Day 4 on ECMO: waiting for lungs

UPDATE:  My children have talked me into going out to dinner with them tonight.

Day 4 on ECMO, September 3.  Alexandra is working from the hospital, as am I.  At least, I am trying.  Looking at essays, making sure my students know their due dates.  I will be working with them online pretty much from here on out….Randy is waiting on lungs, and when they come, I will need to be here even more, assisting with recovery.  I am staying on top of the students….many of them late with essays.  But what else is new?  So far they are at least writing. I’ve been getting a bit of grief from my daughter about being here all day.  I come up about 9a, leave around 8p or so.  She thinks I should not be sitting “vigil”.  However, it is not a vigil, I want to be here with Randy because that is how we roll.  I know that my voice and presence is known to him even though he is completely sedated, I know he hears the voices of his children when they visit.  I spoke with one of my favorite docs on Randy’s team, he has kind and soulful eyes, and he says Randy is strong and ready for lungs.  They just need the lungs.  As I have said before, the pulmonary group/transplant team here at UT Southwestern is wonderful….the nurses are so kind.  Randy has two nurses watching all of his vitals, blood tests, breaths, 24/7.  They love my Great white shark adventure, and they actually found the photo on National Geographic.  Rodrigo entered it in the photo contest 2011 and 2012.  So I’ll publish it here for fun.  http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/photo-contest/2011/entries/95503/view/?fb_action_ids=10201209954749272&fb_action_types=og.likes&fb_source=other_multiline&action_object_map=%7B%2210201209954749272%22%3A10150380843109201%7D&action_type_map=%7B%2210201209954749272%22%3A%22og.likes%22%7D&action_ref_map=%5B%5D Randy LOVES telling that story, and shows everyone he meets the photos.  They are calling me Shark Girl around here now.

I meet so many people:  I met a couple yesterday whose father received lungs Friday night, a 70 year old professor, and he is doing very well.  Then there is Mary, who is here every day with me, her husband had a lung transplant a year ago, at age 69, and has been in and out of the hospital ever since.  His kidneys have failed, his heart is bad….she sits here, or with him, every day.  She is such a nice woman. There is the young woman who has a dad here who had a heart transplant that did not go well….there are heart transplant and lung transplant patients on the floor who are out of ICU and walking around, recovering.  There are a million stories here.

Just made my rounds…what are my rounds?  They consist of going to see Randy, and eavesdropping on as many doctor (especially surgeons) as possible.  Today they changed a couple of settings for Randy and I heard the surgeon say, “it’s good to avoid complications in advance”.  His settings have further improved his stats. I have my yoga mat for the bad moments…the moments when the fear overwhelms me, when I cannot breathe.  Forward fold, eagle, pigeon…..all good for relaxation.  I also do balancing poses.  Keep the fear at bay and be happy and chipper for Randy.

Again, no matter what you believe in, don’t believe in, doubt, say a prayer, send a positive thought or some healing energy. Atheist, agnostic, catholic, protestant, jew, muslim, yogi….we are all one.  Sending out positivity cannot hurt.