residual fluid in the lung the tube still remains. Friday he had a bronchoscopy and will find out the results next week. Sandra was able to fly out and visit during spring break last week and Brett has been visiting this week for spring break. It has been a great source of encouragement for Don to have them around.

Sunday 3/29/09

Greetings to all, Don is now in a rehabilitation center in Greer. He was transferred Thursday. It is a very new facility and the staff working there have been especially attentive to his needs. Monday he begins physical therapy and occupational therapy twice a day. He is improving daily. We look forward to seeing an increase in the rate of his recovery. We are very thankful for all the love and support everyone has given.

For we walk by faith, not by sight I Cor. 5:7

Monday 3/23/09

Hey Everyone, Don is progressing every day. His kidneys and lungs are healing. He still has a chest tube that continues to drain the infection out of his lungs but he completed the antibiotics yesterday. He is very week right now so Physical Therapy and Occupational Therapy work with him daily. Due to the weakness and the medications he has experienced some disorientation and therefore frustration. He so wants to get out of there. We continue to call forth the Spirit of God within Don to line his body and mind up. He will have another x-ray of his lungs Thursday to see how his lungs are doing. We are standing on Faith that he will be released to Rehab this Friday. Please continue to pray for the following:
(1) Complete restoration of his kidneys,
(2) Complete restoration of his lungs,
(3) Increase strength to his body,
(4) Continued cleansing of his blood,
(5) Protection of his mind,
(6) Peace to his soul,
(7) He will be able to move into the rehab facility this Friday,
(8) And especially thanksgiving to Papa for His presence.

Sunday 3/15/09

Hey There,
Don is in a room of his own now. He has had a few struggles, kidneys and lungs, yet God is clearly faithful. When he left the ICU he had two chest tubes and at this time he has one which is to be removed this week. He will begin Physical Therapy two times a day Monday. Please continue to focus prayers on the following:
(1) The Spirit of God will line his mind and body up in perfect health,
(2) Renewal of his kidneys,
(3) Purification of his blood,
(4) Restoration of his heart and,
(5) Joy to his soul :).
Once again, thank you sooooo much for all the prayers and support, we have truly experienced the meaning of Koinonia. It’s amazing what our Father shows us in such a time as this.

Tuesday 3/10/09

The surgery went as expected. Thank You Papa! There were two areas on the left lung that had died, between the size of a half-dollar and a quarter. They were sewn up and expected to close as they heal. He will be in ICU while on the respirator and expected to be off that tomorrow.

Monday 3/9/09

The doctors removed the dialysis catheter Thursday, Yea. The kidney function tests have been stable till yesterday. Docs think it may be due to inadequate fluid intake so they have put him on IV fluids and will check again tomorrow. At this time he still has some remains of the pneumonia surrounding his lungs and surgery scheduled tomorrow to clean it out. He was scheduled to be released to a very good rehabilitation facility today which was close to home but that was canceled due to the need for surgery.
Please focus prayers on the following:
(1) Peace to his mind,
(2) Restful sleep,
(3) Complete healing & renewal of his kidneys,
(4) Complete healing & renewal of his lungs,
(5) Wisdom and precision for doctors,
(6) The room at the rehabilitation facility to remain available when he is released from the hospital. Thanks again for all the prayers and support.

Wednesday 3/4/09

Hey Everyone, Sorry for not blogging for a few days. Don is giving the medical staff much grief. He’s ready to leave the hospital and has attempted to persuade several folks to help him break out. He is working with Physical Therapy every day. This will speed up his release. At this time he doesn’t have the strength to get out of bed. The Spirit is willing, but his body needs to line up. We continue to speak complete restoration to his kidneys. I was finally able to speak with the doctors today. They were encouraged to see his kidneys doing much better than a week ago. He has not been on dialysis since Saturday. His kidney functions are still not in the normal range. Labs are drawn daily to decide whether or not to perform dialysis. Thank you soooooo much for all your love, support and prayers. WE WILL TAKE THIS MOUNTAIN AS ONE!!!!! :)

Friday 2/27/09

Last night Don was moved to his own room. The chest tube was removed a few hours after he arrived. This afternoon he was able to eat for the first time in two weeks. He was not on dialysis today so they can test how his kidneys are doing on their own. Physical Therapy is going to try and get him out of bed and into a chair later this evening. Again a doctor, the Pulmonary specialist, noted that it’s been a miracle to see how quickly he is progressing considering how sick he was. Thank You Papa. Please continue to stand in agreement for healing over his kidneys.

Thursday 2/26/09

Good news, he has been transferred to a room.

Wednesday 2/25/09

When I arrived in ICU today the nurse told me that they were not comfortable with taking Don off the ventilator yet because he had not been able to sustain his breathing for very long. Don had been giving a number of folks grief about getting the tube out of his throat. While I was there the pulmonary specialist realized that there was a large hole in the tube going down his throat. After consulting with other doctors and with Don it was agreed to take the tube out. After standing in agreement with healing life breathed into his lungs. He is now breathing freely. So glad Papa is in control. Please continue to shout health and healing to his lungs. No more respirator. He has asked me to help him get out of bed so he can walk around with the dialysis machine. That’s my love.

Tuesday 2/24/09

Yesterday Don had a trial run breathing without the respirator. He lasted about an hour before they put him back on. He needs to build the muscle back up. Doc says that when the lungs don’t have to work for a while they get lazy and so they need to build back up. He is on dialysis again today. The kidney function tests show that the dialysis is getting the junk out of the blood (BUN – 45 and Creatine – 2.9). His WBC is down to 13,800. Dialysis also helped decrease fluid retention throughout the body. Please continue prayers over his kidneys. They will test in the morning and decide whether or not dialysis will be perform again tomorrow.

