We got da call!!!

Prayin.. and great to hear about the transplant!!!

Tasha,

No post this morning. Shall we worry?  Last we heard they were going to check out Ray's bleeding at the graft site....maybe do some extra fixing things up. 

They promised they were going to reopen Mike for 5 days...every day the same thing....Ultra Sound and then a discussion...will the bleeding resolve?  Should they go back in?  But they didn't in the end. He came home with that icky abdominal drain...that stuff is nasty..but better out than in.  Make sure they show you how to empty it if he is coming home with it. They took it out and put a couple of stitches in when it slowed to a trickle. They have to keep track of how often you have to empty it.

And they kept him in ICU while they were deciding...close to the TP OR.

Some need to be intubated a while, but they pulled Mike's the second morning.

And he hated that nasal tube almost as much as the respirator! That went a day later I think...he fussed that he needed something to drink ,but that wasn't possible cause they needed to get the rest of the fluids from the surgery out of his stomach before he took any nourishment by mouth. It was disconcerting with him complaining. But they let him chew on ice chips and I moistened his mouth with some flavored sponge thingie.

The central line came out next...that tube in the neck made him look like a man from outer space.

And we found out later he didn't even realize he had a catheter.  It never occurred to him he wasn't peeing!

They left the various IVs in til he went home in case they needed to do things. It would make returning to surgery easy as they had him all plumbed up for various IVs and anesthesia.

I think is was 4 or 5 days before he wanted juice or jello...the system just needed to calm itself down before it took on that digestion thing. AND, with no recent food, they could go back in any time without an NPO wait.

One of the TP folks before me posted a picture of her hubby the day after TP and it helped me to see what was coming. I should to that for the newer folks myself. I have a couple of good ones.

Let us hear from you today please...regardless of the news.

Hugs,

Carol

From your lips, Connie, to God's ear!

Tasha,
Just now catching up on posts. So happy to hear that your husband got the call. Like Connie said, I hope that you are busy resting. Please post back soon and let us know how Ray is doing.
Keeping you and Ray in my prayers.

Emma

Sorry everyone for the delayed reply. I went to church this morning and service went over, as there was a guest pastor. Church was awesome and much needed. I did get some sleep after I heard he was doing okay.

Dr. called me last night, and said they didn't see any seeping at the area, but there was a lot of blood in his abdomen. They sucked out the excess blood and cleaned up the area, and they were going to continue to monitor him, and give him more blood products. His hemoglobin went down to a 6, which they wanted to get back up. The doctor said that is expected due to the excessive transfusions prior to transplant. He said it typically takes the liver 48-72 hrs to start functioning.

8:30 AM, spoke to nurse and his blood was at 8.5, bilirubin down from 30,12 post-transplant, then this AM it was 6. His bp was elevated, but started normalizing after bp meds. He was given Lasix to help with urine output, as they were concerned with the amount of fluids he was getting and not enough output.

2:00 PM, went to visit. He looked good. He was getting more blood, as his number was 7.6 and they like to see it in the 8's. His bilirubin was down to 5.4. His bp was stable. The nurse said they have to keep him sedated, but if they don't administer the meds on time and there is a lapse he wakes up. She said he is really strong cause he managed to use his tongue to pull the tube out of his mouth. She said he has a really strong tongue, lol. She said he is really strong and she believes he will do great post-transplant cause he has the will. She said the liver is starting to pick up function, and it seems to be a really good liver. I pray it is. She told me the drs were surprised he was alert, walking, and talking prior to transplant with a MELD well over 40. I told her God was always protecting my hubby He did try to say something when I was there talking to him, so I had to tell him to get some rest and I will be back. He then closed his eyes. I guess he's trying to be obedient, lol.

The nurse was very optimistic about his progress and believes he will do well post-transplant.

Again, I thank y'all so much for the prayers and concerns.

Tasha

Post Edited By Moderator (hep93) : 7/14/2013 8:33:52 PM (GMT-6)

Hep93, yea my thoughts exactly But as far as sedated for rest and due to the tube still being in his mouth. They also want to make sure they don't have to go back in and correct any seeping. She said they will take it out tomorrow, as he is really responding well. All of his liver enzymes have went down, bilirubin now 4.5. They are really watching his kidney function.

His skin looks good now. My mom was so impressed with how it looks. Why was your youthful skin so short lived?

Much Love,
Tasha

Don't know, Tasha. Maybe because I still have hep C and it started attacking my new liver about a month post-transplant.

Hugs,
Connie

Lots of blood work after transplant. In fact, every day for awhile. My enzymes were normal for about a week post transplant and then started rising, as did other lab values. With me, it began affecting my liver after a month. For David, it was a year. I was quite disappointed that it was only a month for me. BTW, they had to open me up again at 6 mos. post-transplant, due to an incisional infection. I had LOTS of big problems after that. Hopefully, that will not be the case with your hubby, Tasha, or your mom, WD.

Hugs,
Connie

@ hep93...wow!!! I hope your doing better now. You have been through a lot!

@ tasha...so anxious to hear about how your hubby is doing. I am sure you must be catching up on your rest...update us when you can

I think David, that you're the only one I've talked to that was able to hold off that long, good for you :)

You'll get there, Connie...

Hi Tasha.

We haven't heard from you in a while...how's your hubby doing? Hope that all is well. Update us when you have an opportunity.