This morning Dr. Ugo, the positive one, the one who always spun his news in a positive light, told me that he could not guarantee that Derek would survive. I felt as if I had been punched in the gut.
All day we sat in the Day Room. Derek's two awesome nurses, various doctors, and too many machines took up the space in the room and we did not want to be under foot. We went in and out just to let Derek know that we were there.
He was septic. The infection was in his blood. Krystina's favorite color is purple, but did he really have to turn his skin purple? In an attempt to wake him up, we tried to tease him by calling him Barney. He raised his eyebrows, but he did not wake up.
His nurse last night, the wonderful Murreal Georg (who is also his nurse tonight), had moved her station into the room. The nurses today, Maj Dallas Weills and LT Leonard also kept the station in the room so they never had to leave. The respiratory therapist was on the ball. Her name is Eliana and she was so good.
His white cell count is down, which is good, but the infection still rages. His blood pressure is still too low, but they are giving him meds for that. They didn't want to have to replace the cath for the dialysis, but they had no choice. They didn't want to wait until late tonight when the staff was on the graveyard shift, and since the acid in his blood was still too high, they replaced it. But Eliana kept his breathing going, and his kidneys produced enough to lower that acid so it wasn't necessary to tax his system any more by actually doing the dialysis.
At 8 a.m. yesterday morning Derek closed his eyes. He finally opened them around 4 p.m. tonight. He wasn't quite with it, but he looked at us and seemed to recognize us. He responded to commands to open his eyes, but not to squeeze our hands or make any other movements. The CT scan last night did not show a bleed or any swelling, so we do have hope. The doctors hope that his state is simply the result of the infection and his body attempt to heal.
While we sat in the hospital, I received some mail. Gary Sinese sent two autographed pictures, and Tom Coughlin from the Giants autographed his book and sent it to Derek. Also, the Governor of Tennessee named Derek Colonel Aide de Camp!
Tomorrow is another surgery day. The doctors are hoping they do not have to cut any more bone or take any more from the leg or pelvis. With the infection still raging, it is a possibility. All we can do is pray.
Thank you for your continued support and prayers.
All day we sat in the Day Room. Derek's two awesome nurses, various doctors, and too many machines took up the space in the room and we did not want to be under foot. We went in and out just to let Derek know that we were there.
He was septic. The infection was in his blood. Krystina's favorite color is purple, but did he really have to turn his skin purple? In an attempt to wake him up, we tried to tease him by calling him Barney. He raised his eyebrows, but he did not wake up.
His nurse last night, the wonderful Murreal Georg (who is also his nurse tonight), had moved her station into the room. The nurses today, Maj Dallas Weills and LT Leonard also kept the station in the room so they never had to leave. The respiratory therapist was on the ball. Her name is Eliana and she was so good.
His white cell count is down, which is good, but the infection still rages. His blood pressure is still too low, but they are giving him meds for that. They didn't want to have to replace the cath for the dialysis, but they had no choice. They didn't want to wait until late tonight when the staff was on the graveyard shift, and since the acid in his blood was still too high, they replaced it. But Eliana kept his breathing going, and his kidneys produced enough to lower that acid so it wasn't necessary to tax his system any more by actually doing the dialysis.
At 8 a.m. yesterday morning Derek closed his eyes. He finally opened them around 4 p.m. tonight. He wasn't quite with it, but he looked at us and seemed to recognize us. He responded to commands to open his eyes, but not to squeeze our hands or make any other movements. The CT scan last night did not show a bleed or any swelling, so we do have hope. The doctors hope that his state is simply the result of the infection and his body attempt to heal.
While we sat in the hospital, I received some mail. Gary Sinese sent two autographed pictures, and Tom Coughlin from the Giants autographed his book and sent it to Derek. Also, the Governor of Tennessee named Derek Colonel Aide de Camp!
Tomorrow is another surgery day. The doctors are hoping they do not have to cut any more bone or take any more from the leg or pelvis. With the infection still raging, it is a possibility. All we can do is pray.
Thank you for your continued support and prayers.
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