He is much more alert now. He continues to let the nurses know he’s ready to get the tube out of his mouth and nose and walk out of the hospital. He often asks for water to drink. All he gets is a damp sponge. The doc says he is progressing in leaps and bounds considering how sick he was. She states that it is truly a miracle how he’s come through this. We’re expecting a miraculous complete recovery. Thank you Papa.

Sunday 2/22/09

Hey everyone, Don was able to breathe on his own again today with mild support from the ventilator. An X-ray was done and found some fluid around the left lung so they are in the process of draining that off right now. It will help him to breath better. He has a slight temp so they will do a blood culture and see what’s causing it. He was not on the dialysis today. They will do a blood gases test and decide whether he will need it tomorrow. Please continue focused prayers on his kidneys. This morning his WBC was 19,700 – Creatine - 3.2 and BUN - 48. Those numbers are getting better. We are standing in agreement that the Spirit within Don continues to line his body up to work the way God created it to and into full restoration. Thanks for all your love, support and prayers.

Saturday 2/21/09

Last night the doctors decided to begin weaning Don off the ventilator. Though he is still connected to the ventilator, he is breathing on his own. His kidney function labs continue to decrease which is good (Creatine 4.00, BUN 63.00). His WBC is 22,700 today but the nurse says that’s a normal fluctuation. Today is his third day of dialysis. The doctors will monitor him on a day to day basis as to whether there is a need to continue with it. Please continue in agreement with total restoration of his strong young body. Brett, Sandra & Cliff returned to California this morning since Don’s healing is continuing to move forward. Caleb is catching up on his school work this weekend and I am planning to get back to work this Monday. Thank you all for the support, both in prayer and in the practical day to day living. God has been very present in this experience and given us eyes to see his movement, of this I am truly grateful.

Friday 2/20/09 – Morning

Labs are continuing to go down daily, which is good (WBC 21,400; Creatine - 5.5; BUN – 103). He was on 55% O2 for several days and yesterday they were able to drop it to 50%. Today it’s down to 40%. The resident Dr. states that Don is young and strong. He’s responding well to the dialysis. Once dialysis stops they will consider removing the respirator since he’s beginning to breathe more and more on his own.

Thursday 2/19/09

The day started off with Don’s WBC dropping to 28,000. Not much change in his other labs or the edema but should change over the next few days. He has responded well to the dialysis. He is more alert and feisty and has attempted to pull out his tubes. His nurses have been very attentive like angles watching over him. James had to fly home this morning but promised to give his Oupa a hard time for finally coming around just after he left. Cliff is on night duty tonight with Brett and I was able to convince Sandra to come home with me tonight and sleep in a real bed. We are looking forward to continued answers to the many prayers and watching heaven invading earth.

Wednesday 2/18/09

We just met with the nephrologist and based upon his labs (BUN 150 & Creatine 8.4) he is recommending dialysis. They will place a jugular vein access tonight and start a slow dialysis around 7:30 a.m. tomorrow morning. This will run for 8 hours a day for 3 days.

Tuesday 2/17/09 - Recap

Wednesday 2/11/09
Don went into the doctor’s office with labored breathing and a sharp pain in his left side. The doctor sent him to the ER straight away. While in the ER @ Greer Memorial it was noted that his blood pressure was very low and his temp was below normal. X-rays showed that he had a large Pneumonia in his left lung. Due to his increased labor in breathing he was sedated and put on a ventilator. He was moved into ICU at Greer and later transferred to Greenville Memorial due to challenges with his kidneys and the possible necessity of dialysis which was not available at Greer. By the end of the evening and after a number of tests, he was diagnosed with severe Sepsis.

Thursday 2/12/09
He had a rough night transitioning to Greenville.
By Thursday morning Don was on 14 IV medications hanging on 4 IV poles.
It was a minute by minute watch. Around 2:30 p.m. Don flatlined. They were able to revive him with only compressions – Praise God. At this point the kids were called to come out from California. The rest of that day was a blur… They also started Don on a powerful antibiotic, Xigris. This drug has a 3 page protocol and is used to treat severe Sepsis.

Friday 2/13/09
Cliff, Sandy and Brett flew over night and arrived at various times Friday morning. After picking up Brett and Caleb, Rod headed straight over to the hospital. You could see that bringing the family together was helping to bring strength to Don’s will. Though the situation looked grim, the Father’s presence was near. Wisdom was given to those praying over Don and Don’s Spirit responded and started lining his body up. Papa let us see how heaven invades earth by the power of our prayers.

Saturday 2/14/09
After pulling an all nighter the crew was worn out but still pushin in for healing. Twice today they pulled back on his B.P. medicine. His heart is working overtime though. His heart is PVCing, which means its timing is off. (Premature Valve Contraction) But after much pray you could see a slight decrease in PVCs.

Sunday 2/15/09
They continue to decrease the vasopressors and he is holding his pressure. His WBC count is 23,000 and creatine is 7.4 At this point he is down to four hanging IV medications.

Monday 2/16/09
Today they took Don off the the vasopressors and he has been able to hold his blood pressure. It’s also the last day of Xigris. James, Don’s grandson, arrived to support the troops. When the doctors were doing their rounds, they were able to get Don to open his eyes and when they told him to squeeze their hand, Don lifted his thumb and gave them a “thumbs up”. He went in and out of consciousness most of the day.

Tuesday 2/16/09
At this time the white blood count (WBC) is up to 35,000 and his Creatine is 7.9. It is believed that he has another bacteria, Group A Strep, which they have a specific antiobiotic for. It will take 48 to 72 hours to see if the white count is effected. His urine output has increased but his body needs to flush out all the debri left from the war within all his blood and tissues. Today he is down to three IV bags. Praise the Lord.