Saturday: I did some thinking over the events of the last two weeks. While Randy was in ICU I met 2 women at different times. They had each brought in their husband and had no one else with them. I was able to pray with one of them and give her comfort. The other did not want comfort. Each of them lost their husbands that week but it might have been too late when they arrived. I was saddened to learn that Jeanie’s husband, Johnny, had died and I never got to say goodbye to her. 

There was another man in the unit who had received an LVAD in March and had not been able to go home due to different infections. Another man with an LVAD was being treated for a fungal infection that was destroying his organs. I think the doctors may have wanted to get us in a different environment so we would not be discouraged by these events. Then as I was walking into the hospital on Saturday I encountered a man who received his LVAD 16 months ago. He was doing exceptionally well. His mother did not speak English but was encouraging to me in spite of it.

I went to the hospital in the afternoon to see Randy. He said for the first time ever his defibrillator went off, giving him a small shock. This might be a good thing as his heart starts working to some normalcy. The other chambers of the heart might actually begin to improve in function. 

Sunday: A lot has changed in the last two days. Randy has been eating breakfast, lunch and dinner. Yesterday he was out walking the halls but he didn’t get propositioned. I spent a few hours with him in the afternoon. Unfortunately they did put him back on a catheter but are working on getting the plumbing to work better.

Monday: I spent all day with Randy today. He has 4 different therapists – physical, occupational, recreational, and respiratory. Together they give him a busy schedule. Tomorrow the doctors will be having their conference to determine how well each patient is doing and then they will make rounds about 11:00. I’m planning on being there but do expect Randy will be in the hospital another week to 10 days. 

Today he played a game of chess for occupational therapy but I won’t tell you how quickly the game ended. I need to send our son, Joshua, over to give him a workout. In occupational therapy he had to roll a key shaped object with Velcro hooks on it up and down a board with Velcro loops on it. One would think this is very mundane, and it is, but will help him to develop those muscles that have atrophied for so long. The manual dexterity involved will help him to maneuver when connecting the pump drive line and battery leads to keep his pump running. He also walked 400 feet. 

Physical therapy has included riding a bicycle with his feet, his hands and feet, and then just his hands. This has brought about the first twinge of discomfort in his chest muscles but Tylenol took care of that. They are still working on his bladder so please pray that God will bring healing.

There has been a new tenderness between us also. Randy is grateful for all of the minute things I do for him each time I see him. I thank God for our relationship but even more for the time we will now have together.

I discovered when I came that Randy’s exit site was draining. This should not be happening and I let the LVAD team know. Evidently someone changed the dressing on Saturday and didn’t put the pigtail in the lead to avoid it being pulled. I did do the sterile dressing change today. It was interesting to say the least, but I did a good job. I didn’t puke at the oozy-gooey yucky part of the change and that was the hardest part.

In all of our encounters we continue to meet people from other cultures. We have had one nurse and nurse practitioner from Kenya. We have a nurse from the Philippines, doctors from India, more nurses from Nigeria and a respiratory therapist who spent his early years in Nicaragua. One of his technicians at St. Paul attends church at IBOC and we had a race to see who could draw a card faster to give to one of the other nurses. 

I want to reiterate that God’s orchestration has been so perfect in Randy’s hospitalization and surgery. We praise His name in all that he has done and arranged. I thank him that He prompted me not to wait too late to make Randy come in and that the right doctors were available at the right time. God is so good!